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5 Brands Going Phygital to Attract Gen Z

Phygital launches are defining how brands use Web3 this year—just as we predicted they would…

Written and Edited by the YPulse Editorial Team

Jul 3 2023
North America

KEY TAKEAWAYS

YPulse predicted phygital brand campaigns would be a trend this year, and these brands prove it is
Brands like Crocs, Puma, and Icecream are using phygital experiences to sell real fashion items
Meanwhile, Mattel and Play! Pop! Go! are pairing their digital collectibles with physical replicas

Last year, the word “phygital” started popping up everywhere—though, what it really means was not totally clear. But YPulse kept our eye on the trend, and we found it’s just a new word to describe brand experiences and products that exist both in virtual spaces and IRL ones. Our research has shown that digital experiences have been huge for drawing young consumers from the web to in-store loyalty—and as such, we predicted that in 2023 phygital campaigns would be the major way brands redefined their Web3 activations. As brands continue on their metaverse journeys, they’ll be wanting to connect these virtual worlds to the real one (though our data shows the virtual ones are very real to young people). Now, we’ve been proven right: more and more brands are connecting their virtual experiences and products to IRL ones, redefining their use of NFTs and virtual product launches. Last year, we saw Brands like Forever21 and Amazon deploy some successful examples of phygital experiences: Forever21’s Roblox beanie proved the power...