In mid September German sportswear brand Puma launched its first-ever metaverse experience, called ‘Black Station’, as part of the sportswear company’s ‘Futrograde’ show at 2022 New York Fashion Week (NYFW).
The initiative, which included a digital lobby space with three portals, featured NFTs which would could be redeemed for limited-edition physical sneakers.
The first two portals unveiled Puma’s latest Nitro NFRNO and Nitro Fastroid sneakers which are linked to the brand’s recent NFT Nitropass mint. Thus, consumers and brand fans who minted a Nitropass were eligible to receive two NFTs: one tied to physical products and one to a custom experience. Indeed, following Puma’s NYFW ‘Futrograde’ show, minters were invited to burn their NFT to claim a pair of physical sneakers.
While the third portal acts as the digital entry point to Puma’s NYFW metaverse fashion show where visitors can view a digital adaptation of the show and interact with the collection’s pieces.
About last night.
Enter https://t.co/kdXcrAiyg5 and discover the full experience of FUTROGRADE.#PUMANYFW pic.twitter.com/ZHczHa6E6O— PUMA.eth (@PUMA) September 14, 2022
Black Station is LIVE: a 3D spatial playground and unique Web3 space that enables our NFT community and all PUMA followers to experience the brand like never before.
Black Station was designed by creative ventures firm FTR and via a collaboration between Epic Games and WPP.
It was built using Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 5. Unreal, perhaps made most famous through Fortnite, is a 3D creation tool used widely across games, film, music, fashion shows, as well as other live events in fields such as automotive and architecture. The engine has become a popular technology for brands activating in the metaverse.
“Given the boundaries we are pushing from a product design and digital standpoint, we found it fitting to bring Black Station back as a new portal for digital exploration across fashion, sport performance, our heritage classics, and innovation,” said Puma Chief Brand Officer Adam Petrick at the initiative’s launch.
Comment
As the metaverse evolves, it offers a fresh approaches to bridge physical and digital spaces.
This sportswear brand digital experience illustrates how companies are seeking to connect in-person, physical events with digital and virtual experiences via the emerging metaverse to enrich and enhance brand/consumer experiences.
Other recent examples of the tactic have come from other clothing and fashion brands like American Eagle, DKNY, Gap, Gucci, Prada and Tommy Hilfiger.
Leave a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.