Magnum blurs line between fashion and ice cream with vegan dress

Magnum ice cream has teamed up with luxury Dutch fashion designer, Iris Van Herpen, to design a vegan dress made from cocoa beans, inspired by the brand's vegan ice cream. Titled Magnum Vegan Dress (pictured), the dress is touted as a celebration of Magnum ice cream's vegan range, and seeks to bring to bring together consumers to indulge through a fusion of cocoa and apparel. 

Unveiled at Paris Fashion Week, the creation of the Magnum Vegan Dress is in line with both the brand and Herpen's ambitions to work towards a fully sustainable production chain within the fashion industry and beyond. According to Magnum ice cream, it actively seeks to lessen its impact on the world. As such, the partnership with Herpen marks the brand's first step towards a wider ambition of circularity in the fashion industry. 

To further promote the dress and the partnership, Magnum ice cream and Herpen will be sharing exclusive behind-the-scenes content on TikTok and Instagram, inviting fans to experience the partnership virtually from across the globe. 

The first of its kind for the ice cream brand, the dress was designed and created using 3D design, while incorporating sustainable materials that reference Magnum ice cream's vegan ingredients. By leveraging 3D printing technology, the Magnum Vegan Dress is also the first haute couture dress to be made from cocoa bean husks, which has been processed to create a fully organic biopolymer material. 

Additionally, the dress features details such as plant-like body embellishments which are copper-coated, and draped with upcycled and pliseed organza. At the same time, other 3D elements have been printed using Selective Laser Sintering technology. 

Meanwhile, the vegan dress is part of Herpen's 15th-anniversary collection entitled "Meta Morphism". According to Magnum ice cream, the collection explores society's embrace and acceptance of a new world of digitalism with the arrival of the metaverse, and how this is becoming an increasingly prevalent part of everyday life. Through the dress's design, Herpen is said to have blurred the lines between reality and digital realms in a futuristic, avant-garde collection designed to inspire and evoke the question of who we are beyond perceived reality. 

Herpen said: "I am honoured to have been approached by Magnum ice cream as a partner to bring to life the Magnum Vegan Dress. As a designer, I have always worked to push the boundaries of design and this collaboration has really allowed us to take this one step further by linking the ingredients of an iconic Magnum Vegan to create a haute couture design. She added that the opportunity to work with the brand on such an innovation in sustainable fashion has been a "very special experience". 

"What an honour to be able to reveal the Magnum Vegan Dress to the world - and to be able to do this at Herpen's 15th anniversary show just makes this even more special. Bringing together ice cream and haute couture in such an unexpected and impactful way is so exciting, making this a partnership that I am delighted to be a part of," Cindy Bruna, who modelled the Magnum Vegan Dress in Herpen's 15th Anniversary show, said. 

Magnum ice cream has also launched other creative campaigns to drive brand engagement, and promote its different lines of ice cream in the past. For instance, in April 2021, the ice cream brand created an AR experience in Malaysia via its Magnum Playground to bring its cookies and cream ice cream to life. The AR activation featured a three-part journey where users could navigate from one station to another within the AR portal, and interact with a custom photo and video booth that was social media-enabled. Additionally, the mini-game station taught players about Magnum's premium ingredients, and offered users a chance to win prizes via an Instagram competition. 

Separately, in May 2018, Magnum ice cream also launched a lifestyle game, Magnum LIFE, in conjunction with its golden anniversary. Offering a grand prize of RM1,000 everyday for 20 years, the game was launched to appeal and serve the younger generation of players. Following the move, the approach enabled the winner to plan and manage their winnings better, without the fear of spending their money all at once. 

“This game offers life enhancing opportunities with worry-free money management,” he said. “Our market is young office workers who dream about travelling, the freedom to start their own businesses and to pursue their passions in life,” Lawrence Lim Swee Lin, CEO of Magnum, said then. 

Related articles: 

Magnum gets a 'subtle edge' banking on Rebecca Minkoff tie-up this holiday season
Magnum gives a sweet send off to Money Heist fans in SG and MY with exclusive bundle
Magnum brings ice cream to life with AR experience for Malaysians
Magnum creates new lifestyle game to lure in the young