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Vodafone Netherlands has launched a free, three-year battery replacement warranty for smartphones. Customers who purchase phones directly from Vodafone will receive a free battery replacement if capacity drops below 80%. All they need to do is bring their device to a Vodafone store. Notably, there's no charge for the warranty, and it's being offered retroactively for every phone purchased from Vodafone since 8 September 2022.

Battery degradation is one of the main reasons people replace otherwise functional phones, yet batteries are rarely covered under manufacturer warranties. By tackling this pain point head-on, Vodafone positions itself as both customer-centric and environmentally conscious, noting that the program reduces unnecessary phone purchases while cutting electronic waste.

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Brand loyalty has declined sharply in the 2020s and keeps getting harder to earn. As inflation and economic uncertainties continue to strain household spending, companies face mounting pressure to demonstrate value beyond point of sale.

What Vodafone's 3-year free battery guarantee offers is twofold:

♻️ Sustainability without sacrifice
Consumers increasingly want to make greener choices, but only if it doesn’t add friction or compromise their lifestyle. A free, automatic service aligns sustainability with convenience.
🔋 Longevity as a premium
Where smartphone launches used to drive excitement through novelty, many consumers now want reassurance that their expensive device will last. The battery is the weak link, and Vodafone is directly targeting one of people's top frustrations.

Ralph Lauren just leveled up its digital commerce play with Ask Ralph, a conversational AI assistant that launched this week through the brand's mobile app. Built on Microsoft's Azure OpenAI platform, the tool functions as a one-on-one stylist, interpreting natural language requests from "What should I wear to dinner with my in-laws?" to specific styling queries about pieces a customer already owns.

The system responds with complete, shoppable outfit recommendations drawn from Polo Ralph Lauren's current inventory, presenting them as visual laydowns that users can refine through follow-up questions. Instead of suggesting individual items, Ask Ralph curates head-to-toe looks with accompanying styling tips, integrating content from across Ralph Lauren's ecosystem. The company plans to expand the feature to additional brand lines and international markets based on initial user engagement.

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Consumers increasingly expect shopping to feel like a dialogue, not a transaction. Ask Ralph mimics the intimacy of speaking to an in-store stylist, but with the convenience of a mobile app. It satisfies a consumer craving for individualized attention, minus the friction of scheduling appointments or visiting a store.

Whether for their wardrobes, workouts, finances or meals, people want co-pilots. And AI makes it possible for brands to offer personal assistance at a previously unimaginable scale. AI won't replace all human stylists (or trainers or personal bankers or chefs), but it will democratize guidance and support.

Swedish perfume brand Koyia has opened a forest-based perfumery where customers can purchase fragrances using time instead of money. They're invited to spend 599 seconds of stillness in nature rather than 599 Swedish kronor: 599 SEC instead of 599 SEK.

Located deep in the Småland woods, the minimalist retail space designed by Lucas and Tyra Morten requires visitors to spend approximately 10 minutes in contemplative silence to complete their transaction, the exact duration research suggests it takes for nature's positive health benefits to begin manifesting. The product itself reflects this nature-first philosophy: Koyia's alcohol-free oil contains phytoncides, compounds released by evergreen trees that research shows can boost immune function, reduce cortisol levels and improve heart rate variability.

By positioning nature time as equivalent to Swedish kronor, the brand challenges the prioritization of GDP and profit margins over crucial human values like health, joy, awe and serenity. The concept essentially constructs a new form of value creation where the brand's worth isn't just derived from product sales, but from facilitating an experience that generates measurable personal benefits.

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Koyia is experimenting with new units of value. Instead of pegging worth to money (SEK), the brand is pegging it to time and attention. This reframing is powerful because it mirrors deeper cultural shifts:

1. From transaction to transformation
In the traditional model, worth is measured in cash flow. Here, worth is measured in personal change. Spending 599 seconds forest bathing not only buys a perfume, it delivers a moment of wellbeing and a story that enriches the object itself. The perfume becomes infused with the memory of the time spent acquiring it.

2. From buying to earning
Because the consumer must give something finite and deeply personal — their time — the perfume feels earned. This creates stronger attachment and loyalty than a simple purchase. In effect, the brand is making the customer work for the product, but in a way that feels rewarding rather than extractive.

3. Brand as arbiter of meaning
By setting an "exchange rate" (599 seconds = 599 SEK), Koyia positions itself as a cultural thought leader, not just a fragrance house. They're essentially saying: we decide what matters, and we believe time with nature is more precious than money. That stance is part product, part philosophy.

