Beauty giant L’Oréal has announced a minority investment in metaverse platform and NFT marketplace Digital Village through its venture capital fund, Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development (BOLD).

The investment will be the first of its kind by L’Oréal in the metaverse and Web3 space, as well as the first to be part of its recently launched BOLD’s Female Founders initiative.

“As L’Oréal continues to explore and define what beauty means in Web3, we seek to work with the most promising startups who adhere to the highest possible visual and technical standards,” said Camille Kroely, chief metaverse and Web3 officer at L’Oréal, in a release.

Kroely added: “We are excited to be partnering with Digital Village, whose solutions will be powerful enablers for our brands and whose ideals of sustainability, accessibility and interoperability in the metaverse or Web3 are ones we share.”

Launched in 2021, Digital Village is operated by an international team spanning the US, Europe and Asia, offering scalable technology solutions for the creation and interaction of digital identities.

Among its members, it counts founder and CEO Evelyn Mora, who was also behind the creation of Helsinki Fashion Week, as well as top executives from Pangaia and open-world platform The Sandbox.

Speaking on the investment, Mora said: "We are excited to be backed by BOLD and look forward to collaborating with L'Oréal to revolutionise the beauty industry through the creation of cutting-edge virtual experiences for L'Oréal's renowned brands.

“Together, we are setting the bar for beauty in the metaverse and Web3, pushing the boundaries of what is possible and setting a new standard for the industry to follow.”