Signals

UK – Ikea is teasing a forthcoming urban farming project that encourages individuals in cities to grow their own food.

Building on Ikea’s previous urban gardening products, the homeware brand is developing a line of gardening tools with British designer Tom Dixon that will be available in Ikea stores globally in 2021. In the interim, Dixon will present an experimental model for growing plants in urban environments at the annual RHS Chelsea Flower Shower in London in May 2019.

The installation, which aims to explore the difference between natural and technology-driven approaches to urban farming, will consist of a split-level garden. The lower garden will be a horticultural laboratory while the upper level will feature an ecosystem of trees and plants chosen for their medicinal and health properties.

For more on the emerging role of next-gen urban farming in our diets, read our food and drink macrotrend, Uprooted Diets.

US – The company’s futures division has announced the launch of Backyard, a project that will use Airbnb insight to design and build homes.

Backyard explores how buildings could utilise sophisticated manufacturing techniques, smart-home technology and insight from the Airbnb community in order to respond to the changing occupant over time. Airbnb’s innovation lab, Samara, will start testing prototypes in autumn 2019.

While many of today’s houses are built to hold one family for a number of years, Samara is investigating how buildings can become more versatile to allow for the various co-living arrangements of the near future. ‘Simply put, nothing addressed long-term adaptability from a systemic perspective,’ says project lead Fedor Novikov. The team are also looking into eco-friendly construction and fully prefabricated homes.

With deep understanding of the ways hosts modify their homes to accommodate guests, Airbnb is well placed to become a Brandlord. Last year, the company launched its own apartment block in Florida.

China’s beauty consumers are experiencing ‘hair wash phobia’, according to Mintel. While they are washing their hair less than ever, the majority still only wash their hair every two to three days, mainly because they believe that frequent washing will result in damage to its health, such as hair loss.

However, this mindset provides an opportunity for brands to educate Chinese consumers on the best practices of haircare, including how seasons and humidity affect hair washing and the normal amount of hair loss they can expect to experience. Mintel also suggests that brands consider dry shampoo as a potential subcategory to promote, as it targets haircare between washes. Currently, dry shampoo is only targeted at new mothers, who, by Chinese tradition, are not allowed to wash their hair for 42 days after giving birth.

At this year’s Indie Beauty Expo, Innersense disrupted the dry shampoo category with the launch of an all-natural and sustainable alternative to aerosol sprays.