Macy’s Debuts Immersive Virtual Retail Experience
Macy’s is dipping a toe into the metaverse with the launch of its digital fashion platform, mstylelab.
The department store is teaming up with metaverse technology platform Journee to roll out the immersive experience, which is inspired by Macy’s newest brand, On 34th. The immersive experience will feature a surrealist recreation of New York City. Users can explore a virtual world filled with designs from the On 34th collection, journeying through different checkpoints to unlock personalized digital t-shirts that match the unique digital fabric designs created during the registration process.
“We are excited to launch mstylelab, the next evolution of our web3 digital strategy, creating a hub for style inspiration and discovery at the intersection of fashion and technology,” said Dave Torres, vice president of interactive marketing at Macy’s. “As we grow and evolve the mstylelab digital platform and community, new activations and experiences will be brought to life creating immersive storytelling focused on fashion and style, in a fun and shoppable environment.”
Moves in the Metaverse
While initial excitement around the metaverse may have cooled off over the years, CGT’s 2023 Sales & Marketing report shows that 39% of companies are still exploring the value of the metaverse and 10% are actively preparing to engage consumers in the metaverse.
A number of retailers are experimenting in this space: two of the biggest players in the game – Amazon and Walmart – have made strides in this space, establishing different iterations of virtual worlds in which customers can explore and shop. Most recently, Walmart rolled out a new Roblox: Walmart Discovered.
In the fashion space, H&M rolled out H&M Loooptopia on the Roblox platform earlier this year, which gamified the styling process and allowed users to create virtual wardrobes for their avatars within an immersive 3D experience. Pacsun similarly leveraged Roblox to create its own shoppable, virtual map of different Los Angeles neighborhoods.
