Daily Signals 19.03.2020

Signals

A platform to combat self-isolation loneliness, Frank Chou designs a lamp for everyday sterilisation and men’s activewear is on the rise.

Guide Beauty enhances the usability of make-up

Guide Beauty, US Guide Beauty, US
Guide Beauty, US Guide Beauty, US
Guide Beauty, US Guide Beauty, US

US – Guide Beauty is an adaptive make-up brand designed for people with Parkinson’s disease.

The brand has been launched with four products: an eyebrow gel, mascara, potted gel eyeliner and an eyeliner tool, all developed with ergonomic experts to ensure easy application. To make the products easier to use for differently abled consumers, grip-applicators act as a finger rest to provide a steadier and more controlled application.

Guide Beauty also offers an online tutorial library, making it easier for buyers to achieve make-up looks. The brand was founded by make-up artist Terri Bryant after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. ‘It wasn’t just my livelihood, but it was my creative outlet and the way that I’ve connected with women and men over the years, I didn’t want to let it go,' she tells Allure.

Differently abled consumers have been long overlooked by the beauty industry. However, new brands like Guide are encouraging the sector to adapt to consumers’ diverse needs. For more, read Adaptive Beauty.

Covid-19: A platform to combat quarantine loneliness

Excellent Quarantine Ideas by Rifke Sadleir Excellent Quarantine Ideas by Rifke Sadleir
Excellent Quarantine Ideas by Rifke Sadleir Excellent Quarantine Ideas by Rifke Sadleir

Global – Excellent Quarantine Ideas is a website dedicated to documenting inspiration and advice for self-isolation.

The platform was created with the aim of encouraging optimism and a community spirit among those social-distancing around the world, as well as to combat the difficulties associated with loneliness and uncertainty.

With ideas such as ‘find your worst (selfie) angle’ and ‘become a motion designer’, the site provides users with links and resources that take a more light-hearted approach to dealing with the pandemic. Launched by a freelancer used to working from home and staying indoors for long periods, the site also accepts user-generated content through anonymous submissions.

As we explore in Mood Retail, brands that provide content to suit a variety of emotions are likely to gain traction among audiences seeking serendipity and inspiration.

Covid-19: A sterilisation lamp designed for the home

China – Frank Chou hopes the lamp will fight the spread of bacteria on everyday items such as phones, keys and wallets.

The sterilisation lamp uses an ultraviolet (UV) light, and is designed to be kept by the entrance to a user’s home, where people can place common objects such as keys. Created in response to the rapid spread of Covid-19, the product is activated as users apply pressure to the body of the lamp, concealing the items for 60 seconds as it sterilises them.

Chou hopes the ‘unconscious design’ of the lamp, created to be both functional and aesthetically pleasing, will help the product blend into the home and become part of people’s daily routines. The lamp provides an easier alternative to conscious disinfection methods.

As consumers find themselves navigating a world of uncertainty, brands are stepping in to create everyday solutions for an increasingly Dislocated World.

Frank Chou, China Frank Chou, China

Stat: Men’s activewear overtakes women’s sales

According to a study by the NPD Group, women’s activewear sales in the US remained flat in 2019 compared with the previous year, while the men’s market grew by 2%. For a third consecutive year, men’s sales grew at a faster rate than women’s – with the market as a whole generating £42.7bn ($50.3bn, €46.4bn).

Matt Powell, vice-president and senior industry adviser at the NPD Group, says: ‘The women’s athletic apparel market remains the sports industry’s greatest failure, yet its biggest opportunity.’ Despite women’s growing presence in sports overall – the percentage of female athletes set to compete in the Tokyo Olympic Games is 49%, according to the International Olympic Committee – the apparel market still lacks the same momentum as menswear.

As the men’s activewear market grows, communications are changing to reflect modern attitudes towards strength and masculinity.

Previous Daily Signals Articles
Netflix’s Famous Last Words signals a new era of digital legacy

Daily Signals

Netflix’s Famous Last Words signals a new era of digital legacy

Dr Jane Goodall, the renowned ethologist and conservationist passed away this week. An interview she recorded for Netflix’s new series Famous Last ...
Technology : Legacy : Longevity
Foresight Friday: Seyi Oduwole, foresight analyst

Daily Signals

Foresight Friday: Seyi Oduwole, foresight analyst

Every Friday, we offer an end-of-week wrap-up of the topics, issues, ideas and virals we’re all talking about. This week, foresight analyst Seyi Od...
Foresight Friday : Content Creation : Media
Stat: Americans’ trust in media declines to record low

Daily Signals

Stat: Americans’ trust in media declines to record low

Media : Trust : Consumer Behaviour
London welcomes the world’s first Museum of Youth Culture

Daily Signals

London welcomes the world’s first Museum of Youth Culture

The world’s first permanent museum dedicated to youth culture is set to open in Camden, London, in December 2025.
Youth : Culture : Museum
Swedish insurer hacks social media algorithms with mental health anthem

Daily Signals

Swedish insurer hacks social media algorithms with mental health anthem

Swedish insurer Länsförsäkringar Göteborg och Bohuslän has launched Detoxify, a subversive campaign that uses music to retrain harmful social media...
Sweden : Social Media : Algorithms
Stat: Gen Z shuns the values most desired by hiring managers

Daily Signals

Stat: Gen Z shuns the values most desired by hiring managers

New research from behavioural-science company Becoming You Labs reveals that only a small fraction of American Gen Z hold the three main values tha...
Youth : Gen Z : Work
Stella McCartney debuts plant-based feathers at Paris Fashion Week

Daily Signals

Stella McCartney debuts plant-based feathers at Paris Fashion Week

At Paris Fashion Week, Stella McCartney unveiled a striking alternative to bird feathers: plant-based Fevvers.
Stella McCartney : Fevvers : Feathers
Pedestrians are walking faster and lingering less in public spaces

Daily Signals

Pedestrians are walking faster and lingering less in public spaces

Pedestrians in American cities are moving faster and spending less time lingering in public spaces, according to a new study from MIT’s Senseable C...
MIT : Wellness : Design
Stat: Taylor Swift’s new album movie breaks US box office

Daily Signals

Stat: Taylor Swift’s new album movie breaks US box office

Taylor Swift’s latest project, The Official Release Party of a Showgirl, turned a listening event into a box office hit, earning £24.6m ($33m, €28....
Pop Culture : Advertising : Media
Chanel’s le19M brings Parisian craftsmanship to Tokyo

Daily Signals

Chanel’s le19M brings Parisian craftsmanship to Tokyo

Chanel’s le19M has landed in Tokyo with La Galerie du 19M Tokyo, an exhibition that unites Parisian artisans and Japanese craftspeople in a celebra...
Luxury : Fashion : Design
You have 1 free News articles remaining. Sign up to LS:N Global to get unlimited access to all articles.
BECOME A MEMBER
SIGN IN