by Christine Mansour, Operations Manager, Web3 Pro
The Louis Vuitton brand has always kept its finger on the pulse of the market. It was one of the first luxury brands to embrace the Internet 25 years ago. Enriched by the knowledge and insights gained over a hundred and sixty years in business, Louis Vuitton knows its customers. Now, the brand has started investing in Web3 marketing. However, instead of taking the the expected route of NFT auctions, it entered the market in a fun and interesting way. It launched a free-to-download game.
Louis: The Game
Louis: The Game was launched in August 2021 as a phone app. In its second iteration in 2022, the game positions players as Vivienne, an avatar who explores eight locations across the globe to search for 200 collectible candles, all in celebration of founder Louis Vuitton Malletier’s 200th birthday. Each candle provides players with information about the brand’s history and stories about Louis’ family and upbringing. Players can compete with friends on leaderboards as they venture through their quests, adding to the social nature of the game. The app is free to download and till April 2022, the “Louis: the Game” app had already achieved more than 2 million downloads.
Game participants can also win exclusive NFTs while playing. All NFT holders can then also qualify for an NFT raffle. In the raffle, which first ran in 2021, players were able to win one of 10 NFTs that featured Vivienne in various brand-inspired looks. These NFTs could be used as profile pics (PFP), referred to as PFP-like NFTs. The PFP-like NFTs cannot be purchased, sold, or traded, but they can be shared as a PFP across platforms. The brand’s artwork has been designed by well-known NFT artists, such as Wenew Labs, Mike Winkelmann, and Beeple.
The Future of NFTs for Louis Vuitton
By taking the route of gaming, Louis Vuitton has engaged with a younger audience. With more than 2 million players, their entry into Web3 has been a successful one.
New players can start at the first level, which allows them to direct Vivienne to search for a 16-page manuscript through seven fantasy locations, all inspired by real-life cities. After completing that level, players can move into the birthday-celebration second level.
By entering the world of NFTs, Louis Vuitton is involving a new audience of Generation Z shoppers, whose spending power exceeds $140 billion. By embracing the metaverse, which includes not only NFTs but gaming as well, Louis Vuitton may well be ahead of its competition.
Brands could benefit from an experienced NFT marketing partner to successfully enter Web3. A solution like NFT Pro is backed by years of proven expertise in developing, executing, and marketing NFTs.
