Illest Motorverse is a web 3.0 collaboration program bringing the motor heads into the metaverse. The project will feature 4 animated rim collection NFTs, with a circulation of 1,000 pieces each. The final design for the NFTs will be revealed in mid October.

Founders Jon Herrera and Eman Garcia talked to us about Illest Motorverse and how they are starting their engine to venture the metaverse.

Ron: When did you first heard about NFTs?

Jon: 8 years ago, Steve Aoki was telling me about this and I understood the concept very easily. I saw what he did and I felt that it was possible to do a project with our brand ILLEST so decided to finally create a Web 3.0 program called “Illest Motorverse”.

Eman: I actually learned about it on Hypebeast. It’s about BAYC and RTFKT which are one of the most well known collections in the space.

Ron: Are you a motor head or a car enthusiast?

Eman: My Dad actually influenced me. He was into Porsche, Mercedes Benz and lately BMW. So naturally our family was a big fan of cars, being our dad as our biggest influencer. As time came by and I get to buy my own car, I started with a vintage BMW. After a couple BMW, I’m leaning towards upgrading and get a 911.

Eman: You can trace the roots of my obsession with cars from Knight Rider and movies like Ferris Buelers Day Off , Gone in 60 Seconds, Bad Boys, films that made me fell in love with Porsche. Of Course, the Fast and Furious Movies. Tokyo Drift is still my favorite.

On starting the engines for Illest Motorverse

Ron: What inspired you to create the Illest Motoverse? Where did it all begin?

Jon: Illest motorverse was inspired 3 years ago. We had the idea before the pandemic happened. I attended a couple of fashion trade shows in Paris and LA and everyone kept on talking about fashion and streetwear moving into the Web 3.0. Slowly, I saw a key influencers in streetwear move into the 3.0 space, from Bobby Hundreds to Nick Diamond, and soon enough I saw car brands starting to follow. I also saw a huge trend in car meetups and breakfast and car clubs meeting every weekend. This was happening globally at a very fast pace.

With the goal of creating a solid community and projects in web 3.0, Jon and Eman see the opportunity with the growing car community in the country and started the project. The founders share that the goal of the project is to build a community wherein everyone can enjoy the car enthusiast lifestyle and have access to exclusive products and events and experiences.

Ron: Who is the team working behind Illest Motoverse?

Jon: It is headed by Eman Garcia and myself, but it is a collective effort and campaign of car enthusiasts, our amazing team of media partners and event organizers there’s about 30 people groups we are working with in creating Web 3.0 projects and product collaborations and event experience. We decided to start here in our hometown. We want to test it here. We also have a line up of international contributors and collaborators from media fashion, art, design, motor heads, car lovers, bike lovers and collectors.

Recently, Illest Motorverse dropped an exclusive hoodie collection that grants whitelist spots to buyers. Jon share more utility regarding the apparel.

Ron: We saw that you dropped an exclusive Hoodie. Besides whitelisting, will there be more utility for it?

Jon: Yeah! We have a curated program of retail promotions and discounts.  online specials also to key store locations. People can enjoy these perks from online specials to key store locations Some of the brands are Vans, The Rail, Maui and Sons , Hurley, Girbaud, Playboy, Cold Stone NIXX, and a lot more. That’s about 50+ brands in the mix. There will also be perks coming from our food partners namely Eric Dee FOODIE Global concepts (Tim Ho Wan, Pound Burger, Hawkerchan, Llao Llao Bench Cafe, and Kravers Kitchen. Our loyalty program will also serve that community. We have also partnered with OKADA, Airmedia, House of Collab, Kumu and other sponsors that want to be part of llest Motorverse. Our team and the entire community are really excited about this.

Ron: What are the utilities of the NFT?

Jon: As I have mentioned earlier, all those perks will be available to holders. The NFT will give you access to exclusive drops and first dibs on certain product and events. Part of the roll out of our media plan is to launch our very own media commerce site, like HypeBeast for cars. We are working with musicians artists and designers on curating cool exciting product that serves the Illest Motorverse.

We are also looking at doing Illest Motor Fest. This is bound to be the biggest car show in the Philippines. You can trace my roots back to organising hundreds of events. I really love IRL events and I can’t wait for all the product and collaborations waiting for Illest Motorverse. We will create special projects from toys, decal programs, Merch, hardware and car accessories. The skies the limit. It will not just revolve around the lllest brand. We will be curating designs, artists and creators to work with. Our theme here is collaboration. Three years from now, I see us developing a IMV social token.

The next 24 months of Illest Motorverse will be focused on building together with the web3 community and creating awareness through pop up “cars and coffee” secret meetups.

Jon: We love to eat and drink so it’s only natural to build a coffee brand tuned into the market. Currently, I am testing different local blend of beans. This is something that we will be launching under the Illest Motorverse coffee cart franchise. We also have a exclusive Illest Bearbrick launch and Bride Seat collaboration with House of Collab in Karrera. We are doing a special event with KC Montero in House of Crypto and Car Gurus this October. After that we will have 2 pop ups and activation from our partners ESC, South Scene, Karrera, Ikigai, 8 Media and even in Davao South Scene. Everyone is excited to tour with us and experience the Illest Motorverse.

2023 is going to be an exciting year for us because we are launching a collaboration with all our partners, from toys, coffee, shirts, car, accessories and more. We have lots of exciting things in our bags. Our goal also is to have a physical headquarters and studio that serves as our HQ Paddock.

I’m working with content creators on developing a documentary series focusing on the car culture scene while experiencing the local food in the Philippines. This will be all released on digital streaming platforms soon. It’s like Anthony Bourdain meets Tokyo Drift. The perfect combination for us because we love cars we also love to eat!

Lastly, we are curating a music label program where we will release new original music showcasing Filipino singers, artists. We are going to produce and release music through our MIXTAPE program with Spotify. We have so many talented producers, artists and writers in the country and we want to work with them.

On IRL events and meetups

Ron: Do you think IRL events are important?

Jon: VERY! In IRL events and physical gatherings you feel the energy and experience the palette of the community and meet new people from where you can enhance ideas and build relationships. We want to create events where we collect memories with like minded individuals. Its like that pumped up feeling when come from a party or a concert, we want to transfer the energy to each other and build a solid sustainable community For us, nothing beats IRL interaction and experiencing the community that we are part of. Everyone also is fond of having a good time in which we are well experienced in delivering a fun experience.

Illest Motorverse promises to take their community to a fun and energetic ride. The collection will be released in October. You can learn more about the project on their official website.