Fendi, the iconic standard bearer for Italian excellence, heritage and craftsmanship, and Roman savoir-faire, dives into the future – and the Metaverse – using augmented reality to offer unprecedented interactive experiences. This project follows on from the FW22 men’s fashion show which was presented in the Metaverse, and the subsequent launch of the Fendi cryptocurrency wallet.

Today, augmented reality makes it possible to integrate digital experiences into the everyday context. Fendi aims to open those doors to offer an original and interactive way to discover the new “Faster” sneaker. –  a footwear offering a combination of form, function, and forward-thinking design – shared through a medium to match.

Entitled “Faster by Fendi” the AR effect has been designed as an homage to discovery, through an interactive experience that invites people to search for the Faster sneaker as if they were hidden treasure. By starting the effect from their cell phones and pointing the screen at any place in the surrounding space, users are able to transform the environment they are in into a real archaeological site where they can use their hands for a virtual excavation. Through this experience, with simple hand movements, it becomes possible to unearth a series of fragments that will reveal the Faster sneakers as authentic treasures hidden underground. 

Also available is “Masterpiece by Fendi”. The innovative AR effect is geo-activated in Rome near to Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana at Eur, home of Fendi’s headquarters. Once users are in the AR effect, they can point their camera at the sign in front of the HQ to reveal a virtual slab of marble. This experience is a tribute to the brand’s deep connection with Rome and the classical arts, and invites people to try their hand at sculpture, like a modern day Michelangelos, by shaping a virtual block of stone from which the Faster sneakers take shape, like an authentic masterpiece.

Meta’s Spark AR technology, which made these remarkably realistic experiences possible, is a platform that enables a global community of creators and developers to create AR effects that can support the expression and communication of brands like Fendi, through increasingly advanced features, in original and creative ways. These are experiences that are increasingly part of people’s lives, more than 700 million people interact with augmented reality effects on Meta every month. Spark AR Studio software enables creators and brands to design, test and publish these AR experiences on Facebook, Messenger and Instagram.

The two innovative AR effects, developed with Meta’s Spark AR technology and designed by award-winning creative agency BUCK, will be available on Meta’s platforms – Instagram and Facebook, on Stories and Reels, worldwide from September 5th 2022.

Discover more at fendi.com

@fendi