Adidas, the popular sports and fashion brand, is reportedly exploring ways to integrate cryptocurrency and Web3 technologies into its community-driven marketing and sales strategies. Erika Wykes-Sneyd, Adidas’ Web3 lead, stated that simply adding a payments plugin is not a sufficient use case for crypto. Instead, Adidas may consider gating exclusive drops for specific communities and specific currencies, promoting communities, and doing unique digital drops. The company could leverage token-gated tactics to white-list users into their favorite sneaker drops, beating the bots and not having to play the waiting game. This would align with Adidas’ larger corporate strategy of leveraging Web3 technologies to create a sense of community and inclusivity among its consumers.
Adidas has already made significant strides in the Web3 space, purchasing a Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT in December 2021 and issuing its own 30,000 NFT drop the same month. The sportswear giant generated $23.4 million in a single afternoon from the “Into the Metaverse” drop.
Adidas is not the only non-crypto firm delving into the Web3 space. Co-founder of Salesforce Web3 Studio Marc Mathieu recently stated that connecting crypto wallets to brands will become the “new cookie,” referring to data blocks that identify user activity on the internet. Other luxury brands, including Prada, Gucci, Balmain, and Balenciaga, have also started exploring all things crypto.
As more companies enter the Web3 space, it will be interesting to see how they utilize crypto and other emerging technologies to create new experiences and engagement opportunities for their customers.
This information is from an article published by Decrypt on February 25, 2023, written by Liam J. Kelly. The article features an interview with Erika Wykes-Sneyd, Adidas’ Web3 lead, at NFT Paris, where she discussed the brand’s plans to integrate cryptocurrency and Web3 technologies into its community-driven marketing and sales strategies. According to Wykes-Sneyd, Adidas is considering token-gated exclusive drops for specific communities and currencies, promoting communities, and doing unique digital drops, rather than just adding a payments plugin. Adidas has already made significant strides in the Web3 space, such as purchasing a Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT in December 2021 and issuing its own NFT drop. Other non-crypto firms are also exploring Web3 technologies, such as Prada, Gucci, Balmain, and Balenciaga, connecting crypto wallets to brands, which Marc Mathieu, co-founder of Salesforce Web3 Studio, recently stated will become the “new cookie.”