LSN : News : Need to Know 09 : 03 : 18

1. Vans promotes female skateboarding in India

Girls Skate India, Vans

India – To mark International Women’s Day, streetwear brand Vans is helping to promote female empowerment in India with the release of Girls Skate India – an online series following female skateboarders – and the launch of 100 global skate clinics teaching women and girls how to board. The clinics will be held in major cities such as New York, Chicago, London, St Petersburg, Shanghai, Bangalore, São Paulo and Mexico City to encourage a global community of female skaters.

‘Vans is skateboarding, and we are committed to ensuring that anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to discover this unique form of creative expression,’ explains April Vitkus, senior director of Vans Global Brand Marketing. ‘We are hopeful that shining a light on skateboarding to girls and women will show how empowering it can be.’

See our Emerging Youth: India market for more on why the next generation of consumers are championing feminist-driven activism.

2. Skincare brand Dr Loretta tackles environmental irritants

Dr Loretta, US

US – Specialising in clinical research, dermatologist Dr Loretta Ciraldo wants to further educate consumers about environmental irritations to the skin with her new line. Launched under the name Dr Loretta, the brand focuses on targeting factors such as pollution, light, the climate and irritants through the use of ingredients including essential oils.

The products use a combination of antioxidants, natural ingredients and essential oils to help promote the formation of new collagen, correct damage caused by UV and HEV radiation, and reduce excessive oiliness caused by changes in the climate. While many brands use essential oils for their aroma, Dr Loretta emphasises their individual therapeutic properties which, when diluted, can improve skin health.

In our Sensitised Living market, we explore factors that have led to consumers becoming more sensitive around the application of product to the skin.

3. Interest in nightclubs declining among young travellers

Berlin – Youth and student travel organisation WYSE shared the results of its fourth New Horizons study with the crowd of ITB 2018.

The study, which surveyed 57,000 18-35-year-olds globally, reveals this segment’s attitudes towards booking sites, destinations and things to do.

Among the findings was the fact that the nightlife scene associated with young travellers is lessening. Between 2012 and 2017, those who said they would visit a nightclub while travelling fell from 39% to 35%.

Political turmoil is also having an effect on where these travellers are visiting. According to David Chapman, director of the WYSE Travel Confederation, anxiety about terrorism and political unrest is still prevalent. ‘While political and social unrest are not stopping young people from travelling, [these] issues have them thinking about where they are welcome,’ he said.

With 23% of international arrivals in 2017 aged between 18 and 35, and the average total spend up almost €500 to €3,440, the travel market for the age group is only getting more powerful as Generation Z come of age.

The Prada Double Club by Fondazione Prada and Carsten Höller, Miami

4. A database that promotes female entrepreneurship

Where Are The Boss Ladies? Instagram campaign

US – Where Are The Boss Ladies? is a new database that compiles female executives from across the advertising industry in one place. The crowdsourced passion project by freelance creative director Mara Lecocq lists details such as job title, location, agency and LinkedIn page, as well as allowing people to pay a compliment or reveal a cool fact about the women on the list.

‘I’ve always been super-passionate about bringing diversity to male-dominated industries, but I’m also a practical person,’ explained Lecocq. ‘So when I heard things over and over again such as ‘we can’t find any women’ I decided to find a solution.’

By collating all of the names in one place, Lecocq is helping to advocate female entrepreneurship and facilitate employees who would prefer to work under a female director.

See our Female Futures series for more insight on the evolving narratives on gender.

5. Overtourism has low impact on consumer enjoyment

While many cities around the world are suffering from overtourism, only 9% of international travellers feel that this has affected the quality of their trip. Tourists listed Shanghai (22%), Venice (20%), Beijing (19%) and Hong Kong (18%) as some of the most crowded destinations.

6. Thought-starter: How can brands use avatars to champion diversity?

In light of the backlash against celebrity photographer Cameron-James Wilson’s digital supermodel Shudu, which fetishises black female identity, Foresight writer Rhiannon McGregor asks how brands can employ avatars in a way that promotes diversity.

Rihanna’s beauty brand, Fenty Beauty, recently sparked an online furore with its reposting of model Shudu wearing its Saw-C lipsticks.

With more than 216,000 likes, the image of the striking, dark-skinned woman wearing a zingy shade of orange attracted significantly more likes than the average 50,000 likes typically received by the brand.

The image doesn’t look out of place on Fenty’s feed, a brand known for its extensive range of foundations and concealers created for ‘traditionally hard-to-match skin tones’, but if you click on Shudu’s own Instagram page it immediately becomes apparent what sets her apart from the rest of the models featured. ‘Shudu Gram – World’s First Digital Supermodel’ states the avatar’s Instagram biography.

Shudu’s creator positions her as an advocate for multiculturalism in the fashion industry, but without a black female designer behind her how can she represent anything more than a fetishisation of the black modelling industry?

Read the full Opinion here.