Contributor
Carli Gernot, Content Development Specialist
Nine-time Grammy winner, business woman and - ahem - billionaire Rihanna has filed for a Fenty trademark. The recent filing through Roraj Trade LLC tips off an eventual move into the metaverse:tm:.
The standard character mark “Fenty” covers:
... and then some.
Adidas is one of the first major brands to trial TrusTrace Material Traceability & Compliance— a blockchain sustainability verification solution for fashion and apparel.
Rihanna’s brand will soon be yet another player to launch virtual products or experiences in the metaverse. Fenty will join brands across industries including Nike, Miller Lite, Ralph Lauren, Gucci, Ferrari, Burger King, and American Eagle. Brands are introducing virtual items, shops, and experiences as stand-alones and within established games and online communities. This surge is helping to fill up virtual real estate, a booming market showing $501 million in sales in 2021, and an additional $58 million in sales in January 2022, according to MetaMetrics Solutions.
Consumers are also increasingly curious about the metaverse. A 2021 Forrester study found 23% of US adults said they would like to spend time exploring the metaverse, 22% said brands should advertise in the metaverse, and 19% said brands should build more branded experiences in the metaverse.
In more tangible ways, we’re seeing engagement in the virtual economy. Voxburner’s 2021 US Youth Trend Report reveals that 65% of Gen Zs have spent money on virtual items within a game - a number and demographic that shouldn’t go ignored.
Many of the virtual items that consumers spend money on are connected to their avatars, the virtual version of themselves and center of their online identity. Roblox released data that showed in 2021, 43 million active daily players made more than 165 billion avatar updates. Why? Well, avatars need clothes, shoes, accessories, and of course, beauty products. The market is growing right along with real life consumer needs.
As more brands move into the metaverse and play with offerings to test how users engage with these virtual products, it will be increasingly important for marketers to develop guidance on how best to navigate this new space. Marketers need to help brands strategically enter the metaverse and figure out what they want out of a metaverse presence. The metaverse is open and the options thus far, limitless.