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At a time when independent designers are grappling with the brutal realities of wholesale retail slumps and the high costs of marketing, some are testing digital fashion in the world of video games.
To coincide with the announcement of the winner of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund this autumn, the 10 finalists will appear in a new mobile fashion game called Fashion League, which is set to launch during New York Fashion Week this September. Select chosen designs will be digitised, and players will compete in a series of challenges for four weeks, with locations and backdrops inspired by the finalists. The game makes money by selling digital designs and other upgraded gameplay opportunities, and it will share revenue with the designers, although the prices and specific terms are still being hammered out. (They are expected to reflect real-world prices, but converted to the game’s scale and currency.)
“The project emerged from a shared vision between CFDA and Fashion League to bridge the gap between fashion and technology,” says CFDA CEO Steven Kolb. “Recognising the growing influence of digital platforms and gaming on fashion, we saw an opportunity to innovate and create a unique learning experience for the designers.” Kolb adds that the Fashion Fund’s goal is to help the next generation of American talent succeed through opportunities and education that are business-based and culturally relevant. “Fashion League fits perfectly within this curriculum, providing designers with insights and hands-on engagement with the gaming industry, which they would not have access to otherwise as a young brand.”
The partnership came about, in part, due to the help from NBC correspondent and Milk Makeup co-founder Zanna Roberts Rassi, who is an advisor to the parent company of Fashion League, Finfin Play AG. The company was recently founded by entrepreneur Theresia Le Battistini, who connected with Rassi through her doll startup, I’m a Girly (which garnered celebrity endorsements from Madonna and Victoria Beckham).
This is the latest in a series of fashion styling games aimed at Gen Z players with high-profile fashion-world backers. In December, Tommy Hilfiger’s Hilfiger Ventures launched mobile game FashionVerse, boasting high-fidelity avatars, clothing and scenes. Meanwhile, Hollywood stylist Kate Young signed on as a senior advisor for digital fashion house Blueberry, and supermodel Karlie Kloss opened a standalone fashion styling game on Roblox, called Fashion Klossette. And Drest, founded in 2019 by former magazine editor Lucy Yeomans, has been gearing up for a relaunch and secured partnerships with those including Kate Moss, Irina Shayk and Imaan Hammam.
Fashion League aims to stand out through inclusivity, high-definition three-dimensional avatars and more intricate gameplay. Players can layer individual clothing items on their avatars — which is a relatively new feature to the gaming world — and aren’t limited in options in terms of gendered bodies and clothing. “If I want to play a male character and wear a dress and put on makeup, and that expresses myself, I have no limitation,” says Pete Giannakopoulos, Fashion League’s art and game director. “That is what fashion is.”
“I'm eager to be a part of an industry-expansion of fashion into the gaming world and I'm looking forward to learning as much as I can about the gaming industry,” says finalist Jane Wade, who grew up playing The Sims game. “Knowing that my designs will be available for other people to choose and wear virtually through this game is so special. It's similar to the feeling when you see your garments hanging in the store for the first time, or the first time you see someone you don't know walking down the street in a piece that they bought from you.”
The idea started more than a year ago as a Web3 game, Le Battistini says, but she realised her target audience of fashion gamers “don’t care if they can own the asset as an NFT. For us, it’s very important that we have a fun, contemporary and innovative game. There are some competitive elements; women like to compete with each other but in another way. We don’t have shooter games.”
A challenge will be attracting an audience. Fashion League plans to emphasise inclusivity and work with its community to co-create new features, collections and the overall direction of the game, Le Battistini says, and the first marketing campaigns will be co-created by its community. (It has been working already with community focus groups to provide feedback.) It will also work with influencers.
Emerging designers are increasingly desperate for any help in finding new customers in affordable ways. Many of the finalists are turning to direct-to-consumer sales and independent boutiques in place of luxury department stores, having found that luxury department store chains and e-commerce retailers are not financially viable. Additionally, they are often eager to experiment with new technologies and platforms. According to analytics firm WARC, Gen Z consumers say they spend a quarter of their leisure time playing video games — their top leisure activity — compared to 18 per cent of their leisure time on social media.
“This interactive game expands our industry’s reach, connecting us with fashion enthusiasts, designers and consumers who may not yet know us,” said Sebastien Ami designers Sebastien and Marianne Amisial in a statement, adding that it stands to appeal to a demographic seeking broader acceptance. (Both played video games growing up, primarily Zelda for Marianne and a range of adventure games for Sebastien.)
“This will help me tap into a different customer demographic and show our designs to players of all ages,” says jewellery designer Presley Oldham, who is not a gamer. He adds that he is especially curious to see how players pair his jewellery with other designers’ clothing.
To digitise their designs, Fashion League uses software platform Marvelous Designer, which was originally designed for the fashion industry. The ultimate goal is for creators to be able to submit their digital work to the platform themselves. More fashion and beauty brand partnerships are planned. In January, the game and the CFDA will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund with additional content, including an event with alumni brands and prominent personalities from the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund selection committee appearing as non-player characters. Fashion League’s Charlotte Clisby, who oversees brand and talent partnerships, says to also expect future partnerships with entertainment brands and projects from TV and film releases.
Dynasty and Soull Ogun of L’Enchanteur consider themselves “retired gamers”, and feel that digitising their designs for a gaming multiverse allows them to expand their creative abilities. Oldham says he tried to select a range of pieces, including some that have a lot of movement, as well as singular strands of pearls. During a walkthrough of the experience, Oldham loved seeing how the fabrics moved within the game. “I’m excited to see how this translates for the jewellery movement as well, and I’m curious to see how the game captures the iridescence of pearls and gemstones, and how they catch light as digital objects.”
This type of discovery and exploration is central to the mission of the project, Kolb says. “Our goal with this initiative is to expose designers to new opportunities and encourage them to think outside the traditional fashion box. By integrating gaming into their creative process, we believe they can unlock new levels of creativity.”
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