Moving into the popular lexicon, the metaverse and NFTs were at the heart of the inaugural Decentraland’s Metaverse Fashion Week (MVFW) (March 24-27). The four-day event of the blockchain-based platform was truly a treat for the eyes and fashion brands and metaverse consultants acknowledged it as the beginning of a new era.
Call it a new mainstreaming high for fashion’s hyper-digital experimentation, or the premature jump towards setting a milestone for the world of fashion; this glittering event staged in a virtual world platform is soon to become our reality.
Built on the Ethereum blockchain, the Decentraland, the host of the MVFW, has transformed from a pixelated 2D grid into a 3D universe. The event had over 60 fashion brands showcasing more than 500 looks and the entire experience was created on land sold as NFTs and digital fashion bought and worn as NFTs.
Selfridges, Estée Lauder, Bulova, Tommy Hilfiger, Dolce & Gabbana and Etro, and the likes were among the eminent brands which participated in this event that was open to all and was completely free for visitors who could buy NFTs of these brands through the platform’s native decentralized cryptocurrency MANA using their digital wallets.
Enabling an experience otherwise not possible physically, this joyful event had some pretty amazing shows on display that included cats walking the ramp for D&C and models flying after emerging out of model-sized blooming lotuses, and walking in a vast venue resembling an Olympics opening ceremony arena with music-coordinated light shows.
While Selfridges brought the IRL (in real life) Universe Project displaying not-for-sale NFTs of dresses at MVFW, the global tech company Yahoo’s immersive content arm, Yahoo Ryot Lab featured products from Cohen’s co-creation-based digital fashion label RSTLSS.
Termed as ‘The Initiation’, this project led the visitors to explore a mysterious alien artifact that had crash-landed in Electric City DCL that generated limited-edition RSTLSS avatar clothing.
Tommy Hilfiger tied NFTs to real-life clothing and let its visitors browse through Decentraland flagship and buy NFTs of virtual versions of its Spring 2022 collection, which could be redeemed for physical products, to be delivered to buyers’ homes later.
The presence of Sophia, the world-famous humanoid robot designed and created by Hong-Kong-based Hanson Robotics; was one of the biggest highlights at MVFW. Visitors were encouraged to spot them anywhere on the platform and post selfies with her on Twitter with the hashtag, #findingsophiatherobot. Through this Decentraland offered an opportunity to the users to enter a special NFT giveaway.
NFT trading platform Rarible’s Fresh Drip Zone, inspired by the streets of New York City; had featured pop-up shops of 12 brands that included Perry Ellis, Fred Segal, and PUMA.
Threedium 3D engine contributes to the success of the Metaverse Fashion Week which is capable of converting 2D designs into 3D models through its unique program. A virtual shopping mall was launched at Decentraland by the collaboration of Threedium and the creative production agency Craft.
The fashion brand Dundas World closed the show by showcasing a series of its digital dresses at its pop-up store in the Luxury Fashion District.
The event was concluded with an amplifying DJ set with the performance of the AUROBOROS X Grimes at the center stage. Features a massive set that resembled a merger of nature with the celestial and avatars of the attendees climbing a huge spiral staircase to the top; this set looked alike a suspended platform.
It was startling to see many brands acceding to Metaverse as a new venue for advertising and reaching consumers, but the process as a whole would involve time, patience, and more technical insights before we find the physical replaced by the virtual.