New Zealand's government recently declared that the nation's population had jumped from 5 million to 695 billion. The eye-catching figure, displayed on digital billboards across Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, represents the Department of Conservation's attempt to count every visible plant, bird, fish and tree in the country. Director General Penny Nelson describes it as a "back-of-the-envelope estimate" designed to spark conversations about the country's biodiversity crisis and underline the importance of those other residents to New Zealand's human inhabitants.

The campaign, dubbed "Always Be Naturing," emerges from sobering research revealing a dangerous disconnect in public perception. While 90% of New Zealanders care about nature and 89% believe it's in good shape, the reality tells a starkly different story: just 238 kākāpō remain, fewer than 40 New Zealand fairy terns survive, and 63% of ecosystems teeter on the brink of collapse. As the DOC states: "Humans make up less than 0.001% of New Zealand’s population. Maybe it’s time to start thinking about the other 99.999%."

Tied to the campaign are concrete steps anyone can take to protect nature; a set of drop down menus allows people to find actions that match the amount of time they're willing to spend, the physical effort they can exert, where they'd like to pitch in and what type of nature they love. Actions include putting bells on cats, rooting out invasive weeds, creating a backyard bird sanctuary, trapping introduced predators and planting native species like ponga, kōwhai and makomako.

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As environmental crises intensify globally, conservation organizations face a critical challenge: how to cut through climate fatigue and inspire action rather than despair. DOC's approach demonstrates how reframing can transform abstract statistics into a compelling narrative. By celebrating abundance before revealing scarcity, and by making conservation accessible rather than intimidating, brands can transform passive concern into active participation. Could your organization find similarly creative ways to make complex challenges feel both urgent and actionable?

Ten years after opening in a modest 16-square-meter kiosk in Jakarta, Indonesian coffee chain TUKU now has 72 stores across Indonesia and is preparing to bring its homegrown approach to European markets. The company is opening its first international store in Amsterdam later this month. The brand's signature drink? Kopi Susu Tetangga, or 'Neighbor's Milk Coffee,' consisting of espresso, milk, creamer and palm sugar.

Central to TUKU's identity is its commitment to Indonesia's agricultural heritage through direct partnerships with local farmers. The company works closely with 630 coffee farmers and 275 palm sugar producers, creating a supply chain that connects traditional farming communities with modern retail operations. This farm-to-cup approach allows TUKU to showcase distinctly Indonesian ingredients — from single-origin beans grown across the archipelago to traditional palm sugar that adds local character to the brand's beverages.

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☕️ Coffee as cultural identity
Indonesia has long been one of the world's top coffee producers, but the beans often disappear into global supply chains, stripped of their origin and identity. TUKU flips this: it makes Indonesian coffee not just the ingredient but the star of the story, following in the footsteps of Japanese matcha and Taiwanese bubble tea.

🌴 Craving new flavors and new rituals
Amsterdam is a mature coffee market, offering everything from third-wave hipster cafes to mass-market chains. What's scarce is a fresh narrative. Indonesian coffee with palm sugar introduces something beyond flat whites and cortados. Global coffee drinkers increasingly want authenticity and traceability. TUKU brings that, transforming a cup of coffee from an anonymous drink into a story of community, sustainability and national pride.

A new photography concept has launched in Dubai that removes a major reason people feel apprehensive about professional portrait sessions: the photographer. Self.space offers private studios where clients control their own shoots using a remote, capturing unlimited photos in front of a full-length mirror equipped with a professional-grade camera.

The 50-minute sessions include AI-powered retouching that processes images automatically, ensuring no human staff sees the photos before they're encrypted and delivered to a password-protected gallery. Each session costs AED 750 and includes access to lighting controls, music selection, makeup facilities and accessories, with the space accommodating up to four people.

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Self.space highlights how traditional service hierarchies are being dismantled as consumers demand greater control over personal experiences. The traditional photographer-subject dynamic — where one person controls while another performs — feels increasingly outdated to people who expect ownership of how they're represented. By removing human intermediaries entirely, the concept transforms a potentially uncomfortable situation into an empowering one, allowing customers to be both creator and subject without external judgment or direction.

The studio's privacy-first approach is also key. In an era where consumers assume their digital content will be harvested, monetized or mishandled, the promise of zero human contact and AI-only processing becomes a premium feature. Here, artificial intelligence isn't positioned as a disruptive force but as a protective one — handling retouching and privacy seamlessly. What other industries could reframe AI as a guardian of consumer autonomy and security?

Related: Google's new Camera Coach for Pixel 10 Pro uses Gemini to help users take better photos. Instead of having AI create the image for them, it offers practical, in-the-moment tips on elements like framing, zooming, better angles, lighting, etc.

