Controversial streetwear designer, curator and exclusive vintage purveyor Sean Wotherspoon is known for embracing both the past and the future. So why shouldn’t his business endeavour?
In his latest initiative with entrepreneur Nick Adler, best known as Snoop Dogg’s brand manager and co-founder with former Adidas marketing manager Brennan Russo. Enter a certain Mntge.
The trio are still feeling the momentum from last week’s hugely successful debut drop, granting exclusive early access to real and digital in the first two phases of the Mntge Pass offering. fashionThe team now has its first real fashion In the first quarter of 2023, four items will drop from Wotherspoon’s personal vintage collection. But that’s not all.
Mntge gave WWD an exclusive update, going beyond the vintage denim jacket and digital twin that Wotherspoon hinted at on social media a few days ago. Sure, there are additional surprises — their first one-on-one NFTs Comes with an “ink” bottle in your virtual trunk, unlocking a whole new layer of experience that your partner wants and that might blow your fans away.
As Russo explained, “The trunk opens to reveal two items: a piece of Sean’s wardrobe and an ‘ink’ bottle, which are basically two separate NFTs in the wallet. fits. ” Applying the ink bottle reveals the virtual clothing designer his overlay. The jacket itself also opens, providing a portal to another realm.
This mechanism may be familiar to crypto natives. Applied to the Bored Ape Yacht Club’s NFT, it’s similar to ‘Serum’ creating a ‘Mutant Ape’ as a variation on the original artwork. Here, blending her bottle of ink takes the owner into an immersive world full of flowers.
The social media platform works with brands like Gucci to draw users into immersive, stylized environments, from lush gardens to labyrinths, via smartphone cameras and augmented reality. The same experimental spirit that drives these campaigns often puts innovative fashion houses such as Gucci, Burberry and Dolce & Gabbana at the forefront of Web 3.0.
Of course, the owner has ink and NFTsBut if they choose, it’s easy to do. “I get blended notifications, so I’m going to go to the new site and send them both. [the NFT and the ink]’ continued Russo. “When you send a wallet, it is read, they burn two, and you get this all-new, more dynamic and futuristic NFT of him.”
Now Mntge ink’s immersive environment is like a relaxing experience. However, the team continues to develop use cases and explore how far the technology can be pushed. thinking about.
“We don’t own any proprietary software to do this,” he added. “But I think we were the first to think about clothing in terms of how to transition from an existing original piece to a more dynamic, futuristic piece.”
Mntge’s first fashion drop is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023, although it could be as early as January.
Provided image
So far, fans seem to be on board.
According to Adler, the Mntge Pass sold out a total of 1,400 units in its first two phases last week. Partner He was offered strictly to the community. In the first stage he moved 1,290 passes, and in the second batch, the public raffle, 110 passes within minutes the next day.
“We had a whopping 300,000 entries and sold out within four minutes,” added Adler. “And that’s what drove us to OpenSea. At the moment, I think we’ve done 480 ETH in total trading volume. If you look at the ETH to USD conversion, it’s about $500,000.” Currently only 100 remain as they are reserved in the vault for important contacts such as
In other words, even before Mntge released real fashion (whether real or virtual), the venture was already gaining popularity. In fact, since he has 1,065 owners, it’s clear that some patrons have purchased multiple passes.
For Adler and his partners, Traction validates their original concept.
A portmanteau of ‘mint’ and ‘vintage’, Mntge is exactly what it sounds like, an attempt to bridge the vintage and NFT worlds. Hearing Adler and Wotherspoon’s perspective made a natural connection, and bringing it up created a business.
“In the second round [Wotherspoon’s L.A. vintage boutique], I saw kids all day buying vintage t-shirts. In the middle of COVID-19, everyone was wearing masks and I felt something,” he continued Adler. “I saw Sean and asked him about it. Everything he told me a year and a half ago is true. From the size of the vintage market, how fast it is growing.” From things like Knee Carhartt pants and certain band tees, it explains why one was worth more than the other.”
Nick Adler (left) and Sean Wotherspoon
Gino Abbado
Brennan Russo
Gino Abbado
He’s seen premium t-shirts spotlighting the likes of Madonna and Snoop Dogg costing thousands of dollars. “I asked him why and he started telling me [about] The provenance, the fading of this T, and why it’s a black T when it’s faded green…these ’80s Hanes Ts are more durable than the high-end boutique Ts of 2022,” he continued. rice field. “I was just thinking about how these things have stories to tell, they have origins, rarities, characteristics. It was really similar to what was happening in the world of NFTs. .”
For Wotherspoon, it was a similar moment of lightning.
“I was describing the t-shirts – that’s what I’m proud of. I hand pick them,” said the designer and collector. During busy times, I’ve picked £10,000 vintages a week to pick the best ones for my store, and I love explaining to people the characteristics of these t-shirts because it’s where I get them. Where did the person get it from? Who made it?
“It’s about increasing our ability to experience these items using our senses,” Wotherspoon continued. “As I was explaining it to Nick, I realized, ‘Wow, this is a similar trait you guys are talking about Web 3.0 and his world of NFTs.'”
He added that the vintage denim jacket to be released by Mntge as its first fashion drop was sourced by Wotherspoon by bidding over fashion brands. Soon, it will be in the hands of its new owner, a cryptocurrency wallet, enjoying his second or his third life surrounded by flower gardens and overlays.
