Unbranding is now a campaign strategy

Plus: Sam Youkilis is contagious & men are coming for loving skincare

Morning,

If you only read one thing in this letter I recco: ATHLETES GET PERIODS. I think it’s an interesting style of campaign. It falls into the ‘unbranding’ discussion we had recently on the podcast (which is now also on Apple Podcast and Spotify if those are your jam)

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.

CULTURE

THE ART OF AN APOLOGY // Christina Garnett is a fun follow on LinkedIn. I enjoyed this California Pizza Kitchen apology she shared. Someone forgot the Mac in the Mac&Cheese order. CPK responds with a perfect apology acknowledges the mistake and pokes fun at themselves. It’s hard for brands to be this brave and even harder to be witty.

YOULEISIS ROMANCE IS CATCHING // Aime Leon Dore has been watching Sam Youkilis’ even if Vera Bradley hasn’t. Romantised life / slow life is peaking. This Kith post feels like a cross-pollination of SY’s romance and the ‘films on social’ trend. In China there’s now a Slow People Festival (lots of brands are participating too). Something to use for sure.

OLYMPIC LEVEL FASHION // This Olympics is fashion-forward. And LVMH is leading the charge. Moët & Chandon and Hennessy have VIP bars all over the city. Chaumet designed the medals that will be presented in Louis Vuitton trunks. They’ll have an exclusive lounge for medal-winning athletes (athletes are going big on content this year). I’m borderline obsessed with thinking about which brand will top this at LA games.

F&B

INSOMNIA ISN’T SLEEPING // Krispy Kreme is selling its majority stake in Insomnia Cookies for $172.4m (their value has 3X’d since their acquisition). Even more interesting is what IC has been doing at retail. I think they have been studying toy stores. Some a secret door that allows you back to a bar meets cookie shop. It’s not making these Crumbl locations look good, that’s for sure. 

EREWHON GIVES US WHAT WE WANT -> Feed Me // “Erewhon isn’t successful because it’s weird—it isn’t even all that weird. The company is successful because it understands just what young Americans seem to want from their grocery stores.” Good quality made easy. Ridiculous amounts of ‘new’ things to discover. Aspirational by association. Very few brands in other categories are pulling this off and people should be studying them.

ALPHAS & ZS

TEENS WANT IRL FRIENDS // Teens are choosing jobs where they can make friends. Worth thinking about to thinking about if you’re in retail. And a new app, Posh, basically Tiktok for IRL events, is leaning into this desire too. One of the investors, Goodwater Capital, said they believe “that the next big social platform will bring people together in person.” I think this is also why brands are seeing success with experiential again.

TWEEN ON TWEENS -> As Seen On // Glossy interviewed some actual Alphas on their podcast recently.

Ochuko Akpovbovbo

was kind enough to share a summary:

• Brands mentioned were Supergoop, Tower28, Rare Beauty, Merit, and Drunk Elephant. No mention of Rhode, which was interesting

• They really love Sol de Janeiro (bright colors and scents), Glow Recipe, Bubble (branding and mom-approved), and Byoma (same). That “Gen Z/Alpha” branding really does work 

• Drunk Elephant is aspirational

• Katie Fang is a big deal [more on her here if you’re new]

• They are only allowed to wear blush and lip gloss to school but will do a full face at home with friends for fun. 

• Their parents are pretty wary of TikTok and IG but let them use YouTube. They like Shorts. 

• Birthday money is where it's at. They love refills.

RETAIL

HOLD THE MUSIC -> As Seen On // Hollister is leaning into music to capture Alphas’ attention. They are relaunching their Feel Good Fest, first at high schools and then maybe beyond. They are working with acts like BoysWorld and Benson Boone who feel super on brand and make very shareable content. Hollister is also using the concerts to survey kids and coming back with interesting nuggets like “girls feel uncomfortable wearing dresses throughout a day of classes.”

SURPRISE AND DELIGHT NEVER DIES -> AfterSchool  // Brands like Set Active are selling mystery boxes and selling out every time. MadHappy is doing it too. If “you don’t know what you’re getting, you can get really excited about it.” 

TECH

AI IS A GLOBAL WARMING ALLY -> The CQ // In 2027 AI data centers could use as much electricity as Argentina uses in a year, Last year, Google’s emissions were 48% higher than 2019; Microsoft’s emissions increased 29% from 2020; Meta’s were up 66%3. Yikes.

DUH-DUN GAMES -> As Seen On // Netflix is leaning into gaming this year. Currently, their game selection is cringe so a good hire in this department is smart. They are using a lot of their IP like Squid Games and Emily In Paris. If it gets good this may be a brand opp like Roblox.

SPORT

ATHLETES GET PERIODS // Period underwear Knix is running a campaign to coincide with the Olympics. 1 in 2 teens skips sports to hide their period. They drop out of sports they love, because ashamed of something normal. The campaign is offering up to $2000 for athletes to mention competing while on their period. They don’t have to mention the brand. They don’t have to mention the campaign. They just have to mention their period. 

