The Cosmetics Business editorial team will be reviewing each day of Metaverse Beauty Week 2023, 12-17 June
Team Cosmetics Business share their thoughts on the first-ever Metaverse Beauty Week 2023
The editorial team will be reviewing each day of Metaverse Beauty Week, be sure to subscribe to Cosmetics Business’ newsletter and social channels to stay up to date with the industry-first event.
Day two: ‘Lush brought the bubbly to a day of tech problems’
Austyn King, Sub Editor
Lush rewarded visitors with exclusive space suit wearables
My gaming tastes lean towards the cute and simple (think Pokemon and Animal Crossing), so I was curious to learn how beauty brands are harnessing the metaverse to deliver new experiences.
Unfortunately, however, my Metaverse Beauty Week (MBW) adventure was marred by technical issues throughout, which made for an often frustrating, and at times unintentionally comical experience – such as when my avatar got trapped falling through an infinite void when attempting to enter Decentraland.
Despite being the hub for much of Tuesday’s events, Decentraland was rather empty, with only a few other avatars wandering around. Spatial, meanwhile, was particularly popular, where more attendees had gathered – likely because it was a much smoother running platform.
Running and jumping through the dreamlike, pastel landscapes, from I Am Proud’s ducks to flying up Flannels’ ‘drip’ to discover wearable was a joy but the biggest draw of the day, however, was undoubtedly Lush’s virtual store opening, promising ‘the largest bath bomb in the metaverse’.
With minutes to go, the area around the giant bath bomb quickly filled up with avatars and there was an atmosphere of anticipation, palpable from the increased attendance (28 people, the highest number I’d seen on Decentraland thus far) to discussion in the chat – closer to what one might expect at a physical store opening.
The digital Intergalactic bath bomb fizzed and melted away, allowing attendees to enter Lush’s three ‘experience rooms’: Fun, Twilight and Rave.
Fun featured falling rose petals, while Twilight painted a serene night sky and Rave replicated a nightclub with neon green spotlights and smoke effects.
While it was fun striking some virtual dance moves with fellow attendees, there were no games or interactive elements, which felt to me like a missed opportunity to engage visitors with the products that had inspired the rooms.
More informative was a masterclass on creating an augmented reality (AR) beauty filter by digital fashion house The Fabricant.
Demonstrating how to create effects including face tattoos and glitter, it provided a fascinating insight into creating engaging content for the likes of Snapchat and TikTok.
Meanwhile, influencer CK Bubbles presented an entertaining overview of the history of nail art, from its origins in ancient Egypt to today’s elaborate jewel-encrusted designs, which draw inspiration from 1990s hip hop culture.
However, it was easy to miss these talks due to their timings not being posted on MBW’s schedule.
Other visitors also picked up these pain points, who voiced their difficulties in the chat, such as the wearables they’d collected not showing up until hours later.
This perhaps exemplifies why my MBW experience left me a little sceptical about whether this truly is the future of beauty – at least in its current form.
Technical issues may prove a barrier of entry to consumers – particularly those coming from the gaming sphere, who are used to a higher standard and often more critical of performance issues.
Tapping into the unique aspects of the metaverse – perhaps with more focus on discovery and exploring the world to uncover rewards, for example – could be one way brands could further connect with consumers.
The best may be yet to come – as soon as I stop falling through the void.
Day one: ‘A clunky maiden voyage to brand adventureland’
Amanda Pauley, News Editor
A glimpse of the intergalactic space suit wearable available in Lush’s activation
As a metaverse newbie, I was not sure what to expect from the first-ever Metaverse Beauty Week (MBW), but I was open to the idea of interacting with some of my favourite brands in a completely new way.
Once I got my head around how to build my avatars (I am not an avid gamer) and navigate each platform, it was easy enough to start browsing the brand activations on offer, but the overall experience was a little mixed.
Some elements were …
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