Hong Kong’s Times Square mall enters metaverse as troubled retailers look to virtual world to lure shoppers amid downturn

The mall in Causeway Bay has teamed up with Bunny Warriors and AiR Metaverse, which has produced a replica of Hong Kong in the online world

The crossover to the metaverse may help attract foot traffic during a challenging period for the local retail industry

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Times Square aims to launch more such campaigns in the future to connect the real and the virtual worlds. Photo: Martin Chan

Published: 1:23pm, 21 Apr 2022

The Times Square mall in Causeway Bay is tapping the virtual world to lure more shoppers by partnering with the popular Bunny Warriors and AiR Metaverse, which has produced a replica of Hong Kong in the online world.

The collaboration heralds the first entry of a local shopping centre into the AiR metaverse. Times Square aims to launch more such campaigns in the future to connect the real and the virtual worlds.

AiR has created a Hong Kong-themed virtual world that allows users to connect every aspect of their life to the metaverse.

The partnership highlights how real estate companies have been increasingly looking to the metaverse and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to either promote their projects or tap another revenue stream by selling the virtual tokens.

The crossover to the metaverse may help the mall attract foot traffic during a challenging period for the local retail industry. Shops have been reeling from strict social distancing measures as the city battles a ferocious fifth wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Touted as the next frontier of the internet, the metaverse is conceived as an endless three-dimensional world of interconnected virtual communities where people can meet, work and play online.