HYPEWEAR by ABOUT YOU – the first online shop for digital fashion

First, the HYPEWEAR brand was created and the CI designed, both in close coordination with ABOUT YOU. DEPT® then conceptualized and developed the HYPEWEAR digital fashion online shop based on the agency’s own Algomart solution. As a last step, DEPT® created a teaser video for the high-profile launch of HYPEWEAR.

In addition to the fashion e-commerce business, ABOUT YOU aims to conquer the virtual fashion space and offer customers a wide variety of outfits. Virtual fashion allows creators to design pieces that are not wearable in real life or could not exist like this such as a jacket made of virtual flowers, a dress made of dancing tulle elements, or other unusual voluminous highlight pieces. There are different collections available in the HYPEWEAR shop; some of them are rare and limited in number, others are available more often. Customers have the opportunity to express themselves in a completely new way and to present themselves digitally; this is particularly relevant for Gen Z with regard to the fluid understanding of their identity.

With the new platform for digital fashion, there are no physical limits to the customers’ own self-expression. HYPEWEAR is a first mover to offer digital fashion and, according to its motto ‘From Tech to Human’, the items are not only affordable for digital fashion fans, but also accessible without crypto knowledge. This makes the platform one of the pioneers in the market.

The aim was to bring a first MVP of the online shop live in the shortest possible time to establish HYPEWEAR as the one-stop store for digital fashion items. The user journey was to be designed as simple and intuitive as possible, even for ‘non-web3 natives’, in order not to exclude anyone and to ensure that every user can purchase digital fashion items. In addition, brands should be able to sell their 3D fashion via HYPEWEAR to provide a large selection of different fashion pieces on the platform for the target group.

An online shop for digital fashion based on the Algorand Blockchain

The selection of the appropriate blockchain was a key part of the project. The main focus was on ensuring that it was ecologically sustainable, fast, and had low processing fees (i.e. fees for mining and transferring the NFTs). DEPT® and ABOUT YOU selected Algorand. This blockchain has a minimal CO2 footprint and enables fast transactions between marketplace and customers. 

Through the integrated CMS in the online store, ABOUT YOU can create and upload as many digital fashion items as desired. The occurring processing fees on Algorand are minor.

Thanks to the integration of custodial wallets, the creation of the crypto wallet in which the items are stored is handled directly for the customer in the registration process. This prevents a break in the customer journey, which would be associated with the time-consuming and complicated creation of crypto wallets and the subsequent connection in the store. Even Web3-inexperienced users can receive their digital fashion pieces with ease.

In addition to the 3D model of the respective digital fashion item and the NFT, customers also receive an edited photo of themselves onto which the virtual fashion piece is mapped. This step also fits perfectly into the entire customer journey and is kept as simple as possible. Customers can easily manage their digital fashion items in their profile and use the edited photos for social media.

Within just a few months, DEPT® and ABOUT YOU have created the first online store for digital fashion. HYPEWEAR pushes the boundaries of conventional fashion with three-dimensional fashion pieces. The platform acts as a digital milestone in this field, providing the impulse for many more future-forward, virtual projects.