Nike is officially stepping foot into the metaverse—and taking more control of its consumer operations.
Key Details
- Sportswear giant Nike is diving into the metaverse by opening an online store and trading platform for its shoes.
- The platform is called .Swoosh and registration for fans wanting to join begins November 19.
- Nike plans to release its own products on the platform and users will be able to collect and show off their items virtually.
Why it’s news
The metaverse has been a popular topic for many people and businesses in the last year.
Many businesses have developed virtual stores in the metaverse encouraging users to join and the next big one to do so—Nike.
The metaverse is basically a virtual reality world where people can do almost anything like shop and interact with others, but virtually. The name came into prominence when Facebook changed their name to Meta and invested billions into the metaverse, which is technology separate from the tech giant.
As it slowly becomes more popular businesses are jumping on board and creating virtual storefronts including—Nike.
The shoe giant recently announced its plans to join the metaverse with .Swoosh, its online store and trading platform. The company will release shoes and other items on the platform that users can collect and display.
The digital products will include various types of tie-ins and some may unlock access to physical items, make them available in video games or provide entry to real-life events, according to Bloomberg writer Kim Bhasin.
Some athletes who are signed with Nike will also have their own storefronts on .Swoosh and other users will be able to create designs within the platform.
“We’re entering a test-and-learn phase,” says head of Nike Virtual Studios Ron Faris. “We don’t know quite yet what the behavior will be that consumers will have with the virtual product.”
Registration for .Swoosh begins November 19 with the first collection set to hit the virtual storefront in January.
