Balenciaga creates virtual clothing for Fortnite
Luxury brand Balenciaga is going virtual: the famous video game Fortnite will have a real Balenciaga store where players can buy virtual outfits. And a small detail: the clothes are actually on sale in the stores.
Balenciaga for 8 dollars
Balenciaga is the first luxury brand in the world to enter into a partnership with Epic Games, the creator of the famous video game Fortnite - which has some 400 million users worldwide and achieves more than 5 billion dollars in turnover. While originally the game was primarily an online shooter in which players competed against each other, culture and fashion are now an integral part of the experience. The famous American rapper Travis Scott, for example, gave a virtual concert there during confinement, attracting 45 million viewers.
The game also allows users to change outfits (skins) and accessories, and that's where Balenciaga comes in. The hip luxury brand has designed four virtual outfits, various accessories and even its own weapons for the game. Players can buy them - for the democratic price of 8 USD - in the game's own Balenciaga world, which includes a virtual store.
Welcome to the metaverse
While this may be the first collaboration for Fortnite, luxury brands and the virtual world have been side by side for some time. Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton previously had their own video game to present their new collections to young digital enthusiasts, Gucci designed skins for Pokémon Go and has a huge Gucci Garden on the Roblox gaming platform, where a virtual handbag sold for over $4,000.
The strong growth of these virtual worlds is part of what is known as the metaverse: a world in which digital lifestyles become as real as physical reality and fit seamlessly into it. Virtual reality and AR (augmented reality) are making this increasingly possible. For example, when you see someone with dog ears or an angel face on TikTok or Snapchat, that's also augmented reality.
In real life too
With Fortnite, Balenciaga goes further and gives the action a physical component as well. Limited-edition Balenciaga x Fortnite caps, T-shirts and hoodies will be available in stores and on the brand's online store. In addition, 3D billboards will appear on the streets of major cities such as New York and Tokyo to advertise the cooperation.
Epic Games has already hinted that there may be more collaborations in the future. The gaming platform points out that brands can also "harness the creativity of the Fortnite community to help them create virtual clothing or actions," communications director Alan Cooper told Vogue Business. “Brands can ask our players to create for them. »
Recently, the supermarket chain Carrefour launched its own universe on Fortnite to educate young people in a playful way about the importance of healthy eating. Want to learn more about the metaverse and the opportunities for brands and retailers? In January 2022, you will learn all about it in the book The Future of Shopping: Re-set Re-made Re-tail, to be published by Lannoo Campus.
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