Paris-founded 3D immersive virtual worlds builder Digital Village has taken on $4 million in its first equity funding round. According to the startup, the capital is to be used to further enhance the platform’s capabilities, adding new tools to power 3D world development, avatar customisation, and virtual store creation.
The round which arrives via BOLD, L’Oréal’s venture capital fund, The Venture Reality Fund, Venrex, British Fashion Council, and undisclosed others is on point with the company’s focus of enabling brands and creators to deliver immersive virtual experiences.
Likewise, on par with other Metaverse-as-a-service platforms we’ve seen a gradual rise of in previous months, Digital Village promises brands the ability to manage the end-to-end development of said Metaverse with seamless integrations to their existing tools.
According to Digital Village they’ve already worked with a number of companies and organisations including the United Nations and Women’s Wear Daily (WWD). As part of a multi-year collaboration with WWD, Digital Village has created virtual worlds for the WWD Metaverse Symposium, Fairchild Museum, and CEO Summit.
We’ve seen virtual world creators arrive, with some evolving from prior incantations, all aimed at helping brands to this and that and capitalise on the coming Web3 wave. To varying degrees of success.
However, as with most things in life, it’s the people behind the process that can make or break the biz. And in the case of Digital Village, the driving force is none other than Evelyn Mora, a seasoned industry vet that counts working with Procter & Gamble, Leica, Tesla, and Kering. If that weren’t enough, she’s also the founder of the Helsinki Fashion Week.
“Web3 and the metaverse are setting the stage for the next evolution of retail. Today, users click a link in a brand’s profile and are directed to a website for a solo shopping experience, but Digital Village is creating an avenue for users to visit a 3D virtual world and come together for social experiences where brands can engage with customers in a more meaningful way,” explained Mora. “Virtual fashion, art, and culture represent a massive opportunity in what will be the largest disruption for commerce since the emergence of e-commerce platforms.”
