LSN : News : Need to know 31 : 07 : 17

1. Amazon’s The Hub makes delivery more convenient

The Hub by Amazon

US – The mega-system has unveiled a range of lockers designed to be installed in multi-tenant residencies. The secure storage system, The Hub, enables couriers to leave bulky packages for residents to pick up at their convenience.

To make it more desirable for developers, parcels from any supplier can be delivered, rather than just those from Amazon or its affiliates.

While Amazon lockers are not a new concept, the move to instal them in apartment blocks gives the e-commerce company a branded space in people’s homes while also helping to streamline delivery to the final destination, and offering a competitive edge over rivals such as Walmart.

2. Vetements fills shop window with old clothes

Vetements window at Saks Fifth Avenue, New York

New York – The apparel company’s new window display for Saks Fifth Avenue comprises second-hand garments donated by Saks employees, as well as out-of-stock merchandise.

Conceived by Vetements founders Guram and Demna Gvasalia, the department store display will be in-situ until 10 August. After that all of the clothing will be donated to RewearABLE, a sustainably minded non-profit-making organisation that employs adults with learning and developmental disabilities to sort and repurpose old clothing to be sold either as is or recycled as new products.

The Instagram-friendly window display has already gained widespread attention, helping to elevate the idea of recycling from drab to desirable and promote more Whole-system Thinking.

3. Three Square Market gives employees microchips

Wisconsin – The technology company is giving workers across the company the opportunity to have a microchip implanted into their hand.

Volunteers receive a Radio Frequency Identification chip, manufactured by Swedish company Biohax, that will let them perform everyday tasks such as buy snacks, open doors, log on to their computers and use the photocopying machine.

Three Square Market, which produces micro-markets – technology-enabled self-service convenience stores – also envisages that in the future, as uptake of the chip spreads, it could be used as a form of identification or in place of travel cards and bank cards.

Chip implant by Biohax International

4. Even’s H2 headphones adapt to individual hearing

Even H2 headphones

Israel – The audio start-up has created headphones capable of optimising sound for every individual. Users complete a short audio test to determine the frequencies they can hear in each ear, dubbed by the brand as an Earprint. The headphones then balance the frequency and volume of sound to reflect the person’s Earpint.

‘People’s hearing is unique and asymmetrical,’ founder Danny Aranson told Digital Trends. ‘Not a one-size-fits-all proposition.’

As technology becomes more entwined in everyday life, brands such as Even and Doppler Labs are creating adaptive hearables – wearables worn in the ear – that personalise and optimise the listening experience.

5. Uninspiring work spaces stifle creativity

As identified in The Focus Filter brands need to address their working environments to ensure that they are encouraging creativity in the workplace rather than suppressing it. A new study of 1,100 British workers by Microsoft Surface found that while 73% of respondents identified as creative, modern work spaces are often too uninspiring with too few focus-designated areas to inspire their best work.

6. Thought-starter: The art of adulting is complicated

As the term adulting enters the mainstream lexicon, brands are adapting their marketing strategies to reflect changes to what it means to be an adult nowadays.

The mainstream media regularly charts the rise of Millennial experiential spending and the subsequent decline in product-based purchases, but figures suggest that this demographic is still very much interested in luxury commodities.

While growing up during the financial crisis has set them back compared to previous generations, Millennials still aspire to the traditional indicators of success – 75% of Millennials that don’t already own a car would like to in the future. But they want brands to recognise that being an adult nowadays is complicated.

Pioneering brands are creating a connection with their Millennial audience by adopting a more nuanced narrative approach to advertising that better reflects the complexities of modern life – a life in which diamonds are not just for ring fingers and fast cars are more than just a status symbol.

For more on how to speak to the modern luxury consumer, see our Adulting Ads microtrend.