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JD Sports hands the camera to its community

Where Are You Going?, JD Sports Christmas 2025 campaign by Uncommon Creative Studio, Global

Global – JD Sports has flipped the creative script for its seasonal campaign ‘Where Are You Going?’ by putting cameras in the hands of its audience.

Hundreds of 16–25-year-olds in cities including London, Berlin, Paris, Tokyo and Naples were invited to shoot activities such as skateboarding and music sessions, to capture street style and talk about their personal aspirations. The mobile phone footage was edited into a documentary-style film that shows authentic youth perspectives.

The campaign, by Uncommon Creative Studio, shifts the brand’s creative model. By handing authorship to its audience, JD Sports positions itself less as a broadcaster and more as a platform for peer-led voices. Mobile phones, which are tools and mediums, facilitate everyday moments to form the story.

The project reflects a broader cultural shift in which younger consumers expect to see themselves reflected and involved. Co-creation is no longer just a creative tactic, it’s a way for brands to behave as enablers of culture and to tap into lived experiences that traditional advertising cannot replicate.

For more, read our Collaboration Culture report.

Strategic opportunity:

Empower consumers and creators to shape narratives alongside the brand, not just consume them. Treat campaigns as evolving story arcs which are layered with multiple perspectives, reactions and reinterpretations

MrBeast to open immersive theme park in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia – Content creator MrBeast, known for his viral YouTube challenges, is turning his virtual universe into a real-world destination as he prepares to open Beast Land, a temporary theme park in Riyadh.

Running from 13–27 November 2025 and spanning an estimated 200,000 sqaure metres near Boulevard Riyadh City, the attraction will host more than 15 motion-based rides, 12 immersive experiences and around 40 branded restaurants and shops – all designed to replicate the creator’s challenge-style gameplay at scale.

The project forms part of Riyadh Season, the city’s annual entertainment programme which was launched in 2019 to support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. Positioning Beast Land as a flagship attraction aims to draw both local and global visitors.

Tickets for Beast Land range from £5.33 ($7, €6) for basic entry to £50 ($66, €57) for the full experience, making the park accessible and showing how creator IP increasingly competes with – and disrupts – traditional entertainment brands.

Despite his popularity, however, MrBeast has faced controversy and criticism for the safety of his challenges and his alleged behaviour towards members of his team in recent times – underscoring how influencer-led brands face growing scrutiny as they scale globally.

For more on how content creators are evolving into multimedia powerhouses by building immersive IP ecosystems, retail ventures and employee-driven content to secure longevity, see our The New Creatorverse report.

Beast Land, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Strategic opportunity

Partner with creators to turn digital content into real-world experiences such as theme parks, pop-ups or live podcast recordings, creating multiple engagement touchpoints and tapping into consumer demand for immersive, IRL experiences

Stat: Dupes become luxury’s unexpected growth driver

Dior Gold House, photography by Goose Studio, Bangkok, Thailand,

Global – Dupes are reshaping how affluent consumers engage with luxury, according to research by Havas Media, which surveyed people in the UK, US, China and other Asian countries, all of whom had an annual personal income of at least £250,000 ($330,000, €280,000) and/or liquid assets worth more than £1m ($1.3m, €1.1m).

The rise of AI-generated imagery and convincing counterfeits is driving an appreciation for authenticity, the study finds. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of high-net-worth shoppers say it’s now too easy to accidentally buy fake goods online, and 40% are ready to switch brands because of copycat concerns. Many respondents (40%) prioritise in-store experiences where they can verify the quality of items first-hand.

Globally, more than a third (37%) are buying from resale platforms, rising to 53% in the UK. Interest in exclusive experiences is surging, with demand for private shopping and concierge services growing by 45% in the last year.

‘Brands that put verification at the heart of storytelling will retain both trust and commercial value,’ says Cherry Collins, strategy partner at Havas Media UK. This echoes analysis in our Luxury Recrafted report, where we explored how consumers now expect luxury brands to act as guardians of craftsmanship and provenance.

Strategic opportunity

Build consumer trust through proof-based storytelling – foreground verification, provenance and craftsmanship to strengthen brand reliability at a time of authenticity anxiety