Kering CEO confirms team is exploring metaverse opportunities at management level

Kering CEO Francois-Henri Pinault confirmed the French luxury group has a dedicated team at management level to explore the opportunities and possible disruption of the metaverse for its portfolio of luxury brands.

“We are at the early stage of the metaverse, but Kering is trying to learn, so the company is active early on in its involvement. Web 3.0 will be a new way of expression for the brands and disruption if it becomes a scalable reality,” Mr Pinault said in a televised interview with CNBC.

Mr Pinault explained three different scenarios that need to be tested: What the opportunities are for product extension to the virtual world, such as NFTs linked with real items; Opportunities for new product categories that are not available in the physical world and a third layer for new services, new approaches and smart contracts, such as digital IDs.

Kering said it has a full team dedicated to Web 3 at Kering level, as well as separate teams at Gucci and Balenciaga. The company is also exploring accepting crypto currencies in the future.

Mr Pinault said the metaverse will be a new realm where luxury could bring scarcity to the digital world, which is a new vision of operating.