Asprey Bugatti $ 460k NFT Auction, Web 3.0 Members Club, Mayfair Meta Gallery And Studio
Last year, the British jeweler and royal guarantee holder Asprey turned 240 years old and celebrated with the launch of his new Asprey Studio.
The goal is to expand Asprey’s tailored capabilities. “A lot of what we do is tailor-made and high-value,” says Asprey Studios creative director Ali Walker. “The studio works with the studio on photorealistic reproductions of products, and makes changes along the way so that you do not have to continue making samples. It streamlines production and minimizes waste. “
The first project that was dropped in April was an NFT collection with the luxury car manufacturer Bugatti. Firmly rooted in physical products, the 261 tokens sold out immediately came with a handmade sterling silver collector’s sculpture of Bugatti’s historic Voiture Noire.
The last of a sculpture made of 24k rose gold was auctioned on June 30, along with its equivalent NFT by Philips in London, where it raised $ 460k.
The Voiture Noire itself, a copy of the black Atlantic Coupé that was lost during World War II, sold in 2021 for 18 million dollars. 261 mph is the top speed.
“We worked with the Bugatti designers, and the sculptures are made from the CAD of the real car,” says Walker about the sculptures.
The NFTs that had a floor price of 3ETH
But the Bugatti collaboration is just the first step in Asprey’s Web 3.0 roadmap. This month, the luxury brand will launch The Asprey Studio Club, its original NFT collection followed by The Asprey Studio Gallery.
The Gallery, a volatile Web 3.0 showroom, opens across the Mayfair store later this summer, overlooking Bruton Street in front and Bruton Place to the side and rear.
The 2605 sq ft modular space will showcase the work of Web 3.0 artists – via screens and immersive VR and AR technology installations – along with Asprey’s more traditional craftsmanship. AV-enabled, it will also host lectures and webinars plus a cafe overlooking Mayfair.
“It’s a hub for connecting traditional clients with cryptocurrencies,” says Walker. “A large percentage of the art world does not understand NFTs, but they can come here and get help to buy and shop from our concierge.”
It is certainly part of a new trend for luxury brands that want to integrate existing customers to Web 3.0, but Asprey also aims to introduce technology-rich to traditional start-ups and create a new symbiotic economy.
As for Asprey’s origins NFT collection, while the nature of the digital work of art remains hidden, the physical tools will certainly arouse interest in both the old and the new world.
Among standard benefits such as whitelisting for future drops, owners will receive the ultimate aristocratic status symbol, an engraved gold signature ring indicating membership in the new Web 3.0 establishment, free access to London’s famous Black’s membership club plus TBC mutual club access globally. They will also have the opportunity to showcase and sell their own NFTs at the physical Asprey Studio Gallery. The first run, limited to 241, has a floor price of 2.5 ETH.
All Asprey Bugatti sculptures are currently in production. The process will take around six months. “Many projects do not take quality into account, but we went the opposite way,” says Walker, noting that each project is valued at far higher than the coin price – made possible both because of economies of scale and the studio’s capabilities.
“The idea is to expand so that the rest of the business will have the same workflow,” adds Walker, who comes from a background in the film industry. “Production studios preview an entire movie because they can not commit to consumption otherwise.”
Going forward, Studio will work on the international sports trophies that Asprey creates, including the Premier League and Formula 1 plus the next release with Bugatti and additional partner projects that will be announced.
www.aspreystudio.com