MERCH ISN’T DEAD -> The Hustle // Women’s sports merch is estimated to be a ~$4B market in the US, but there’s a big supply/demand problem. Nearly 80% of fans say they’d like to buy more but that the available options are limited. This feels like a ripe ol’ opportunity.

WELLNESS

MEN ARE WAKING UP TO BAD SH*T -> Feed Me // Men are using more products. 52% of US men now use facial skincare products – a 68% increase from 2022. And they are figuring out that what they are putting on themselves matters. “PFAs, microplastics, etc [that] are being found everywhere, including in male testes”. Seems like a good opportunity for clean beauty brands. I’ve read that ‘niche’ is slowing down but it’s more likely it’s become so ubiquitous it’s no longer a helpful marketing differentiator. 

WE’RE IN OUR BEAUTY PRIME -> The Review Of Beauty // “Last year, 22% of Prime Day sales were beauty sales; this year, the percentage of beauty sales increased by 16%, with the makeup category specifically growing by 30% and skincare by 14%.: Some of this is likely due to an “accessible affiliate program (for the 53% of Gen Z who want to be influencers). Amazon is on track to be the nation’s top beauty retailer by 2025”

MENOPAUSAL AIR CONDITIONING // LG is on the menopause bandwagon. They are beta testing ‘Menopause Mode’ for an air conditioner. Unsurprisingly this is being driven by an ad campaign but it’s still interesting. An app will monitor body temperature, heart rate, and blood oxygen levels in real-time via a smartwatch. When it detects a hot flush, it signals the LG Dual Inverter +AI air conditioner to rapidly cool the room. After 10 minutes, the unit reverts to the user’s preset temperature. 

TRAVEL

PEOPLE WANT TO HAVE BETTER SEX ON VACATION // Some hospitality brands are leaning into creator amenities. Some are leaning into wellness. And some are leaning into sex. Six Senses is offer sexual education workshops and retreats (from €3,250pp for three nights). Aisha Paris Smith is getting into the somatic (hands-on training) trend. We wrote about a bunch of things bubbling up in this space in a recent report. Give it a browse here. 

MARRIOT’S A SWIFTY // Michael always shares fun things. Loved this post on Marriot’s friendship bracelet activation stations that coincide with the Eras Tour schedule. “It's a perfect example of creating an enhancing, memorable experience that's simple and engaging and leans into culture.” Agreed.

THE REINVENTION OF HIGHWAY SERVICES // Rivian launched a new charging station, a place to hang with the fam while you charge. Long distance travel with an EV is a pain in the butt still. EVs will get better and faster but we will see more people stopping and I think roadside stops will transform as a consequence. 

CONFERENCES ARE BACK -> FOUND NY // Conferences have really made a comeback. This year business travel has almost fully rebounded. 63% of corporate travelers expect to make at least one trip to a conference or exhibition in 2024, more than any other travel purpose. I’m not a huge conference fan but would love to be convinced otherwise. Which conferences are you all going to?

FUN FOR THE WEEK

• Lyst Index announced their Q2 Brand Rankings. Coach made the cut. Nike did not.

• A Paralympian carried the torch with the help of an exoskeleton. Amazing. 

• Starface is coming for Maybelline with their new Star Balm. The branding similarity is ummm…gobsmacking. 

• AI models are ‘collapsing’ because they are being trained on recursively generated data. We are still needed.

• OpenAI is taking on Google. Welcome to SearchGPT.

• Everyone has been talking about this Nara Smith x Marc Jacobs bit of content. It’s fun.

• Jason and Travis Kelce made a cereal. ‘My favorite cereals mixes’ could easily be a whole series.

• I like this quote from the latest Lenny podcast (he’s been doing a lot more around brand lately) with strategist Roger Martin: 

“To win in business, you must be either a low-cost provider or differentiated. If you’re neither, competitors can “bully” you and take market share. Two questions can help you figure out whether you’re winning in these ways. First, could you match competitor price decreases and remain more profitable than them? If not, you’re not a low-cost provider. Second, could customers essentially flip a coin between you and a competitor? If so, you’re not differentiated enough.”

• Miriam Tinny’s account feels like an insight goldmine .

• Dishoom is coming to NYC?! 

• For your swag ideas: the hottest accessory this summer is the hand fan.

• LoveShackFancy partnered with Stanley .

• Beyoncé’s stylist opened a rental showroom .

• Wes Anderson's style done well .

• Love these sneaker jewels customizations .

• Running vests are a thing (could work for the weighted vest opportunity I mentioned)

• This could be fun using used or damaged branded boxes at an event. 

• Apple AI-generated emojis are coming. Feels like a brand opp.

• This Skims campaign focused on Gen-Z/A is styled VERY differently to their typical campaigns. Also this everyone next to each other in studio shot is really having a moment (very sim to the Away Soft Side campaign).

• I don’t really need a piece of tech to print AI-generated color pages but I want a printer on my desk instead of the ugly one I do have. 

That’s all, folx. 

-Chris

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