Virtual avatars are a pathway to self-expression for young gamers. YPulse’s Metaverse trend research shows 52% of Gen Z and 39% of Millennials who play virtual world games say their digital avatar represents their personality, while one-third say their digital avatar is a version of themselves they can’t be in real life. As more fashion brands infiltrate virtual worlds like Decentraland, Animal Crossing, The Sims, Fortnite, and more, virtual avatars are on track to be the next fashion trendsetters. A recent study by Virtue, an in-house insights agency at Vice Media Group, predicts super-personalized avatars will become commonplace in everyone’s lives over the next three years. And among those surveyed in the study, 95% say they’re interested in buying digital fashion, while 82% say they’ve already bought some type of digital fashion. Our research also shows 33% of 13-39-year-olds think they’ll one day shop for clothes in the virtual world that can be shipped to them in real life, signaling young consumers may be ready for the real and virtual fashion worlds to merge. (Refinery29)
