Sunday Strategy: Castle-Core, Sea Witches, The Death of Nightlife + More
December 8th, 2024
In this issue of Sunday Strategy, we look at five stories to think about next week, including: Sea Witches and Castlecore, Spotify AI Wrapped, Mid Market Restaurant Struggles, Google’s AI Worldbuilder and the Death of going ‘Out Out’.
In addition, we have ads from: KFC, Walmart, Dominos, Powerade and E.L.F.
// Five Stories of the Week:
1.) Sea Witches, Castlecore and More.
This year's Pinterest Predicts trends are out and its 👑 17th century art meeting 🚀 22nd century digital style.
If you had ‘Sea Witches’ and chainmail next to pickles (Grillo's limited edition Pickle toothpaste was ahead of the curve) and Cyberpunk on your 2025 card, now is the time to call an unlikely bingo. While the revival of things like Rococo may reflect wider economic uncertainty (its opulence originally contrasted 17th century French culture and pairs with Pantone’s selection of Mocha as the color of 2025 symbolizing comfort eating), the wider piece shows the divergent tastes consumers will seek in 2025 - from deep digital to old world. It highlights that predicting modern consumer behavior isn’t a game of right or wrong, but how much different trends scale.
2.) Spotify Wraps AI with Music.
This year’s “Spotify Wrapped” recap has dropped and it includes integration with Google’s NotebookLM, creating podcasts for each listener’s annual history. While the company has had A.I.backlash, and faced Apple Music putting their challenger Recap out a day before, the integration shows how technology can lead with use and integration to make AI more accessible.Despite the new features, Wrapped created the same parodies from brands across the world, including: RNIB, Greggs, TSA and others.
3.) The Death of the Mid Market Restaurant.
2024 was a rocky year for restaurants, but especially those in the middle of the market - aiming to offer an affordable sit down experience. The ‘Casual Dining’ sector has seen bankruptcies from Red Lobster, TGI Fridays and others - besieged by tightening of consumer spending, inflation and greater delivery options. While success stories like Chili's give hope (succeeding through a combination of promotion and culture), the sector as a whole looks to be stuck between more expensive, infrequent dining options and cheaper, QSR offerings that allow diners savings or the ability to eat easily offsite. So will the restaurant market go U-shaped? Its fate may be tied to economic recovery, the ability to adapt and most importantly, the establishment of a greater ‘third space’ Americans desire.
4.) Google Builds Worlds with Genie.
Google has introduced Genie 2, a model capable of generating interactive worlds from a prompt or photo. The model looks to create faster prototyping and game development, but also start to make digital world building more accessible to regular users - offering visual effects and different styles, play modes and non playable character generation. Just as Midjourney and Dall-e are changing graphic design, Genie and others like it are poised to change how games are made and played.
5.) Who Killed the “Big Night Out”?
What’s killing going ‘out out’? With nightclubs closing at a higher rate and social attitudes changing, its easy to claim that nightlife is something else ‘Gen Z is killing’. However, the reality is more complex. While traditional nightlife is struggling, trampled under rising inflation, economic uncertainty, transport gaps, health and safety concerns - ‘responsible hour’ socialization is flourishing.
Pub groups are reporting UK drinking habits have gone more towards daytime socialization, long running day raves like Morning Gloryville or Matinee Social Club or Before Midnight’s early evening club nites are thriving. While it would be easy to claim the death of ‘hedonism’, it's more apt to say it's diversified - finding greater ways to be relevant as economic pressures increase and social tastes change. Traditional nightlife needs to find a way to adapt while facing a spiral of decreasing resources and support.
// Ads You Might Have Missed:
1.) ‘Eduardochi’ - KFC Spain:
KFC Spain have released their own drumstick tamagotchi for chicken lovers to care for. “Eduardochi” is retailing for €3.99 at the brand’s locations while supplies last. The gadget isn’t just a play on 90s toy nostalgia, it also taps into a 2021 viral trend where people gave random objects Spanish names. A drumstick, which was called ‘Eduardo’, has endured to inspire this more recent iteration of food meeting gaming, also creating a scent (“Eau D’ardo”) which featured hints of the brand’s secret herbs and spices.
2.) ‘Give the Gift That Gets Them’ - Walmart:
Walmart has leaned into several nostalgic cultural touchpoints with their holiday advertising, integrating product moments into ads featuring ‘Gilmore Girls’, ‘Spongebob’, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ and ‘Love Jones’ characters. The ads activate a wider ‘show you know someone through giving’ platform, in a way that builds on the brand’s historical efforts to stretch across the cultural IP people care about in a wide reaching, but cursory way.
