30 : 11 : 18 : Weekly Debrief

1. Retro-futuristic pharmacy Apotheke opens in Berlin

Berlin – A new high-tech, automated pharmacy with a distinctly retro-futuristic aesthetic has opened in the German capital’s Schultheiss Quartier.

Apotheke is a premium drug store that balances elements of old and new with human and machine. Designed by Studio Aisslinger, the Pharmacy of the Future mixes mid-century design details with high-tech functionality. Medicines are dispensed by a robotic arm, which moves across the shelves, picking and delivering medicines. Prescriptions are then checked by a pharmacist before being handed over.

Explaining the design on its website, Studio Aisslinger says: ‘Natural colours make clients feel snug and safe. The spatial concept follows the idea of free and unrestricted movement: no counter predetermines where the customer must go, no barrier gets in his way. Casual seating allows [customers] to sit and rest, walls made of glass bricks turn the strict separation between dispensary and laboratory translucid.’

For more on how the world of medicine is being redesigned, explore our Post-Pharmacy Brands microtrend.

3. Libresse unashamedly celebrates the female vulva

Sweden – A new ad by the feminine hygiene company is encouraging women and girls to feel more confident about their vulvas.

The company, known as Bodyform in the UK, has already tackled the taboo of periods. Now, for its line of personal hygiene products, it’s turned its attention to the stigma surrounding the vulva, citing that over half of women think theirs is imperfect. In response, Libresse has launched Viva la Vulva, a campaign film featuring a objects that resemble vulvas, such as oysters, grapefruits and fortune cookies, as well as women inspecting their own genitals.

Set against the song 'Take Yo Praise' by Camille Yarbrough, with lyrics such as ‘you make me glad I’m a woman’, Libresse hopes to alleviate women’s insecurity about the appearance of their vulva. According to a recent BBC News article, girls as young as nine are requesting labiaplasty, a surgery to reshape the lips of the vagina.

Brands that wish to challenge the taboo around feminine hygiene should not focus solely on menstruation, but address the vagina itself.

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5. This design museum features real Swedish homes

Sweden – The Home Viewing Exhibitions turns real open houses into examples of modern Scandinavian culture.

The latest exhibition by the Swedish Design Museum is not in one place, but scattered around the country within a number of homes for sale. Referencing the Swedes’ penchant for visiting open houses for design inspiration, visitors will be able to step inside the homes of real people as a way to understand the country’s culture.

Featuring a hand-picked selection of homes, from rural villas to urban apartments, the exhibition – which is part of a tourism push from Visit Sweden – will also be accessible online. ‘Travellers around the world with an interest in design are curious of, and want to experience, Swedish lifestyle and culture. This is exactly what The Home Viewing Exhibitions will offer them,' says Jennie Skogsborn Missuna, CEO at Visit Sweden.

Consumers are increasingly seeking ways to learn about a country’s culture without the need to physically travel. This summer, Japan House opened its latest outpost in London.

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