Digital Fashion is the Next Big Thing in NFTs

The world of fashion is being disrupted by NFTs (non-fungible tokens) in a major way. Digital fashion refers to virtual clothing and accessories that people can buy for their online avatars. With the NFT market development continuing to accelerate, digital fashion NFTs are emerging as one of the most popular applications of this new technology.

Just as people care about dressing up their physical bodies, they also want to clothe their virtual identities. On social platforms and in virtual worlds like Decentraland, digital fashion allows people to showcase their style personalities. For digital-first generations, virtual fashion is just as real as physical fashion.

Major fashion brands have already jumped on the trend, releasing limited edition digital wearables as NFTs. Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and other luxury labels have experimented with digital-only collections. Digital fashion NFTs are being sold for thousands or even millions of dollars on NFT marketplaces.

But how exactly does digital fashion work, and why is it taking off? This blog post will explore the rise of digital fashion NFTs and their growing significance in the future of the NFT marketplace development industry.

What Exactly Are Digital Fashion NFTs?

A digital fashion NFT represents a virtually rendered 3D clothing or accessory item. It can be a hat, shirt, pants, glasses, jewelry, or any type of wearable.

The NFT acts as a certificate of ownership and authenticity for the virtual item. Since NFTs are digital assets recorded on a blockchain, they can prove provenance and scarcity for digital fashion.

When someone buys a digital fashion NFT, they gain the right to use that virtual garment for their avatars in compatible virtual spaces. It's just like owning a physical designer item, except the clothing only exists digitally.

For example, someone could purchase a Louis Vuitton scarf NFT to dress up their avatar on Cryptovoxels. Or they could buy digital sneakers as NFTs to wear in the Decentraland metaverse. The scarce digital assets can be collected, traded, and sold just like physical high fashion pieces.

The Rise of Digital Fashion NFT Marketplaces

Several online marketplaces have emerged for trading digital fashion NFTs from various digital designers and fashion brands. These include:

• DressX - This marketplace bills itself as the first digital fashion house and lets people create custom digital looks. DressX has partnered with major brands like Tommy Hilfiger to offer branded digital clothing NFTs.
• The Dematerialised - Founded by a former British Vogue creative director, Dematerialised offers limited edition digital fashions created by diverse designers. Items have sold for up to $9,500.
• Boson Portal - Boson Protocol has created an NFT marketplace for virtual wearables and accessories from international fashion brands. Recently they auctioned digital garments from emerging Southeast Asian designers.
• NFTify - This shop curates and mints fashion NFTs on behalf of established luxury brands like Perry Ellis as part of their digital strategy. NFTify aims to bridge real-world fashion with the metaverse.

These marketplaces allow people to buy curated digital fashion NFTs using cryptocurrencies and easily incorporate them into virtual environments. Big brands also get a cut from secondary sales. This represents an exciting revenue stream as NFT development expands.

Why Digital Fashion is Exploding in Popularity

Several key factors are driving the appeal and adoption of digital fashion NFTs:

• Self-Expression - Much like physical clothing, digital fashion allows people to communicate their style, tastes, and personality through virtual garments. Especially for digital-native generations, online self-expression is extremely important.
• Showing Status - Luxury and rare digital pieces have the same appeal as designer physical fashion for showing off status and belonging to exclusive communities. Digital fashion is the virtual equivalent of wearing Gucci or Balenciaga.
• Avatar Customization - As people spend more time in virtual environments through platforms like Fortnite, Snapchat, and VRChat, they want to customize their avatars with stylish virtual apparel.
• Investment Value - With high price tags and rising demand, many see digital fashion NFTs as an investment opportunity similar to collectible sneakers or art. Investors can speculate on valuable digital garments.
• Scarcity - The limited supply of digital fashion NFT drops makes them more exclusive, desirable, and valuable as collectibles. People want digitally scarce garments with proof of ownership on the blockchain.
• Sustainability - Digital fashion provides an environmentally friendly alternative to fast fashion's pollution and waste. Brands can create garments that don't use dyes, or textiles, or get disposed of in landfills.

As these motivations demonstrate, digital fashion appeals to collector investors and fashion lovers alike. As virtual worlds expand, demand for digital apparel and accessories will continue rising.

