The idea underlying digital fashion can be difficult for many to grasp since buying/trying out clothes that only exist in a virtual world can seem quite strange at first. However, with this niche market continuing to gain a lot of traction recently, many experts are beginning to view the idea of the Metaverse reshaping the future of fashion a lot more seriously.
For example, as per a recent study, clothing existing solely in the digital world was found to be way more environmentally friendly than its physical counterpart, with the former emitting 97% less CO2 and consuming approximately 3,300 liters of water less per item. Not only that, but there is also data to suggest that by replacing physical samples with digital ones during a company’s design and development phases, it is possible to reduce a brand’s carbon footprint by a whopping 30%.
Furthermore, the use of digital clothing can be highly useful during the various steps preceding the actual physical production of a garment. For example, these virtual items can be used for modeling, sampling and marketing before their physical iterations are sent into production, thus greatly minimizing the overall environmental impact of the entire lifecycle of a fashion item.
Lastly, when it comes to the sales side of things, digital models of clothes can help alleviate problems associated with overproduction, something that is widely considered to be a major roadblock within today’s fashion industry.
The appeal of digital fashion
To gain a better idea of whether the idea of digital fashion is just another passing fad or a phenomenon that’s here to stay, Cointelegraph reached out to Lokesh Rao, CEO of Trace Network Labs, a project enabling brands to explore Web3 products and services. In his view, as the Metaverse continues to evolve, it will indeed influence and revolutionize the fashion industry, adding:
“The industry has realized that the virtual world, despite being based on imaginary creations, actually has profound utility when it comes to garments. The evolution of design technologies allows creative freedom for all designers, but some clothes they design can never be worn in the real world. The Metaverse removes this hurdle — a digital avatar can wear any garment without any constraints of type, design, fabric and use.”
He further added that the intangibility aspect of fashion when it comes to the Metaverse, such as no need for physical clothes, makes it easier for users to experiment and create lavish wardrobes for themselves, way grander than what would be possible in the real world. Furthermore, since the clothes are in the form of digital collectibles or nonfungible tokens (NFTs), they can be freely traded across open NFT marketplaces, adding to their long-term value which many physical or second-hand clothing items do not possess.
However, Rao believes that the most important utility of the Metaverse in relation to the fashion industry is that in a digital world, users can deploy their avatars to visit different stores and try different clothes before making a purchase decision. “This is far better than having a brick and mortar store in multiple areas, which is an expensive proposition,” he noted.
From the outside looking in, the Metaverse enables companies, labels and fashion houses to reap a host of advantages such as having a borderless presence that transcends physical limitations, creating brand awareness globally using digital means and retailing “phygital” clothes while delivering convenience to their customers.
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On the other hand, consumers are afforded many benefits as well. For example, they can try on clothes at their own convenience, time and place, order garments from a virtual store either in physical format or as an NFT, get physical deliveries processed from anywhere in the globe and maintain their ownership on the blockchain forever.
The future of fashion could be redefined
Frank Fitzgerald, founder of Pax.World — a platform that allows users to create their own metaverse — thinks that the merging of these two world’s could have a massive impact on the fashion industry. He told Cointelegraph:
“From new revenue generation streams to shaping what fashion looks like in the real world based on what is happening in the Metaverse, it will be a cultural revolution not only in fashion but also within the art industry as well.”
Fitzgerald noted that the younger generation is the key demographic for digital fashion, especially those individuals who see their digital representation as being an integral part of their social identities.
He said that while older generations (30+) may find these ideas hard to digest, there is reason to believe that, over time, more people will come aboard. “Over the next decade, I can see a whole generation of 20 and 30 year olds being very conscious of their digital representation and what that expresses to their…
cointelegraph.com