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Digital Fashion: Avatars and Virtual Identity

Inspired by two stories last week—Ralph Lauren thinks people want to shop their Bitmoji, and Helsinki Fashion Week Explores New Frontiers With Purely Digital Format—I made this short film about digital fashion:

Not long after I made it, I read Is Direct To Avatar The Next Direct To Consumer?, an excellent article by Cathy Hackl with Ryan Gill explaining digital fashion and the D2A model:

Direct-to-avatar (D2A) refers to an emerging business model selling products directly to avatars (D2A) – or digital identities – bypassing any supply chain management like dropshipping, logistics of how to get a physical product to a consumer’s door.

Ryan Gill, co-founder and CEO of Crucible

And then a further article, From Animal Crossing To Digital-Only Dresses, Is Fashion Becoming Our New Virtual Reality?, by Hannah Banks-Walker, on digital fashion in gaming and social:

The pandemic has accelerated our acceptance of blending the real world with more and more digital experiences.

Matthew Drinkwater, Head of Innovation Agency at London College of Fashion

There’s an interesting point where three accelerating trends—the use of avatars in virtual spaces, the digital intermediation of our identities, and fashion brands exploring digital tools—are meeting.