Metaverse Fashion 101: The Latest Digital Trends & Futuristic Highlights

The world will change, and all of our routines and needs will change accordingly to keep up with the latest technological developments. However, there is one question that we believe will still be there after all: “What will I wear tomorrow?”
We think you are ready to meet the new face of dressing up: “metaverse fashion”.

With the inclusion of new concepts into our lives such as NFTs and metaverse, it seems the way we work, socialize, and learn also adapted to this new environment. We have witnessed closely the first steps taken for this transformation during the pandemic period. Fashion brands, of course, did not stay silent about this transformation, evaluated the benefits of new technology, and kept in close contact with their users’ changing needs. Although it is still not a common practice for all of us to dress our avatars with digital copies of the clothes we buy or attend a  fashion show held in the metaverse today, these new interactions are soon will be the new normal of our daily lives. Then why don't we gear up and dive deeper into metaverse fashion?

Let’s sell creativity, not fabric

We are all aware that the fashion industry has been stuck between the scissors of overproduction and waste for a while. The fact that the fast-fashion concept lost its former “glory” due to sustainability concerns has pushed the brands to focus on the quality and transparency demanded by the customers. Digital creations can be the perfect solution to excessive buying, especially in the influencer marketing area. If you can simply share a pic with your digital dress and promote it that way, why bother with the actual dress? This way, fashion can become much more time-efficient and eco-friendly.

Today, designers can shift their focus back to creativity thanks to technology. You can be more creative and continue to create your designs in an environment of great freedom without depending on real-world materials or manufacturing costs. The only difference between this and our traditional fashion understanding is that at the end of the day, there is no tangible product in our hands. In a way, brands no longer sell textiles sewn with quality fabrics, but creativity. They can use any material or texture for their creations in this virtual world.

Digital fashion is not just about keeping up with the latest hype, it is more about listening to your customers’ ever-changing needs. Thanks to the tendency of GenZ to express themselves, brands can offer more personalized and targeted experiences for everyone to feel more special. 

Bring them all: AI, AR, Blockchain, and more!

While designers put technology at the center, technology keeps developing every day in the background. In the first leg of this digital fashion journey, we saw how artificial intelligence and augmented reality can enrich our customer experiences - you can take a closer look at AR Commerce here-. With the appearance of Web3 on the horizon and the metaverse being more than a distant dream, Blockchain and the emerging technologies around it have also been introduced into the fashion game. When we talk about the digitalization of fashion today, we understand that not only can we have a virtual try-on session at home, but also we can shop for our avatars in the metaverse. Did you know that the digital copy of the shirt in your virtual wardrobe can provide you with many opportunities? Yes, we are talking about NFTs again.

The most important reason why Metaverse fashion provides the value that technology and fashion have not seen until now is that people are much more familiar with the concept of digital ownership nowadays. Fashion and technology tried different things together, but wearable technology products or smart fabrics were not enough to shine in an area where visuality and creativity were at the forefront. However, when it comes to a metaverse where we can create our avatars or the clothes we can wear in a computer game, digital fashion has been able to re-establish itself. We can work online, socialize online, and now we can also dress online. What’s more, we can even earn for dressing digitally today (wear-to-earn).

It’s all about avatar economy 

Direct-to-avatar (D2A) is a business model where products can be sold directly to avatars or digital identities. If we compare it with what we are used to (D2C, direct-to-consumer), the most important difference is that supply and logistics operations are completely taken out of the equation. Consumers who have fully embraced the idea of ​​shopping from their homes are now making their purchases in virtual social environments. Do you think that not encountering limits such as being out of stock, not finding your own size, or high shipping costs can reduce the level of anxiety brought by our traditional shopping experiences?

So how will the “avatar economy” be applied by brands? What should the brands take into account in order to turn their target audience into “loyal avatars”? The answer to all these questions and more lies in the demands of today’s youngest audience: Gen Z. According to a McKinsey research, GenZ considers consumption as “accessing” rather than“having”. The individuality-loving GenZ is very prone to owning digital assets, virtual lands, and most importantly avatars since they see those as a ticket to enter different worlds. The feeling of expressing themselves in an authentic way is easily achievable in the metaverse thanks to digital fashion. Do you want to dress like a banana? Go for it. Or do you want to have a fluid dress? The possibilities are endless.

Digital twins: Buy 1 get 1 in 3D?

Jennifer Lopez wears a dress at the Grammy Awards ceremony in 2000 and it becomes iconic around the world. Or, the white dress Marilyn Monroe wore in the movie "The Seven Year Itch" which makes us commemorate her with the same photograph years later. The black dress Audrey Hepburn wore at Breakfast At Tiffany's, and many more… Back in the day, these iconic clothes were unreachable to so many of us but not anymore. We can have a digital copy of them.

With the digital transformation in fashion, digital twins give everyone access to products in a virtual wardrobe, while giving brands the chance to register everything they produce virtually. Thanks to the digital ownership rights protected by NFT technology, consumers can not only obtain an item they can use in different virtual worlds but also benefit from the utilities provided by those digital copies. For example, by owning your shoes in NFT format as well, you can unlock your way to that brand's special collections, events, and much more. At the same time, you can reflect your own style with your avatar as it almost becomes your digital extension.

Aside from the advantages for the collectors, companies can also benefit from digital twins, especially to increase brand awareness. They present a great opportunity for brands to expand their online presence. In this way, even a small-scale brand can be present on many platforms without having to think about the large operation costs.

So how ready is your brand for this digital transformation?

Even the fashion industry, which is about to “go out of fashion”, has managed to create a visible revolution by utilizing technology. You can do the same in your business by following similar steps. The way to adapt to digital transformation is through progressive moves. We believe that technologies such as AR will be your biggest supporter on this path and we provide the ultimate end-to-end, no-code solution for you. You can create unique and immersive experiences for your customers by contacting our professional team today.