How Roblox's Dress to Impress Signals the Future of Fashion for Gen Z
This Fashion Game has taken Roblox -and Gen Z- by Storm. Here's why CMO's should take note of this huge cult hit!
How Dress to Impress signals the future of fashion styling
Dress to Impress is a Roblox game with over 2 billion visits, 752k likes, and over 134k players - it is a game where Gen Z will explore how to replicate their favorite celebrities and pop stars. The game is quickly gaining ground as one of the most culturally significant in the world. Founded by “Gigi” in 2021 when she was just 14 years old! Now, the game is a cultural touchstone with collaborators like Charli XCX and KPop stars and has spawned countless fan posts across social media where creators capture the music, poses, and recreate highlights from their gameplay.
A Deep-dive on the game follows. For CMO Takeaway and Marketing essentials,jump to the end.
Popularity
So - why is it so popular you may wonder? First, Dress to Impress has an easy interface so they immediately understand the gameplay and can plunge into the action. The game is simple, the space is small, and the music average - but somehow, it’s addictive. Players and streamers spend hours socializing and competing in a mindless, low-effort game.
It is free to play with no sales pressure, and outfits are customizable with a seemingly endless variety of patterns and colors, in addition to skin, hair, makeup and nail styles.
Finally, there’s the lore. Look up Lana and DTI and you’ll find yourself in a rabbit hole of mystery and backstory about the game’s only employee, Lana, who is also the Main Character behind the Halloween update 2024.
Influencers and Expression
Leah Ashe, a popular Roblox influencer (5.03m subscribers on YouTube, 4.3m followers on TikTok, 562k followers on Instagram) - recreates moments in popular culture, including her favorite celebrity looks from the Met Gala ranging from Anok Yai, Ariana Grande, Kylie Jenner, Jennie Kim.
Other users have leveraged the platform to create their own content, from Met Gala and Grammy’s celebrity looks to choreographed ensemble ballet performances to recreating Olympic moments like the Raygun dance, below! The ease of player onboarding, low-barrier gameplay, and social elements make it a destination.
The Power of User-Generated Content (UGC)
What makes Dress to Impress a signal of broader avatar styling trends in the next 5 years, is the huge UGC community that has developed that other avatar-related platforms have not accomplished at the same scale. The platform recently hit 2 billion visits with no sign of slowing in sight.
Our Prediction:
Dress to Impress is not “just” a virtual shopping app, rather it’s a social virtual try-on experience where they can share and remix ideas, in real-time on YouTube, Twitch, TikTok. Gen Z and Gen Alpha will use Dress to Impress as a way to share, discover, and remix best practices in apparel as a social activity. Brands should take note. This is an important platform for roleplay, identity building and fun - and for brands, it will be an authentic entry point to engaging young fashionistas.
Within the next 5 years, avatar styling will become social. Stylists in game spaces will become commonplace - and offered as a service. Finally, brands will debut their collections as Roblox Ready to Wear (RRtW).
For brands to get into this game, you should also offer styling services to avatars (B2A).
This is where future genres of fashion will emerge. Rather than wait for legacy retailers, Gen Z and Gen Alpha are launching their own collections and followings that could later be generated and sold on e-commerce platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
Data: Games like “Dress to Impress” can aggregate in-house data on the best trending patterns, apparel, hairstyles, make-up, and dresses - as well as track which fashion themes attract the most traffic.
From the Met Gala, to consumer TikTok Outfits, to dressing up like Inside Out 2, to dressing up as your favorite K-Pop artists, this is where gaming is where fashion meets fantasy.
Dress to Impress is one of the few games that have mastered the social and gameplay mechanics that made virtual try-out, styling, and virtual shopping seamlessly.
Moreover, it is becoming part of the global meme and youth fashion culture. In the video below,a young woman shows herself shopping DTI-style complete with music and DTI poses at the end!
CMO Takeaway
In 2023 Roblox CEO predicted over the next five years, a Roblox developer will earn a billion dollars on the platform. We fully believe it will be Gigi, Dress to Impress’ creator who at just 17 is running the most popular gaming franchise for kids in the world.
In the next 5 years, the desire for digital fashion experience will also likely drive further innovation in virtual platforms, making high fashion more accessible to this tech-savvy generation.
For virtual e-commerce to succeed, brands and retailers have to give people the opportunity to experiment with their virtual identity in real time.
Co-creation and UGC are critical since they are the social elements that bring players back to the experience.
Key Recommendations:
For large brands and retailers, this means taking existing brand Roblox virtual activations -like DTI- and expanding them into phase 2 and phase 3, exploring the rich character and visual identities of each lifestyle brand while experimenting with innovative gameplay.
For creative agencies, this means investing heavily in qualitative market research into the Roblox virtual fashion UGC communities and understanding the subcultures that drive player loyalty.
For fashion brands looking to establish a long-term presence in Roblox, it is critical to assess which subcultures overlap directly with the brand’s target audiences. This will ensure cultural authenticity is preserved.
Avatar styling-as-a-service is also a logical extension of the virtualized brand and brand world experience.
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