Technology Towards Luxury Brands: Preliminary Insights on Fashion Tourism, Metaverse and Non-fungible Token (NFT)

The luxury fashion industry is undergoing a profound transformation due to the uncertainty experienced recently because of constant change, increasingly competitive markets and increased competition. Fashion tourism can be defined as the interaction between Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), trade associations, tourism suppliers and host communities, with people travelling to and visiting a particular place for business or leisure to enjoy, experiment, discover, study, trade, communicate about and consume fashion. Luxury brands, characterized by their traditional and conservative approach, have been pressured to make strategic decisions towards the digital and technological world, thanks to the covid-19 pandemic. As luxury represents something much more emotional, contrary to what might be thought by often associating luxury with material goods, luxury brands are entering the virtual world precisely to provide unique shopping and entertainment experiences, just as consumers crave. Methodologically, this is a qualitative exploratory study using netnography. In terms of results and conclusions, the relevance of studying how luxury brands can use technology to their advantage, particularly, regarding the Metaverse and Non-fungible Tokens, is thus justified. Several luxury brands have all benefited greatly from their digital journeys. In conclusion, in the virtual world, luxury has the same aspirational relevance that it has in life. With an interdisciplinary approach, the chapter presents preliminary insights for fashion tourism and digital knowledge management.