Why the fashion industry is getting more interested in gaming

Posted on May 5, 2021 | by Fusia

It all started with an increase in the number of people using smartphones, and consequently, many industries which we never could have imagined it, went online. But, in recent decades, an even greater focus has been on video games.

The development of the video game industry has reached the level of the American film industry and became foundation for the development of the esport industry. The video game industry is experiencing constant growth with the biggest jump in revenue growth over the past decade, making it very attractive to companies that traditionally were not involved, nor interested in gaming. Now, some companies like Konami are dedicated to diversifying their portfolio by dedicating part of their operation to other gaming branches, providing online casinos like Rizk with slot games, or land-based casinos with slot machines.

Gaming and the fashion industry

For the fashion industry, gaming is rather new and unexplored terrain. While many may assume that fashion and gaming have nothing in common, things couldn’t be further from the truth. For example, Puma has signed a multi-year contract with the esport brand Cloud9 to design a collection of clothes for gamers. The gaming scene should soon become richer for Drest as well, the application of former Harper’s Bazaar editor Lucy Yeomans, which focuses on creating virtual styling from the offered clothing pieces of luxury fashion brands, and whose success is then evaluated by other members of the Drest community.

Gaming allows us to, at least temporarily, escape from the real into the virtual world. If you are not part of the gaming scene, and the last game you played was somewhere at the beginning of the millennium and all that pomp seems a bit ridiculous to you, then your skepticism will be dispelled by the fact that the last World Cup in League of Legends was watched by almost 4 million people. Whether you want to admit it or not - it’s impressive to say the least. Video games will allow fashion brands to reach new audience that they have failed to reach with other tools – a lucrative (often affluent) audience to which traditional marketing has becoming increasingly ineffective as they have become immune to it. Not to mention that League of Legends is the most popular game in China with 484 million players, and a large part of that number are young women - a group that spends more and more every year on luxury products such as Louis Vuitton handbags.

Balenciaga video game

Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow is the title of a high-fashion video game that will now present the collection for the new autumn / winter 2021. The futuristic display is also an allegory, and the players will embark on a fashion adventure with their avatar. Gaming has just become more interesting for fashionistas no doubt! In addition to seeing a new collection inspired by human destiny, players will also travel through the virtual world through time all the way to a future in which we have found a healthy balance between nature and industry.

Some challenges still prevail

Esport has been struggling with its biggest problem for years, and that is creating sufficient value to become large enough and relevant with rating numbers, which would further interest potential sponsors. Funding that depends on sponsorship agreements is a lever with which any organization can create added value and catapult its brand. So far, sponsorships were most often collected by the organizers themselves, but today, esport teams can also attract sponsors willing to connect their brand with specific audience.