🕶 Metaproof Fashion

Welcome to 🕶 Metaproof Fashion. A weekly newsletter that tracks the fashion industry’s digital frontier.

Stay informed via our Twitter and Subscribe below.

✨ Top Picks

Adidas integrates web3 into its Confirmed app (Link)

Adidas recently announced a three-year technology partnership with Tokenproof, a platform providing blockchain-based authentication. Now when a customer connects their wallet to the Confirmed app, Adidas would be able to see which NFTs they’re holding, such as those tied to products they’ve bought in the past or events they attended.

Why this matters

How should a shoe brand reward its most passionate and invested fans? Uh … with exclusive shoes. This seems obvious, but it’s actually pretty challenging due to bots.

Adidas releases its most in-demand products within the Confirmed app. This integration gives Adidas the capacity to go “direct-to-fan,” rewarding its most passionate fans with guaranteed access.

For the first time ever, Adidas can authenticate a real person and what they own to give them a curated shopping and physical experience across its ecosystem. This means they can make it so that real fans never have to wait in line or lose out to bots for a product.

The NFT is the source of authentication. Attend this event and already own this shoe? Boom! You are guaranteed a spot to buy our newest release.

Lebron rocks RTFKT sneakers (Link)

The King visited RTFKT’s SF headquarters before the Lakers’ game 1 matchup against the Warriors. The RTFKT team hooked him up with a 1/1 CloneX NFT and pair of CloneX RTFKT sneakers – which he was subsequently caught rocking.

For context, RTFKT is owned by Nike, which sponsors Lebron.

Why it's big

James is one of the most recognizable athletes in sports. His participation in the RTFKT universe gives it perhaps more legitimacy and genuine mainstream interest than the fact it's owned by Nike.

Snapchat’s new AR mirror (Link)

The social media app has officially announced it’s adding physical AR mirrors to its AR Enterprise Services (ARES), its AR-focused SaaS business unit that brands can pay to use outside of the app.

Unveiled on March 23, ARES had sunglasses brand Goodr, Gen Z-oriented e-tailer Princess Polly, and knitwear label Gobi Cashmere as some of its first clients. The launch included its Shopping Suite, which allows embedding Snapchat 3D viewing, AR try-on, and an online fit finder into their own apps or websites.

Snapchat, the fashion technology

Snapchat has invested heavily over the last several years to become a leader in fashion technology.

Brands that have launched AR Snapchat campaigns previously included Dior, Gucci, Fendi, Nike, and Ray-Ban.

Coach’s storefront AR try-on window (Link)

At their store on SoHo’s Prince Street in New York, Coach offers the first storefront AR try-on to chic shoppers walking by, showcasing its popular Tabby bag in a range of colors and imagery. Past the AR window, users can continue experiencing the AR mirror kiosk for further browsing or sharing on social media.

Coach partnered with AR platform Zero10 for this project. Zero10 considers it their 1st AR window, whose success will be gauged in terms of foot traffic and conversions.

Why this matters

• Brick and mortar retail still represents a large function of the luxury fashion industry.

• Technology that can get more qualified customers in the door can have a huge ROI for these brands. Expect to see just about every luxury brand to have some equivalent of an AR try-on experience in their store soon.

Future iterations may include an AI stylist responding in real time to a customer outfit and suggesting accessories to add.

🔥 Hot Links

• A new digital fashion designer incubator. (Link)

• Czech supermodel Eva Herzigová becomes the 1st model to have a "digital twin" avatar. (Link)

• Fashion designer and AI artist Marco Rambaldi posts on Instagram some of the most famous designer chairs - reinvented based on iconic sneakers. (Link)

• Fashion illustrator and art director Adriana Krawcewicz, a fashion illustrator and art director, pushes digital fashion boundaries via NFTs and AI art. (Link)

• Exuberant NY-based label Bad Binch TongTong conquers the metaverse. (Link)

• For mental health awareness, athleisure label Alo Yoga lets brick-and-mortar store visitors tap an NFC-activated display to claim their free daily affirmation collectible. (Link)

• Hugo Boss - presenting at MFW 2023 - touts 25% increase in group sales and positive full-year outlook, with SS 2023 launch driving momentum globally. (Link)

• Sizing and fit tech company Alvanon talks disruption at 3D Tech Fest 2023: Redefining Fashion Intelligence. (Link)

• How AI, VR and AR lead the shift to a demand-driven supply chain in fashion. (Link)

• UK digital fashion artist Stephy Fung sells out her latest NFT drop, Quiet Quarry Runway, on Opensea. (Link)

• Gucci Garden, Nikeland: Are these power brands’ metaverse stores worth visiting? (Link)

--

All content on this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not aim to serve as or replace expert investment advice.

If you are a startup building in the metaverse / web3 ecosystem and are raising capital, please reach out to Sfermion. Sfermion is an investment firm focused on accelerating the emergence of the metaverse.

Stay informed via our Twitter and Subscribe here to get your metaverse fashion news every Tuesday.