Virtual 25 (virtual sneakers)

2021: Virtual 25 announcement - sneakers that can only be "worn" in photos on the Internet

In mid-March 2021, Gucci, together with the Belarusian company Wanna, released sneakers that can only be "worn" in photos on the Internet. They can be bought and tried on only in special applications. The cost in the Gucci application is $11.99, in the Wanna application - $8.99.

Virtual 25 is a massive bright green sneaker with pink and sky blue inserts. The design was developed by Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele, and the "digitalization" was provided by the Belarusian company Wanna, which creates applications using augmented reality.

Virtual 25 sneakers

To wrap such sneakers, you need to go to the mobile application Gucci or Wanna Kicks and purchase goods. Program algorithms will determine the location of the legs in the frame and put digital sneakers on them. You can "wear" them in other worlds with virtual or augmented reality, including the massive multiplayer online game VR Chat and the Roblox gaming platform.

The Gucci brand correctly chose the time for the release of digital shoes. Earlier, Gucci had already experimented on the field of virtual sneakers and created a design in their application, and also invited users to change it on their own. But it was at the beginning of 2021 that the market for non-replaceable tokens (NFT) began to gain momentum, and digital works of art and NBA trading cards began to sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Wanna's CEO, Sergey Arkhangelsky, was optimistic about the future of digital products, saying that "in five or maybe 10 years, a significant part of the income of fashion brands will come from digital products." He also noted that Wanna's goal is to actually replace photos of products with something more attractive and close to shopping offline.^[1]

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