The screen-free movement has gained a stylish new champion as KARRI, a voice-messaging device for children, emerges from an extensive redesign by Jon Marshall at Pentagram. KARRI is a phone alternative developed for kids aged 5-13. It offers connection without a screen, relying instead on voice messages, which can be sent from the device to an accompanying app on a parent's phone (and vice versa), as well as between multiple KARRI units. The interface consists of a simple LED matrix display, regular buttons and a slide-to-talk button.

The collaboration with industrial designer Jon Marshall signals a maturing category where alternatives to smartphones for kids are transitioning from niche concern to mainstream necessity. Parents want their children to be reachable, but are worried about handing over devices that grant unfettered internet access. Besides voice messaging, the device also offers GPS tracking and a flashlight. But no screen, no apps, no algorithmic rabbit holes. The KARRI Generation 2 messenger comes in four colors and is on presale at karri.io for launch in early 2026, priced at GBP 49.95 for preorders.

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Movements like Smartphone Free Childhood, which now counts 140,000 parents across 13,500 schools pledging to delay smartphone adoption until age 14, are creating a market for devices that bridge the gap between no-phone childhood and smartphone adolescence. As screen time concerns intensify and digital wellness becomes a family priority, products that offer selective connectivity — communication without distraction or danger — occupy valuable territory.

The question for brands isn't whether to engage with children's digital lives, but how to do so thoughtfully. KARRI's partnership with Pentagram demonstrates that the most compelling child-focused innovations don't add features, but strategically subtract them, creating space for the kind of unfettered childhood that increasingly feels like a luxury.

Related: Tin Can brings back the landline to keep kids connected, not hooked.

Heineken has launched Hijack Socialization, a campaign that disrupts Netflix sessions to nudge audiences toward real-world experiences. Created by Dentsu in partnership with Netflix and Uber Advertising, the initiative targets specific scenes across 75 Netflix productions that feature bars and social gatherings. When these scenes appear, viewers see a message encouraging them to pause their binge-watching and experience the moment in real life, complete with a QR code offering a BRL 25 (USD 4.60) Uber voucher. 

The campaign, which is distributing 10,000 vouchers across Brazil, runs through October and is limited to one voucher per person for those 18 and older. It's part of Heineken's broader #SocialOffSocials global campaign tackling excessive social media use and positioning Heineken as a catalyst for genuine social experiences rather than just another beverage brand vying for attention in crowded digital spaces.

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Heineken's Netflix intervention represents a sophisticated approach to combating "continuous partial attention" — the modern tendency to split focus between multiple screens and platforms. By literally interrupting the streaming experience at emotionally resonant moments, the brand transforms passive consumption into active participation. The campaign's genius lies in its timing and context: rather than competing with entertainment, it uses entertainment as a launching pad for real-world experiences. Could your brand identify similar intervention points where digital engagement becomes a gateway to offline action?

Consumers increasingly see personal care rituals as essential to overall health, not just as beauty routines. New research from Kenvue and Kantar shows that 88% of consumers worldwide believe their personal care habits positively affect their health — a cultural shift that positions skincare, oral care, and hygiene as everyday healthcare.

Key findings from A New View of Care: The Power of Personal Care Routines:
🧖‍♀️ 88% of consumers believe personal care routines positively impact their health
🧼 Despite the popularity of elaborate regimens on social media, 73% spend under 30 minutes a day on personal care
🧴 Consumers who spend 15+ minutes daily report better health
🩺 62% trust healthcare providers most for advice, yet primary sources of information are search engines, social media and product reviews
🤳 Over one in five Gen Z look to social media influencers for inspiration, compared with fewer than 10% of older generations
⏳ 38% plan to spend more time on routines in the next year, while 15% expect to spend less

TAKEAWAY
As personal care becomes more closely tied to health, brands will frame routines as practical wellness tools rather than superficial indulgences. By offering evidence-based guidance, educational resources and straightforward solutions, they can reinforce the idea that daily care rituals represent achievable, everyday actions that contribute to long-term health and wellbeing.

A startup called LYKYN has just introduced what it says is the first consumer-ready smart mushroom-growing chamber. Unlike existing, low-tech kits consisting of a mycelium block in a bag, box or bucket, LYKYN's chamber is a sleek countertop cabinet. The unit's base is outfitted with sensors, fans and a humidifier that work with an accompanying app to automate the often finicky process of mushroom cultivation. Users simply add water, insert a pre-inoculated mushroom block, select their variety through the app and wait for harvest.

