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INTRODUCTION
AUTHENTIC IMPERFECTION
25 CONCLUSION
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BODILY WHOLENESS
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GENDER BLENDER
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SOURCES
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WHAT IS THE TRENDBOOK ABOUT???
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A trend is a common phenomenon produced by society in a certain time frame that occurs within that society. It can come up in every part of our lives: fashion, health, the internet or even a complete philosophy of living. As a brand it is important to know what trends are going on at the moment as they reflect deeper desires and problems of our society. This book functions as a base for our future brand, as we discover three different trends in Amsterdam and another city. To ensure that these movements aren’t just local and restricted to one , I explored around Amsterdam, Utrecht and Munich, always keeping my eyes open. In addition to that, articles and books helped to deepen the research. My three trends dive into very different parts of society but are nevertheless happening at the same time. First we explore BODILY WHOLENESS that deals with a new perspective on health to keep the body and mind in unison. AUTHENTIC IMPERFECTION is a counter trend to our mass producted, polished and to perfection edited world in which we long for uniqueness. The last chapter covers the subject of blurring lines in sexuality and is called GENDER BLENDER. Traditional businesses do and will have to change in the future and branding is an essential part of it. As we change from a materialist to an experience driven society the core values of brands are shifting. Dive into the trends that mark this transformation that will shape our tomorrow.
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BODILY WHOLEN E S S
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BODILY WHOLENESS is all about bringing the body and soul in unison. It is a step further of the whole fitness and health hype that came up in the last decade spread through social media. People value a healthy and fit body as it is the new beautiful. In a study from 2016 Germans voted for health as their top value in life that is the most important to them (handelsblatt.com). In times of stressful work lives and the struggle to balance family and career, we don’t want to only get fit physically but also mentally. It is less about just looking but also feeling good. To achieve that harmony traditional methods that have been around for centuries are mixed with modern technology and recently achieved knowledge about food.
“Pacifica also lets you track your health habits such as sleep, exercise, and caffeine. Research suggests that self-monitoring health behaviors has a positive impact on them by promoting awareness and self-efficacy.” - thinkpacifica.com
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Pacifica app - thinkpacifica.com
Top Apps Fitness and Health Germany - own screenshot, accessed 12.03.
“Spire” activity and mindfulness tracker - sitepoint.com
Fitness and health apps can be used by everyone everywhere at any time. But it’s not only about pedometers and calorie counters anymore. Meditation applications like “Calm” or “Headspace” gained popularity. If you look at the top Fitness and Health apps in the German Google Play Store, number one and three are Meditation programmes. One of the free ones is “Pacifica”: The Stress & Anxiety app offers ”moodtrackers, guided self help paths and mindfulnessmeditation” (https://www.thinkpacifica.com/) to reach inner peace.It does not only help with calming down after a busy day but acts as a personal psychatrist with exercises and a digital diary to document progress. Instead of traditional fitness tracking devices, “activity and mindfulness trackers” are making its way into the market. They track breathing and heartbeat or allegedly even measure brain activity to help you improve meditation performance.(https://www.sitepoint.com). This reinterpretation of traditional meditation methods in a digital and technological context is what makes the trend so relevant.
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On the other side there are more traditional methods like meditation in yoga or benefiting the healing power of plants that is rediscovered. In Beatrixpark, in the south of Amsterdam, a medical herb garden can be found that provides different plants with signs that indicate their usage. It is a public source that can be accessed by anyone, offering the healing power of nature. Furthermore there’s the “Edible plants walk Amsterdam�, that features different tours to provide information about natural food sources open to public. (http://www. geneeskrachtigegroenten.nl/). Gaining knowledge about what goes into our bodies contributes to this trend and can also be seen in the organic and raw food movements. The cold pressed juicery does not only promote external but also internal health with their concept of fruit and vegetable juices that are freshly produced without any food additives.
Herb garden Beatrixpark Amsterdam - own image
freshjuicepressery Amsterdam - own image
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Alchemist Garden integrates and tests the vision of Energy Management, a holistic model that offers overview and insight in the whole picture of consciousness, health and sustainability. It’s not just a place to eat but to connect and feel good. On their facebook page they state their motto: “Welcome in your life! Welcome in your body! Welcome in Alchemist Garden!� These examples are proof of an urge to find a healthy balance in life.
Alchemist Garden Amsterdam - own image
freshjuicepressery Amsterdam - own image
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AUTHENTIC I M P E R F E C T I O N
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Vintage and retro is nothing new as people always long for the nostalgia of the past. But in a world where everything is made in factories, perfectly polished and mass produced, vintage items gain a new importance. We want unique pieces that no one else has, pieces that are not perfect but with scratches and marks that tell a story of the preowner. It adds a one-of-a-kind value with which we connect with. That’s what AUTHENTIC IMPERFECTION is all about. The first thing that comes to mind is an uprise of vintage stores. But Amsterdam was always a city of many Second Hand stores, so what has changed?
