Taking The Plunge-Cultural Intelligence Issue 3, Volume 1

taking the plunge

taking the plunge

Brand transformation has always captivated us. Celebrities become designers and launch iconic brands such as Fenty Beauty and Ivy Park. Luxury brands open restaurants such as Gucci Osteria and Fred's x Louis Vuitton that emulate their global influence and aspirational lifestyle. Even retailers become destinations to interact with a brand, regardless of transaction, such as Disney’s Encanto experience at CAMP.

We have long been fascinated by the ability of a brand to stretch into an area that surprises and delights its consumers. When they hit the mark, it creates a cultural moment that breeds affinity and engagement. When it goes awry, it can lead to intense backlash that includes accusations of “selling out.”

But like humans, brands must evolve. In today’s crowded content landscape, they can no longer simply “stay in their lane” and hope for the best. Brands must challenge themselves and their consumers to do better, live better, and experience better. This month, we identified three sectors in which brands have taken seismic leaps to transform consumer interaction.

cheers to the sober curious

The modern temperance movement continues to evolve. Initially popularized in 2019, the “Sober Curious” cohort finds almost 46% of drinkers trying to reduce their alcohol consumption, and 52% of them replacing alcohol with non alcoholic (NA) beverages. This shift extends beyond “challenges” such as ‘Dry January’ and ‘Sober October ’ In an overall effort to practice mindful drinking, consumers have displayed a willingness to pay premium prices for NA versions of ready to drink cocktails, citing improved mood, sleep, decision making, digestive and immune health as benefits Young consumers, particularly those between 21 35, are driving this trend, with 48% demanding non alcoholic canned cocktails, 18% wanting to add CBD to their beverages, and 29% seeking mood boosting versions of NA cocktails, which are blended with natural adaptogens and nootropics Now, as a result of this “vice” transformation, brands, retailers, and restauranteurs have responded by creating even more new offerings and experiences for the Sober Curious

Boisson is a fast growing neighborhood spirits store, solely dedicated to non alcoholic drinks Designed to be the “Sephora of non alcoholic beverages,” the retailer carries everything from dealcoholized wines, to celebrity backed zero proof apértifs like Katy Perry’s De Soi and cognitive enhancers like Bella Hadid’s Kin Euphorics. The hybrid “phygital” store launched in 2021 in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, where the wellness hub for the Sober Curious was already thriving, and is gearing up to expand to LA for its free spirited consumer base

Soft drink specialists Dr. Pepper Keurig are supporting the booze free lifestyle with the release of a limited edition soda that’s supposed to taste like barrel aged bourbon Called the “Dr Pepper Flavored Fansville Reserve,” the zero proof beverage is inspired by tailgating and is crafted for fans with a unique flavor that evokes sweet, savory and woody notes, with subtle hints of cherry, vanilla, chocolate and caramel Brewing giants like Anheuser Busch and Coors are also diving into the space with their own Bud Zero and Coors Edge offerings, respectively

New York’s first Sober Dive Bar, dubbed Hekate, recently opened its doors in Manhattan’s East Village The ‘elixir lounge’ boasts the hallmarks of a good dive bar with an entirely booze free menu complete with non alcoholic mixed drinks, spirits, sodas, apértifs, coffee, “witchy teas,” and NA beers Hekate joins a range of sober bars around the world, with other booze free bars in the UK (e.g. Redemption Bar in London’s West End and The Brink in Liverpool), Germany and Ireland (e g , Zeroliq and Virgin Mary Bar, respectively), and Australia (e g , Brunswick Aces Bar) Hyatt Hotels Corporation has also joined the bar and restaurant movement with its zero proof, Zero Judgement program that will offer dedicated zero proof beverage options to its range of hotels

From August 2021 to August 2022, non alcoholic drinks garnered over $395M total dollar sales, reflecting a YoY growth of over 20 6% As consumers continue to become more conscious of their holistic wellness and drinking habits, the Sober Curious movement will continue to become more prevalent on our shelves, menus and blocks

Sources: Veylinx, Very Well Health, Ad Age, Hollywood Reporter, Taste of Home, Food & Wine, Business Wire, NielsenIQ, USA Today

elevated everyday expressionism

Consumers are investing in elevated, transformed versions of their favorite household items, a byproduct of the return to maximalism in a post pandemic world A recent report from Trendanalytics found that “#maximalism” has over 330K posts on Instagram and over 302M views on TikTok; average weekly searches for maximalism are up 6% YoY Nostalgic young Millennials and Gen Zers are leading this fad, as these individuals are embracing the “weird girl aesthetic,” a fresh, anti fashion trend that mixes colorful patterns, textures and playful accessories. As a result, the companies behind our favorite everyday items are embracing the move to non traditional forms of self expression through unique collabs that bridge the gap between mass and couture

Kraft Heinz’ Real Mayo brand recently teamed up with Y2K fashion leader Juicy Couture to debut the food brand’s first ever fashion collaboration Dubbed the “Smooth Lover’s Collection,” the range celebrates the velvety smooth nature of the mayo through a “Long Live Velvety Smooth Tracksuit” and “Mayo Couture Tube Top” in Juicy Couture’s signature velour textile, with rhinestone embellishments Starting at $162, the high fashion collab is brought to life exclusively on the duo’s DTC site, mayocouture.com.

