The Intention Economy, Continuity > Novelty and Brotox
Our weekly look at three curious points of tension, plus positive ideas for what to do moving forward.
Attention economy vs. intention economy
Personally, I’ll never tire of chatting analog revivals but it’s also - surprise - not immune to the pull of the trend cycle. Toto, I think we’ve hit the mainstream. From friction-maxxingto Ibiza’s no-phones club, Tomadachi and now the (right on time) backlash our much-needed opt-out of noisy spaces also gets co-opted by the performance of it. Now, that’s what I call a point of tension worth digging into.
Moving Forward: Intention-driven design is a growth strategy when designing brand universes for connection, not time spent or clicks and eyeballs aka missing the woods for the trees. Reallocate those budgets to build slower, opt-in experiences that reward care and longevity, not content for compulsion.
Continuity over novelty
From resale as resilient infrastructure vs. uncertainty in a time of tariffs, to creators evolving into long-term strategic partners, to the growing realization that Gen Z might not be a monolith after all.
Now add-in Zaria Parvez’ on-point take re: “the over-reliance on one generation and the increasing lack of intergenerational learning…severely hold[ing] Gen-Z back in the workforce.”
Moving Forward: Circular models aren’t just for sustainable brands, but innovative teams too: Shift from age-based targeting to values, mindsets and media behaviour, and please…make intergenerational knowledge transfer a design principle inside your org.
Redesigning Masculinity
January is here and so is Menswear month: on the social-first end of the spectrum it’s Brotox, scrotox (yes really), “Boardroom Value” and men are so back. Personally, I’m more fascinated by the Darts Revival and spectator as spectacle as a signal. Sure, some might be rejecting traditionally rigid ideals of power and dominance in favor of self-definition, but the pressure to perform bravado is on the up too.
Moving Forward: Channel Rolf Ekroth’s wisdom: “I think we have taken some good steps toward healthier individualism, although there is always pushback, as you can clearly see in the political climate we live in. You can challenge ideas of masculinity without making clothes impractical. Good menswear design does not tell men how to be masculine.”
This is where the thinking starts. The real-world work happens when we make it truly actionable inside teams, systems and strategies that set the future in motion.
If you’re curious about applying this kind of thinking to your brand, check out how we work below.