Mumbai: Soft drink giant Pepsi has announced the launch of its first-ever non-fungible tokens (NFTs) collection for Indian consumers. The NFT collection is an ode to the younger generation, which believes in self-expression and is deeply entrenched in technology.
PepsiCo India Design Team has inked an exclusive partnership with illustrator Timea Balo to curate the NFT collection for Pepsi Black, which is anchored on the brand’s pillars of innovation, self-expression, and evolution. Pepsi will release a set of 20 NFTs minted on the Polygon blockchain.
The NFT art collectibles are centred on the alterations to the classic Pepsi® Black™ ‘Zero’ visual, inspired by the brand’s passion points to portray poignant nuances such as sustainability, rhythm, movement, creativity, art, the progressing world of social media, and gamification. With three variations of each theme and four variations inspired by music, the “Pepsi Black Zero Sugar” collection will be listed on Open Sea, the world’s first and largest web3 marketplace for NFTs and crypto collectibles.
The NFTs will be given away to the winners of the “#PepsiBlackeffect” challenge conducted on the Indian homegrown social media platform, Moj. Consumers can enter the contest using the quirky Pepsi® Black lens and flaunt their max swag personas to get a chance to win Pepsi® Black’s maiden NFTs.
Speaking on the NFT collection, PepsiCo India category lead Saumya Rathor said, “Pepsi has always been at the forefront of cultural evolutions, globally as well as in India. Our endeavour is to transform our product as well as our narratives to align with the evolving youth. Our foray into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for Indian consumers is a testimony to the same belief. The “Pepsi Black Zero Sugar” NFT collection will personify and bring alive the world of Pepsi Black by leveraging passion points that resonate the most with youngsters today, such as fashion, gaming, music, social media, dance, creativity, and environment. To present an accessible opportunity to our consumers, these NFTs will be given through an engaging “#PepsiBlackeffect” challenge on India’s homegrown social media platform, Moj.”
Commenting on the NFTs, PepsiCo India design director Tanu Sinha said, “Pepsi has strongly associated popular culture and passion points such as music, dance, art, and the environment with its legacy of disruptive narratives over the years. Pepsi’s design strategy has also, over the years, witnessed a significant shift with the acceleration of a digital-forward and social-media-savvy world. We have evolved our design sensibilities to connect with the younger generation to further Pepsi’s mission to create a culture that propagates innovation. The launch of Pepsi’s first-ever “Pepsi Black Zero Sugar” NFT collection is another step in this direction. With Pepsi Black’s “Zero” sugar philosophy at its core, these collectible art NFTs have been designed keeping in mind the passion points those youngsters can connect and relate to.”