Notable Digital Fashion NFT Drops

Some of the most headline-grabbing digital fashion NFT drops so far include:

RTFKT x Ferocious Virtual Sneaker Collection

In March 2021, the NFT studio RTFKT collaborated with the artist Fewocious to launch a set of virtual sneakers called FewoCrypz. They sold for $3.1 million in just seven minutes! This highlighted the massive demand for digital sneakers as virtual wearables.

Dolce & Gabbana Collezione Genesi

Luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana auctioned a collection of digital couture, jewelry, handbags, and accessories as NFTs through UNXD. The Collezione Genesi pieces sold for a combined $6.1 million.

Louis The Game by Louis Vuitton

To celebrate its 200th anniversary, Louis Vuitton created a playable retro video game called Louis The Game that was sold as an NFT. 30 NFTs were released featuring unique digital assets like a spaceship and clothing items.

Gucci x SUPERPLASTIC

Gucci teamed up with the virtual brand SUPERPLASTIC to create digital versions of Gucci's Dionysus Bag in limited quantities. 500 were sold via SuperRare for $2,000-$3,000 each.

Adidas Into the Metaverse Partnership

In December 2021, Adidas acquired NFTs created by the studio Bored Ape Yacht Club as part of a new partnership focused on digital wearables and moving Adidas “Into the Metaverse.”

These are just a few high-profile examples of how luxury labels are embracing digital fashion NFTs. As virtual worlds grow, the digital fashion space promises to explode even further for digital NFT marketplace development services.

Virtual Fashion Shows are Coming

Another interesting application of digital fashion involves virtual fashion shows. Just as brands like Prada and Dior rely on extravagant runway shows to unveil their latest collections, virtual fashion shows represent a new format made possible by digital apparel NFTs.

Boson Protocol recently executed what it believes to be the very first digital fashion NFT show during Decipher 2021 in November. Models were dressed in 12 digital couture looks that could be purchased as NFTs.

Brands can now use virtual fashion shows to display their digital collections on virtual runways and in the metaverse. Boson Protocol also live-streamed its digital fashion show on Twitch, showing how these events could be opened up to wider virtual audiences.

As virtual reality technology improves, we may even see hybrid physical/digital fashion shows with augmented reality. There are so many creative applications of digital fashion NFTs that go beyond just e-commerce sales. NFT development services will be critical for bringing these experiences to life.

How Digital Fashion NFTs Are Created

But how exactly are fashion NFTs brought from abstract design concepts to rendered 3D products? Here is a quick look at the production process:

• Design Sketch - Just like normal apparel design, it all starts with a sketch of a garment idea including attributes like shape, color, and pattern.
• 3D Modeling - Using 3D design software, the sketch gets modeled into an accurate virtual replica of the clothing item.
• Texturing - The 3D model gets detailed coloring, textures, lighting, etc. applied to look realistic and appealing.
• Simulation - Physics engines simulate how the digital garment will move, fold, and drape on various avatar bodies.
• Mintage - The rendered 3D asset gets minted with metadata into a non-fungible token (NFT) that is put up for sale.
• Integration - Buyers can integrate their new digital fashion NFTs into selected virtual worlds, games, or avatar ecosystems.

The entire process mirrors the traditional fashion design pipeline, except for the critical final step of minting the clothing into blockchain-compatible NFTs. This is what allows digital fashion to be traded as verifiable digital assets.

Key Challenges Facing Digital Fashion NFTs

Despite the hype, there are still some challenges facing widespread digital fashion adoption:

• Interoperability - There is a lack of universal standards for integrating digital fashion NFTs across different virtual platforms, blockchains, games, etc.
• Accessibility - Most digital fashion is still targeted at high-end luxury brands and out of reach for average consumers. Prices need to come down.
• Avatar Realism - For digital clothing to catch on, there need to be realistic and detailed mainstream avatar ecosystems where users can show off virtual apparel.
• Environmental Impact - While digital fashion reduces waste compared to fast fashion, the environmental costs of NFTs on proof-of-work blockchains have been criticized.
• Cultural Relevance - As digital spaces grow, brands need to consider cultural diversity and inclusion in designing wearable products that engage wide audiences.

