Vogue Singapore eyes crypto community with NFT mystery boxes

share on

twitter /
facebook /
linkedin /
- email
- telegram
- whatsapp
- wechat
- pinterest
- line
- snapchat
- reddit

Months after Vogue Singapore's publisher, Media Publishares, entered the NFT scene, the magazine is launching its first NFT mystery box this September. The theme "New Beginnings" unites all 28 editions of Vogue to feature a sunrise as a leitmotif indicating a hopeful outlook towards a new dawn. The creation of the mystery boxes was done in partnership with Robot Media Playground.

Featured in the mystery boxes would be NFT artworks that depict the moment of sunrise in 10 cities around the world, along with a Vogue astronaut playfully exploring each city. The 10 cities available in the mystery box are Hong Kong, London, Milan, New York, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Seoul, Shanghai, Sydney and Tokyo. Through this NFT initiative, Vogue aims to explore the intersection of fashion and technology, where the lines are blurred to give rise to the metaverse as a new marketplace for all designers and creators.

According to Vogue’s spokesperson, Vogue “celebrates creativity and is a reflection of our times”. With the rise of the metaverse, the spokesperson told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE that the venture into the NFT scene’s goal was to spotlight the talents in the digital space who are “leading a new creative renaissance”. This includes digital designers, avatar creators, 3D artists as well as new gaming companies. Vogue also previously introduced cryptocurrency-based gamification, and bringing gamification into the NFT space through the mystery boxes was in response to the positive reactions from the readers both in terms of engagement and exposure, added the spokesperson.

As a teaser to the launch of Vogue's September issue on 25 August, the magazine will debut a series of mystery boxes done in partnership with NFT platform Brytehall and retailing exclusively on NFT marketplace Binance NFT. According to the release, Brytehall targets the crypto-community, NFT collectors and NFKings Production, a Binance-invested creatives and productions agency.

Collectors who obtain all 10 cities will be directed to a Binance Smart Chain-powered decentralised marketplace RARA via a secret link for an opportunity to purchase an eleventh and limited-edition Singapore sunrise NFT, thereby completing the full mystery box set. Meanwhile, Vogue Singapore is also offering collectors who have a complete mystery box set or rare city cards with luxury time pieces and staycations. The giveaway and prizes are powered by a new NFT platform, Brytehall, launching on 1 September.

The Vogue Mystery Boxes are consistent with Vogue’s passion to explore the intersection of creativity and technology, said the spokesperson. They also serve as a continuous process to engage key new audiences that are increasingly interested in luxury and fashion; namely, the crypto community, gaming audience and tech-savvy consumers while “providing an exciting storytelling experience for readers and luxury brand partners”, added Vogue’s spokesperson.

Sharing its marketing plans for the campaign, Vogue is also partnering global NFT marketplace Binance NFT as well as Binance-invested creatives and productions agency NFKings in order to reach a wider captive audience and community that is interested in NFT art and digital art. The spokesperson also added that as the first step into the metaverse, Vogue’s aim is to raise awareness amongst its audience regarding the creative capabilities in this space. It also hopes to reach out to an audience of crypto collectors and digital fashion and art enthusiasts to engage them with a new form of content.

“This is a step towards a long-term strategy to bridge the crypto and gaming communities with digital investors, curious tech-savvy consumers and luxury brands. The mystery boxes will serve as a continuous process to engage the crypto community and allow them to interact with Vogue in a new format,” said Michael von Schlippe, president of Media Publishares, publisher of Vogue Singapore.

Norman Tan, editor-in-chief of Vogue Singapore said that Vogue wanted the mystery boxes to have a surreal element, sharing that the inspiration for the mystery boxes was to create something “fantastical and yet cheeky”.

"For us, the astronaut playfully exploring the cities at dawn is our wink to our passion for technology and innovation—one of Vogue Singapore's key pillars since launch last year — whilst reminding buyers of the NFTs to keep a child-life faith and, importantly, to keep dreaming," said Tan.

Vogue Singapore is not the only publisher to have stepped into the NFT scene. The South China Morning Post, for example, partnered with Sandbox, a decentralised gaming virtual world and a subsidiary of Animoca Brands to bring an authentic new series of cultural experiences to The Sandbox’s open gaming metaverse. The partnership brings to life Hong Kong in The Sandbox's metaverse. Other brands that have also jumped on the NFT hype train are Louis Vuitton, Budweiser, Arsenal, Hotel JEN, Coca-Cola and Campbell's.

Join our Digital Marketing Asia conference happening from 9 November 2021 - 25 November 2021 to learn about the upcoming trends and technologies in the world of digital. Check out the agenda here.