The world of virtual reality is a burgeoning landscape of creativity that allows brands to unlock and reach an audience like never before. ‘See now, buy now, wear now’ has become a phrase we hear closely related to the assimilation of fashion brands into the digital universe, and one gaming metaverse in particular that has garnered a lot of attention recently is Roblox.
Hitting nearly 50 million users daily, Roblox has taken the sartorial scene by storm with its online offerings. Last year Gucci delved into Roblox with its temporary Gucci Garden, only to continue that momentum this year with its permanent Gucci Town. Burberry unveiled its virtual handbag collection on Roblox this summer, whilst last week’s Tommy Hilfiger ‘phygital’ show at NYFW was live-streamed on Roblox with viewers able to wear and purchase the pieces almost immediately.
Following suit, global coffee company Lavazza is the latest brand to enter Roblox, bringing a coffee kick to online gaming. Say hello to the Lavazza Arena.
Brought to life to raise awareness of environmental damage and climate change, Lavazza hosted a virtual football game on World Day of Action for the Amazon, which saw soccer stars Claudio Marchisio and Giorgio Chiellini ‘take to the field’ alongside gamers for the match.
Once on the Lavazza field, the players had to juggle various areas of the Arena: the more football matches played, the more the game map became full of greenery, nature, and trees. Players competed on the main court or had fun on the practice pitch, while others spent time in the Lavazza Cafè or in the Learning Area to find out about deforestation. Customizations were also available for your personal avatar with Amazon-themed skins and power-ups.
Why football you ask? Well, to understand the extent of deforestation, Lavazza wanted to highlight how the Amazon Rainforest loses more than a million trees every day, the equivalent of a football field every 20 seconds. The game was inspired by one of the many projects from the Lavazza Foundation, specifically one created in collaboration with Cesvi to support indigenous communities in the reforestation of the Peruvian Amazon.
For Lavazza, conveying the magnitude of issues such as these is at the core of the brand’s ethos. With a younger generation taking to the world of online gaming more than ever, Lavazza wants to use platforms like Roblox to start dialogues on cultural, social, and environmental issues with Gen Z.
Find out more about Lavazza’s dive into Roblox and the Foundation’s goals here.