Frito Lay teamed up with Balenciaga to unveil leather clutches that resemble empty Lay’s bags on the runway during Paris Fashion Week Retailing for $1,500 each, the “L.O.L. Clutch” is made of high gloss leather, a metallic silver lining, a zipper closure and a nutrition label on the bag to resemble a chip bag with a crumpled effect The collaboration will be available in four “flavors,” boasting similar packaging to that of Lay’s Classic, Flamin’ Hot, Limón, and Salt & Vinegar varieties; the “haute” Lays bags will be available in Summer 2023

Fashion designer Nik Bentel partnered with Absolut Vodka to release a new innovative design themed after the cult loved cocktail, the espresso martini The “Absolut Espresso Martini Handbag” takes inspiration from every aspect of an espresso martini and is made from leather, chromed steel and tritan plastic The handbag boasts a detachable purse which is perfectly molded to sit in or be removed from the coupe glass design Priced at $199 on the designer’s DTC website, the now sold out, limited edition handbag follows Bentel’s viral “pasta bag” in collaboration with Barilla

In effort to aid in maximalist aesthetics and drive impressions, these out of the box high fashion collabs that meld mass with couture will continue to elevated everyday items through expressionism.

Sources: Rivet, Thrillist, Food and Wine, Hypebae

sports become pop culture

Sports and entertainment have always enjoyed a healthy crossover The halftime show is as synonymous with the Superbowl as the game itself The Lakers built their brand by filling their courtside seats with actors, models and musicians For teams and leagues, ticket/merch sales and TV ratings are now only part of the equation Sports entities are evolving into entertainment franchises through creative marketing partnerships across food, fashion and content In addition to building engagement and affinity during the season, this strategy also builds relevance and fosters brand engagement 365 days per year

More so than any other league, the NBA has proven to be on the cutting edge of well everything From outwardly supporting social justice and racial/gender equality to embracing NFT’s and streaming content, the league’s willingness to be first has led to unprecedented fan engagement, revenue and franchise values As teams seek to establish deeper connections between their fans and histories, they have embraced creative uniform and court designs. Taking it a step further, the New York Knicks recently announced Kith founder and CEO Ronnie Feig as their first Creative Director. In addition to designing the team’s City Edition uniforms and court, Feig will be developing an in house product line and providing global creative oversight to “focus on building a community around an international brand ” The partnership kicked off with “Kith Night” where the uniforms debuted, a pop up shop launched, and fans were treated to limited edition giveaways and concessions

Apple TV’s Ted Lasso has become a cultural phenomenon In fact, demand for the show is 45x higher than any other show on the platform. Beyond the Emmys, officially licensed Halloween costumes and biscuit truck pop ups, the brand has seamlessly blurred the lines between art and life through a series of innovative partnerships in advance of the 2022 World Cup Electronic Arts released FIFA ‘23 in September and gave fans the opportunity to hire Coach Lasso in career mode or manage AFC Richmond by placing them in the English Premiere League Fans playing as Ted logged more than one million match wins in the first month of availability

McDonald’s features Ted Lasso in its “Wanna Go To McDonald’s?” ads, a social first campaign reaching 75 countries, that will be the brand’s largest to date The World Cup specific messaging encourages fans to “rally together through a unifying activation while allowing them to experience the tournament in ways unique to their local cultures ”

The United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) employed Coach Lasso to author personalized messages for each member of the squad that popped up in billboards in their respective hometowns. The campaign for embracing hometown heroes was featured in 24 cities around the country.

Manga, which refers to Japanese printed animation, has skyrocketed in global popularity in recent years In the United States, sales of Manga comic books are up 558% since 2003 For this year’s World Cup, Adidas and the Japanese National Team collaborated with mangakas Tsujitomo and Yusuke Nomura, creators of iconic properties, Giant Killing and Blue Lock, for their away kits The kits received global attention when Japan upset Germany in Round 1

As teams and leagues continue to compete for consumer engagement, we will continue to see them adopt franchise management approaches that blend pop culture and entertainment into their on field/court experience

want to learn about what's trending & how to leverage those trends for your business? contact:

North America:

Todd Kaufman, VP, Strategy & Partnerships todd kaufman@beanstalk com

Whitney Rosenfeld, Coordinator, Business Development & Marketing whitney.rosenfeld@beanstalk.com

Global Contributors:

Nikki Freedman, Manager, Business Development & Marketing (North America)

Alex Hartnell, Coordinator, Business Development & Marketing (UK/EU)

Ivonne Feliciano, AVP, Business Development & Marketing (LATAM)

let culture be your guide