Author's Note: Hey frens! This post was originally sent out in newsletter format to our subscribers, and we have published it here as well for archive purposes. If you'd like this weekly edition to be sent straight to your inbox, subscribe to our "What's Brand New?" newsletter today!

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Gm, coolkidz.

With the Ethereum merge just going live a few days ago, the Ethereum ecosystem, and dare I say the entire web3 world, is gearing towards a new and promising future.

That being said, our newsletter “What’s Brand New?” debuts on this momentous day too!

We bring you the biggest NFT and web3 brand news fortnightly, keeping you well-informed on what’s brand new in the space.

If you’d like to see more of NFT Paris’ content, be sure to check out our website and Twitter!

Without further ado, let’s get started. Enjoy!

This Fortnight in Brands & NFTs

Here are 5 major updates in the Brands & NFTs space this first half of September.

D3sign Digitally With ELLE Décoration

SuperRare, a pioneer in the NFT art marketplace, recently announced its partnership with ELLE Décoration, launching digital and IRL collections of unique artworks.

ELLE Décoration is a renowned brand in the artistry and design space, being the leading magazine in France and other regions when it comes to interior design, etc.

To celebrate ELLE Décoration’s 35th anniversary, they will be launching a special digital art collection, titled “D3SIGN CAPSULE”.

In with the new, while keeping the old, ELLE Décoration invited 15 traditional designers and architects to work with 15 digital artists, pairing up to design and build different works. The results are simply extravagant.

These digital pieces are minted as separate NFT collections. Alongside them, the creators went the extra mile to build IRL versions of their concepts, with some yielding pretty distinct results. Both digital and physical models will be on display in the ongoing Paris Design Week.

Not only does this allow the long-standing design magazine to relate to younger, NFT-curious generations, but it also connects more traditional designers to the trends of the digital age. Perhaps, NFTs will be the visualization concepts of the future?

Disney’s Next-Generation Storytelling Platform

At Disney’s biennial Expo event (D23 Expo 2022) last week, CEO Bob Chapek shared Disney’s visualization of storytelling in the next 100 years to come.

He dubs this as Disney’s “Next Generation Storytelling” strategy, which is not just its theme parks, but also streaming services. Perhaps, data from people in Disney’s parks can be used to make improvements to their streaming service, Disney Plus.

Furthermore, there is also a touch on Augmented Reality becoming a part of the Disney experience. Pretty notably, Mr. Chapek went to great lengths trying to avoid the “M-Word”, or as Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg exclaims with gusto, the Metaverse. 

Bob Chapek recently stated in an interview “The question is, how is our next-gen storytelling leveraging what we know about a guest uniquely in this Disney lifestyle, then serving up unique experiences.”

Nevertheless, this idea preached by Disney is an indication of changing with the times, and accommodating new trends to stay relevant. Diving into web3 is a great starting point, and with both an IRL brand presence as well as repertoire built up over the generations, Disney is in a strong position to push its “Next-Gen Storytelling” plan forward.

PUMA Launches “Black Station”: A New Metaverse Experience

Footwear brand PUMA has presented its new website-metaverse experience at New York Fashion Week (NYFW 2022).

They call it “The Black Station”, which was also PUMA’s original design house 20 years ago. 

As such, The Black Station will be the current and future home to PUMA’s NFT and web3 projects.

Alongside this hyper-realistic experience, PUMA also released two NFT sneaker design concepts (Nitro NFRNO and Nitro Fastroid), as part of their #FUTROGRADE show at NYFW 2022.

For those who have minted PUMA’s NFT Nitropass, they can burn their NFTs to redeem physical sneakers IRL.

Two portals on The Black Station showcase these sneakers. Another portal leads to the digital NYFW metaverse show. 

The Black Station metaverse was built with Unreal Engine 5, by creative agency FTR.

Quoting David Stamatis, Executive Creative Director and Partner at FTR explains, “This project gave us agency and trust to… innovate in the storytelling around product, fashion, and brand. Creating a truly phygital experience has opened our eyes to the immense opportunity for brands in the future."

With competitors such as Nike’s RTFKT already established in the space, how big will PUMA’s footprint be in web3?

Alo Yoga’s Debut NFT Collection — A Mark of Authenticity

Alo Yoga released its new holiday special, the Aspen Collection, at NYFW 2022 last Saturday. Their presentation was immaculate, with a winter-themed clothing show and even Augmented Reality (AR) mirrors for attendees to try-on clothes virtually.

But that’s not all… this also marks Alo Yoga’s debut into the NFT space.

The Aspen Collection is accompanied by Alo’s exclusive NFT collection, which is only redeemable upon purchase of clothing from the brand.

Most importantly, the NFT acts as a digital “Proof of Authenticity”, encoded into the blockchain. In other words, Alo’s NFT confirms that your piece of clothing is original.

Danny Harris, a co-founder of Alo Yoga, said, “Alo exists at the intersection of fashion and wellness, so we see showing our Aspen Collection at NYFW as the perfect venue to host our high-end line that is both studio–to–street with luxury design and fabrication.”

To assist non-crypto natives with claiming their NFT, Alo Yoga has partnered with popular crypto payment service Moonpay. They will walk customers through the process of setting up digital wallets and eventually receiving the exclusive NFT.

What Alo has rolled out simply scratches the surface of what NFTs and blockchain technology has to offer. We’re sure that further developments in the NFT space will come in due time.

Doodles: Building A Brand Out of An Art Project

This Tuesday, top-tier NFT project Doodles announced that it had raised $54 million in seed funding, valued at a whopping 704 million dollars. The funding round was led by Seven Seven Six, with notable investors FTX Ventures and Acrew Capital participating.

While Doodles has been a “top 10” NFT project by market cap for quite a while, it came as a pleasant surprise to holders when this insane valuation was announced.

Rising to around 8.2 ETH in floor price after the announcement, it has now dropped down to 7 ETH. The market cap of Doodles collection is at a cool 108K ETH, or just under 200 million dollars.

The CEO of Doodles, Julian Holguin, commented, “We’re thrilled to have Seven Seven Six believe in our vision to build the largest and most coveted web3 media brand worldwide, bridging consumer, culture, and entertainment. Our mission is to redefine what it means to be a world class intellectual property.”

We must note that Doodles started off as an artistic project, but with this equity fundraising, it is evident that they are building towards establishing a brand. If you’re puzzled by the difference, be sure to check out our article on NFTs to Brands, case studies included! 

NFT Paris Update

NFT Paris has been focusing all of it’s efforts on having a CURATED event : an event with the best ppl in the NFT space, as well as leading creative brands.

Each week, we will be announcing new speakers. You can also expect major brands collaborating with NFT Paris.

We’ve recruited killers in Business Development, Art Direction & Installations as well as Marketing with a highly creative background. Expect this edition to be next-level.

Tickets are in the making - register here so you’ll be the first to get notified when tickets are out.

Conclusion

And that’s a wrap!

Thanks for staying till the end, and we hope you’re now better informed on NFT brand activity this first half of September.

With the recent Ethereum merge championing blockchain sustainability efforts, it is likely that more brands will now venture into the space. Only time will tell.

Hope to see you IRL at NFT Paris, February 2023! Till next time, coolkidz.

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