Design Icons vintage market Amsterdam - own image
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Club Tante Erna Munich - muenchen.mitvergnuegen.com
“Picknweight” vintage store Munich - own image
Cafe Brecht Amsterdam - own image
Successful vintage shops like “episode” or “picknweight” gained so much popularity that they started to develop into their own brands that people recognize. They opened several stores in various cities over Germany and the Netherlands. Even in more consumer conservative cities like Munich picknweight opened their second store in 2016 as the concept seemed to work there as well. On the other hand there are Events like the “Design Icons” market in Amsterdam that offer a wide range of vintage furniture from different traders. Not only the items also the atmosphere gives an unpolished feeling as it takes place in a big industrial hall, De Kromhouthall, in North. Places with similar vibes began popping up, contrasting the predominant minimalistic designed interiors. A good example is Tante Erna, a small club in Munich with oldfashioned wallpapers and lampshades all over, reminiscent of your old aunt’s or grandma’s home, like the name already indicates.
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Golden Goose predistressed sne footwearnews.com
Even in the luxury fashion industry we can see that authenticity and personalization gain importance. The venetian label “Golden Goose” started their big brand success based on this idea, selling pairs of intentionally dirty but new shoes for several hundreds of euros. The used trend is already about ten years old so to take it a step further they recently brought out a limited collection of 1000 sets that include the shoes, tools, brushes and pencils to destroy the sneakers yourself. This way “everyone can emotionalize and personalize their own shoe” (Süddeutsche Zeitung, No. 41, 18./19. February 2017)
The major Instax uptick is attributed to the “analog revival,” which includes not only instant and retro-looking cameras, but things like vinyl record players and more. - petapixel.com
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Vinyl record store, Utrecht - own image
Analog photography in general but also instant photos regained popularity. Fujifilm instax found an immense demand since they revolutionised polaroid. Their first instant camera was already released in 1999 but with digital photography yet to come, the attraction was low. It took another 15 years until the hype started. The digital cameramarket has seen a decrease of 19 % in 2015 while fujifilm estimates it’s sales to go from 5 to 6,5 million reports “The Wall Street Journal”. (After: petapixel. com/). The origns of this enthusiasm developed as a counter movement to the perfectly edited images we see every day on social media. Instead of choosing the best out of 10 pictures, there’s only one chance and one single copy that captures the moment. This trend can be seen in personal collections of individuals as well as in some stores to capture an event on the spot and in a more personal way. (image Zoku)
From top to bottom: Zoku Lounge/ Restaurant Amsterdam - own image personal instax collection of a friend, Amsterdam - own image persoanl instax collection of a friend, Munich - own image
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GENDER BLENDER
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GENDER BLENDER deals with the ongo-
ing gender fluidity. It is becoming less important if you’re female or male, the lines are blurring and a lot of people don’t identify with any gender at all. That’s why in a lot of online forms a third option “neutral” was added to the sex identification . On facebook in the UK there is a variety of 71 options that can be customized (telegraph.co.uk). This wide spectrum is not available anywhere yet but the “neutral” button already established itself to a certain standard. Our society begins to realize that there is more than just two boxes individuals can be put into. The book “Becoming Nicole” also dives into biological and sociological facts: While gender is often associated with the sexual anatomy, it is created in one’s brain and can differ from the assigned gender. Some tribes have always believed in a more varied gendercluture that describes 3 or even 5 mindsets. And even in nature there are about 1500 species that have both sexes or change gender in their lives such as the clown fish. Although this realization goes very slow, first signs in public can be spotted: Unisex toilets are getting more common and the city of Utrecht’s city council even declared that they want to completely abolish separated toilets in all its buildings starting with the town hall. (http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2016/07/utrecht-council-goes-for-genderneutral-toilets/)
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Gender neutral toilet Utrecht city hall - dutchnews.nl
“ As an open house of democracy in the heart of the city, this is a fine symbolic place to begin with toilets for everyone� - Utrecht city council on dutchnews.nl
left: AMFI mixed toilets - own image right: Pllek Amsterdam Unisex toilets - own image
Customized gender options facebook.com - own screenshot
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The trend can also be seen online on social media platforms like Instagram and YouTube: The “Beauty Boys”, as the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” calls them in an article, wear makeup to an extend and with such perfection that makes any girl envious. Still they don’t see themselves as Dragqueens but stress that they feel masculine and simply want to have the right to use makeup just like any other woman. (After: http:// www.sueddeutsche.de/stil/make-up-fuer-maennerlippenstift-fuer-alle-1.3393035) Their thousands of online followers show their support on social media and underline a new acceptance. Generation Z in general, youngsters born after 1995 (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_Z), show an exemplary attitude towards this subject.“A survey by branding expert J. Walter Thompson Intelligence finds that 56% of Generation Z know someone who uses gender neutral pronouns.” Fortune.com is stating in an online article. (http://fortune.com/2016/10/13/covergirlmale-model-gen-z-james-charles/) The trend did not stay underground but big cosmetic brands like Covergirl and Maybelline use this to target Generation Z and other accepting individuals. James Charles, a 17-year-old student, was announced as the first ever male face in the makeup industry for Covergirl. His picture of his year book photo went viral after he reshooted it with his own ring light to “make his highlight pop”(fortune.com). Other big players in the industry like Maybelline followed in early 2017 announcing their own male ambassador, Manny Gutierrez, who already earned himself a name through tutorials on YouTube.
