13 : 05 : 22 : Weekly Debrief

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Need To Know

This week: A genderless look for clean beauty, a selfie drone, crowdfunding a luxury manor, tapping into skintellectual Gen Z and trading phygital fashion.

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13 May 2022

Author: The Future Laboratory

Image: Pixy by Snap Inc, US

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Acla, Switzerland

1. Clean beauty gets a genderless new look

Zurich – Acla is a gender-neutral, sustainable beauty brand with a graphic identity that reflects the industry’s new visual direction.

The first product from the personal care line is a pH-balanced Solid Shampoo Bar that is suitable for all hair types and packaged without plastic. The company also sells an aluminium container for storing and transporting the bar while travelling, as well as a hand-crafted tray made from clay for home storage. All of the brand's ingredients are derived naturally and processed in the Acla Workshop, a scientific lab in the heart of Zurich.

It’s the company’s striking visual identity, however, that's its most intriguing component. Less earthy and more high-tech, the company's graphics borrow from the worlds of science and design.

As we have previously seen with alternative protein company Geltor, the demand for ingredient transparency is leading to a new aesthetic identity in the beauty industry.

Pixy by Snap Inc, US

2. Snap is launching a pocket-sized selfie drone

US – The social networking and camera company is introducing its second piece of hardware, a pocket-sized drone called Pixy. Positioning the device as a ‘friendly flying camera’, Pixy is an accessible selfie tool that has been designed to complement its social media platform Snapchat.

The easy-to-use device can float and orbit at the touch of a button, and be recalled when a user turns up their palm. Its wireless functionality also allows users to easily save their photos and videos in their Snapchat profile, catering for social media users in a convenient and playful way that doesn’t require technical expertise. ‘We first created Snapchat as a new way to use the camera for self-expression and communication,’ says Snap. ‘Today, we're taking the power and magic of the Snap Camera to new heights.’

It's key to note that Pixy arrives on the market at a time when young people are re-embracing in-person socialising, and will be seeking more fun ways to capture their shared experiences.

ManorDAO by Poolsuite, US

3. Poolsuite is crowdfunding a luxury manor

Global – Poolsuite, the team behind summer-themed radio station Poolsuite FM, is further merging the worlds of Web3 and leisure by launching a Manor DAO. The aim of the decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO) is to crowdfund a luxury guesthouse designed in collaboration with its backers.

To bring the manor to life, backers must purchase a limited-edition non-fungible token (NFT) artwork from Poolsuite. As Marty Bell, its founder, explains: ‘Everything from the location of the manor to the interiors – even the mosaic at the bottom of the pool – will be decided with our founding members.’ As well as informing these key decisions, backers will earn allocated time slots to stay at the guesthouse, highlighting the real-life benefits to investing in Web3.

By inviting people to crowdfund a physical venue, Poolsuite is showing how Wealth Squads will drive a future of Neo-collectivism. In future, we can expect more travel and hospitality brands to be guided by the shared mechanisms of DAOs.

4. Barbara Sturm taps into skintellectual Gen Z

UK – Recognising that younger generations are feeling overwhelmed by skincare, the beauty brand is unveiling a microbiotic range for customers aged 12 to 15. Unlike Barbara Sturm’s existing collections, which focus on areas such as anti-ageing, the range aims to help balance sebum levels through microbiome science.

The Microbiotic Collection features a cleansing balm, hyaluronic anti-blemish serum, face cream and stinky pimple treatment. To bolster education about skincare, the brand also plans to connect with young beauty buyers through its online skin school and college ambassador programme. Through the curated product range and educational tools, Barbara Sturm is providing a targeted solution for young consumers navigating the beauty landscape. ‘Most brands’ approaches are so aggressive to the skin and create long-term problems for teenagers,’ says Barbara Sturm. ’You can prevent all this if you do the right thing from the beginning, by listening to trusted advice and using good products.’

With this younger range, the cult beauty brand is demonstrating the importance of science-backed ingredients – and education – when reaching Generation Z.

Barbara Sturm Microbiotic Collection, US
The Dematerialised in collaboration with Twig, UK

5. Twig lets shoppers trade phygital fashion

UK – The fintech start-up is partnering with non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace The Dematerialised to enable people to trade physical clothing for virtual garments.

Expanding on its existing trade-in capabilities, Twig will use artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse the value of items submitted in photos, before transferring money to a card that people can use at the checkout on The Dematerialised.

Through this partnership, the two companies are helping consumers to shift their behaviours towards buying less physical clothing. Marjorie Hernandez, co-founder of The Dematerialised, says: ‘I think that via tools like Twig, we can really incentivise traditional fashion consumers to come to The Dematerialised and not only buy a digital fashion asset or a digital artefact… but also to gain access to [The Dematerialised] community.’

Here, The Dematerialised is setting an example to the wider fashion industry in encouraging more sustainable shopping behaviours through mutually beneficial collaborations.

 
 

 

To future-proof your world, visit The Future Laboratory's forecasting platform LS:N Global for daily news, opinions, trends, sector specific insights, and strategic toolkits.

 

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