Quick take:
Leading retail-focused metaverse platform Highstreet has partnered with Jonathan Koon to launch the Mostly Heard Rarely Seen 8-Bit “phygital” NFT drop. The first-of-its-kind project will allow Mostly Heard Rarely Seen 8-Bit shoppers redeem NFTs by scanning QR codes sewn into the physical garment.
The luxury fashion brand wants to turn retail shopping into a metaverse onboarding experience for its loyal customers.
Koon and Highstreet believe that the collaboration could help onboard millions into Web3 by seamlessly “guiding the crypto-unfamiliar customer base of the world’s leading fashion retailers into the metaverse.”
According to the announcement, the onboarding process involves digitally cloning “the shopper along with their purchased 8-Bit apparel into the Highstreet metaverse.”
Users will be rewarded with the $HIGH token upon joining the Highstreet metaverse to get them off to a quick start in their new Web3 experiences. They will also be offered an opportunity to establish permanent ownership of the apparel acquired during the drop by minting into NFTs, giving them more use-cases including selling on NFT marketplaces like OpenSea and LooksRare.
Commenting on the partnership, Jenny Guo, Co-Founder of Highstreet said: “With this launch, we aim to welcome more traditional, non-blockchain consumers to the web3 world. To allow consumers to experience the energy and new possibilities in web3 culture, without needing to already possess the complex knowledge of navigating web3 tech.
Guo thinks that the partnership can turn department stores into avenues leading to the Highstreet metaverse. “Every step of the process is based on something we all already do: buying physical products we already love,” Guo added.
Jonathan Koon commented: “Just like how Supreme is a lifestyle brand that represents the perspective of a skateboarder from downtown New York; 8-Bit is a lifestyle brand that represents the perspective of a modern-day tech kid.”
The 8-bit “phygital’ experience will launch in leading department stores across the world, including Sak’s 5th Ave, Neiman Marcus, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, and Beymen, among others.
Koon and Highstreet have priced the NFT-encoded apparel between $120 – $275 and are already planning more limited edition collaborations with leading players in the industry.
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