BRANDS & MARKETING
THE FUTURE 100
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Decentralized technology and finance are paving the way for headless brands, built by communities who collectively decide on products, assets and
messaging. Members who buy into these communities, often by acquiring
crypto tokens, earn the right to participate in brand decision-making and can even take a share in financial success.
The term headless brand was first coined in a 2019 paper authored by the
strategy and research firm Other Internet, which describes these brands as
“self-enforcing, self-incentivized, contagious narratives that emerge and evolve
Headless brands
A new wave of consumer creators, powered and incentivized by decentralized organizations, are taking the reins of brand storytelling.
in ways that are unexpected and irrepressible.” The paper identified Bitcoin as the first iteration of a headless brand as it has no central authority, operating and evolving in line with the decisions of a multitude of stakeholders. “A
headless brand is a meme,” say the paper’s authors, Toby Shorin, Laura Lotti and Sam Hart. “It belongs to no one, and can be remixed by anyone.”
More recently, NFT-based marketplaces have emerged that formalize the trend uniting culture, community and crypto. Metafactory, a self-described “factory for headless brands” launched in 2020, aims to bring artists, consumers and brands together in a partnership to create community-run fashion brands.
Artists (including Italian digital artist Van and Indonesian cryptoartist Twisted Vacancy) submit their designs and members have a say, voting for their favorites to be produced centrally by Metafactory. Brand members and
investors then share in the profits as well as enjoying exclusive NFT drops and promotions.
The Bored Ape Yacht Club, which launched in April 2021, is a community of
owners of ape character NFTs. Crucially, owners are assigned the rights to their
