Alo Yoga’s VP and head of marketing, Angelic Vendette, told Boardroom all about the athleisure brand’s winter capsule and its Web3 roadmap.
Fashion and lifestyle brand Alo Yoga is the official wellness partner for New York Fashion Week, so it was only fitting for the company to announce its Web3 plans in style.
Alo is debuting a new apparel collection at NYFW equipped with a limited edition NFT authenticator, the company shared with Boardroom in an exclusive interview.
The Aspen Collection is Alo’s first ready-to-wear apparel drop, which boasts 17 styles spanning faux fur jackets, ski suits, outerwear, and more. The LA-based fashion and lifestyle brand is partnering with Web3 payment service company MoonPay to mint and distribute the collection’s digital authenticity certificates. Alo’s new collection will be available for purchase starting October 19.
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NFT authenticators aren’t the only part of Alo Yoga’s foray into Web3. The athleisure company has been working on multiple projects to cement its brand in the digital space.
“Our mission at Alo is to bring mindfulness and mindful movement to the world. Our pillars have always been focused not only on wellness but on building community,” Alo’s vice president and head of marketing, Angelic Vendette, told Boardroom in a video interview. “As we’re forward-thinking and looking to how we meet our community where they are, obviously Web3 and the metaverse are a huge part of that.”
Alo is hosting a special event at NYFW’s main headquarters, Spring Studios, on Sept. 10 to show some of its community what it has planned in Web3. In advance of the launch, Vendette sat down with Boardroom to discuss the company’s metaverse strategy, the exclusive new collection, and the powerful community-building potential of Web3.
Alo Yoga Bends Towards Aspen
The Spring Studios event kicks off Alo Yoga’s fashion week presence with a trip to the snowy peaks of Aspen. It will include an experiential presentation to unveil Alo’s holiday capsule. The brand’s new collection also marks its first venture into winter performance apparel.
At the show, attendees can try the luxury collection via augmented reality mirrors powered by Snap. Alo partnered with Digital Twin Studios, an NFT strategy agency, to organize its NYFW experience.
Additionally, Alo will use HyperMint, MoonPay’s self-service NFT minting platform, to drop the limited edition NFT collection. The NFTs will serve as lifelong ownership certificates to authenticate the collection and give holders more security on their garment purchases.
“Web3 enhances the ability of brands to protect their identities and offers new ways to foster loyalty and growth strategies,” said MoonPay CEO Ivan Soto-Wright, in a statement. “Our partnership with Alo Yoga marks another step in ensuring fashion is ready to usher in a new and exciting digital and physical fashion era. This is a game-changer for fashion and will radically change both brand and consumer behavior moving forward.”
Pieces in the Aspen Collection range from $54 to $1,425. The NFTs affiliated with purchase will also grant access to VIP experiences, including personalized shopping opportunities, Alo Wellness Clubs, and future virtual and in-person events.
Creating Connection
In addition to its moves toward the metaverse, Alo is also expanding their IRL presence.
Alo recently opened its first Alo Wellness Club and gym in LA, and Vendette shared that the company is opening its second location in SoHo. The clubs offer massages, facials, energy healing, private training sessions, and yoga classes. The Wellness Clubs are invite-only, and Alo has plans to open more locations in the future.
“We’re having a lot of interesting firsts that not only help us educate but onboard people into the space,” Vendette said. “For us, we’ve always been a digital-first company. We’re an e-commerce business, and we’re social-first as well, so our consumers are very tech-savvy overall.”
The company is leaning into a blend of digital and physical events to create opportunities for its community, each of which are centered on wellness.
Unlocking the Power of Community
Alo determined it was time to step into Web3 about a year-and-a-half ago, corresponding with when Vendette joined. Alo’s marketing lead said she’s always been interested in Web3 and began taking it more seriously last summer. Vendette learned about crypto and women-focused NFT projects like World of Women. With more information, it clicked that Alo needed to get into the space.
“It was a larger conversation about innovation [and] what this next foray is,” Vendette said. “That was clearly Web3.”
Alo started building its Web3 roadmap in Q4 of 2021. Vendette said she started planting different seeds with platforms, 3D designers, and development studios.
When Vendette synced with Christina Wootton, Roblox’s vice president of brand partnerships, the pair felt the synergies for an opportunity. These eventually resulted in the digital Alo Sanctuary. Vendette said she and Wootton were socializing the idea of bringing wellness to the metaverse with a focus on mental health and creating a safe space for learning.
The Alo Sanctuary in Roblox was the company’s first official move in the metaverse. The digital experience promotes wellness, letting users collect daily positive affirmations, indulge in guided meditations and yoga classes, and more. The Sanctuary has amassed more than 50 million visitors since its launch in January.
Alo also allows customers to use cryptocurrency as a form of payment to purchase goods online via Coinbase Commerce. The wellness brand also offers salaries in crypto for its employees.
Currently, Vendette is a one-person Web3 team at Alo, but she’s confident that will change as the brand expands digitally.
For instance, what would it be like to experience yoga with a virtual reality headset on?
Vendette said Alo is working closely with select partners to bring its Web3 wellness plans together. The possible answer could blend Alo’s existing digital movement platform with enhanced VR solutions. However, the answer will manifest soon.
For now, the company is basking in NYFW, with more announcements on the horizon.
“We’ve seen a lot of success with digital fashion in the metaverse space already,” Vendette said. “We’re meeting our community where they are, and yes, our community is in Web3 and the metaverse.”
