What does the introduction of the metaverse mean for luxury brands? Parisian game developer Al Dente is educating employees of big fashion brands to understand Web3 and NFTs.
Recently, luxury brands have been trying to learn more about how to start getting into the metaverse. The issue is that many people and, more importantly, employees of these brands still do not understand what it is all about. Web3, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, Metaverse… these are all words we’ve heard, but not that many understand them.
Teaching the Metaverse
To help luxury brands train on these new topics, the French company developed “The Serious Game”. It helps employees understand these concepts better and let employers identify the Web3 enthusiasts within their ranks.
Kering, the French luxury group that owns Balenciaga, Gucci, and Yves Saint Laurent, was the first to offer the game to its employee via the social platform Discord. Patrizio Miceli, the head of Al Dente, said, “They thought 300 people would sign up. They ended up with 2000 participants,” according to WWD.
Joining the Metaverse
Al Dente’s goal isn’t simply to teach about the metaverse but also to join it. They have created their line of NFTs developed in collaboration with Dazed fashion director Imruh Asha. It will launch next fall.
According to Patrizio Miceli in an interview given to WWD, the new NFT line called “The New Face” will consist of roughly 2500 NFTs that will be 3D realistic. They are autogenerated with 356 traits that can be combined with 60 preset colors and materials combined by a computer algorithm.
Micelli’s goal with the New Face is to create the first meta-luxury community composed of executives and designers. People will need a referral at first to join.
Today’s Struggles with the Metaverse
Micelli also mentions that the issue with the metaverse at the moment is the lack of definition.
“After charging full speed ahead, we’re taking a step back on certain subjects that are taking much longer than expected, namely the actual definition of the metaverse.
Micelli goes on to explain that the interconnection between all the metaverses and the physical world does not yet exist.
The world of metaverses has not yet been consolidated. Rather, we’re in a phase where we’re seeing metaverses emerge based on functionalities. Some are more gaming-oriented, others are more social platforms, some are there primarily to showcase art.
Adding that,
Just as there are dozens of tokens being launched every week, there are dozens of metaverses popping up. Our role is to act as homing devices for brands to analyze all the possibilities and come back with concrete strategies, and to have the capabilities to execute them in-house.”
So how the metaverse will change e-commerce? Micelli explains that the goal for websites in the current Web2 is to let people purchase a product in as few clicks as possible. In Web3, brands can create a real online experience similar to their own physical stores, which is a definite advantage for these luxury brands!
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