Thanks to the growing and sustained development of technologies such as 5G, virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing, big data, advanced analytics and blockchain, the metaverse seems to be closer than we think.
In accordance with GartnerBy 2026, 25% of people will spend at least one hour a day in the metaverse, and around 30% of organizations worldwide will also have products and services in the metaverse. For example, there is the recent launch by mark zuckerberg of the Meta Avatars Store a digital clothing store where you can buy outfits to dress your avatar in fashion.
Nike is quietly preparing for the metaverse by filing some trademark applications, openly indicating its intention to manufacture and sell virtual sneakers and apparel under its brand. On July 28, 2021 Coke enters the metaverse with his first NFTs (Non-Fungible Token) building on its strength of being one of the world’s most collectible brands. On February 4 of this year, McDonald’s filed 10 trademark applications with the US Patent and Trademark Office covering both McDonald’s and McCafé for the purpose of profiting from the Web3, including the metaverse.
Other companies like Amazon, Walmart, Balenciaga, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Adidas and Sentosa are taking the metaverse very seriously, as it opens up a huge space for developing new online shopping experiences to connect with a new consumer or consumer much more virtualized.
The current examples show that the connections of the metaverse with retail, at the moment, are located in the development of augmented life environments (augmented life) and isolated generation (isolated generation), awaiting progress in the Web 3.0to arrive in the future at a supposed total immersion (full immersion).
Certainly, in the metaverse there are enormous opportunities for marketing and electronic commerce, where at the moment and given the state of the technological art, virtual stores are the most common format in retail because they are completely feasible.