Fashion in the Metaverse
• The metaverse offers opportunities for fashion businesses to create new digital items in the virtual space.
• Fashion brands partnered with gaming platforms, betting on whether people will buy virtual outfits to customize their avatar, like they bought physical clothing for themselves in real life.
• Virtual fashions are sold in variety of ways, from gaming platform and digital pictures to augmented reality videos and non-fungible token (NFT). It’s up to how businesses pursue creative opportunities within the metaverse.
The metaverse was a buzzword on everyone’s lips in 2021 and continues to make impact on multiple industries. Fashion industry players have already stepped into this new sphere of creativity and digital experience by offering exclusive fashion items in the virtual space. For example, Gucci launched its NFT to the digital world, based on its Aria collection runway video footage. Furthermore, the virtual version of the Gucci Dionysus bag sold more than its tangible equivalent. It’s a perfection example of how consumer behaviors are shifting from physical to the digital world.
Digital fashion was already present, before the existence of the metaverse, in a form of digital items such as outfits, accessories and skins (a graphic that can change the appearance of a player’s avatar) sold or trade in video games. Realizing the tremendous opportunities, American fashion house Ralph Lauren has partnered with Roblox, a global online gaming platform, as a bet on whether people will buy virtual outfits to customize their avatars, like they bought physical clothing to dress themselves in real life.
It was not long after Roblox’s avatar of a designer, named Chris Ierino, wore Ralph Lauren digital collection. At the same time, he also bought a blue-white-red beanie and backpack, similar to the version found in the Roblox game, to wear them in real life. As a result, the digital items in the game doubled in value the following day. Other fashion brands such as Nike, Adidas and Vans World are also making a bet on whether the metaverse can boost their growth. With fashion brands investing in huge capital, this makes playing video game become even more integral to the metaverse expansion.
Although the metaverse promises a gold mine in the gaming world for the fashion industry, but virtual fashion isn’t limited to only video games. Virtual meeting platforms like ZOOM allows fashion consumers to wear virtual clothing such as dress or neck tie over their real-world outfits. What’s more, they can also wear a virtual version of a luxury jacket while posing for an Instagram photo.
Virtual fashions are sold in variety of ways, from gaming platform and digital pictures to videos that use augmented reality technology and even NFT. It’s all up to how businesses and brands are pursuing their creative opportunities within the metaverse.
Sources
• Looking good in the metaverse. Fashion brands bet on digital clothing, National Public Radio
• The metaverse phenomenon is here, GQ Thailand
https://www.gqthailand.com/style/article/fashion-industry-in-metaverse