Fashion

This Local Fashion Company Turned Shopping Into a Video Game

Poplin & Co.'s Paradise Island is Vancouver's first gamified shopping experience.

By Maria Diment /

When our world shut down and was replaced by the too-familiar four walls of home, another world was created. Antonio Krezic, like most in the fashion industry, made Poplin & Co’s collection virtual—but unlike most, he made it into a game.

A virtual sand mannequin modelling an item from Poplin & Co’s new collection.

The shift to digital fashion, ushered by the pandemic, hadn’t intimidated the tech-savvy Krezic. “I come from a 3D design and modelling background from the video game industry, so I thought, ‘What a perfect blend of skills,” he says. For Krezic, creating Poplin & Co’s gamified shopping experience was an opportunity to showcase more than their collection. “We can not only present our line virtually, but also showcase the mood and feeling of what we had when we designed the collection, and offer an escape from the environment that we’re in,” Krezic explains. These are the pillars of Poplin & Co.’s Paradise Island: interaction, virtual shopping and an escape that also translates the collection’s mood.

Shopping turns into play in this virtual tropical getaway. Once you’re in, there’s a whole sunny and sandy island to explore, dotted with mannequins wearing Poplin & Co’s newest collection and treasures hiding coupon codes. A swim in the ocean is a bonus. 

Underwater view of Paradise Island. 

Amongst many virtual fashion presentations, Paradise Island happens to be the first of its kind, according to Krezic. It may also be the first step towards the future of online shopping. “I do see there’s an advantage of having a gamification aspect to shopping,” says Krezic. “It promotes longer user times on the website, and this way they spend more time with your brand and really see the story behind each collection, and entertain themselves all the same.” Perhaps a peek into the future. For now, Paradise Island is a fresh take on digital fashion and an escape that most of us need.

You can play the game—and get a playful look at their latest collection—here.