The device targets both functional wellness and culinary crowds, supporting varieties such as lion's mane and reishi for cognitive benefits, as well as oyster and shiitake for the kitchen. LYKYN designed the chamber as a home appliance rather than a garage hobby project — compact and minimal in aesthetic. The timing aligns with surging consumer interest in mushrooms, driven by growing awareness of their health benefits. Designed in California and manufactured in Turkey, the kit is selling for EUR 225.95.

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LYKYN (and its Hungarian competitor Shrooly, which started shipping a similar product a year ago) reframe indoor mushroom growing from a fiddly DIY project to a sleek home appliance. Think of what Nespresso did for coffee or SodaStream for sparkling water: they turned a complex process into a stylish countertop ritual.

By doing the same for fungi, LYKYN and Shrooly are tapping into the desire for health, freshness and food security. But the products' appeal extends beyond mere nutrition. Since mushroom cultivation is slow, visible and a little magical, consumers will likely be as drawn to the process — and the satisfaction of growing their own food — as to the final harvest.

Bangkok's commuters are taking an unexpected pause in their daily rush. Frasers Property Thailand has transformed the 43-meter MITR Direct Link Tunnel into MasterPeace Pain-ting, a giant coloring book in the form of a sprawling mural by artist Tent Katchakul that passersby can color in. The initiative, running through 20 September 2025, invites residents to grab a marker and add color to illustrations of iconic Bangkok landmarks, turning a functional walkway into what the company calls a "feel-good space."

The project represents a shift in how property developers position themselves within urban ecosystems. Rather than simply constructing buildings, Frasers Property Thailand is partnering with Bangkok's Metropolitan Authority and transport officials to address the stress of city living through community engagement. By embedding creative expression into public transit infrastructure, the company demonstrates how brands can become facilitators of shared experiences rather than merely providing shared spaces.

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Urban residents are looking for more than efficiency from their cities — they want moments that soften the grind. By reframing transit corridors, plazas and waiting areas as sites for shared expression, brands can create everyday rituals that satisfy both the need for calm and the craving for connection.

The coloring tunnel's appeal is two-fold: it offers people a creative pause while also inviting them to contribute alongside strangers — a form of gentle social interaction that feels increasingly rare. For brands, the opportunity lies in identifying overlooked public spaces where collaborative creativity can address both individual wellbeing and a longing for connection, turning routine interactions into moments of meaning.

ASICS is taking a new approach to keeping girls engaged in physical education with its Undropped Kit, a reimagined physical education uniform designed to address comfort issues that contribute to 64% of UK girls abandoning sports before age 16. Working alongside Inclusive Sportswear and mental health charity Mind, ASICS conducted extensive research through focus groups, surveys and a school trial in Burnley, where PE engagement is just 38.2%. Their study revealed that 70% of girls would be more likely to participate in PE if their kit made them feel more comfortable, and only 12% are completely satisfied with their current uniforms.

The Undropped Kit concept tackles this issue head-on with sportswear that accommodates different body shapes, weather conditions and personal styles (and even includes an emergency hair tie). While not available for purchase, the prototype serves as a powerful demonstration of how thoughtful design can eliminate distractions and discomfort during physical activity. "With this new kit, you're not thinking about what you're wearing, you're just thinking about having fun and enjoying the sport you're doing," explains Tilly Taylor, a school ambassador for the initiative.

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"Our kit is itchy, see-through and makes you really sweaty." "We worry period leaks will show." "Our kit is baggy and shapeless. It feels like it was made for boys." Teen girls aren't dropping out because they don't like sports. They're dropping out because kit makes them feel exposed, uncomfortable, or "different." By reframing gym clothes as confidence-enablers, ASICS taps into a wider consumer desire for apparel that’s not only functional, but emotionally supportive (think: period-proof underwear, adaptive fashion, modest swimwear).

The link between physical activity and mental wellbeing is well-established, yet barriers to participation often go unaddressed. ASICS is zooming in on the fragile transition years when teenage girls often disengage. That shift puts the focus on keeping girls in the game, not just celebrating star athletes who rise to the top. As sportswear brands navigate the intersection of physical and mental health, expect more companies to recognize that groundbreaking design isn't limited to performance enhancement, but could start with removing barriers to participation.

MIT students Jacob Payne and Ayah Mahmoud have developed Kitchen Cosmo, a kitchen gadget that transforms cooking from rigid recipe-following into collaborative improvisation based on whatever ingredients someone has on hand. A webcam scans the available items, dials allow a cook to indicate their mood and skill level, and analog switches can be flipped to set dietary preferences. 

