Last summer, Ralph Lauren launched its inaugural collection of digital apparels on Zepeto, where customers can select from 50 items to dress their avatars in the brand’s signature prep-school look.

There were colourblock hoodies, Polo T-shirts, teddy bear sweatshirts and even two unique skateboards that exist only in the digital realm. Within weeks, more than 100,000 pieces sold for between US$0.57 and US$2.86 each to customers who were eager to embrace and explore the frontiers of virtual fashion.

Welcome to the metaverse, a virtual world that’s hailed as the next generation of the web, where virtual reality, augmented reality intermesh with the physical world in a seamless experience for users. Previously the playground of computer gamers, the metaverse is seeing an influx of consumer brands such as Ralph Lauren, Starbucks and McDonald’s, who are looking for opportunities in a market where annual revenue could soar to US$1 trillion, according to JPMorgan’s estimates.

Every time I conduct a luxury masterclass, one of the seemingly most simple question asked is: what is luxury? At first glance, the answer seems clear. Luxury is, according to many, a symbol of status. It’s expensive. It’s products for the ultra-wealthy. But today, is this really the case? And what does it mean for luxury managers as the internet rapidly morphs into a metaverse reality?

In a recent article in Forbes, Erwan Rambourg, author of Future Luxe: What’s Ahead for the Business of Luxury, stated that “High-net-worth individuals are only a small fraction of sales in luxury retail. Luxury consumption is not as correlated to wealth as you would think.” He went further, stating that, “if we had access to the data, we’d be shocked how low the average incomes of Vuitton customers are in China and the U.S.” This correlates with my own discussions and observations of luxury with customers all over the world.

"La raison pour laquelle Sotheby's existe depuis 277 ans est que nous avons une histoire qui embrasse l'innovation. Ce n'est donc pas différent pour les NFT", explique-t-il lors d'un entretien avec l'AFP, réalisé en marge du Salon mondial du mobile de Barcelone.
Les NFT sont des objets numériques certifiés uniques, grâce à la technologie de la "blockchain" (chaîne de blocs), aussi utilisée pour les cryptomonnaies comme le bitcoin.

"L'audience et l'intérêt sont absolument énormes. Nous voyons une nouvelle génération, plus jeune, (...) qui s'intéresse à cette nouvelle forme d'art. C'est pourquoi nous consacrons du temps et des ressources" aux NFT, précise le patron de la maison basée à New York, rachetée en 2019 par le magnat des télécoms franco-israélien Patrick Drahi.
Les NFT ont fait une entrée remarquée sur le marché de l'art en 2021, à l'image du programme informatique à l'origine du web, vendu 5,4 millions de dollars en juillet dernier chez Sotheby's.

FERPECTION, conseil en études et recherches UX pour l’amélioration des sites et applications mobiles, dévoile les notions et les évolutions qui vont largement modifier et faire évoluer l’expérience utilisateurs dans un avenir proche.


« La technologie évolue rapidement et les émergences d’aujourd’hui seront les incontournables de demain. Parmi toutes les nouveautés liées à l’expérience utilisateurs, lesquelles sont à observer de près dans les années qui viennent ?

Young fashionable lifestyles are a good reference for luxury brands, as they reflect younger generations’ shopping attitudes and consumption interests. In recent years, sharing platforms like Xiaohongshu, while becoming key references for many consumers in making consumption decisions, have exposed brands to younger lifestyles. In fact, many luxury brands now value the site and have begun to open official accounts on Xiaohongshu, making it an important marketing channel.

But what are these popular new lifestyles, and how do they affect China’s luxury industry? And most importantly, do they offer luxury brands a new direction for their future marketing plans in China?

When discussing the luxury metaverse, I am a big advocate of separating the essence from the noise. While much of its hype stems from an interest in the opportunities it might offer and a fascination with the mystery surrounding it, there are already clear implications for companies, brands, and managers in this realm. The metaverse should be seen as the non-linear acceleration of an already-progressed digital transformation: deeper immersion, more emotional connection, and a shift from two to three-dimensional space. In short, the internet will move from a phone, tablet, or computer screen space to a more realistic, enthralling, and emotional place.

