web3 weekly - week 2
Gucci owner says crypto is "no longer niche", Tag Heuer reveals first NFT watch, new Karl Lagerfeld NFT collection sold out, Farfetch to accept crypto payments.. Welcome to a new web3 weekly!
Hi to the second edition of web3 weekly, where I cover recent top stories in web3, particularly in fashion and music. You are new to web3, NFTs and Co? Then you’ll always find content to get you started at the bottom of this newsletter.
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💡 News
While many companies are busy with layoffs (including Tesla, Coinbase, Crypto.com), Binance and ByteDance owned VR start-up Pico are hiring (a lot).
Meta to push metaverse plans to Hong Kong schools & cafes.
PayPal users can now finally transfer cryptocurrencies including bitcoin and ether to third-party wallets and exchange.
Contemporary art gallery Pace announces partnership with art platform ArtBlocks for digital art, featuring a series of artist NFT releases, exhibitions, and community programming.
Billboard released a NFT collection that will grant users access to events, concert tickets, special collections and more.
Nickelodeon opens a Twitter account to reveal details about their upcoming NFT collection. That’s no surprise, considering that ViacomCBS (Paramount Media Networks) announced that it will get into NFTs via a partnership with NFT startup Recur a couple of months ago.
Polygon partners with NFTically to launch the first e-commerce Metaverse, allowing businesses to build immersive storefronts in a virtual world.
Pharrell Williams launches a New NFT platform called GODA.
👗 Fashion
Kering, the owner of Gucci and Balenciaga says, crypto is “no longer niche,” and wants to be Web3 “pioneers”, which includes accepting cryptocurrencies, add NFTs and investment in Web3-dedicated venture capital.
Brands of competitor LVMH are also announcing new projects:
Bulgari’s new jewelry collection includes a multi-million-euro, that is to be partly sold with digital twin NFTs, which link the physical goods to a virtual version. The “digital twins” are not meant to be worn in the metaverse or your PFP like others. They are digital artworks inspired by the necklaces.
Tag Heuer unveils its first NFT watch. Take a look!
Snapchat’s new augmented shopping feature is now used by Burberry to boost handbag sales. Burberry is - next to Gucci, Prada and Farfetc - one of the first brands to use the new feature.
GQ jumps on Discord to reach Web3 early adopters and crypto-curious.
Luxury e-tailer Farfetch joins Gucci and other luxury brands in accepting crypto payments.
Tommy Hilfiger expands presence on Roblox with ‘Tommy Play’ space - featuring mini games and Tommy Coins.
Digital fashion startup RTFKT and luxury fragrance brand Byredo have partnered on a perfume for Web3, a first for both companies driven by Nike-owned Rtfkt's experimental Web3 approach. More details here.
Estée Lauder Group owned beauty brand Clinique gives profile picture NFTs (PFPs) glam makeovers to Clinique NFT holders via airdrops, aimed at bringing attention to diversity and inclusion gaps in the metaverse.
Lacoste launches NFTs and allows owners to ‘co-create’ designs.
Epic Games, Timberland, and a group of footwear designers and artists known as ConceptKicks team up to bring fashion to Fortnite. Read more about it here.
The CatBlox x Puma revealed new Capsule Collection.
Karl Lagerfeld launched its debut limited-edition NFT collection on the fashion digital platform, The Dematerialised. The NFT collection pays homage to the iconic designer on his birthday and features an animated character of the unmistakable silhouette of the late Karl Lagerfeld. The collection is almost sold out by now.
🦸♀️🦸♂️ Just getting started?
What’s a PFP?
You see the term often, when you read web3 news or this newsletter. PFP stands for profile picture (PFP) that is a non-fungible token (NFT). You may have seen Serena Williams, Reese Witterspoon or Eva Longoria change their Twitter profile picture earlier this year. They purchased an NFT of a project they believed in and added it as their Twitter profile picture to show their support of the project or just show off the expensive Bored Ape they just purchased. Many celebs have changed their Twitter picture back though. More about PFP’s here.
Last week, I told you about how to best get started and learn about the space. I pointed out TikTok as a great platform to learn. While TikTok is amazing to stay uptodate on recent topics and learn with relative little time invest (short-form content), you will find more in depth content on YouTube. Check out this account for well-explained videos about Crypto and web3 Finance; also Gary Vee has some good beginner content to help you understand the topic.
Check out this beginner’s guide to web3 if you want to learn more.