Ruhi Gilder
Now fashion aficionados can look forward to not just London, Paris and Milan Fashion Week, but also Metaverse Fashion Week. An event that was the first of its kind, organised by Decentraland, a 3D universe, went on from March 24-27. The four-day long event hosted runway shows, after-parties, immersive experiences, shopping, and panel talks as well. Legacy luxury fashion houses like Tommy Hilfiger, Etro, Dolce & Gabbana, in addition to digital-native brands showcased their wearable collections, pop-up stores, and activations during MVFW. Temporary shopping spaces offered a combination of NFT wearables to add to an avatar’s wardrobe in Decentraland (DCL) and limited-edition physical pieces redeemable via NFTs, though cryptocurrency was required for purchase.
Selfridges opens in Metaverse
London retailer Selfridges kicked off MVFW with the opening of its flagship metaverse store. Its launch made history as the first meta department store in web3 (World Wide Web based on blockchain technology). Anybody could visit the Selfridges metaverse store, as a guest or by attaching a crypto wallet to access all features. The store had exclusive 12 NFT dresses by Paco Rabanne and Op Art movement leader, Victor Vasarely. The store’s structure and exterior is inspired by the retailer’s Birmingham space and offers visitors tours of the past works, history, and highlights through NFTs. Other big brands also purchased real estate in Decentraland to set up metaverse HQs.
Forever 21 and Philipp Plein debuted their flagship stores during Metaverse Fashion Week, now becoming permanent residents of Decentraland. The latter launched Plein Plaza, which houses Plein’s very own Museum of NFT Arts (M.O.N.A). According to Forbes, Plein bought $1.4 million worth of land in DCL to build a 120-foot-tall skyscraper. The designer also released his first-ever collection of seven digital outfits for avatars, originating in the metaverse, alongside a fashion show in collaboration with 3D artist Antoni Tudisco. The NFT collections dropped on Portion (auction house) and the exclusive wearables can be bought on Decentraland or on plein.com. In addition to all this the designer also launched the brand PLEINSPORT in the Metaverse and sold NFTs linked to physical products.
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Meta luxury
An all-new luxury district inspired by Avenue Montaigne in Paris featured brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, Etro, DUNDAS and Frank Muller. This district was where the daily fashion shows took place. Etro unveiled its Liquid Paisley collection that highlighted a fresh take on one of the brand’s most iconic design patterns. “It is a powerful message for ETRO, a collection without gender boundaries in a fashion show that is open to all. This will be a new journey without borders in the magic of the metaverse,” says Veronica Etro, the brand’s Woman Creative Director.
Dolce & Gabbana presented 20 bespoke metaverse wearables on the MVFW runway. Feline models strutted down the ramp in a yellow pantsuit, ensembles with exaggerated sleeves, emblazoned with the D&G logo.
French e-commerce luxury platform Monnier Paris’ digital clothing brand, Republiqe created limited edition wearables of labels stocked by Monnier like Coach, Wandler and Ester Manas. Guests could purchase items such as the new Coach Tabby Pillow bag for their avatar from the virtual store, or even go to the Monnier Paris website and buy the real thing.
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Dundas World by Peter Dundas launched its pop-up store in the metaverse and organised the closing fashion show that presented 12 looks of a physical collection that viewers could buy from their website. Skin-tight dresses with cut outs and lace-up details, and full-length jumpsuits in psychedelic colours were part of the collection.
Tommy Hilfiger displayed its spring 2022 collection virtually at the MVFW and opened a digital store for the selling of NFTs connected to the label. Wearable NFTs of Madras shirts for women and unisex hoodie embellished with the Hilfiger logo could be purchased, alongside physical versions of the same.
Web3 Beauty
Level up & experience the radiant glow of #AdvancedNightRepair like never before during @decentraland‘s #MetaverseFashionWeek! Get your glow on with this Advanced Night Repair inspired NFT, created by #EsteePartner @thealexbox: https://t.co/ZhT2SkbtFW #MVFW pic.twitter.com/HwqcWvPf5L
— Estée Lauder (@EsteeLauder) March 25, 2022
Estée Lauder was the only beauty brand to participate at MVFW. The brand promoted its popular Night Repair Serum. The metaverse artist Alex Box designed a radiance aura filter inspired by the product, which avatars could order from Estée’s MVFW activation space. Resembling a sparkle filter, a limited quantity of 10,000 such filters were available. Users could step inside the iconic Advanced Night Repair “Little Brown Bottle” to unlock a digital badge or Proof of Attendance badge celebrating the event.
Mixed media gallery
Web3 Agency, CashLabs, launched a mixed-media art gallery featuring around 20 artists and designers, including Antoni Tudisco, Krista Kim x The Fabricant, Karl Lagerfeld x The Dematerialized, Jason Ebeyer, Botter Paris, Auroboros. The exhibit titled “at the intersection of Art and Fashion” filled three floors of the gallery and showcased fashion-related images and video works, as well as fashion presented as sculptures. SHOWstudio & Nick Knight even brought a Fashion Film Festival to MVFW, and the rooftop of the gallery streamed five films a day, diving into the history and future of fashion on film.
MVFW’s guest panel talk curator, David Cash says, “We’ve sought to present fashion in every form possible, from runway shows to retail experiences, fashion presented as art, film, photography, and even fashion presented in ways that extend beyond the confines of reality—as, in the metaverse, anything is possible.”
Also read:
Updates from FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week 2022
Movies and TV shows with iconic fashion moments
