Anyone with a virtual alter ego roaming around the Roblox online game platform these days may come across other avatars wearing Gucci purses, sunglasses, or caps.

The digital-only goods were part of an elite Gucci collection for Roblox, a move by the fashion label that prides itself with Italian workmanship to enter an emerging virtual environment wherein most of its younger fans already inhabit it.

The big-name fashion collaboration, says players in the metaverse - in which virtual worlds, augmented reality, and the internet collide - shows a new era of virtual-real world interplay, space where smart product placement meets consumers' desire to express their personality types in the virtual world.

During the two weeks that the Gucci Garden location on Roblox was accessible last month, the platform's 42 million users might spend $1.20 to $9 on collector and limited-edition Gucci items.

Items were concealed in the virtual Gucci Garden, which mirrored real-life Gucci Garden displays in Florence and other major cities around the world. Some products were given away for free, and also exclusivity was emphasized through limited-edition releases.

The experience provided Roblox's main audience - about ages 9 to 15 - with a digital entry into the exclusive realm of luxury items that few can imagine in real life. Now as the area has been closed, the limited edition products have increased in value. More than 4.5 million goods were "won," according to the developer.

Many parents may be perplexed by the idea of spending actual money to customize an avatar, but Generation Z players had already been prepared for this transition.

While the Gucci products purchased by users can only be "worn" on the Roblox platform, this is simply the tip of the iceberg in the metaverse.

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are similar products created and sold in the metaverse which are supported by blockchain technology, ensuring their legitimacy and, in certain cases, uniqueness.

NFTs, which may range from individualized "skins" or outfits for avatars to digital art, maybe exchanged indefinitely, possibly increasing in value with each transaction. One‘s ownership isn't restricted to a particular platform.

Also on Roblox, which has its marketplace where goods can be exchanged, the Gucci Dionysus Bag with Bee was resold for nearly $4,100 in Robux - more than the price of a genuine Gucci Dionysus bag and a significant premium above the original price of 475 Roblox, around $4.75.

Only 851 of the bags were made accessible over two releases, rendering it the most uncommon piece in the collection when compared to the 2.6 million wide-brim denim hats that were sold.

The metaverse's promise for such a fashion industry extends well beyond games and then into still-under-construction digital ecosystems. Millions of dollars have been spent to smooth out technological difficulties in so-called decentralized worlds.

It's only logical that fashion should pave the path for less digitally adept consumers who may avoid Bitcoin and baulk at multimillion-dollar purchases of NFTs that have piqued the interest of artists and collectors alike.