Estée Lauder is entering the metaverse as an exclusive partner of the very first Metaverse Fashion Week. Its first NFT will be inspired by one of its iconic products, the Advanced Night Repair serum. The brand will be awarding up to 10,000 free NFTs at the fashion show, which runs from March 24 to March 28.
The first fashion week in the metaverse will host some of the world’s biggest luxury houses as they present their new collections, between virtual shows and online after parties. But this fashion week will not only take place on the catwalk, with events and surprises planned by brands from other horizons. Such is the case of Estée Lauder, which is due to present its first NFT, Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) reports.
Designed by the virtual creator Alex Box, Estée Lauder’s NFT will be available in several thousand copies and will be free. Even more than offering its customers a first experience in the metaverse, this first foray will help Estée Lauder make itself known to those who are already used to spending time in these virtual worlds. It could also be a way for the cosmetics brand to test out this parallel world in order to potentially join others in adopting it as its new playground.
According to a statement from the brand, users will be able to walk inside Advanced Night Repair’s brown apothecary bottle to obtain the wearable NFT, which provides users’ avatars a “glowing, radiant look.”
The company joins a growing list of beauty brands that are taking advantage of the new market. L’Oréal Paris USA, Clinique, Givenchy Beauty and Gucci are among the beauty brands that have already entered the metaverse, showing keen enthusiasm for what looks like a new El Dorado for the luxury world.
However, Lauder’s aim is to attract future customers who are already spending time in virtual realities, rather than to entice existing customers into the metaverse. “We’re looking for interesting events where we can engage and reach this new consumer,” said Jon Roman, Estée Lauder’s senior vice president of global consumer marketing and internet. “I don’t think we want to just make something and then promote it or bring people to the metaverse on our own.”
Although the Advanced Night Repair NFTs are intended to increase brand awareness, the brand’s overall purpose is to bridge the gap between virtual and physical realities. “Linking [the metaverse] to the physical world and physical products makes sense.” That would be the ultimate goal, according to Roman. “However, it isn’t a straightforward procedure. We understand that it’s all about generating excitement, demand, and brand loyalty in the metaverse before identifying new customers.”
But it’s up to you to figure out what that might look like. “A lot of it will be determined by how the metaverse grows,” Roman explained. “At the end of the day, we believe it will be a mixed-reality universe.”
