How Fashion is Evolving in the Metaverse
The fashion industry has taken an eager approach to the blockchain since NFTs and the Metaverse began to gain more popularity. Their interest in web3 has helped promote the space with their support. So, why are so many fashion companies interested in this new ecosystem of digital collectibles?
Metaverse application
The metaverse has quickly garnered a lot of discussions since it was first announced by Mark Zuckerberg in late 2021. He visions a virtual world of digital representations of users through the use of avatars which quickly caught the attention of fashion brand companies because it offered a new platform from a branding perspective.
Expressing a digital identity on the internet has been a common focus for many since the dawn of social media. Users have slowly been able to change their social image further and further, with NFTs becoming the newest form of expression through the popular profile picture application.
As avatars become associated with our internet activity, it makes sense that fashion companies are taking a keen interest in the technology to provide digital products that can accompany the digital persona of their customers.
Fashion on the blockchain
With the rise of NFTs in 2021, many of the world’s most recognizable fashion brands have started utilizing the blockchain in various ways.
Gucci
Gucci has been one of the most eager businesses to venture into the metaverse with their active presence on Roblox and the Sandbox. Most recently, they just began accepting Apecoin in select locations, marking themselves as a distinct adopter of cryptocurrency.
2. Lacoste
Lacoste has taken a direct move towards the metaverse with their own NFT collection which is minted out. The project’s roadmap claims to have a variety of metaverse and real-world applications where the community will be able to meet and interact with each other inside and outside the virtual world.
3. Nike
Nike has taken one of the biggest shifts towards blockchain products following its partnership with RTFKT. Their collection consists of Nike branded digital sneakers which can be altered with different NFT vials which enhance the digital item with unique traits and rarities.
Competition with web3 brands
As the metaverse continues to be developed, web2 brands currently hold a significant advantage over their web3 competitors - brand recognition.
Fashion icons such as Tiffany are well-established brands that have been in business for decades, and even centuries. This type of success will be hard for web3-native brands to compete against and is something to pay close attention to.
Fashion carries a few key qualities to its products, and one of those qualities is social status. Dressing up with the nicest materials from the best designers has been seen as an expression of wealth since fashion was first conceived. Jewelry, silk, leather - they all portray an image for the person wearing it and that is no different for the avatars who will populate the metaverse.
Partnerships with blockchain companies
As more fashion icons begin to establish their web3 presence, it will require a lot of effort from smart contract developers to create the tokens and deployment onto the blockchain. For fashion designers to focus on their work, there will be a lot of new partnerships that begin to take place.
As the popularity of blockchain technology has increased, the number of companies that focus on web3 development has begun to pop up in order to provide IT services for blockchain-based products so that fashion businesses do not have to burden themselves with hiring people outside of their scope of expertise.
These new partnerships are exciting for the larger adoption of blockchain technology because it means that more jobs are being created in the space, allowing for new talent to develop their skills with the technology.
