Your Wallet For Life.
THE WALLET. A word most of us have heard our entire lives. An object most of us have held in some shape or form—as ubiquitous as a set of keys, a mobile phone, or currency itself. A go-to product many people the world over carry with them everyday, everywhere. And yet, the framework for interpreting the “wallet” has largely remained unchanged for as long as any of us can remember.
But today, the definition of a wallet is rapidly changing—this includes physical and digital wallets alike. The wallet is no longer simply a container for your credit cards, your identity, your crypto, your odds and ends—it’s your passport for accessing the various doorways you encounter amidst IRL and URL, and the spaces in between. As a result, we believe the concept of a wallet needs to be retooled altogether.
“It’s time to abstract the wallet beyond its current meaning—to redefine the category itself, with a wholly expanded view. A view that honors the past, the present, and the future in equal measure.”
To begin this story, let’s orient ourselves around the history of the object. The wallet in its modern form—a secure, portable billfold—was invented in the 1600s, shortly after the advent of paper currency. But the term “wallet” is centuries older, deriving from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning “to turn, revolve,” with derivative words that defined enclosing objects such as coin purses. This type of wallet was in action for most of human history, from the 5,500 year old leather sack found attached to the ancient hip of Otzi the Iceman, to the drawstring pouches Greeks and Romans used to carry coins and messages, to the small knapsacks built to carry a day’s worth of provisions.
Then, in the early 20th century, a bridle and harness maker named Hermès began tooling billfolds out of saddle leather; the wallet quickly became a status symbol in and of itself. More than ever, the wallet was not only strengthening its position as a practical human necessity—like a pair of pants, a shirt, or a hat—but also as an immediate expression of the carrier’s identity. Flashing forward another century, digital wallets now abound, but we’ll get to that in another post…
The thread between these various iterations over time is clear—we’ve always needed a way to carry around the stuff that grants us access to the rest of the word, whether it’s money, valuables, or the identifying treasures that remind us (and communicate) who we are. And now, with both physical and digital worlds to traverse, more facets of our identities to carry and secure, and more gateways to gain and maintain access to, our wallets are more important than they’ve ever been.
So, where does the wallet go from here? When will the physical wallet become extinct, if ever? What is the future of wallets? In its current iteration, db clay is a research project aimed at answering these types of questions. A creative study to abstract the wallet as an everyday object from its current meaning—a seismic shift for a deeply-rooted, yet underserved category. A shift in people’s relationship with their wallet(s). A shift that recalibrates the perception of value, the notion of identity, and the experience of joy. In this effort, db clay’s purpose is not singularly focused on making a better mousetrap, but rather, to help be a bridge from one generation to the next. To be more than a wallet.
More than a wallet? Yes. More than a fashion accessory? Yes. More than an app on your smartphone or an extension in your browser? Still, yes. Our vision is to build a thoughtfully-designed platform that blends lifestyle accessories with digital applications. From the physical self to the digital self. From art to technology—a tool to create your best life. Why? Because what you carry throughout the universe is unlike anyone else and your wallet is symbolically a reflection of you—your self expression, your way of organizing things, and most importantly, your way of being.
“Your wallet—in the broadest and most abstracted sense of the word—is a portal into your life itself. And your life is magic.”
To redefine old notions, and achieve this vision, we must first understand people’s perspectives re: wallets. In this effort, we’ll be reimagining the wallet from the ground up. We’ll be conducting a people-first research project to rattle the wallet category cage. To break apart traditional thinking. And to have conversations that lead to insights. In doing so, we’re looking towards uniting utility and use case. Fashion and function. Humanities and science. Time and space. We’re turning over rocks, ideating applications for Web3, AI, and beyond. But more important than the underlying tech itself, we’re rooting ourselves in one thing above all others—the human spirit.
Until next time ✌️
