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Farfetch Aims To Bring Web3 To The World Of Fashion
What does Web3 offer to fashion? Farfetch CEO and founder José Neves is on a mission to blend the real world with the virtual.
José Neves is no stranger to innovation. The Portuguese billionaire and owner of online luxury fashion platform Farfetch revolutionized eCommerce back in 2007, creating a business model that blended boutique shopping with online retail.
Today, Neves is using his innate knowledge of both haute couture and technology to explore how Web3 can enhance the world of fashion. Web3 describes the blockchain-integrated internet, where crypto and NFTs are built directly into platforms, creating a new online world owned by its users. On a recent Most Innovative Companies podcast, Neves explained his enthusiasm for Web3, explaining that “If Web1 was about ‘read’ and Web2 was about ‘read and write’, then Web3 is about ‘read, write, and own’.’’
Neves aims to take the Farfetch brand into the new Web3 environment using their Dream Assembly Base Camp accelerator program, which according to a press release back in July, will:
“Provide a cohort of the most promising Web3 startups in the luxury fashion and lifestyle sectors with a curated program of mentorship, networking, and support in order to help drive the future of Web3 luxury commerce.”
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The 12-week program is a partnership with Outlier Ventures, which has backed startups since 2014. The platform will focus on “digital fashion, tokenized loyalty, immersive experiences, and the creator economy”, with participating startups having direct access to a network of investors and mentors.
Neves believes that with Web3, the potential is endless, with the application of principles of user control and decentralization being a perfect fit for fashion, where people’s styles often act as second personas, or even masks. The entrepreneur now hopes that emerging technology will increase interaction between creators and users, as Farfetch becomes actively involved in the Web3 luxury commerce space with its new accelerator program, yet again standing at the forefront of fashion, culture, and technology.