Ahead of its debut phone’s launch, Carl Pei's Nothing introduced its own set of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), starting with the Black Dots. Nothing was not the first company — tech or otherwise — to have dived into Web 3.0 to attract customers and create brand loyalty. From Ray-Ban to Louis Vuitton to Adidas, major brands have introduced their own NFT collections to provide a different experience to their loyalists.
Coca-Cola
In July 2021, global beverage giant Coca-Cola launched its own collection of NFTs to mark International Friendship Day. The NFTs were up for auction as a single “loot box” through the OpenSea online marketplace. “Each NFT was created to celebrate elements that are core to the Coca-Cola brand, reinterpreted for a virtual world in new and exciting ways,” Selman Careaga, president, Global Coca-Cola Trademark, had said in a statement. The auction raised more than $575,000 and the proceedings went to Special Olympics International.
Louis Vuitton
In August 2021, luxury brand Louis Vuitton launched a game called Louis: The Game to celebrate of its 200th anniversary. The game followed a character named Vivienne in search of exclusive LV postcards which were actually NFTs that players could collect. According to Entrepreneur, the idea of the game is to help Vivienne find 16 pages of a manuscript with information about the history of the brand's founder and the iconic trunks that he manufactured. The game has been downloaded over 2 million times, as per Louis Vuitton.
Ray-Ban
In October 2021, Ray-Ban — maker of the iconic aviator sunglasses — created history by launching the world’s first NFT eyewear in partnership with Berlin-based German artist Oliver Latta, better known by his pseudonym Extraweg. The product was a signature aviator and was auctioned for charity on OpenSea, the world’s largest NFT marketplace.
McDonald’s
In November 2021, McDonald’s created its first NFT on the 40th anniversary of McRib. "With the McRib NFT, you’ll never again have to say goodbye to the sandwich you love,” a press release from the fast-food giant said. The NFTs were given to 10 fans, selected at random, to add to their personal collection.
Adidas Originals
In December 2021, Adidas Originals collaborated with the Bored Ape Yacht Club, PUNKS Comic, and gmoney for an NFT project as the brand entered the metaverse for the first time. The collection was called ‘Into the Metaverse’ and sold close to 30,000 NFTs while earning a cool $22 million. Buying the NFTs also gave users access to special physical merchandise like the tracksuit that the Bored Ape wears. While the NFTs got sold out in a matter of time, the merch will reach the consumers by December.
These brands — whatever their forte might have been — have all used blockchains and NFTs to their advantage to draw in customers and give them an experience that is more than what they might expect; an attempt to reinvent themselves and catch the consumer’s eye.
Is Nothing onto something similar — to keep its fans wanting more than just Nothing? Only time will tell.
