What if it just worked?
Corporate jargon gave us “moving forward.” Let’s reclaim it. Each edition breaks down three curious shifts: what’s happening, why it matters, and what future-thinking brand leaders can do next. So what will you do…moving forward?
The Illusion of Inclusivity
Fashion month is over and it’s time to hit the data! To the surprise of noone and according to Vogue Business’s SS26 size inclusivity report… 97.1% of catwalk looks were still straight-size. Mid-size visibility halved. Points to Regressive Nostalgia! The good news is London keeps the crown of inclusivity (mostly thanks to the likes of Sinéad O’ Dwyer, let’s be honest).
Moving forward: Do you regularly use the words “authenticity” and “ cultural relevance” or generally have a desire to appeal to other people? Then inclusivity can’t just be a vibe check on the marketing deck. Be a decent human being. Or to appeal to the more fiscally minded: money is being left on the table. As audiences grow more critical of empty words and well…not being served, true inclusion is a competitive advantage.
According to McKinsey, companies with above-average diversity in their executive teams outperform lower quartile peers by up to 39% in profitability.1
Time to Break the Class Ceiling
From Steve Salter’s “class ceiling” call-out to Laura Weir’s big moves at the BFC, the creative economy is not exactly reaping the rewards of its high, high cost of entry. When only the well-connected can afford to create, we get the same stories from the same backgrounds and originality from diversity flatlines.
Moving forward: Offer mentorship, be The Great Connector and be serious about the salaries. Can someone afford to live on it? Bin that “Oh when I was that age, I dreamt of having that salary” logic. It’s time to put that “starving artist” fantasy to bed now.
There’s No Such Word as “Can’t”
Nothing works anymore. From Aurelien’s on-point essay on the“Cult of Can’t”to those FT charts doing the rounds showing social media slowdown, it’s all clear that people are done with all the disruption.
As systems go the way of enshittification and inevitably fail fast and often (derogatory), trust, reliability and real-world connection become the rarest gems. Perhaps brands don’t necessarily have to be the most AI-accelerated, “innovative” ones but the ones that simply work.
Moving forward: Frictionless sounds sexy but functionality has become an emotional benefit. “It just works” is basically a love language at this point. In a nutshell? Design for trust not virality.
The stalled progress on inclusivity, the cost of creative entry, and the rise of “nothing works anymore” aren’t separate frustrations, they’re all signals of a wider systems reset already underway.
If you’re interested in how these tensions might shape what’s next and how to translate them into purposeful, human-centred strategy, that’s where our future thinking deeper dives begin. Explore more via Curious Strategy on Substack, or get in touch to talk about applying these insights to your brand.