The metaverse

The term metaverse has been popular for months now, but what is it? It's a digital universe where people can experience a life parallel to their existence in the real world.

It could be a space where people, through their avatars spend their free time, join videogames, work, develop relationships and do whatever else usually happens in real life.

Of course the metaverse can become a space to do business, not only because you could open the offices of a company and then carry out commercial activities, but also because you can buy, sell or rent the resources that exist in it. For example, real estate.

Metaverse and NFTs

The metaverse first gained headlines when Facebook announced its new strategy and even changed its name to emphasize the evolution. Meta indeed aims to become a metaverse type of platform.

It's only been a few weeks since this surprising announcement that other big players in the commercial business have taken steps to expand their reach into the metaverse as well.

These are mostly brands that can market their traditional products as NFTs for the metaverse. They can be accessories for avatars or video game characters.

Among the big players that have firmly taken this direction are Adidas and Nike.

The Adidas project

Adidas has announced that its next collection will be a mix of digital and physical items. The products will then also sell as NFTs.

Titled 'Into the Metaverse', the collection will include both virtual wearables, that buyers can use in online platforms, as well as physical clothing.

This is Adidas' first collection of NFTs, which are digital collectibles with proven authenticity. NFTs act as a blockchain-based certificate of ownership, allowing the pieces to be authenticated, purchased and sold.

The brand created the collection in collaboration with some of the most well-known personalities in the field of NFTs: Bored Ape Yacht Club and Gmoney.

The digital items will be usable in the blockchain-based gaming world of The Sandbox as well as other platforms, while the physical products will include a hoodie, tracksuit and gmoney's signature orange beanie.

Adidas is launching 'Into the Metaverse' through its lifestyle label, Adidas Originals.

NFTs went on sale on December 17, 2021 at a cost of 0.2 Ethereum. Digital and physical wearables for NFT owners will be available in 2022.

Prior to the issuance, Adidas stated that 'Into the Metaverse' owners would gain access to virtual land and early access to exclusive Adidas merchandise.

The NFT sale by Adidas was one of the largest and most successful NFT sales for a major brand. In fact, the NFTs sold out within a week allowing the company to earn $23.5 million.

Nike and the metaverse

A number of other brands are focusing on products for the metaverse, including Nike. The sportswear brand announced in December 2021 that it was acquiring RTFKT, a digital design company that makes sneakers and other items that can be worn in various online virtual environments. RTFKT was born to actually become the Nike of virtual worlds.

The purchase of RTFKT will help Nike increase its production of virtual wearables without having to rely on outside help. The plan is to invest in the RTFKT brand to increase Nike's capabilities and presence in the digital world.

Other manufacturers' virtual sneakers are not truly owned by the buyer as they cannot be resold. While each RTFKT product is associated with a non-fungible token (NFT).

This blockchain-based certificate of ownership is linked to the digital asset. This allows to verify its authenticity, meaning it can be purchased, traded and sold for profit, just like a real physical product.

Nike also registered the use of its logos and slogans for digital wearables last month and launched its own virtual world Nikeland within the online game Roblox, where players can purchase branded products for their avatars.

Other initiatives

A number of other fashion brands are investing in the metaverse. This list include Louis Vuitton and Balenciaga, both of which have released video games to integrate their fashion shows into virtual life. Gucci is also in the NFT world: it recently launched an "experimental online space" with NFT called Vault. This is not Gucci's first experience with NFTs. In May 2021, the brand conducted an auction of NFTs based on the Gucci Aria collection.

Conclusions

The metaverse turns out to be a key tool through which the use of NFTs can spread. This is evident not only due to the attention of the media, but above all by the amount of resources that big brands are dedicating to it and the consequent initiatives they are taking. Primarily fashion brands, but not only.

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