Beijing’s latest crackdown on celebrities, idols, “effeminate males,” and “extravagant pleasures” has made many Chinese parents who hope to “curb addiction” and destructive behavior in minors very happy. But retailers might fear this clampdown could hurt their bottom lines.

Since the luxury industry has become over reliant on brand ambassadors and idols in China, it is safe to say that this crackdown will have a powerful impact. According to data from iiMedia Research, China’s virtual idol industry was worth an estimated $540 million in 2020, an increase of 70.3 percent year-on-year, and could reach $970 million in 2021. Therefore, let’s look at how this phenomenon will affect global luxury.

Recalibrating the marketing plan

Necessarily, luxury retailers will need to shift from celebrity influencers to cultural opinion leaders and creative tastemakers. Micro-influencers who command higher engagement rates, own sound positions in niche markets, and show high levels of expertise will also win in this new context. Naturally, these new opinion leaders will also have to be “party-approved” and “promote socialist core values.”

Fondé en 2020, RTFKT créé des vêtements virtuels et des avatars 3D en NFT. La start-up a réalisé 100 millions de dollars de chiffre d'affaires en 2021.

Nike fait un pas de plus dans les mondes virtuels. Après avoir bâti un espace à ses couleurs dans le jeu vidéo en ligne Roblox, le géant du sportswear a annoncé lundi soir l'acquisition de la start-up RTFKT (à prononcer «Artéfact»). Fondée en 2020 par trois associés dont le Français Benoît Pagotto, la société s'est fait connaître grâce à sa conception de baskets virtuelles. Elle compte 12 salariés.

L’industrie du gaming, ou jeu vidéo, a connu un essor incomparable au cours des dernières années et la crise sanitaire a encore accéléré sa dynamique. Avec une croissance de 8% en 2021, le marché vaut aujourd’hui 175.8 milliards de dollars, et le nombre de joueurs frôle les 3 milliards de personnes (dont 36 millions de Français), soit près d’une personne sur 2 dans le monde.

Le monde du gaming est devenu un media à part entière, avec une audience internationale diversifiée qui comprend 49% de femmes et 64% de Zillennials. En moyenne, un gamer passe 6,33 heures par semaine à jouer, mais il faut également compter l’exposition aux nombreux streamings (vidéos live sur les plateformes comme Twitch) et compétitions qui se multiplient comme YouTube, Twitch, Facebook Gaming (les trois principales). De véritables écosystèmes se sont créés autour du jeu vidéo, des développeurs aux plateformes de streaming. Tous ces acteurs et services sont autant de possibilités pour les marques d’entrer en contact avec leurs clients actuels et futurs, et ce média séduit les marques par son interactivité et le niveau élevé d’engagement des joueurs.

Prada has been revamping its e-commerce business and prioritizing digital customer experiences.

The Italian family-owned luxury label has already installed AI-powered chatbots for quickly resolving customer issues.

Prada used virtual reality to introduce and engage its consumers with exciting experiences.

Prada seems to be everywhere Chinese consumers are lately. In October, the Italian luxury brand opened a vegetable market in Shanghai. After that, it inaugurated its Prada On Ice collection at the SKP Atrium in Beijing. Then it announced openings of new physical stores in Austin, Texas, and the Baltimore-D.C. area, both of which attract a high number of Asian shoppers.

The acquisition comes with a technology platform and a team that will now join Farfetch.

The move will allow the latter to “significantly accelerate its resale capabilities through the development of key technology and service features such as automated pricing, and faster geographic and category expansion of its resale service, Farfetch Second Life”.

While the pandemic saw the Fashion Week calendar adapt to a digital-first initiative, luxury brands were forced to shift their focus onto how their identity could survive and maintain relationships with consumers in the online world. Yet, even after welcoming back its physical runway counterpart, Fall 2022’s season proved that the industry’s affinity with virtual reality continues to gain momentum.

A growing number of luxury brands are finding room for opportunity in Web3 and embracing their foray into the metaverse. The total value of all NFT transactions worldwide has jumped 21,350 percent to $17.6 billion in 2021 from $82.5 million in 2020, according to the yearly report from industry tracker, nonfungible.com.

The metaverse can be defined as an immersive digital space in which personal experiences and interactions make people forget that they are in a simulated environment. It’s the internet “on steroids” and provides a more realistic user experience than previous digital and internet iterations. It’s a space that combines elements of social media, virtual and augmented realities, gamification, and digital products like NFTs.

