Last year while my kids were stuck at home learning online, they spent too much time on Roblox. An addictive, free, online gaming platform that provides avatars that seemingly only run around from one room to another. It's popularity has been on the rise for several years now, but really landed during the pandemic when parents were desperate for distractions to keep their children busy.
In the past two years brands like Gucci and Vans have entered the space selling unique individual fashion items that gamers can purchase for their avatars to wear for 5 to 50 Robux (Roblox currency). Netflix is also purchasing ad space around the gaming rooms that are designed and built by gamers.
To give some perspective, 5 Robux is valued at less than a penny in the real world. This 'penny stock' strategy was relatively easy to create, if you knew the gaming space and had some skin in the game to invest in advertising within the game. Picture billboards in virtual malls.
Having a background in fashion, I joined the game by creating my own unique fashion items and selling them to gamers. I make that sound easy, but my prime purpose was to turn Roblox into a learning opportunity for my children, which is why I recruited my daughter to help with creating the designs.
The space is still so new. The interface was not user-friendly which left me with no choice but to call in reinforcements from other teenagers to help.
When it was all said and done, we were selling clothing in the Metaverse!
Like any other business it needed TLC to develop and scale, which both my daughter and I sadly did not have. Time was required to build the brand by creating advertising, and drawing in users to our group to purchase. None the less, it was a very cool experience, but not for me.
I see the Metaverse as a future space for advertisers of brands that target Generation Z (aka Zoomers) and the Alpha generation that are currently in elementary school. I also see it as a space for tattoo artists to offer temporary tattoos that are uniquely designed for gamers. I've made my prediction, and I can't wait to see how the Metaverse evolves over time.
There's room to start on the ground floor if you have the patience. The next 10 years will reveal a lot. If you need a coach and advisor to walk you through metaverse fashion, reach out!
