A new survey from Roblox & Parsons School of Design suggests that digital fashion in the metaverse is a rising trend among younger generations. The survey sampled 1,000 Gen Z community members in the U.S. and found that over 70% of participants plan to spend money on digital fashion, and that 70% of people between 14-24 years of age dress their avatars similar to how they dress in real life (IRL).
Roblox also noted that many luxury fashion brands are linking Web3 technologies to physical objects and/or real-life campaigns like fashion shows or concerts. One example is NY Fashion Week, which co-existed in both the metaverse and the real world and featured top fashion brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Puma.
Decentraland’s Metaverse Fashion Week also saw a collaboration between Balmain and Vogue to produce an NFT of a dress sketch. Balmain worked with ALTAVA to create eight virtual designs from its “Above and Beyond” FW 21 collection, all of which sold out at auction.
ALTAVA is a top Web3 company working to onboard as many fashion brands as possible in Web3. The company, known for producing high-definition graphics, recently did a pop-up shop for its Bored Ape Golf Club NFT collection with the Hyundai Department Store and has upcoming collaborations with Animoca Brands and The Sandbox.
Bridging the gap between real-life and the metaverse is becoming increasingly important for fashion brands, who are beginning to realize that the metaverse is not just about immersive virtual experiences, but showcasing and selling real-life objects as well.
Digital Fashion in the Metaverse Is Exploding
For folks who’ve been paying attention to Web3 news, the survey results from Roblox shouldn’t be a surprise. At Rarity Sniper, we’ve written dozens of articles about fashion brands entering the universe. Here are our top stories.
First, the Paris-based company Dior opened its first virtual fashion experience on the metaverse platform Meta ZiWU in April. The event highlighted Dior’s 2022 fall lineup for men’s clothing and was housed inside a massive virtual building designed by real-world architect Ma Yansong.
Next, the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba opened a luxury goods store in the metaverse called Tmall Luxury Pavilion. The online store will host over 200 luxury brands and feature an augmented reality fashion show.
Lastly, just last week, the Italian luxury fashion brand Gucci debuted its Gucci Vault Land in The Sandbox metaverse. The two-week pop-up, which lasts until November 9th, showcases the company’s Web3 strategy and has games, contests, NFTs,
and more.
Though the survey from Roblox didn’t have a huge sample size, it does point to the rising importance of digital fashion among America’s youth. Only time will tell if the trend will continue, but considering the number of fashion brands entering Web3 these days, it looks like digital fashion is here to stay.