Over the recent months, I had countless workshops and master classes on the implications of the metaverse with luxury, lifestyle, and consumer brands across all categories — even categories that, at first glance, seem less affected by the metaverse than others. While some see the implications of the metaverse as overrated, and while polls by Équité indicate that many mangers state that they “don’t have any experience with the metaverse” and that most “don’t use virtual reality headsets regularly,” we are already living in a metaverse reality — even if not yet at its full potential.

On entre par le 11bis rue François 1er, pour découvrir un gigantesque escalier en colimaçon de marbre blanc, au centre d'un atrium présentant un Diorama regroupant 1.874 objets Dior. Parmi ces derniers, 452 robes miniatures des sept couturiers officiels de la maison : Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano, Raf Simons et Maria Grazia Chiuri. En tout, 70 mini robes différentes réparties sur sept décennies, depuis le défilé "New Look" du 12 février 1947 jusqu'à aujourd'hui. Quant aux objets — des sacs Lady Di ou Saddle, jusqu'aux flacons du parfum J'Adore, en passant par les bijoux ou les multiples bérets créés par Steven Jones — ils ont tous été réalisés par impression 3D, ce qui a nécessité plus de 100.000 heures de travail.

To celebrate Chinese New Year on February 1, Gucci presents its Gucci Tiger collection: a wide selection of ready-to-wear and accessories for men and women that feature various tiger designs.

Creative director Alessandro Michele has always been fascinated with nature and continues to embrace both flora and fauna with the maximalist dogmas of extravagance and spectacle. And with this dedicated collection, he expresses them through vibrant colors, exquisite prints, and bold silhouettes.

Many fashion houses have incorporated tiger stripes and alternative elements inspired by this animal over the years. So what makes the Gucci Tiger Collection distinct from others, and what can luxury players learn from Gucci’s unique approach to zodiac marketing?

Des baskets inventées dans un monde virtuel qui prennent forme dans le monde réel, des designers qui testent des vêtements sur des avatars avant de les fabriquer: le métavers s'affirme comme lieu d'expérimentation, à la rencontre des consommateurs.

French luxury group LVMH is expected to post strong fourth quarter sales on Thursday, following a slate of solid earnings from rivals that showed steadfast demand for high-end fashion and accessories from pandemic-weary consumers.

The group's powerhouse labels Louis Vuitton and Dior are expected to drive a 16 percent rise in sales at constant exchange rates over the all-important holiday spending period, according to consensus estimates.

The group's fashion and leather goods division - which accounts for half of revenues - is set to extend its dominance of the sector, with an estimated market share of 21% compared to 16% before the pandemic, according to UBS forecasts.

What Happened: Prada is pushing the envelope on creativity and community with its newest metaverse venture. On January 20, the luxury house announced that it will team up with adidas Originals to launch adidas for Prada re-source, a “first-of-its-kind” NFT project that invites fashion, design and crypto creators to collaborate on a large-scale digital piece inspired by its physical Re-Nylon collection.

Here’s how it works: starting January 24, anyone can register with a digital wallet and contribute an anonymous photograph. From here, 3,000 people will be randomly selected to mint their submission as an NFT, free of cost. These will then be compiled as tiles into a single mosaic NFT designed by digital artist Zach Lieberman (think Beeple style), with the final artwork to be auctioned off and the proceeds to benefit Slow Factory, a non-profit focused on climate justice and marginalized communities.

Traditionally, luxury brands counted on a majority buyer base of older, established, and affluent individuals and a minority of younger consumers eager to communicate wealth and status. And while this style of buying continues to this day, over the past three decades the luxury market has become far more democratic, younger, more digital, and global, with luxury goods seen not only as a way to signal wealth but also as a way to reflect one’s personal style.

A key driver of this shift has been millennials, those born between 1981 and 1996, and Gen Zers (born between 1997 and 2010). Whereas luxury, in previous decades, was about exclusivity and communicating wealth and status through the object itself, young luxury consumers are eager to share. According to a BCG survey, millennial and Gen Z consumers are 30 percent more likely than the average luxury consumer to talk to others about their high-end purchases, and 60 percent more likely to recommend a brand to others.