Since the exasperating repercussions that we all faced in 2020 (and 2021 too) due to the COVID-19 global pandemic have become clearer, more and more brands have been forced to seek refuge in-house for unusual model casting. Brands have turned to their own employees to model for their campaigns. Which brands exactly, and how could this new approach change the way the modelling industry runs the fashion market?

Virtual influencers, and by that, I mean influencers who are not real humans but digital creations, are changing how luxury fashion houses are marketing their campaigns. Although this recent trend mainly started among big brands, it seems like it may soon filter down and change fashion marketing altogether—and therefore the entire fashion industry as we know it. What brought this shift? And what potential do these virtual influencers represent for brands?