Digital Fashion NFT Use Cases

Here are some examples of how fashion NFTs are being used across industries:

• Adidas has acquired plots of virtual land in The Sandbox metaverse and plans to use it to sell digital apparel for user avatars. This is part of their new NFT and metaverse strategy.
• Snapchat allows users to design customizable digital fashion that is overlaid on users in Augmented Reality. Brands like Prada have created AR clothing lenses for Snapchat.
• Fortnite players can buy skins like digital clothing items to individualize their characters beyond the default options. Some rare skins have been resold for thousands of dollars.
• Decentraland hosted a Metaverse Fashion Week where brands auctioned digital couture NFTs. Over 6,000 people virtually attended to see the latest digital fashion.
• RTFKT Studios makes digital sneakers as NFTs that users can wear in virtual settings. One rare pair sold for $3.1 million at auction to an investor group.

How Fashion Brands Can Capitalize on Digital Fashion NFTs

For legacy fashion labels and retailers, here are some tips on how to incorporate NFT-based digital fashion into a brand growth strategy:

• Partner with NFT designers and studios skilled in digital garment creation and blockchain technology. Don't try to build this capacity in-house from scratch.
• Start with a limited capsule collection or exclusive NFT drops to test demand and learn what digital designs resonate with your community.
• Promote digital fashion releases through NFT marketplaces and leverage your existing brand marketing channels and influencer network.
• Target younger demographics who are digitally native and already fashion your brand. Gen Z and young Millennials are a perfect target market.
• Design versatile digital garments that users can incorporate into various metaverse platforms, not just a closed environment.
• Experiment with hybrid physical/digital offerings. For example, a physical fashion item could come with a free digital version as an NFT.
• Capitalize on digital fashion to complement real-world fashion events like runway shows. Virtual fashion shows alongside physical debuts are an untapped possibility.

The bottom line is that digital fashion represents a huge opportunity for brands to connect with younger audiences online. With the right NFT marketplace development partners, even luxury fashion labels can dip their toes into this new model of digital-first design.

The Future of Digital Fashion NFTs

Looking ahead, here are some exciting developments we may see as digital fashion gains adoption:

• AR/VR Integration - Digital fashion NFTs that integrate with augmented and virtual reality to be worn in real-time as holograms.
• More Brands Joining - Big and small fashion brands releasing special digital collections and virtual apparel to meet demand.
• Improved Interoperability - Seamless integration of digital fashion NFTs across chain and metaverse platforms.
• User-Generated Content - Creation tools that allow anyone to design and mint their digital fashion vs. relying just on brands.
• Digital Fashion Rental - Renting scarce digital garments for temporary use as an alternative to purchasing NFTs.
• Digital Couture - Establishment of digital-only luxury and haute fashion houses focused on virtually rendered designs.
• Normalizing Virtual Self-Expression - Wearing digital fashion in virtual settings becomes as commonplace as wearing physical items in real life.

Even in its early stages, the emergence of digital fashion represents an exciting evolution for both the blockchain and fashion spaces. As next-gen creators break down the divide between physical and digital, our identities and self-expression will span both virtual and tangible worlds through tools like NFTs.

Conclusion

Digital fashion NFTs give people an entirely new way to visually communicate their style identities through virtual goods. As digital spaces grow in popularity and importance, especially among younger demographics, demand for digital apparel and accessories will continue accelerating.

For both fashion lovers and blockchain advocates, this is an important development to pay attention to. NFT development services will become crucial for creating digital wearables and moving them across virtual environments.

While still early, expect digital fashion to play a major role in the future of how people interact with brands, self-expression, and virtual identity. The closet of the future is already here - and it fits right in your crypto wallet.

This service exploring the world of digital fashion NFTs is provided by RWaltz, a leading blockchain development company. In addition to coverage of emerging topics like NFTs, RWaltz provides cutting-edge crypto-related services including NFT development, DeFi development, Crypto token creation, Wallet App Development creation, and more for clients of all sizes. With deep expertise in decentralized and Web3 solutions, RWaltz is the best company to partner with for any blockchain project across digital collectibles, cryptocurrencies, and, decentralized finance. Their development services help leading brands, startups, and agencies capitalize on blockchain innovation.