New wellness trend: ayahuasca-induced fever dream condos
Plus: Shake Shack's brilliantly savage partnership + NBC using parental anxiety as entertainment
Morning,
Welcome to the second trimester of the letter. This is when it gets easier, right? Actually, I’m enjoying writing this thing. It’s wild that people are reading it. Thanks for the lovely messages.
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
THE OLYMPICS IS A CULTURAL AFFAIR This Olympics is going to be one for the books. Paris (and the French) always do fun things for culture and they are about to shift the coolness of the Olympics into full gear. One example? During the games 4 of Paris’ top art destinations will offer programming related to the games. Yoga in the Louvre—yes pls. If it’s not clear, I’m bullish on the games taking over feeds this year.
A RARE A24 MISTEP -> SatPost Even a beloved movie maker can fall from grace. A24 is releasing their first big blockbuster movie and they put out poorly made AI art for the poster to promote it—womp. Unsurprisingly, fans are not impressed. Netflix decided to join in on this trend for their new true crime documentary What Jennifer Did. They made fictional ‘before’ photos of a real person (in one image—actually used on the documentary’s poster—she has one impossibly also has a long tooth.) Worse, neither disclosed using AI. Expect more behavior like this but shouldn’t.
EVENTS ARE RETURNING Events was the stand-out category for marketing spend this year, up to +23.1%, from +15.9%. If you’ve been reading this letter since the start you’ll have noticed a big uptick in experiential and events. Digital ad costs are silly at the moment, and events (done right) are good for social. If you’re in planning events for back-to-school now (is past) the time.
REMOTE HUSBANDS ON THE RISE The Economist had an article this week on the rise of the remote husband (in well-educated, affluent communities). A McKinsey survey discovered that 38% of working men had the option to work remotely full-time, compared with 30% of women. Working remotely comes with the benefit (and burden) of things like ‘I can throw in the laundry’ and making home lunches. Wonder how this will change how we market products that have typically (sillily) mostly targeted women.
F&B
DIY ESPRESSO MARTINIS 818 Tequila (Kendall Jenner) and Chamberlain Coffee (Emma Chamberlain) have collab’d on espresso martini. But it’s DIY. You have to brew your own coffee and then add the tequila. Clearly, this is targeting Jenner’s audience, college kids, who aren’t going to buy dozens of cans for a party. The comments seem overwhelmingly positive. Perhaps what was more interesting than the collab was the style of launch content—quite rehearsed, and a little cringe.
FOXTROT TROTS NO MORE Snaxshot broke the news this week that Foxtrot is (has) shut down all of its stores. People (me included) were pretty shocked. Foxtrot did a lot of things right but did not rise to this moment well (many sad brand and many lawsuits in progress). One Thing did a little ode to the store and I agree, it did fill a hole that not a lot of others do. But this is just one more example (more here) of the importance of making sure you’re profitable and not just growing at all costs.
CHICK-FILA-A F*CKED UP The drama of this story is surprisingly pleasing. Chick-fil-a had an employee who was posting content (positively) about the brand on her own social. It was a hit. But they stepped in and told her she couldn’t make it anymore. Many people commented that the brand (and many brands) should be pleased with the content. Well, Shake Shack agreed and hired her FOR A SERIES. One brand’s shortsightedness is another’s opportunity.
POP TARTS ARE POPPING OFF Apparently, Pop Tarts have seen a +528% increase in popularity in the last year. This sent me down a rabbit hole. They introduced a mascot in 2023 (very DuoLingo-ey / mascots are more memorable than celebrities). Their social content is pretty corporate looking but they seem to be doing a lot of flavor collabs and things like this CoffeeMate collab and a Jeni’s flavor that seem to be resonating.
DRUGS
CANNA CAN BE BEAUTIFUL Not a thought piece, just enjoyed this round-up of elevated, small cannabis brands.
ALPHAS & ZS
Z’S ARE FOREST GUMPING -> AfterSchool More and more young 20-year-olds are running marathons. In 2019, only 15% of people who finished the New York City Marathon were in their 20s. By 2023, that share had grown to 19%. Running and sports for mental health are definitely something brands could play with more.
RETAIL
HEY DUDE STEALING FROM STANLEY -> AfterSchool Until this week, Stanley lost President, Terence Reilly (formerly CMO of Crocs) to Hey Dude. Ugly shoes didn’t deter him the first time so expect to see a lot of Hey Dude collabs in the future.
GUESS JEANS IS THE NEW GUESS Several letters back we wrote about how Guess is due for a comeback. Well, Nicolai Marciano, the 29-year-old son of Guess founder Paul Marciano, is trying to make it happen with Guess Jeans. They were one of the few brands to go hard for Coachella. Nicolai told Vogue Business the ROI was “immeasurable.” “You can invite someone to a branded event somewhere and it’s a cocktail or a party for an hour or two. Here, the talent are living and experiencing Guess Jeans the entire weekend of Coachella. It’s basically the best campaign possible,” he said.
SPRUCE OR SNOOZE? Foot Locker announced that it’s testing a new store ‘concept’. But ‘concept’ is a reach. They are revamping existing stores to bring women’s forward, adding storytelling opps for brands, and making more stroller-friendly aisles. Hardly feels newsworthy. More like a spruce than a concept. Wholesale is making a comeback so maybe this is all they need.
EXPRESS NEEDS TO RIGHT THE SHIP FAST Express Inc. is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company will close 95 Express stores. That still leaves about 400 stores and a brand they hope to turn around. Frankly, they need to start with a POV and then move straight to addressing product just looking at their social. Brands like Shein and Cider are just leaving them in the trends dust. But more than that, they need a hard look in the mirror to figure out where they can win. Anyone with genius ideas, drop in the comments.
