Signals

Global – Renowned Spanish luxury brand Loewe has launched its first-ever quarterly magazine, Loewe: Issue 1, available free in-store since December 2023.

Creative director Jonathan Anderson’s vision comes to life in this fanzine, where glossy pages editorialise the brand’s aesthetic through captivating photos, celebrity interviews and profiles. The inaugural issue spotlights American artist Lynda Benglis, known for collaborating on the spring/summer 2024 fashion show and co-branding a jewellery collection with Loewe. In addition, interviews with celebrities like K-pop sensation Taeyong (from the boy band NCT) further enhance the magazine’s appeal, especially among the South Korean star’s global fan base.

Functioning as both a collector’s item and a tool to drive customers to physical stores, Loewe: Issue 1 aligns with a trend among luxury brands, emphasising the enduring appeal of print media in an era of digital dominance. This move follows Loewe’s previous foray into print with Eye/Loewe/You magazine launched in 2018.

In Brand Innovation Debrief: Loewe, we take a closer look at how the label, crowned the hottest fashion brand in 2023, is using craftsmanship for longevity and relevance across generations.

UK – Almost half of British teenagers are addicted to social media, according to early findings from a University of Cambridge paper analysing data from the Millennium Cohort Study. After surveying 7,022 teens aged 17 between January 2018 and March 2019, researchers from Cambridge found that 48% agreed or strongly agreed with the statement: ‘I think I am addicted to social media.’

The study, not yet peer-reviewed, also highlighted a higher proportion of girls (57%) expressing addiction compared to boys (37%). ‘It could be that, for some, their relationship with social media is akin to a behavioural addiction,’ said Cambridge graduate student Georgia Turner, who led the research. She emphasised that feeling addicted doesn’t necessarily mean clinical addiction, as individuals have diverse relationships with social media, from compulsive checking to coping mechanisms.

The findings contribute to the ongoing discussion about the impact of social media on mental health and the responsibilities that big platforms like Meta, TikTok and X have with regard to their users’ toxic dependence on them. To read more about evolving consumer behaviour related to social media, head over to our analysis of The Rise of the Expert Influencer.