L’Oréal prepares to enter the metaverse

By

Sarah Ahssen

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Feb 23, 2022

Fashion and beauty brands are busy preparing their entry into the virtual world of the metaverse, a domain that is still an abstract notion for many. According to CoinDesk, a website specialising in cryptocurrency news, L’Oréal has recently registered many of its brand trademarks in the NFT and metaverse categories.

The registrations have been made by L’Oréal USA, and relate to 16 of the group’s brands, among them skincare brand Kiehl’s, make-up brands Maybelline, Urban Decay and It Cosmetics, and nail varnish brand Essie. In the case of Kiehl’s for example, the registration also covers the rights for non-downloadable virtual fragrances in the metaverse. In eight of the registrations filed by L’Oréal, the global beauty giant indicated it intends to allow users to buy, sell and trade virtual cosmetics in the metaverse.

L’Oréal made its first foray into the metaverse in December 2021, when L’Oréal Paris USA called on five artists to create NFTs promoting gender equality in the world of cryptocurrencies. According to CoinDesk, this first effort has been a flop, generating a sales volume that is just short of ETH0.5 (approximately $1,550) to this day.

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Last September, P&G Beauty took its first steps into the metaverse by launching BeautySphere, the Procter & Gamble beauty division’s own virtual world, dedicated exclusively to its brands. Earlier last year, Givenchy, Gucci Beauty and Nars also experimented with the virtual world by collaborating with Nintendo’s ‘Animal Crossing’ videogame.