The metaverse may not really exist yet, but Mark Zuckerberg already has a plan to sell users designer fashion for their metaverse avatars. Meta has announced that it is opening an Avatars Store where users can purchase outfits for their avatars on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger.
The new looks include designer duds from Balenciaga, Prada and Thom Browne and the company expects to add more designers over time. Zuckerberg and Eva Chen, Meta’s VP of Fashion Partnerships, announced the new store on an Instagram Live that they described as the “first live avatar fashion show.” The “fashion show” part consisted of Chen holding up paper drawings of Zuckerberg’s avatar wearing dubious, albeit metaverse-ready, outfits.
“I guess the only question is if I’m cool enough to wear that,” Zuckerberg asked at one point after seeing a Balenciaga-clad Zuck atar. “I’m not sure I’m quite ready for that.” Chen also showcased a Zuckerberg look with a Thom Browne look that she described as having a “classic English schoolboy feel” that only vaguely resembled Danny from The Shining.
Screenshot / Instagram
As for why Facebook users would pay real money for metaverse clothing, Chen pointed out that it will be much easier to get hold of, say, an oversized Balenciaga hoodie in the metaverse than IRL. It will also be cheaper, with prices on the Avatars Store ranging from $2.99 to $8.99 “to start,” a company spokesperson said.
Of course, selling digital assets in the metaverse is also an important part of Meta’s strategy to keep making billions of dollars even as it turns away from advertising. The company previously confirmed that it plans to keep 48 percent of its profits from creator sales of digital assets in Horizon Worlds’ VR experience. A Meta spokesperson declined to share what Meta’s cut would be on his new avatar fashion.
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