Krispy Kreme broke the internet
Plus: LVMH is loud and proud, and V8 got the assignment
Morning,
Before we dive in. What other newsletters do you all love? Drop them in the comments or you can reply. Appreciate it!
As always, the lens of this letter is a best-of-the-best on culture, trends, marketing, etc. What I’m dropping to friends on Slack or finding useful in meetings with brands.
Let’s dive in!
CULTURE
HOME IS WHERE THE MONEY IS -> The CQ Home renovations are booming because people can’t afford to move. Top projects include: painting (21%), garden/landscaping (19%), and a bathroom remodel (18%). Searches for Wallpapering services have jumped 110% since 2022. Home goods brands could lean in here but so could out-of-category brands through collabs or just related content.
CHECKMATE, CHESS IS BACK -> AfterSchool The popularity of Chess is on the rise. Since The Queen’s Gambit it’s gone strength to strength. I can tell you that several parent friends have avid chess-playing kiddos. The photos in this article certainly have me convinced there is an opportunity for brands to play with this in a cool way. Another thing holding strong since the pandemic: birding.
F&B
V8 GOT THE ASSIGNMENT Loved this fun deep dive
did on how V8 capitalized on a true fan’s content. After sharing that her Grandpa loved V8, V8 sent Gramps some freebies. Of course, because he’s adorable the unboxing video went viral. Then V8 re-upped with a visit to the offices which now has over 500k views. Cute!WALMART’S YASSIFIED PRIVATE-LABEL LINE -> AfterSchool -> Snaxshot Perhaps the yassification has worked in their favor because the online discourse about how funny it is has been ALL over the feed. Walmart needed it to be easy but much preferred Foxtrot’s (RIP) take, where each product got its own brand, they felt less cheap. Hot take: Private label doesn’t need to feel budget. Amazon said private-label is a big focus for them this year too.
CAN GOPUFF DO IT? Enjoyed this new campaign by GoPuff. People do shop for ‘occasions like this. The VI is good too. As a brand, GoPuff seems to be really trying to make it work. They did an event with
for SxSW—smart. In April they launched a program called Storefronts by GoPuff (basically brands can build on top of a white-labeled web experience and execute deliveries more easily). Their social lacks engagement/credibility but they seem to be leaning more toward B2B so perhaps not a priority. This is a tough business. Suspect they are going after acquisition but who knows?DRUGS
MAYBE BIDEN CANNA DO IT Biden needs all the help he can get with Gen-Z (especially after this week’s new cycle). Perhaps this will help: The Justice Department says it has recommended changing marijuana’s classification to Schedule III (in line with Tylenol with codeine). The change could help cannabis brands who have such a hard time scaling and banking because of all the restrictions. The question is: will Google and Meta make it easier for these brands too?
ALL BETS ARE OFF -> Feed Me Just when Dave and Buster’s started letting you bet on its games, comes the news that Ozempic is curbing all vices, gambling included. People are pointing out this is not great for people in high-conviction trading environments like active hedge funds. AI doesn’t need Ozepmic so traders are being tested from all sides.
KOREAN CIGS ARE COOL NOW -> One Thing There’s not much to say about this other than the uptick in cigarettes being ‘cool’ again is more pronounced lately.
ALPHAS & ZS
EXPERIENCES SMERIENCES -> The CQ A new survey finds that Gen Z’ers are the only generation who would rather make a big retail purchase (2.8%) instead of paying for an upcoming event or show (0.4%). The only exception is travel: 3.7% of Gen Z would prefer to plan a trip.
BANNING PHONES IS GOOD FOR GIRLS -> The Hustle This shocks zero people but good to have evidence. Norwegian schools banned phones and it did good things, especially for girls. There was a 30% decline in diagnosis and treatment for psychological symptoms. Girls’ GPAs increased as did teacher-awarded grades. Bullying also decreased in both genders. Middle schoolers were particularly affected.
DISNEY’S ODD COLLAB -> AfterSchool -> The Review Of Beauty Unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock you know everyone is up in arms about tween skincare use. Enough that two brands launched campaigns ‘combatting’ it this week (Dove & Kielh’s). But Disney seems to be jumping on the train anyway. They launched a collab line with TikTok-beloved Bubble. What’s odd is that it’s paired with the Inside-Out 2 movie, which is all about kids’ complicated emotions. Strange move.
RETAIL
SHEIN’S NOT SHYING AWAY -> AfterSchool Just when you thought Shein was just trying to dethrone Zara and H&M, you see that the long game was becoming Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha’s Amazon. But this article points to brand awareness that Shein isn’t a great brand look.
SKECHERS HAS A BIG ROSTER -> Snobette Skechers is killing it. Sales were up 12.5% in Q1. On their earnings call, they highlighted Skechers' roster of athletes, including English soccer player Harry Kane (!), Ukrainian soccer player Oleksandr Zinchenko, NY Knicks Julius Randle, Los Angeles Clippers Terence Mann, Canadian golfer Brooke Henderson, English golfer Matt Fitzpatrick and Canadian pickleball player Catherine Parenteau (they are well known for their pickleball shoes.). All this said, their social feels a bit schizophrenic so maybe they haven’t totally figured it out.
