new.now.next | #9
Honestly, I’d been feeling a bit creatively disconnected — and made a lot of excuses not to write this, listing all the other things on my to-do list. But two hours in a café last weekend felt good. The sun was shining. Just what I needed. Here’s my latest roundup of the cool campaigns, brands and ideas that caught my eye -
new
Spooky Szn: Halloween has gone high-brow. From Audrey Gelman’s (founder of The Wing) First Come First Sleuth murder mystery weekends at Hotel The Six Bells to the Smashing Pumpkins “Goth Smoothie” moment with Erewhon and even Heinz (which I read about on The Brand Waves), we’re seeing brands lean into darker, cinematic aesthetics. It’s less pumpkin spice, more polished occult - moody supper clubs, and eerie-but-oddly chic experiences. Spooky is on the mood board - sensual, strange, and quietly self-aware.
Bait and belonging: the Fishwife snack bar is more than “just a pop-up”; it’s a perfectly cast line - product, partnerships and programming are all reeled together to create an effortlessly cool way to connect to the brand. Obsessed with all of the details - the creative, the location on the LES (although loved the WSJ take that uptown is the new downtown and the Upper East Side the new West Village - so expect pop-ups there soon; also, the JG Melon burger they mention is, I’m convinced, the best in NYC) the limited edition tote, the partnerships and the food. For a tinned seafood company, they are showing exactly how to build a brand - I’m hooked!
Other pop-ups on my radar: REFY Paper Shop and Damson Madder’s Kiosk for NYFW. Together, they show how brands are swimming in smaller ponds - choosing specific places and communities over blanket reach.
now
The Politics of Care: Care has become cultural currency. From Frida Mum’s raw postpartum statue outside the Lido Wing (still only 4% of statues in the UK are of women) to Cardi B × Bobbie’s campaign to fight feeding shame and support better rights for women returning to work in the US (read more here & side note love the creative execution of this campaign and all the elements - the hotline, the donation to relevant causes etc)Brands are moving away from the glossy, picture-perfect version of motherhood and towards something more human and messy. And care is no longer soft. It’s political, public and powerful - a statement about what (and who) deserves attention. PS I like following Kim, Chief Brand Officer of Bobbie on Linkedin.
Image: Cardi B x Bobbie
Creative Authenticity in the Age of AI: The J.Crew × Vans images looked like a dreamy ’90s catalogue - grainy, beautiful, nostalgic, aspirational - and then it turned out they were AI-generated (and initially uncredited). Blackbird Spyplane who broke the news called it “AI aura-cannibalism,” which is exactly why it jarred. This Vogue Business piece sums up where we’re at: “For now, it’s up to brands and creatives to figure out where human input ends and the AI output begins.” My takeaway from the article: the model is unemotional; it needs rules. AI forces brands to codify what’s usually gut feel - your brand codes. If you can’t articulate them, the output will feel off. That’s why having a clear brand and creative vision is going to be essential.
The Gap Hoodie turns 30: how does a product become an icon? A question swirling around my brain on my walk in the park this morning -perhaps one for another newsletter but there’s no doubt that the GAP hoodie is (to the point that I’ve actually misremembered that Marissa in the OC wore a GAP hoodie, but it wasn’t at all, it was her school hoodie)
Video: From TikTok @sibatable
Cosmic Crisp, Honeycrisp, Sweetango - and the Age of Branded Fruit: Anyone who knows me knows I’m obsessed with apples. The WSJ’s piece on Honeycrisp sent me straight to my favourite corner of the internet, AppleRankings.com. I’m firmly Team Cosmic Crisp, so I don’t endorse their 81 ranking — or this (very funny, very harsh) review:
The result? A beautiful-looking apple worthy of a Wes Anderson prop that could not live up to the lofty expectations set before it. With an above-average crunch, but below-average sweetness, this apple screams mediocrity. And as for that drop-dead gorgeous exterior? The debt is paid for such beauty with a thicker than expected skin that lingers like the disappointment of apple fans everywhere.
It’s a reminder that even apples are brands and compete on story: a name, a promise, distribution, myths. If only Cosmic Crisp would make it to Australia.
Cos: You’ve done it again! Cos x Le Kilt collab just arrived in my inbox - I’m almost wishing it was colder (I’m in Sydney) so I could justify the purchase! Stunning - effortlessly cool and the collection looks exquisite.
next
Trend: Keep in Touch: The letter is having a quiet comeback - online and off. From Letter Club, a new community-led newsletter platform reframing the inbox as a shared space, to the rise of snail-mail clubs and pen-pal projects, we’re seeing a renewed fascination with correspondence. And it’s chic.
It’s part nostalgia, part rebellion against brain rot. The act of writing - whether digitally or by hand - feels slower and more deliberate. For brands, this shift signals an appetite for communication that feels personal, not performative. Eg letter-style newsletters instead of sales emails, printed dispatches that arrive by mail, or even brand-to-consumer pen-pal programmes.
Is this the end of the sneaker era? Loved the Vogue Business take on the sneaker slump - a structural challenge for luxury, where trainers have been the entry point. We’re now in the ballet-flat/sneaker-hybrid era (not for me). If sneakers are going to feel essential again, brands need to go beyond hype to focus on real comfort innovation, craft, and the communities that actually wear them day to day — not another archive rerun. Honestly, we’re just bored of new colourway collabs.
I opened up a couple of office-hour 1:1s - if you’re thinking about a new market launch, building brand foundations, 2026 Marketing Strategy, partnerships or PR, book a slot here. Would love to chat.
Quick other things I’ve been consuming:
Books - I just finished
Seascraper by Benjamin Wood verdict: dark, moody, unexpected
Flesh by David Szalay verdict: tonnes of plot points, twists, turns.
Listening to:
Emma Grede’s podcast - Aspire - I loved this episode with her husband Jens Grede - he had a great perspective on life, anxiety and career.
The new Tame Impala album - Deadbeat- can’t stop listening!
My son’s new Bowie Yoto card - starting him early
Substacks:
I’m eagerly awaiting Jade Fox’s summer edit but in the meantime I loved this one and actually purchased the St Agni top
Slouching Towards Bethnal Green - I love the gas station edits.
Building Identity Capital - loved this piece
And this piece by Kate Citron - a newsletter I regularly make time to read!
Thanks so much for the mention! 🙏
Honored to be included in this, Holly! Unrelated but the murder mystery immersive weekend at The Six Bells sounds like a dream...I want a full report after from someone who attends!