The Relevancy Read

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Hot takes, early calls and astute observations, carefully curated.

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Spooky technology and record Skims sales.

October 31, 2023

I see dead people….in the metaverse.

Happy Halloween! The ghosts of the future are here. When Mark Zuckerberg unveiled Meta’s next-generation VR and AI products, he noted the platform could be used to create virtual avatars of deceased loved ones. While the idea seems a bit creepy and crazy, Chinese burial company Fu Shou Yuan is already bringing it to fruition with holographic projections of the departed that can chat with funeral attendees. At the Illinois Holocaust Museum, visitors can interact with holograms of virtual Holocaust survivors. Moving forward, expect the metaverse to make horror, conspiracy, and spooky narratives feel more real and bring the supernatural into our increasingly unnatural world.

Lessons from the Skims Men’s launch.

Last week Kim Kardashian entered the menswear market, and it was the biggest day for Skims salesto date. Yesterday they became the official underwear brand of the NBA, WNBA, and USA Basketball. How'd a women’s shapewear brand make out so well with men? She tapped three high-profile sports studs. The playful video reminiscent of a 90’s advertisement exemplifies the forgotten art of classic marketing—we were immediately reminded of Wheaties’ box athletes. Leaning into the power of creative celebrity endorsements, the campaign stands out in a sea of data-driven targeting and influencer ads. Further, the men’s category entry wisely spots a growing market in male self-care. As men warm up to health and beauty rituals and indulge in quality products across industries, this opportunity is not to be missed. Class dismissed!

What’s next for a bland, bitter, and boring internet?

Lately we’ve been thinking about how the internet got so bad and where we go from here. Natalya Toryanski’s parody videos mock the “bland influencer cadence” of every lifestyle content creator—the unoriginal outfits, coffee orders, and banal life decisions that flattened pop-culture and made the internet less interesting. She reminded us of a New York Times Magazine piece asking Why Culture Has Come to a Standstill. Their answer? The internet created endless production, but choked meaningful change as a function of time, leaving culture stuck on a Ferris wheel of remakes. Online communication networks don't feel productive or progressive either, where algorithms prioritize polarization and peacocking over true peer-to-peer connection. This is all pretty dismal, but we found optimism in Deb Roy’s work at MIT’s Center for Constructive Communication, which focuses on small, community-scale networks that foster learning, listening, mediation, and decision-making. As the fate of social media giants comes into question amid mental health and misinformation crises, we’re hopeful that technology and culture will find a human face, an original POV, and finally move forward.

But wait, there's more...

Middle America and interoperability.

October 24, 2023

Oyster season and ice bath addictions.

October 17, 2023

Cringe it-brands and commercial anxiety.

October 10, 2023

Bridesmaid burnout and home economics.

October 03, 2023

Fast Company Findings

September 26, 2023

Paris Design Week

September 19, 2023

Munich Musings

September 12, 2023

Retro living and artificial surfing.

September 05, 2023

Gas stations, small homes, and a good ol' office

August 29, 2023

New romance, New England, no morals.

August 22, 2023

Gen Z’s quarter-life crisis and collectibles craze.

August 15, 2023

Jell-O, dolls, and religion return

August 08, 2023

Ralph reborn, peak produce season, and the circus is in town

August 01, 2023

Peak Pickles

July 25, 2023

Big female energy drinks.

July 18, 2023

Nostalgic IPs never end.

July 11, 2023

Fresh findings from Paris.

July 05, 2023

Tourist traps' ironic allure.

June 27, 2023

Shopping's existential crisis.

June 20, 2023

Rising tides for surf culture.

June 13, 2023

Fashion’s foot fetish.

May 30, 2023

Micro clout beats follower count.

May 23, 2023

The dupe culture wars.

May 15, 2023

PMS and EDM.

May 08, 2023

Cruises’ Gen Z era.

May 01, 2023

Vegas and mahjong

April 25, 2023

Boob jobs and Judy Blume.

April 18, 2023

Condiments and Gwyneth’s $1 win.

April 11, 2023

Pasta as creative direction.

April 04, 2023

We took our talents to Texas for SXSW

March 28, 2023

Weddings’ glow-up.

March 21, 2023

Scream queens and F1 fangirls.

March 14, 2023

Rock stars and english majors.

March 07, 2023

Sleep sells.

February 28, 2023

A Goop-ified hospital giftshop.

February 21, 2023

The best Super Bowl strategies.

February 14, 2023

Kinky fashion and dupe culture.

February 07, 2023

Hikers, bikers, and ravers, on my!

January 24, 2023

The brandland business model.

January 17, 2023

Laissez-faire fashion and religious retail.

January 10, 2023

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