[Short #108] Cool Cats and Multibeasts
PLUS: 🎲 The (Gutter Cat) Gang goes to Vegas
Ahoy! I’m going to a friend’s wedding, so I won’t be writing for the rest of the week.
If you are sad (I’ll be having writing withdrawals) and want more TPan thoughts, I encourage you to check out the archive.
Some oldies but goodies:
BAYC’s Quadruple Gated Merch Drop
I’ve been busy doing Dives on memes and Opensea, so I haven’t been sharing my observations and thoughts on other happenings in the world of Web3 and NFTs.
So, let’s go!
Cool Cats got a little cooler
I wrote a Twitter thread on the Cool Cats Town Hall last Friday, speculating that it wasn’t going to be a regular old announcement.
Fortunately I was correct, so my credibility is still intact.
Cool Cats announced their new CEO, Stephen Teglas.
Cool Cats have been searching for their new leader for several months now. Though it’ll take time to see if it pans out, it looks like a good fit on paper.
Let’s take a peek on LinkedIn:
Wow, 25 years at Disney? That’s longer than many Web3/Crypto folks have been alive.
The key takeaway here is that Stephen understands brands, partnerships, and consumers. He also familiar with the Web3 space having been at Recur, a platform that helps companies and brands enter NFTs. Some brands and companies they have worked with:
Stephen shared that he has 2 sons (15 and 20). The 20 year-old is “neck deep in NFTs” while the 15 year old is in the early stages of understanding how they work.
That perspective is valuable when you consider how a brand and company like Cool Cats can span different mediums, generations and partnerships.
Cool Cats is a beloved brand in the Web3 community. Though it has fallen from grace in recent months (from a price and execution POV, great NFT NYC activation though!), I believe the potential for that appreciation to go global is untapped.
On paper, Stephen seems to have the right background to make the Cool Cats potential a reality. Time will tell if it translates to mainstream success.
Multibeasts
A few days ago I minted a couple Multibeasts, an art NFT collection founded by the Haas brothers. Their work has been featured in multiple museums such as the MoMA, LACMA, and RISDEE, while doing commissioned work for the Versace family, Lady Gaga, and other celebrities.
What I found interesting with this minting experience is that the traits are generated based on a personality survey. I recorded the experience here (note that some of the questions are a little on the NSFW side, these are artists after all) and here is a sample of some of the questions.
Yesterday the Haas Brothers held an AMA Twitter Spaces and share more info on their plans. I couldn’t join but fortunately caught someone sharing a brief summary and why they were excited.
Assuming the notes are accurate (even if true, this doesn’t mean you should buy one), I find the Multibeast team’s approach one of chess vs. checkers.
What are the takeaways?
Minting experiences will continue to evolve
I haven’t gone through a minting experience where a survey determined the traits. Oftentimes when we think about NFTs, we believe they either need to be uniform (eg: 1,000 of the same access pass) or purely random (generative traits based on pre-determined rarity).
However, there are other ways to determine rarity that should be explored. Multibeasts is a great example of this, and the minting experience itself is an artistic experience.
Distribution needs to be considered early on
Gone are the days of “our strategy is community” (for the most part). BAYC is the best example of this, but they are more of an exception vs. the rule. Community is a legitimate strategy, but shouldn’t be the only one.
It seems that the team has been planning partnerships well before the launch of the project. Whether it’s leveraging previous relationships, signing with UTA (a talent agency), or providing holders commercial rights, we’ll see what the team actually reveals.
Web2 companies and brands continue to show interest in the space
Despite the mishaps and scams, there is still intense interest in what’s going on in this corner of the universe.
Web2 companies and brands will remain cautious, and partnering is a low-risk way to explore and learn.
The (Gutter Cat) Gang Goes to Vegas
Anyone catch the reference to It’s Always Sunny? 😉
The Gutter Cat Gang had their first Guttercon.
Great, a group of NFT degenerates in the degenerate capital of the world, what could go wrong?
As a non-holder, I don’t have full context. However, I believe this event was a prudent and strategic move.
An Exclusive IRL Experience
Similar to what BAYC has done with Ape Fest, GCG is creating their own event for their community and holders.
This isn’t NFT NYC where attendees have 5 options for evening shenanigans. The audience is captive and the community is strengthened as a result.
Social Proof and Credibility
If you look at GCG’s Twitter feed, there is content for days that can be repurposed, reposted, and utilized in ways that will foster community engagement and retention for months to come.
Community members that attended Guttercon will eagerly wait for the next one, and those that didn’t attend will have FOMO.
And non-holders like myself are intrigued, even if just a little bit
Obviously not every NFT brand can afford this, but the strategy still holds. I’ve made this argument in the past with the Cute NFT meta. There is a constant war for attention and playing in a crowded space (Eg: NFT NYC) is hard.
Instead, Gutter Cat Gang left the court and created their own.
See you next week folks, don’t miss me too much 😘
If you are sad (I’ll be having writing withdrawals) and want more TPan thoughts, I encourage you to check out the archive