“Shaping the metaverse, the creation of our future way of life”

To get started, it’s helpful to understand what the metaverse is. Having worked in the games industry for over thirty years, and more recently for the fashion and luxury sectors, I have often tried to explain the metaverse to fashion houses and game developers. But this has often proven to be an arduous exercise However, one thing is certain: the metaverse should be a persistent interoperable experience. That means that it’s a world that exists even when you’re not in it. Much like the world we live in today, except that our thinking is influenced by luminary writers such as Neal Stephenson, William Gibson and Ernest Cline. The metaverse could combine a world of adventure and science fiction with the realities of our day-to-day needs and requirements, increasingly constrained by a steadily shrinking planet. If it were possible to create a world in which we can be safe, sustained and satisfied, we could better project ourselves and find our place inside these worlds.

What we have learnt from Meta Inc.’s presentation is the potential that digital offers us from e-commerce to avatars. And within these numerous sectors, there are myriad opportunities for digital fashion to thrive. But what else do we need to take us through the gateway into this new uncharted world?

Approaching the metaverse is a little bit like designing collections. We must think about the product-market-fit when we are developing new lines and new touch points for our clients and consumers. The metaverse is no different and therefore this works both ways. To do this, we need to look at where the models emerge in terms of public interest and observe peaks in popularity. A good example is the sneaker startup Aglet , which wants to create a metaverse that combines sneakers, shopping and gaming, while locking in their uniqueness via blockchain.  Looking at Aglet's potential is a great starting point for understanding your new digital audience.