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James Charles for Covergirl - fortune.com
Pantone colour of the year 2016 - panto
one.com
Lastly it’s very clear that genderfluidity is a big thing in the fashion industry. Unisex brands are not uncommon and good examples can be seen everywhere. Amsterdam based brand “Nobody Has To Know” wants to “create an open-mindedness and fluidity in society towards age, size and gender [through their garments]. [Their] mission is triggering people to reconsider and revalue the traditional standards in fashion”( https://www. facebook.com/nobodyhtk/?fref=ts). Furthermore Pantone’s colour of the year 2016 was quite revolutionary: “For the first time,[they chose ] the blending of two shades”( https://www. pantone.com/color-of-the-year-2016). ‘Rose Quartz’, a soft pink blends into ‘Serenity’, a greyish pale blue. Pantone states: “In many parts of the world we are experiencing a gender blur as it relates to fashion, which has in turn impacted color trends throughout all other areas of design.” In times of total transparency through social media and the internet people want to lay themselves open. Our society is getting more accepting towards other forms of sexuality and gender. All these factors lead to this trend of expression for mixing genders and blurring lines.
Nobody To Amsterdam Know Amsterdam - own image Nobody has toHas know - own image
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WHAT’S NEXT? TO CONCLUDE: Society is shifting constantly and in unforseen directions so based on these trends we can only presume what will happen in the future. Our way of working will get even more stressful as it’ll get more indiviual, independant and self planned. That will result in an ongoing conciousness for a healthy body and mind that act in unison to give a base for a balanced life. The fashion industry right now doesn’t match that lifestyle which means the system and with it the brands have to adapt to transform in a more slow fashion oriented world. To take away stress and improve the shopping experience, concepts with less collections a year could be an idea. Modern technological devices that track the breathing or heartbeat could be integrated in garments and directly connected to smart digital devices. That way stress and anxiety could be monitored and improved even easier. Another idea would be a concept of combining aroma therapy with clothing, that can help to balance mood to contribute to a healthy mindset.
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The urge for unperfect and unique products is not something that will go away as long as our mass production and polished industry will exist. Brands could use that as a starting point for more vintage upcycled fashion and personalisation. This way people can stand out of the crowd and at the same time be sustainable. Individuality and imperfection could be at the core of a brand. Brands like Nike already offer personalized options for their shoes, but maybe a step further would be concepts for actual workshops to destroy or customize items. That way the experience automatically adds an emotional value and individual uniqueness. Lastly changes in gender identity, - barriers and -equality will evolve. Hopefully into an even more tolerating and accepting world. This means that genderlessness and equality continue to matter for brand visions. Unisex brands could be taken to the next level with a younger and more up-to-date approach. Looking on existing genderless labels the style is mostly minimalistic, simplistic and rather dull. But with Generation Z as a new target group and a new daring attitude it could regain importance and relevance in the fashion industry In the future the fashion industry has to take these three aspects in consideration to answer new aspirations and desires. These trends come out of sociological aspects which should be kept an eye on to lead a successful way into our tomorrow.