*For more holiday ads, check out the Sunday Strategy Holiday List of over 500*
3.) ‘The Athlete’s Code’ - Powerade:
The evolving discussion around athletics and mental health has highlighted a growing need for athletes to ensure they stay healthy mentally and physically. From Simone Biles, to Coco Guaff and Naomi Osaka, a need to protect holistic wellbeing has come to the forefront and Powerade is adapting with it. Their latest initiative, ‘The Athlete’s Code’ contains a provision that athletes can invoke to pause activity and step back, confidentially and securely without risk of losing their sponsorship. Building on their previous ‘Pause is Power’ work, the brand shows that simply talking about supporting athletes isn’t enough and systemic action is required to support modern athletics.
4.) ‘Emergency Pizza x Squid Game’ - Dominos:
With the launch of ‘Squid Game’ season 2 on the horizon, brands like Microsoft are lining up to activate against fan interest. Dominos has joined the fray, stretching their ‘emergency pizza’ (a sly BOGOF promotion where you get an future ‘emergency’ pizza when you buy one) campaign into the IP. Their latest ads feature classic ‘Squid Game’ moments where characters are saved by an emergency delivery - combining fan service with humor in an engaging way. The brand has gone further with the platform, to reward players with the lowest scores in ‘Squid Game: The Experience’ with free pizza for a year - showing how to wrap product into multiple parts of an IP partnership.
5.) ‘Eyes.Lips.Face.Fandom’ - E.L.F. Cosmetics:
Cosmetics brand E.L.F. has stretched their best selling ‘Power grip primer’ further into sports with a new campaign featuring Joey King and Lucien Laviscount. The fandom campaign features King wearing the colors of her favorite team while meeting the parents of her partner, who support a rival. Without going too far into specific teams or fandoms, it does sports humor and cosmetic demonstration at the same time - avoiding the stereotypical tropes and cliches found in many female skewed sports ads.
// Sunday Snippets
// Marketing & Advertising //
// IAMS creates an overweight dog float to raise awareness of pet obesity
// IKEA launches the “Hus of Frakta” in London, a popup celebrating their iconic blue bag
// Miller Hi-Life releases a dive bar inspired perfume, despite most dive bars I’ve been to better suited to something from a bleach brand
// Liquid Death partners with Depends to launch the “Pit Diaper”, an adult diaper for music fans who don’t want to leave the most pit
// Skims x North Face collaboration brings minimalism and skin tone to the slopes this winter
// Viral bakery Crumbl has partnered with Dove to launch a line of limited edition scented products
// The 2024 Goodlist Freelancer rates report is out and as Zoe Scaman highlighted, nothing is keeping pace with inflation
// Is Europe’s car industry facing a mounting crisis?
// Adidas’ new campaign focuses on Antonela Roccuzo and the entire Messi family
// Six Nations Rugby has revealed a new rebrand
// Pizza Hut launches a new design and store format in Texas
// Suzuki uses generative AI to showcase the extreme responses customers may have to their black friday sale
// Uniqlo launches a collaboration with Spongebob and CPFM
// Mercedes takes the ‘PopeMobile’ electric
// Sony gives the London underground train seats a Playstation makeover
// Brooklyn, NY is getting its first apartment building targeting DINKs
// Duolingo is back on Roblox, stay safe!
// Technology & Media //
// Human interaction is now a luxury good
// As AI shifts agency operating models, should they still be billing on time?
// Google cloud releases a new report on the ROI of Generative AI
// The FCA has released their 2024 report into cryptocurrency in the UK
// Can chatbots get people to open up more about their feelings?
// How the St. Louis Fed’s Data Tool took over modern economic discussion.
// Life & Culture //
// “Brain rot” is Oxford Dictionary’s word of 2024
// The historical risks of never learning cursive
// Is Brazilian football scaling to be the next Premier League?
// LinkedIn’s November workforce report shows hiring is down across almost every sector in the US
// Post Thanksgiving, we ask “why is gratitude so hard?”
// First it was GoFundMe, now Americans are turning to TikTok to pay their medical bills
// Looking back on ESPN’s rebellious start
// Inside the celebrity machine that never dies
// Is streetwear losing its popularity…a good thing?
// What annoys people most?
// Inside the great shift in consumers’ relationship with food
// All hail the ‘Legendary Glamma’ - a grandmother in Zambia and style influencer
// Diesel and Lee jeans combine to create a hybrid jean - raising awareness of overproduction
// American mens’ most popular first date spot is Chick-fil-a
// Until Next Sunday
As always, let me know what you think by email (dubosecole@gmail.com), website or on LinkedIn.
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