ALAÏA’S COMEBACK If you need a comeback story to inspire you—cough, Express— just look at Alaïa. Their Teckel bag is literally always sold out. The Crazy Horse campaign imagery—lovely. And this almost bare-faced Gisele moment—stunning. Creative director Pieter Mulier pulled it off. Though rumor has it he’s headed to Celine.
MANGO GOING FOR IT Last week we wrote about how Mango Man’s dinner for Milan Design Week was a win. This week, to celebrate their recent collection with Victoria Beckham, they did it again. But it’s not all rosy. Somewhat related but not, (predictability) people are upset the new collection only goes up to size 14UK (10US). Both of these things brands can learn from, good and bad.
TECH
IS THERE SPACE FOR NOSPACE? Nospace is a new social platform that will allow users to share updates on what they’re “watching, eating, reading, listening to IRL,” and “star” their interests to find others with similar tastes. With so many newsletters about everyone’s taste in things and curation being increasingly important maybe this will become the more casual version of a LinkedIn resume (and a handy way to find influencers?)
REVIEWS THAT ROCK REVENUE Recently, MKBHD reviewed Humane and gave it a big thumbs down. People were shocked at how frank he was. But Trung goes into how MKBHD’s reputation for honest feedback is his whole brand, he’d be crazy to give that up. Humane publicly took it well though, which was smart. Publicly melting down at a bad review (like Broad Street Oyster did) never helps the cause.
SPORT
RUN CLUB IS THE NEW CAFE Enjoyed this very specific deep dive into run clubs. Like this fancy one in Japan with saunas. Bandit is launching one in NYC (who is also just doing fun stuff like this Marathon photo opp). With loneliness at an all-time high, it’s cool to see brands actively trying to bring people together.
PARENTAL ANXIETY IS ENTERTAINING -> Feed Me During the Olympics, NBCUniversal plans to put heart-rate monitors on parents of athletes. The results will be shown on screen as parents watch their kids compete. Obviously, this performed well with test audiences and will no doubt perform online too. Side note: this illustration is fun.
GOLF CLUBS ARE CHANGING -> AfterSchool Golf clubs are seeing an influx of younger members. 60% of new members are now under 50, 30% are 18 to 34. Having spent too much time at golf clubs I can tell you that someone coming in and upping the pro-shop game could be big money.
WELLNESS
MENOPAUSE IS A MONEY MAKER -> Feed Me Midi Health (a platform for getting peri/menopause treatment) has raised $60mm in funding. If you don’t have someone in your life in peri/menopause (doubtful), you might not be aware that there is a BIG shift back towards treating it with hormone replacement therapy. Companies that help women manage menopause symptoms raised $230mm in 2023, a 22% bump from 2022.
HENRY IS WASTING NO TIME A few letters ago we mentioned that the former CEO of Glossier moved to Sakara Life. No clue what this weird hotline thing is but it feels like a more ‘fun’ Sakara than we’re used to (a more Glossier Sakara). Intrigued to see what happens next.
STAY RELEVANT OR DIE This is a very long reel but it’s very worth watching. It goes deep into the issues that Kylie Cosmetics is having. Is the brand less popular because she is or have they lost the ability to innovate at speed and therefore aren’t staying ahead of the curve?
YOU CAN NOW LIVE IN A SPA -> Feed Me “It may sound like something out of an ayahuasca-induced fever dream, but soon it will be a reality.” has to be one of the best lines I’ve read all week but putting that aside The Well is opening a ‘living concept’. The amenities list is a trend document in and of itself: lymphatic drainage showers, skincare refrigerators, built-in therapeutic LED panels, in-home gardening services, a wellness gadget “library”, in-house medical and nutrition staff, energetic cleansing ceremonies (for you and your home), communal thermal suites, and a caldarium.
TRAVEL
YACHTS ARE TAKING STEROIDS -> The Hustle Four Seasons Yachts is offering a 10k-square-foot Funnel Suite for $330k for a weeklong stay—not including food or extra perks—you just need to pay $10k to get your name on a waitlist.
KEYS ARE THE NEW STARS Michelin has released its first class of hotel ‘Key’ ratings. The guide now includes over 5,000 hotels—11 Three Key hotels, 33 Two Key hotels, and 80 One Key hotels. Sadly they don’t have a ‘gourmand’ level as they do for food which often has the best experience if you aren’t looking for anything fussy.
FUN FOR THE WEEK
A handy social listening tool to help you find relevant Reddit subthreads on specific topics
Patagonia’s Fashion Is None Of Our Business campaign—great concept that could have gone bigger
LAX should have hired a brand team for this, yikes.
Morag Myerscough’s Coachella installation
This Silent Nights content (hard to get partner content with these kinds of views!)
Repair is the sustainability trend of 2024 (we’ve said this many times)
Be careful being rude on set
Strategy for naming a men’s deodorant—funny
A good sponsorship opp for a running brand
This story of a (potentially corrupt) Portuguese mayor becoming the new Michelin Guide is funny (a review site should jump on this)
Laughed out loud at this office humor
According to Kantar, creativity is the second biggest driver of advertising profitability (ubiquity + distinctiveness)
A campaign to stop your phone from autocorrecting any non-anglo names #iamnotatypo
AI robots are carving in Carrara marble
The formatting of each item changed a bit this week. Better? Worse? I’m overthinking it? Open to your thoughts.
That’s all, folx!
—Chris