Balenciaga or Prada: What Will You Be Wearing on Meta?

Words by Pameyla Cambe
June 20, 2022
Tatler Asia
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Cover Photo: Meta

Mark Zuckerberg enlists luxury fashion brands to dress virtual avatars on Meta

Mark Zuckerberg may not be the most stylish person in the universe, but we can’t say the same for the metaverse. That’s because the billionaire CEO has added some of the biggest fashion brands to his virtual reality platform, Meta, formerly known as Facebook.

Together with Meta’s vice president of fashion and shopping partnerships, Eva Chen, Zuckerberg announced that Meta will be opening a virtual fashion store for users to “dress” their avatars. For sale on the digital racks? The latest from Balenciaga, Prada and Thom Browne.

“Basically it’s a clothing store for your Meta avatar,” said Zuckerberg explained. “We already have a bunch of different free clothing, but we also wanted to create this marketplace.”

Read more: 5 Things to Know About Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s Longtime Chief Operating Officer Who Is Stepping Down

These digital garments were modelled by Chen’s and Zuckerberg’s Meta 3D avatars: Chen looked svelte in a Prada tank top and skirt from the Italian luxury brand’s Fall/Winter 2022 collection, previously modelled by Euphoria’s Hunter Schafer, while the Facebook founder ventured beyond his hoodies and nondescript shirts to flaunt a Balenciaga motorcycle suit and Thom Browne tailoring.

“Digital goods will be an important way to express yourself in the metaverse and a big driver of the creative economy,” said Chen on Instagram, before sharing that more fashion brands will be added to Meta.

Being cheaper (and therefore more accessible) than the real thing is part of the appeal of Meta’s fashion offerings, but so is the ability to “wear” them across various Meta platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and Messenger. Whether anyone actually does will be seen in the weeks to come, as the Meta Avatars Store launches in the US, Canada, Thailand and Mexico.

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