TrendWatching | MakeShift

Edition #8 | Your weekly inspiration fix • 20 - 27 July 2023

INSIGHT

Iceland’s CEO risks legal action over affordability initiative

Richard Walker, the CEO of UK supermarket chain Iceland, is standing by his choice to slash the price of baby formula despite threats of legal action. Rather than cave to pressures, the brand hopes to reform UK law by highlighting how the cost-of-living crisis is affecting parents. Like Iceland, Dove and Sainsbury’s, will you stand by consumers and fight for what’s right? Especially when times get tough.

Trend behind the insight: LEGISLATIVE BRANDS

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INNOVATION

🇺🇸 Fast food chain installs AI to take bilingual drive-thru orders

When pulling up to the drive-thru terminal at Checkers, Spanish speakers no longer have to switch to English to order their burgers and fries. The US fast food chain automatically recognizes whether a customer… read more

INNOVATION

🇧🇷 Boosting female driving in Brazil, Chevrolet pays for women to get their license

Just 35% of valid Brazilian driver's licenses are held by women. A leading cause of the gender disparity? Financial constraints. To address that economic barrier, Chevrolet Brasil is supporting the Instituto Plano de Menina to… read more

INNOVATION

🇬🇧 Sunny day, strong breeze? Octopus Energy offers customers free green power

British renewable energy group Octopus Energy is rolling out a new initiative: it's offering households free electricity when too much renewable energy is produced. Historically, electricity grids worked with controllable… read more

TREND UPDATE

SYNCHRONOS: Brands help consumers get offline and into the real world

Earlier this month, China's internet regulators proposed a daily limit of two hours for children's smartphone screen time – reflecting global concerns around the impact of excessive device usage. The UN is calling on countries worldwide to prohibit smartphones in schools, while some governments have banned certain apps (yep, TikTok) altogether.

But not everyone wants to stop scrolling: more than 50% of all groups cited self-expression and social connectivity as positive effects of social media. There’s an opportunity for platforms and brands using these channels to develop tools and campaigns that help people use social media more mindfully. To use it as a tool that complements their day-to-day life but doesn’t replace it; something that helps them remember the special moments, but doesn’t distract them from the actual experience.

How can you help people get their on and offline lives in SYNC?

INSIGHT

Brands fight back against post-COVID revenge tourism

The surge in post-COVID tourism has brought with it a series of challenges. From sunbed protests in Greece to overbearing tourists in crisis-stricken Maui, vandalists in Italy and reckless behavior in Bali. Regrettably, this surge has come at the cost of local communities’ quality of life. And if left unregulated, risks pricing locals out of their neighborhoods.

In response, cities worldwide have implemented various anti-overtourism measures, including tourist taxes, warnings, green fees and visitor quotas.

While brands alone can’t entirely reshape tourist behavior, they can lend support to local communities and alleviate the strains experienced by overburdened destinations. Can you help travelers make better choices by promoting purposeful travel, highlighting off-radar spots or encouraging rural tourism?

Discover over 25 recent SYNCHRONOS innovations

THOUGHT STARTER

Museum faces backlash amid stolen treasure controversy

The British Museum has dismissed a member of its staff following reports that over 1,500 artifacts were “missing, stolen or damaged”. People wasted no time pointing out the irony in the situation, underlining the colonial backdrop of these very acquisitions…

INDUSTRY TAKE

Balancing innovation with privacy in the auto industry

Earlier this month, the California Privacy Protection Agency revealed its intent to assess data privacy in connected cars: how car companies collect and use the data that they gather. As car makers transform into tech powerhouses, the integration of smart devices raises new concerns around the use, and potential abuse, of location and user data.

Consumers have mixed feelings. A recent global mobility survey by S&P Global found that while 37% of respondents expressed concerns about data and security issues in connected vehicles, 74% were willing to exchange their data for free services, with Gen Z and Millennials being the most (80%) likely.

Is it time to rethink your brand’s approach to consumer data? Consider providing personalized rewards for data sharing or options for monetization.

INSIGHT

Are you hiring a Chief Travel Officer?

In-person meetings are back in the spotlight, propelling the resurgence of business travel across the globe, from India to Australia to China and the US. This development comes hot on the heels of Mastercard’s 2023 Navigating Global Business Travel Report which has identified a few key tipping points:

👔 CTO on the Rise: 85% of leaders foresee a 'Chief Travel Officer' guiding business travel changes
🚀 Travel Surge Ahead: 90% expect a business travel boom in the next decade
🌿 Green Focus: 90% of executives plan to prioritize the environment and embrace sustainable travel practices

As business travel evolves, so do brand offerings in the form of flight subscriptions, clothing rental and remote work-friendly residences. How is your company pioneering more flexible travel solutions?

INNOVATION

🇩🇰 LEGO rolls out bricks designed to help visually impaired kids learn braille

A few years ago, the toy manufacturer launched special bricks to help children aged 6+ learn braille. There was one catch: LEGO Braille Bricks were only available to educational institutes. But… read more

INNOVATION

🇦🇺 Gently rotating, solar-powered benches by ENESS prompt city-dwellers to slow down

In a park, round and pastel-colored benches slowly rotate. Seated on them, people are treated to a gradually shifting perspective. Feet are dangling if they're short or repositioning on the ground if they're taller. An… read more

Talk to us

Be sure to ping our editor, Galina Yordanov, if you're working on something we should feature on MakeShift.

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