Kitchen Cosmo combines those inputs to generate personalized recipes and send them to its thermal printer, creating a tactile, screenless interaction that feels more like consulting a knowledgeable kitchen companion than operating a digital device. The prototype's retro-futuristic aesthetic evokes an earlier era of computing, complete with analog dials and paper printouts that make AI's contributions visible and tangible. 

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As AI becomes ubiquitous, designers are exploring more intimate and tactile ways for people to interact with machine intelligence. Kitchen Cosmo exemplifies that shift with its helpful household presence. Rather than providing abstract cloud-based assistance, the appliance domesticates artificial intelligence, transforming it into something human-sized and approachable.

This suggests a new category of AI-powered analog appliances that help people feel both futuristic and grounded. Beyond cooking, one could imagine screenless AI sewing machines, gardening assistants or even music tutors. The key is a blend of tactility and AI intelligence, with a dash of charm and delight.

Pinterest just launched Thrift Shop, a dedicated set of boards on Pinterest Shop. The curated, shoppable boards offer a new way for users to discover and purchase vintage and secondhand items. Running through September 26th, the initiative sees Pinterest partnering with over 30 vintage retailers globally. Boards feature curated drops from industry tastemakers and Pinterest offers tools like collage templates that help users create thrift wishlists, bridging the gap between online inspiration and both digital and in-person shopping.

The timing aligns with Pinterest's 2025 Fall Trend Report, which shows surging searches for terms like "dream thrift finds" and "vintage autumn aesthetic," especially among Gen Z, who now make up over 50% of Pinterest's users. Pinterest is essentially formalizing what users were already doing organically — using the platform to find inspiration, plan purchases and curate personal style through preloved pieces.

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Gen Z is tired of the “TikTok-ification” of fashion, where trends collapse into sameness. By curating thrift and vintage finds, Pinterest positions itself as the antidote: a platform where style is anchored in scarcity and story. Buying thrift is as much about identity as affordability and sustainability. Every piece is a narrative artifact, making shoppers feel like co-creators instead of mere consumers.

Expect those shoppers to start asking mainstream brands: why should I buy new when preloved is more original, more sustainable and often more stylish? As people increasingly seek unique pieces, brands that can authentically connect to that desire for surprise and self-expression will find themselves ahead of a curve that shows no signs of flattening.

A comprehensive modeling study published in Earth reveals the staggering scope of humanity's disconnection from nature. Having tracked the evolution of "nature connectedness" from 1800 to 2020, researchers find that restoring humanity's relationship with nature isn't simply about planting more trees and creating more parks.

KEY FINDINGS

🏢 Massive decline: Nature connectedness dropped approximately 60% since 1800, closely tracking urbanization rates that increased from 7.3% to 82.7% of the population
⛓️‍💥 Disconnection across generations: Parents' relationship with nature emerged as the strongest predictor of their children's connection (80% weighting), creating a self-reinforcing cycle
🧒 Intergenerational payoff: Because disconnection is handed down through families, early childhood interventions are disproportionately impactful; they ripple through society over multiple generations
💪 Recovery requires transformation: Only the most ambitious combined interventions — radical increases in nature access paired with targeted family-based programs — will trigger self-sustaining recovery after 2050

OPPORTUNITIES FOR BRANDS: FOUR ROUTES TO PURSUE

If society fails to act, disconnection from nature could undermine sustainability and mental health for the rest of the century. But if organizations invest in systemic interventions now, they can trigger a self-sustaining cultural recovery. Corporate programs act as cultural multipliers: strengthening parents' connection, and giving them confidence to help their children engage with nature.

🌳 1. Green the workplace
— Biophilic design: natural light, plants, green walls, outdoor workspaces
— Dedicated green breaks: encourage short daily outdoor time, not just lunch breaks
— Company policy: buildings must include green spaces (think rooftop gardens, courtyards), preferably also accessible to the general public

📄 2. Integrate nature engagement into benefits packages
— Nature days: extra paid leave for outdoor volunteering or family time
— Subsidized memberships: national parks, urban farms, wildlife trusts
— Green prescriptions: walk-and-talk therapy, mindfulness in parks, forest bathing

👭 3. Family nature transmission
— Family-focused weekend events, for example "Nature Discovery Days" for employees and their children
— Parent workshops on nurturing children's nature connectedness
— Partner with schools: sponsor outdoor classrooms or nature play areas

🏅 4. Cultural storytelling
— Internal communications highlight employees' nature experiences, making nature engagement visible and valued
— Annual nature-at-work awards  recognizing teams or individuals for innovative engagement with nature
— Tie company values to stewardship: "our sustainability goals begin with connecting people to the nature we depend on"