The Magic of World Building

Luxury has become just another commodity.

Everything about is has become democratised, with all the traditional codes being devalued.

As a result, brands need to work harder for differentiation.

Enter, World Building.

Let’s dig into what this is and how it works for brands…

Defining World Building

World Building can be defined as the process of creating an immersive and detailed universe that supports a brand narrative (in literature, film, gaming etc.)

It plays a vital role in engaging audiences by providing a richer backdrop against which stories unfold.

It can be a one-off collaboration and it can also be an ongoing part of culture.

Recent luxury examples include Gucci partnering with Roblox and Hermès creating gym pop-ups. The growth of Tmall Luxury Pavilion is also a key indictor of this change.

But the success of the Barbie campaign and the recent launch of the Pepsi-Verse shows that World Building also works outside of luxury.

You’re Not Selling a Product, You’re Selling a Lifestyle

Of course, there is still a product (or service) being sold. And, to an extent, this has always been true.

But it has shifted in its importance. The world’s most successful luxury brands are hyper-aware of culture and reflect that in the way they sell.

Take the example of the trendiest supermarket imaginable:

“The longer you spend inside an Erewhon - or right outside an Erewhon, on one of its sun-dappled, plant-lined patios - the more it feels like a restaurant that also happens to sell groceries.”

Erewhon realised that its core audience cooks less and eats out more and put that front and centre of the experience. And they sell merch, so that people can show they are in-the-know.

Collaboration is the Short Cut

What’s the easiest way to target a new audience? Collaborate with a brand that already reaches them. This has been a key tactic for brands looking to quickly build more immersive worlds.

Indeed, in recent years, we have seen a lot of high/low collaborations, which is another reason luxury has become devalued (see H&M/Balmain or Target/Missoni, for example).

But there have also been countless purely high-end collaborations, like Balenciaga with Bang & Olufsen, Louis Vuitton with Yayo Kusama and Rimowa with Tiffany & Co that have rapidly expanded and deepened relationships with potential customers.

What does this mean for marketers?

World Building is a commitment to playing the long game, instead of focusing on short-term engagement metrics.*

It isn’t right for every business, but World Building should be should be on the discussion agenda for any luxury brand that is struggling with differentiation.

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*Speaking of playing the long game, there is plenty of evidence about the benefit of iterating from a consistent brand platform, rather than reinventing the wheel every few years.