LSN : News : 11 : 06 : 25

Mud is rewilding the pet grooming industry

Mud, London

UK – London-based start-up Mud™ is making a clean break from the polished pet aesthetic dominating the market. Born out of frustration with the lack of dog-first, natural care products, the brand is already a 2025 D&AD Award winner thanks to its debut product, The Everyday Wash for Dirty Dogs.

‘There’s this whole world of spotless, well-behaved, highly aesthetic dogs on social media,’ says co-founder Angelina Pischikova. ‘But that’s not what real dogs are like. They roll in dead things, eat trash and lick your face right after. We made a product for them.’

Plant-based, unscented and pH-balanced, the formula is tuned to dogs’ 300m scent receptors – a deliberate rejection of perfumed, humanised grooming products.

Packaging follows suit, with a squishy, fully recyclable nozzle, thermal ink and a reactive logo that expands or contracts based on local weather data.

The campaign imagery reinforces Mud’s mission to rewild the pet industry by rejecting typical polished visuals. Instead of bright, cheerful pet photos, it opts for restrained black and white shots, stripped back and raw. Blurred visuals and messy splatters evoke natural chaos, creating a tactile, imperfect aesthetic that mirrors the brand’s celebration of dogs’ instinctiual, unfiltered lives.

Mud™ signals a new era of instinct-led, animal-first branding for the pet industry. Discover how the pet market is evolving in our Six Pet Market Trends to Watch in 2025 report.

Strategic opportunity

Move beyond polished petcare narratives and develop products, experiences and campaigns that embrace the messy, instinctual reality of animal life. Prioritise practicality, natural care and sensory-led design over human-centric polish

Zara launches travel mode feature to enhance customer experience

Zara Store Mode, UK

Zara pop-up at Westfield Stratford, London

Spain – Zara, the flagship brand of Inditex, has unveiled a new travel mode feature in its mobile app, aimed at enriching the customer experience during travel. This feature, now accessible through geolocation in the user’s selected market, offers curated travel content, including guides, tips and recommendations for destinations such as Italy, the UK and Japan.

Enabled users can explore local attractions, share travel memories, locate nearby Zara stores and make online purchases directly within those markets. Notably, the travel mode operates even without internet access, ensuring consistent usability while on the go.

Zara’s new feature is a key part of its omnichannel strategy, reflecting the brand’s commitment to merging digital and physical retail experiences. As of the end of 2024, Zara operated 1,759 retail locations worldwide, achieving a 6.6% sales increase in fiscal year 2024 to reach £23.5bn ($30.9bn, €27.8bn) (source: Fashion Network).

In our TikTok Travel Agents and The Future of Travel Publishing reports, we analyse how, in order to increase engagement with travellers, brands must become tourism taste-makers akin to tour operators and travel guides.

Strategic opportunity

Think about how your brand could transform into a source of recommendations, advice and insights through a strong content strategy that prioritises taste-making and expertise

Stat: Europe enjoys tourism boom amid fall in international visitors to US

Six Senses, Ibiza, Spain

Europe – Europe is on track for a record-breaking year in tourism, with international visitor spending expected to rise 11% in 2025 to reach £620bn ($838bn, €734bn), according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). France and Spain are set to lead the surge.

The WTTC attributes part of this shift to a forecast 7% drop in international visits to the US. CEO Julia Simpson said: ‘Canadian and Mexican travellers may choose other destinations in response to President Donald Trump’s trade and migration policies,’ adding that the strong US dollar is also discouraging inbound travel.

Spain alone is projected to welcome up to 100m international arrivals in 2025, with tourist spending expected to rise by 6% to £94.6bn ($127.7bn, €111.8bn) year on year. The sector’s contribution to Spain’s GDP could hit £220.4bn ($297bn, €260.5bn), almost 16% of the national economy.

‘Spain remains a true global tourism powerhouse,’ said Simpson. ‘The data reflects a dynamic, resilient and constantly evolving sector.’

While Spain is set to enjoy strong growth, France is expected to continue attracting a higher number of travellers.

Read our Arabian Travel Market 2025 event recap to meet the travellers of tomorrow and understand the top trends defining the travel and hospitality sector in the coming years.

Strategic opportunity

Position your brand in high-footfall tourist destinations such as France and Spain with seasonal pop-ups or retail residencies that capitalise on peak travel surges and tap into travellers’ appetite for discovery