By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
The entertainment and music retailer Hot Topic is taking its first steps into the metaverse with a special Halloween event for fans.
Hot Topic, a leading omni-channel merchandise destination, announced the launch of Halloween-inspired virtual items on the metaverse platform Roblox.
“For Hot Topic, Halloween is a lifestyle, not just a day,” the company said. “With innovative exclusive avatar offerings and virtual extensions of IRL clothing items, the HALLOWEEN FOREVER COLLECTION experience offers scream-worthy digital looks to keep fans in the spooky spirit all year long.”
The collection includes 10 exclusive Halloween-themed Hot Topic designs now available in the Roblox Avatar Marketplace.
The Hot Topic initiative also involves a licensing partnership with three of the most popular experiences within the Roblox metaverse. Essentially, Hot Topic has created three pop-up shops located within The Floor is Lava!, Speed Run 4, and Catalog Outfit Creator! which have collectively attracted over 2.9 billion total visits to date.
A key aspect of the metaverse project is that fans will be able to access both digital products for their avatars, as well as physical products that replicate the online fashions.
“We’re very excited to launch our Roblox integration,” said Andrea Lewis, Vice President of Marketing for Hot Topic. “This partnership will allow Hot Topic to create an experience that exemplifies our brand in the metaverse. Dropping this Halloween merch in the Roblox avatar shop while simultaneously offering physical replications of key items online and in Hot Topic stores is a dream scenario to satisfy Hot Topic fandom both in the Roblox ecosystem and IRL.”
The capsule features digital items synonymous with the Hot Topic brand, including cosplay hats, die-cut sunglasses, figural mini-backpacks and more. Users can buy avatar items directly from these unique virtual shopping destinations, which showcase the campaign, including images that feature Cobra Kai star Mary Mouser sporting the exclusive black and orange sweater, as well as a unique interactive mannequin.
To guide the retailer into this brave new world, and help to execute the next phase of their strategic offerings, Hot Topic tapped Super League Gaming, a global leader in metaverse gaming and experiences, to bring these irresistible looks to life.
In a unique extension of this initiative, the innovative retailer also partnered with several high-profile Roblox designers including @Junozy, @StrapCode, @MatthewDelRey, and @0929lego to bring these existing IRL Halloween designs to life digitally for avid Roblox fans all over the world.
These items are all new, and have been created specifically for Roblox. In addition, the black and orange sweater and beanie with the 90s throwback Hot Topic logo will be available for purchase in the physical world, in-store and online.
The campaign was launched on Oct., and Ed LaBay, Senior Vice President of Merchandise and Marketing for Hot Topic, says the tie-in with Halloween helped create early success.
“It was important to choose the right time to launch Hot Topic on Roblox, and Halloween is so important to our customer, we felt like this was a perfect fit,” Lebay explained. “Giving our existing customers and Roblox fans a chance to express themselves in core Hot Topic Halloween fashion is a great first step for us in the virtual world.”
Lebay notes the clothing campaign on Roblox has already seen remarkable engagement, with more than one million Roblox users interacting with the Avatar Store in just days.
The Hot Topic Pop-up Shop, which is integrated into three games, has reached more than 900k players, with content engagement totaling more than 1.2 years of playtime.
To see the Halloween Forever Pop Up Shop in action, click HERE.