Art De Rug on boards Metaverse-focused agency Think WhyNot to handle its marketing duties

Art De Rug, a leading provider of handmade luxury rugs, takes a leap from conventional norms and mandates Think WhyNot - a strategic agency, focusing on the metaverse for its marketing duties. The assignment aims to bring the company's unique and high-quality rugs to new audiences in the virtual and augmented reality space.

 “With Metaverse being the latest buzzword, only a few industries have embraced the concept early. However, the luxury and fashion industries are among the foremost adopters of the concept. At Art De Rug, we are always looking to enhance our customer experience.  Giving our handmade rugs a Web 3.0 edge, is an initiative to stay ahead of the curve and provide our discerning customers a value addition that can be passed through generations,” said Rohit Sharma, Director of Art De Rug.

 Art De Rug is an exclusive rug brand that makes handmade luxury rugs designed by well-known artists. Each artist's designs will be limited in nature, and the art and technology connection will only add to their luxury appeal. 

Ashish Mehta, Director of Art De Rug, further added on the empanelment, "We are thrilled to be working with Think WhyNot on this exciting new venture.  Their expertise in the metaverse and AR/VR space will help us reach new audiences and showcase our rugs in a whole new way, something that has not been attempted in the past." 

Interestingly, the art positioning will be edgier by adding Metaverse elements to the product concept. The story behind the art for these few exclusive rugs will be brought alive through AR. So each exclusive rug will have an accompanying design painting. Once you point your phone towards the painting will trigger an augmented reality effect, bringing the design concept to life. Moreover, the brand will deliver high value for this 'art investment' by minting NFTs of these designs giving ownership of the design for perpetuity, and making the handcrafted rug a family heirloom. 

Sangram Surve, Managing Director of Think WhyNot, further added, “After working with Meta globally on a lot of their Metaverse-related projects, working with Art De Rug to add a Web 3.0 edge to a niche luxury category is a great opportunity. Luxury marketing is all about storytelling, and adding AR/VR to the mix adds an immersive edge to stories. NFTs will only add more exclusivity to your ownership of a luxury product and will increase the timeless appeal of the design – something that can be passed on as a family heirloom. We are looking forward to an exciting Metaverse-centric campaign”

 Extending the metaverse concepts further, presentations to dealers and trade will also be on Oculus headsets through VR. Dealers can walk through a virtual art gallery that showcases all the rugs. The Art Gallery changes its look and feels depending on what day the viewer sees it. 

The luxury handmade rug market is largely export-driven and is about $1.6 billion in size. However, Art de Rug, while focusing on exports, also has a bullish view of the potential in the Indian market.