Digital fashion, NFTs, and the metaverse: A new paradigm for the global fashion industry

Authors

  • Fatemeh Amini Zazrani * Department of Sewing Design, Najafabad Technical and Vocational School for Girls (Somayeh), Isfahan, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22105/metaverse.v2i4.91

Abstract

The rapid advancement of digital technologies has fundamentally transformed the global fashion industry, shifting it toward virtual, decentralized, and immersive ecosystems. With the rise of the metaverse, digital fashion has evolved from experimental concepts into a commercially viable and culturally influential domain, engaging both luxury brands and mass-market consumers. Since 2017, virtual clothing and digital wearables have gained prominence through social media platforms and blockchain-based environments, enabling new forms of identity expression, ownership, and consumption. This study investigates the role of the metaverse and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) in shaping the future of the fashion industry. By examining key technological infrastructures, brand strategies, and consumer behaviors, the paper highlights how digital garments, NFT-based assets, and immersive virtual experiences are redefining design processes, marketing models, and sustainability practices. The findings suggest that digital fashion not only offers innovative economic opportunities for brands and designers but also contributes to environmental sustainability by reducing physical production and waste. Ultimately, this research positions digital fashion as a transformative force with long-term implications for the global fashion ecosystem.

Keywords:

Metaverse, Digital fashion, Fashion industry, Non-fungible token, Virtual clothing

References

  1. [1] Colombi, C., & D’Itria, E. (2023). Fashion digital transformation: Innovating business models toward circular economy and sustainability. Sustainability, 15(6), 4942. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064942

  2. [2] Liu, S., & Liu, C. (2025). Mapping the digital transformation in the fashion industry: The past, present and future. Journal of fashion marketing and management: an international journal, 29(7), 1292–1319. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFMM-09-2024-0380

  3. [3] Murugesan, B., Jayanthi, K. B., & Karthikeyan, G. (2024). Integrating digital twins and 3D technologies in fashion: Advancing sustainability and consumer engagement. In Illustrating digital innovations towards intelligent fashion: leveraging information system engineering and digital twins for efficient design of next-generation fashion (pp. 1–88). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-71052-0_1

  4. [4] Uddin, M., Obaidat, M., Manickam, S., Laghari, S. U. A., Dandoush, A., Ullah, H., & Ullah, S. S. (2024). Exploring the convergence of metaverse, blockchain, and AI: A comprehensive survey of enabling technologies, applications, challenges, and future directions. Wiley interdisciplinary reviews: data mining and knowledge discovery, 14(6), e1556. https://doi.org/10.1002/widm.1556

  5. [5] Chandra, Y. (2022). Non-fungible token-enabled entrepreneurship: A conceptual framework. Journal of business venturing insights, 18, e00323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2022.e00323

  6. [6] Ball, M. (2022). The metaverse: and how it will revolutionize everything. Liveright Publishing. https://www.amazon.nl/-/en/Matthew-Ball-ebook/dp/B09KMWYHX8

  7. [7] Nadini, M., Alessandretti, L., Di Giacinto, F., Martino, M., Aiello, L. M., & Baronchelli, A. (2021). Mapping the NFT revolution: Market trends, trade networks, and visual features. Scientific reports, 11(1), 20902. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-00053-8

  8. [8] Murtas, G., Pedeliento, G., & Mangiò, F. (2024). Luxury fashion brands at the gates of the Web 3.0: An analysis of early experimentations with NFTs and the metaverse. Journal of global fashion marketing, 15(1), 90–114. https://doi.org/10.1080/20932685.2023.2249476

  9. [9] Shirvanimoghaddam, K., Motamed, B., Ramakrishna, S., & Naebe, M. (2020). Death by waste: Fashion and textile circular economy case. Science of the total environment, 718, 137317. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137317

  10. [10] Bertola, P., & Teunissen, J. (2018). Fashion 4.0. innovating fashion industry through digital transformation. Research journal of textile and apparel, 22(4), 352–369. https://doi.org/10.1108/RJTA-03-2018-0023

  11. [11] Sharma, A., Kumar, S., Singh, S. K., Jawla, S., Arya, V., & Chui, K. T. (2025). Virtual identity and self-expression in the metaverse. In Unveiling social dynamics and community interaction in the metaverse (pp. 93–110). IGI Global Scientific Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-8628-6.ch005

  12. [12] Ng, D. T. K. (2022). What is the metaverse? Definitions, technologies and the community of inquiry. Australasian journal of educational technology, 38(4), 190–205. https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.7945

  13. [13] Shi, F., Ning, H., Zhang, X., Li, R., Tian, Q., Zhang, S., ... & Daneshmand, M. (2024). A new technology perspective of the metaverse: Its essence, framework and challenges. Digital communications and networks, 10(6), 1653–1665. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcan.2023.02.017

  14. [14] Periyasami, S., & Periyasamy, A. P. (2022). Metaverse as future promising platform business model: Case study on fashion value chain. Businesses, 2(4), 527–545. https://doi.org/10.3390/businesses2040033

  15. [15] Venturini, A., & Columbano, M. (2024). ‘Fashioning’the metaverse: A qualitative study on consumers’ value and perceptions of digital fashion in virtual worlds. Journal of global fashion marketing, 15(1), 6–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/20932685.2023.2234918

  16. [16] Ki, C. W. C., Chong, S. M., Aw, E. C. X., Lam, M. M. L., & Wong, C. W. Y. (2025). Metaverse consumer behavior: Investigating factors driving consumer participation in the transitory metaverse, avatar personalization, and digital fashion adoption. Journal of retailing and consumer services, 82, 104094. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2024.104094

  17. [17] Nonyelum, N. P., Ihensekhien, I., & Uko-Aviomoh, E. E. (2025). The rise of digital fashion: Virtual clothing and its market potentials. International journal of educational and psychological sciences, 3(6), 605–622. https://doi.org/10.59890/ijeps.v3i6.205

  18. [18] Perez, C. (2024). Analyzing transaction networks of popular wearables within the decentraland metaverse [presentation]. Proceedings of the 2024 11th multidisciplinary international social networks conference (pp. 131–138). https://doi.org/10.1145/3675669.3675673

  19. [19] Wang, C., Fu, L., Ametefe, D. S., Wang, S., & John, D. (2025). E-textiles in healthcare: A systematic literature review of wearable technologies for monitoring and enhancing human health. Neural computing and applications, 37(4), 2089–2111. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00521-024-10947-z

  20. [20] Glogar, M., Petrak, S., & Mahnić Naglić, M. (2025). Digital technologies in the sustainable design and development of textiles and clothing—a literature review. Sustainability, 17(4), 1371. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17041371

Published

2025-12-25

How to Cite

Amini Zazrani, F. (2025). Digital fashion, NFTs, and the metaverse: A new paradigm for the global fashion industry. Metaversalize, 2(4), 240-247. https://doi.org/10.22105/metaverse.v2i4.91

Similar Articles

1-10 of 41

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.