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SOURCES
Pictures P8-9
Top Apps Fitness and Health Germany - own screenshot, accessed 12.03.2017 Pacifica app, [image], From: https://www.thinkpacifica.com/ [retrieved: 13.March 2017] “Spire” activity and mindfulness tracker, [image], From: https://www.sitepoint.com/7-meditation-apps-and-de vices-for-mindful-entrepreneurs/ [retrieved: 13.March 2017] P 10 11 Herb garden Beatrixpark, Amsterdam, February 2017 - own image freshjuicepressery outside, Amsterdam, February 2017 - own image freshjuicepressery inside, Amsterdam, February 2017 - own image Alchemist Garden Amsterdam, February 2017 - own image p 14-15 Design Icons vintage market Amsterdam, February 2017 - own image “Picknweight” vintage store Munich, February 2017 - own image Cafe Brecht Amsterdam, March 2017- own image Club Tante Erna Munich, [image], From: https://muenchen.mitvergnuegen.com/2016/11-locations-par ty-muenchen [retrieved: 13.March 2017] P16-17 Vinyl record store, Utrecht, February 2017 - own image Golden Goose predistressed sneaker [image], From: http://footwearnews.com/2016/business/offbeat/gold en-goose-pre-distressed-sneaker-controversy-statement-253430/ [retrieved: 13.March 2017 Zoku Lounge/ Restaurant, Amsterdam, March 2017 - own image personal instax collection of a friend, Amsterdam, March 2017- own image persoanl instax collection of a friend, Munich, February 2017- own image References
BODILY WHOLENSS p. 6-11
Facebook.com - Alchemist Garden. (n.d.). [online] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/pg/AlchemistGarden/ about/?ref=page_internal [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Geneeskrachtigegroenten.nl. (2017). Edible plant walks Amsterdam. [online] Available at: http://www.geneeskrachtigegroenten.nl/English/Edible-plant-walks-Amsterdam/mobile/ [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Pacifica Blog. (2017). Home - Pacifica Blog. [online] Available at: https://www.thinkpacifica.com/ [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Sitepoint.com. (2016). [online] Available at: .( https://www.sitepoint.com/7-meditation-apps-and-devices-for-mindful-entrepreneurs/ [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017].
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Welt, A. (2017). Werte-Index 2016: Was den Deutschen wirklich wichtig ist. [online] Handelsblatt.com. Available at: http://www.handelsblatt.com/panorama/aus-aller-welt/werte-index-2016-was-den-deutschen-wirklich-wichtigist/12630926.html [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. AUTHENTIC IMPERFECTION p. 12-17 FUJIFILM Deutschland. (n.d.). instax Sofortbild-Kameras. [online] Available at: https://www.fujifilm.eu/de/produkte/ instax [Accessed 26 Feb. 2017]. Braatz, D. (2017). Schmutzflnk. Süddeutsche Zeitung, (Nr. 41, Sa/So 18./ 19. Februar 2017), p.57. Fujikawa, M. (2016). Fujifilm Zooms In on Instax’s Retro Appeal in Digital Age. [online] WSJ. Available at: https://www. wsj.com/articles/fujifilm-zooms-in-on-instaxs-retro-appeal-in-the-digital-age-1459405636 [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. PetaPixel. (2016). Fujifilm’s Instax Instant Film Business is Booming. [online] Available at: https://petapixel. com/2016/04/04/fujifilms-instax-instant-film-business-booming/ [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. GENDER BLENDER p. 18-23 Nutt, A. E. (2015). Becoming Nicole: The Transormation of an American Family, Random House News, A. (2015). Video: Identical Male Twins Become Brother and Sister. [online] ABC News. Available at: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/identical-male-twins-brother-sister-34517564 [Accessed 22 Feb. 2017]. DutchNews.nl. (2016). Utrecht council goes for ‘gender neutral’ toilets - DutchNews.nl. [online] Available at: http://www. dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2016/07/utrecht-council-goes-for-gender-neutral-toilets/ [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Pantone.com. (2016). Pantone Color of the Year 2016 - Rose Quartz and Serenity. [online] Available at: https://www. pantone.com/color-of-the-year-2016 [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Süddeutsche.de GmbH, G. (2017). Darum tragen diese Männer jetzt Make-up. [online] Süddeutsche.de. Available at: http://www.sueddeutsche.de/stil/make-up-fuer-maenner-lippenstift-fuer-alle-1.3393035 [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Williams, R. (2015). Facebook’s 71 gender options come to UK users. [online] Telegraph.co.uk. Available at: http://www. telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/10930654/Facebooks-71-gender-options-come-to-UK-users.html [Accessed 16 Mar. 2017]. Fortune.com. (2016). CoverGirl’s First-Ever Male Model Is Genius Gen Z Marketing. [online] Available at: http://fortune. com/2016/10/13/covergirl-male-model-gen-z-james-charles/ [Accessed 24 Feb. 2017]. The Huffington Post. (2017). Dad Of First Male Maybelline Model Has Perfect Response To Bigoted Blogger. [online] Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/manny-gutierrez-homophobic-tweet_us_587e3c90e4b0aaa369429054 [Accessed 23 Feb. 2017]. Facebook.com. (n.d.). NOBODY HAS TO KNOW | Facebook. [online] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/nobodyhtk/?fref=ts [Accessed 2 Feb. 2017].
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