New Retail Perspectives

OUTSIDE THE BOX

NEW RETAIL PERSPECTIVES

On a Quest to

Social Media users are fed up with their hyper-curated feeds. Enter: BeReal—the latest social media app that has surged in popularity in recent months. BeReal encourages real-time, authentic posting in contrast to highly edited content on apps like Instagram. The app sends random daily alerts to users asking them to post a picture within two minutes to show whatever they are doing in that moment. The catch? You can’t view your friends’ posts until you’ve posted yourself. Scrolling through your BeReal feed, you’ll see posts as mundane as friends watching TV or at their work desks. In the name of authenticity, posts can’t be edited or filtered and friends can see how many times you’ve retaken your photo.

Claire Spackman knows what Gen-Z wants from their shopping experience. A member of Gen-Z herself, Spackman founded Consumerhaus, a curated online market and shopping hub for Gen-Z consumers. The platform is set to launch on January 3, featuring over 700 products from 100 small brands spanning food and beverage products, health and wellness goods, pet supplies and personal care items. A majority of its inventory—60% that is—will be grocery items.

Gen-Z’s Consumerhaus

Biodegradable Bottles

Water and the environment are two hot topics right now, especially in the Golden State. California-based material innovation company Cove is partnering with upscale Los Angeles grocer Erewhon to offer the first fully biodegradable water bottles. The plastic-free bottles are made of natural polymers called polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHAs, that can be broken down by microorganisms, allowing them to disintegrate after disposal.

Forecasting Brought to You by Instagram

Instagram’s 2023 Trend Report confirmed what we already know to be true: sustainability is a top priority for young adults. The report, conducted with the help of leading trend forecasting company WGSN, found that more than half of respondents plan to make or reconstruct their own clothes in 2023. With inflation and rising costs, more than one-quarter of respondents plan to turn to thrifting for their clothing in 2023—a trend that has been gaining momentum on TikTok over the past couple of years.

drunkfruit.com

DRUNK FRUIT

Hard seltzer startup Drunk Fruit took home the top prize during the first-ever Emerging Brands Pitch Contest at the 2022 CGA Strategic Conference. The up-and-coming beverage brand offers hard seltzers in a variety of classic Asian fruit flavors, including Yuzu, Lychee, and Melon, on a mission to share its Asian American heritage with the world. Founders Kenn Miller, Steven Tang, William Zeng and John Zhang—all college friends with backgrounds in tech and business— conceived of the company when Miller raved about the fruity fizzy beverages he’d tasted on his honeymoon trip to Japan.

Magentaverse

Pantone has revealed a vivid shade of dark pink as its 2023 color of the year: Viva Magenta. According to Pantone, the color evokes optimistic celebration, experimentation, and unrestrained self-expression. The unveiling took place at the immersive “Magentaverse” exhibition in Miami Beach, Florida housed in technology-driven venue Artechouse. This year, Pantone used the A.I. tool Midjourney to generate images featuring Viva Magenta that explore the connections between nature and technology.

Pantone®

Virtual “World of Beauty”

Cult classic beauty brand Laura Mercier opened its first virtual store, “World of Beauty” with experiential e-commerce company Obsess. The store will feature three virtual rooms where shoppers can search for their perfect shades, purchase products, and do a 3D unboxing. The brand launched its virtual store with a livestream shopping event. Laura Mercier joins a fresh lineup of brands experimenting with virtual stores, including Bloomingdale’s and Lacoste.

iStock

NOT YOUR MOTHER’S TINNED FISH

The words ‘tinned fish’ don’t evoke the most modern image. But female-founded and led food company Fishwife is changing the tinned fish game to be a delicious and ethically-sourced household staple. Fishwife makes small-batch tinned seafood in fun flavor combos including campfire cod, rainbow trout jerky gems, smoked Atlantic salmon, and more. The vibrantly packaged seafood brand sources from responsibly managed fisheries and aquaculture farms and hand-packs tins in family-owned canneries in Washington State and British Columbia. Prioritizing nutrients and quality, fish is raised without antibiotics or chemicals, and fish are fed zero waste, nutrient-rich diets.

eatfishwife.com