Taco Bell is coming for Disney’s job
Plus: TikTok Live finally has a heartbeat and The Rainforest Cafe has Gen-Z animated
Morning,
I need your vote for SxSW London: Super Creator Economy and Span the Spectrum: Alphas to Silvers by Dec 19th. Thank you!!
The next LA Westside Breakfast Club is happening this Friday, 9AM @ Rose Cafe.
If you only read one thing in this letter I recco: RIDE-THRU.
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 MEME IS BIGGER // Is Spotify Wrapped anymore that meme template? I can count the posts I saw of the real thing on one hand. And no one shared their Google NotebookLM-powered podcast recaps. This might be the end of an era.
WE CONTAIN MULTITUDES // AOC voters voted for Trump. Berlin clubers are sober-curious. Pendulum swings are now contained within individuals. I'm still forming my thoughts on this, but Jasmine Bina had a fantastic post about it. Watch this.
MONETIZING AN OPINION // Polymarket predicted the Presidential race. “The financialization of everything” is here.
is using Polymarket to give you ‘unbiased’ news. One upside of monetizing opinions? A more engaged public.F&B
RIDE-THRU -> Ali Kaltman // Taco Bell added photo booths to its drive-thrus. Love this. It encourages groups and repeat visits, drives app downloads, and gamifies the worst part of the brand experience—clever.
90S EXPERIENCES -> AfterSchool // 90s restaurants are back. Pizza Hut is introducing Chiptole-style pizza-making stations and better takeout. The Rainforest Cafe changed absolutely nothing—and went viral. If Pizza Hut can pull off a mass-market Pit Fire vibes, it’s a win. But the product improvements have to match.
DRUGS & BOOZE
OUT OF VODKA -> The Hustle -> LinkInBio // Vodka really should look at Gin’s playbook. Stoli Vodka filed for bankruptcy. But Vodka’s fate might be about to change. According to
, Alex Copper & Unwell have filed for a Trademark for ‘Popular Vodka’. TikTok is loosening its alcohol restrictions—that will help too.THE CURSE AND THE CURE // Alex Cooper launched a hydration beverage ‘for women’ with Nestlé.
said the branding feels dated—ouch. Distribution with a big player is a big advantage. But big players don’t move fast. A timeless look would have been smarter. At least the ‘many reasons you hydrate’ angle is strong.FLOAT RISING // Pinterest Predicts 2025 is here. Searches for ‘Cream soda aesthetic’ have risen +105%. The float is the OG N/A beverage—coming to your feed soon.
SILVERS, ALPHAS & ZS
THE KNOT FOR TEENS // According to
“a gift registry site called Giftful, which is basically The Knot for teens” I’d watch this.RETAIL
LUXURY ZARA // Saint Laurent’s Creative Director, Anthony Vaccarello, is moving to Zara. Given last week’s conversation, truly affordable with luxury creds = smart.
AGENT SHOPPERS // AI Agents are going to change how people shop. This article is a good primer. Two things I’d add: 1) Legacy brands could win here. AI loves things it can ‘trust’. 2) Curation will matter. The AI will learn who your brand belongs with. Welcome back to brands selling other brands.
TECH
SPEAKING OF AGENTS -> Marie Dolle // If there’s a marketing role, there’ll be an agent. Like the early days of performance marketing, some brands will win big here. I’d start hiring people who are AI-savvy (I know one looking) and invest in people-based experience—hedge your bets.
LIVE IS ALIVE -> AfterSchool // TikTok Live is finally happening. There were 30,000 live streams on Black Friday. “Stormi Steele sold over 100,000 products and grossed more than $3 million across all sales on Black Friday alone.” Unsurprisingly,
had great ideas for how brands can (finally) seize this moment.HOW WE DO AI // McKinsey has a new proprietary AI named Lilli. It answers in a “McKinsey-esque” way. They need to dig deeper on their value props.
AI ICONS // Paul Scher's Pentagram team made a new site for the Federal Government. They used MidJourney to generate all the illustrations. Honestly, the outputs aren’t the worst. The comment section is.
SPORT
SKI SLOPES UP // Ski is having a real moment. Pinterest Predicts confirmed it. Johnnie Walker has a collab with Perfect Moment. We Norwegians is getting bigger. Skims just released a cool ski collection with The North Face. Why? The next Winter Olympics is in the Dolomites. If you don’t have your plan, reach out—I’m down the road.
WELLNESS & BEAUTY
B2B OURA RING // The FDA cleared EvieMED’s Ring for a pulse oximeter. This enables them to “pursue multi-billion dollar business opportunities…such as clinical trials” and remote patient monitoring—health is my favorite sector recently.
MEN’S SKINCARE MOMENT // Searches for men’s skincare have risen 389% this year. On that list, Doers London stands out.
also just did some great men’s skincare interviews. Many mention ‘nothing’ or ‘bar soap.’ But I’d still watch this space.TRAVEL
CHAMPAGNE TO-GO -> PSFK //Intercontinental Singapore created a “Champagne Express Lane”. The brand people are choosing? Smaller and prestige.
says “the future of booze continues to be in the premium and ultra-premium categories”, agreeing with my recent POV on Moët-Hennessy opportunities.FINANCIALLY SOUND DISTRICT -> Feed Me // The group behind Palm Heights is turning FiDi into New York's hottest club. The WSA building hosts the best parties and has Bode, Luar, Rosie Assoulin, and Ghetto Gastro as tenants. I used to live down the block. There’s nothing there. Get in now.
FUN FOR THE WEEK
Walmart set their holiday ad in Stars Hollow with the cast of the Gilmore Girls.
PacSun has added Edikted to its roster, alongside Brandy Melville—smart.
Depends but make it goth—making Depends cool is an assignment I want.
Diptyque advent candle—fantastic.
AG1 airport vending machines. The airport space has a LOT of potential.
Away’s campaign with all the winners of the celebrity lookalike contest is funny.
Love Joshua Kissi’s work for Nike and Stella Blackmon’s for Babaa.
Retail Diary was acquired by Puck—thrilled for
.Jello is still having a moment. These JCrew ones are wow.
Dove x Crumbl and Native x Dunkin’—a big week for sweet scents.
This performance. So good.
That’s all, folx.
-Chris
If you read this and liked it, that little heart is there for that. The algo and I appreciate it.
Watch this space!!!
The Pentagram insta comments are 🔥🔥🔥👀