NOT EVERY BRAND IS QUIET -> Snobette On LVMH’s latest earnings call they addressed the ‘quiet luxury’ trend. Their poster child for the look Loro Piana is “moving from strength to strength” but they noted, “we will not all of a sudden convert a business that is almost 50 billion euros into just quiet luxury.” Thank goodness. It’s nice to hear someone acknowledge what so many CMOs are afraid to say: not every trend is for you, no matter how big.
URBAN RE-MIXING IT UP -> PSFK -> Conspiracy of Love Urban Outfitters is introducing a new platform featuring curated vintage and upcycled apparel (a twist on 2024’s sustainability trend: repair). Interestingly, researchers who analyzed consumer feedback from Etsy discovered that what consumers value most about upcycled products is not their sustainability but their creativity. Two good examples to follow here are Nicole McLaughlin and Upcyclex.
A BOSS HOTEL -> PSFK Literally. Boss has opened an experiential villa in Bali. This taps into a trend we’ve been talking about for many a letter now: brand collabs with hospitality venues. Granted this is a much bigger take than just one branded room.
TECH
ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER PRODUCT AI FLOP Following Humane’s (and AI pin) disastrous debut comes the Rabbit R1 flop. Making physical products is HARD. Look at Google's many many failed attempts at phones. But the lesson here is that you must deliver more than what’s standard (as in your phone). OpenAI did this, changing the way we search almost overnight. Products need the same bar.
DONUTS MAKE US NUTS Krispy Kreme overtook TikTok, Google, and Temu as the most popular free iPhone app. How you ask?! With a dozen days of deals—people like free donuts. Getting donuts that might otherwise get trashed or donated and consumers to download is hard so bravo Krispy Kreme Krew.
TIKTOK’S READY TO COMPETE -> The Hustle TikTok has launched new advertising tools. They will use generative AI to curate trending, brand-safe content; expand its selection of “tentpole” moments, like the Paris Olympics (we’re betting on this being big) and Met Gala; and allow advertisers to buy ‘slots’. The ‘slot’ is meant to appeal more to TV advertisers who are used to being able to buy ads that run alongside specific programs.
LINKEDIN LOOKING AT NYT -> The Hustle LinkedIn is launching games. Ugh. They must have looked at the NYT’s numbers. Games can be played once daily, taking a few minutes to solve. I don’t enjoy LinkedIn. But if you have a boss who tracks your internet use (again, ugh), maybe this appeals.
SUBSTACK BUT WITH ADS -> Feed Me beehiiv, Substack’s top competitor, just raised $33mm in Series B to bolster its growth plans such as building out its ad network. The ad network will allow brands to tap into niche audiences (this will appeal) and for newsletters to monetize more easily (this will be a big draw). Substack, your move.
SPORT
COUNTRY CLUB LOVE DRIVING NEW WORKOUTS 60% of new golf club members are now under 50, and 30% are 18 to 34. Well, these two ‘sports’ workouts feel related: Golf Pilates and Pickleball Balance. I’ve already expressed my desire to start a workout franchise for over +60s. These could work for that but could also be part of a separate concept focused on new country clubbers.
ALEX IS A SPORTS DADDY -> Cassandra Daily Alex Copper is big so it’s not really that surprising that she’s not just partnering with the Olympics, but also the Kentucky Derby. She'll be joined by Alix Earle. This event has a huge female audience.
WELLNESS
INSULTING NOT INCLUSIVE You probably haven’t (bravo) been on the internet this week if you haven’t heard about Youthforia’s ridiculous (ridiculously insulting) black makeup. Of course, Alexis’s detailed breakdown of what a bad move this was and how to avoid it is great. But also, don’t be thoughtless.
LUSH GETS FUNCTIONAL Lush debuted a cold water Epsom salt cube for post-marathon recovery. This is a smart way to tap into new audiences. Not only does it tie into the trend of cold plunging but also the number of people running marathons is increasing.
EMILY’S WATCHING FETECH “If I was watching fragrance last year, I’m watching femtech and femcare this year – more egg freezing, more hormone regulation, more products to make motherhood easier” One example of a brand she’s watching is Perelel Health which recently raised a $6mm Series A round in February (whip-smart Dana Covit works there). We’ve talked about this space for ages and couldn’t agree more.
TRAVEL
QUIET PLEASE! -> AfterSchool First, we had quiet walks (walking without music), now “Quiet life travel”. People are searching for a “quieter, more serene lifestyle,” according to this Pinterest Report. Searches for “quiet places” and “calm places” have increased by 50% and 42% respectively, and “quiet life” gained over 530% more interest. This is something brands could do for experiential too.
FUN FOR THE WEEK
Task Masters feels like it could be used as a model for a content series for brands
Soren Iverson’s made-up app features
Elf CGI pimple patch (we’re almost through this trend but this is a funny one)
This lovely bit of content for a Toulouse museum using public domain assets
Heinz made an ad that tapped into a trend we shared in our ‘Fun For The Week’ several months ago: food stylist tips and tricks. So smart.
Brand lesson: make it special and people treat it so.
Chinese youth are rebelling with ugly outfits
The comment section on the new Bumble (fumbled?) rebrand is funny
The matchbook is popular again.
Why is Instagram making commercials like this?
This build-your-own cheeseboard shop in the UK is genius and would kill it in the US.
That’s all, folx.
- Chris
Thanks for the Link in Bio shout out!