LVMH Partners with Epic Games, The Parent Company of Fortnite

French luxury goods giant LVMH Group announced a partnership with Epic Games, which owns games such as "Fortnite" and 3D creation platform Unreal Engine.

Announcing the news at the Viva Technology exhibition, the LVMH Group said that the partnership with Epic Games could change the group's creative approach and bring customers an immersive new experience of product discovery. "This strategic partnership will allow LVMH and its Maisons to further leverage Epic's powerful 3D authoring tools to deliver experiences such as virtual fitting rooms and fashion shows, 360 product presentations, augmented reality, and the creation of digital twins."

The creation tools and technologies owned by Epic, such as the 3D creation platform Unreal Engine, photogrammetry software Reality Capture, real-time visualization tool Twinmotion, and ultra-realistic virtual character creator MetaHuman, etc., will help LVMH release major growth opportunities.

So far, some of LVMH's brands have successfully applied Epic's solutions, such as several digital projects released during Viva Technology in 2022:

Italian jewelry family BVLGARI displayed three works of the brand in the metaverse: Bulgari metaverse, Octo Finssimo Ultra NFT, and Beyond Wonder top jewelry NFT. Inspired by the Bulgari metaverse in ancient Rome, its development engine is Unreal Engine 5.

Virtual spokesperson Livi uses the Unreal Engine and Metauman technology.

During the latest Viva exhibition, Louis Vuitton will present the "Digital Show Experience" in the LVMH pavilion, and the Unreal Engine 5, MetaHuman, and Reality Capture technologies are used in the design process. This 6-minute interactive and immersive experience will lead visitors to relive the brand's 2023 autumn and winter menswear show, which will be held in January 2023 at the famous Carré courtyard of the Louvre. At the same time, visitors have the opportunity to discover a selection of looks and pieces from the Louis Vuitton menswear collection through a digital journey.

"In a spirit resolutely future-oriented, LVMH and its maisons continue to renew their product offerings in order to engage with new practices while respecting their timeless assets and heritage. This spirit also guides our collaboration with Epic Games. In this way, the group will be able to leverage Epic's world-renowned expertise to enrich our customers' experience in the virtual world and closely integrate with the group's core strengths in the real world—the unique technology of the production workshop and the ownership of the store network," the LVMH group said in a press release.

LVMH also pointed out that this cooperation can expand the professional knowledge of the group team, reflecting that the group will provide employees with digital cultural adaptation as one of its priorities.

Toni Belloni, General Manager of the LVMH Group, said: "Innovation to bring new experiences to our customers is our long-term commitment. Interactive games have grown into a mature cultural phenomenon and are a perfect example. The partnership with Epic Games will accelerate our expertise in 3D tools and ecosystems, from the creation of new collections to advertising campaigns to the brand house’s website. We will also connect more effectively with younger generations, who are very familiar with these codes and uses."

Bill Clifford, vice president of Unreal Engine, said: "Through this partnership, we will join forces with designers at the LVMH Group to leverage Epic's range of advanced creator tools to transform physical and digital product creation. We are excited to accelerate LVMH Group's adoption of Unreal Engine, Reality Capture, Twinmotion, and Metauman technologies, which helps its global brands engage with customers through immersive digital experiences."