News 27.08.2019

Need to Know

Facebook offers advice on privacy settings, Inhabit Hotels ingrains wellness into every touch-point, and the UK is top for healthy packaged food.

Inhabit promotes mindful, ethical hospitality

Inhabit, London
Inhabit, London
Inhabit, London

London – The new hotel brand aims to align every aspect of its design and services with a holistic approach to wellness.

Set across six Georgian townhouses, Inhabit describes itself as London’s ‘first mindful hotel’. The concept looks to offer a restorative experience in the city, celebrating conscious hospitality with a range of sustainable, eco-friendly and ethical initiatives.

Throughout the hotel, Inhabit promotes a sense of wellbeing by maximising natural light and filtering pollution with air filtration systems from Airlabs. Its 89 bedroom feature ethical homewares, personal care products using sustainably sourced ingredients, and Casper’s eco-friendly VOC-free mattresses, which are made of natural organic materials such as wool and cotton. Its fitness facilities include Peleton indoor cycling and a Clearlight Infrared Sauna, as well as meditation pod where guests and visitors can enjoy five-to six-minute-long guided sessions.

In our Conscious Tourism Market, we explore some of the ways travel and hospitality brands are promoting sustainability.

Form’s augmented reality goggles improve swim training

Augmented reality goggles by Form Augmented reality goggles by Form
Augmented reality goggles by Form Augmented reality goggles by Form

Vancouver – The swimming goggles feature an augmented reality display that delivers performance metrics in real time.

Available for £162 ($199, €178), the FORM Swim Goggles were developed in collaboration with professional swimmers and athletes. The augmented reality display is integrated into the lens of the googles, providing an unobtrusive view of key metrics, while the in-built computer uses artificial intelligence to track and display metrics like split times, distance, stroke rate and stroke count.

Rather than targeting professional athletes, the wearable device aims to make the training experiecing smarter and more engaging for swimmers of all levels. ‘Even if you’re not a high-level swimmer, Form makes swimming much more engaging and just plain fun,’ says Scott Dickens, director of strategic partnerships at Form. ‘You always know exactly what you’re doing, and you’re able to compete with yourself while you swim.’

Performance technology is growing up, with consumer wearables such as Form embedding technology that would typically be targeted at professionals.

Facebook’s cafés will offer personalised privacy check-ups

UK – The social media company is opening five pop-up cafés across the UK, which will offer visitors advice on personalising privacy settings.

Opening in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Brighton and Cardiff between 28 August and 5 September, the branded Facebook Cafés will act as temporary advice centres. They will be located within existing coffee shops, providing visitors with a privacy check-up as well as a free cup of coffee or tea.

According to Facebook, many social media users do not know how to customise their privacy settings, but the company hopes that the spaces will serve to improve general understanding. ‘At our pop-up cafés you can get help and advice on how to change your privacy settings – and all in the time it takes to make a cup of coffee,’ says Steve Hatch, vice president of Facebook northern Europe.

With consumers growing increasingly distrustful of Facebook over its use of their data, the pop-up cafes represent the company’s ongoing efforts to redeem itself in the eyes of the public. For more, read our Morality Recoded macrotrend.

Facebook cafe, UK

Stat: British packaged food is the healthiest in the world

Packaged food and drinks sold in the UK are the healthiest in the world, according to a new analysis of 400,000 food and drink products in 12 countries by the George Institute for Global Health. To determine the healthiness of the products, Australia’s Health Star Rating system was used. Britain ranked best for levels of sugar, fat, salt and calories found in common foods, while the US and Australia closely followed.

Meanwhile, India, China and Chile ranked lowest in the study. According to lead author Dr Elizabrth Dunford, ‘Unfortunately, it's the poorer nations that are least able to address the adverse health consequences that have the unhealthiest foods.’ This leaves an opportunity for brands to make healthier food more accessible in emerging economies.

To see how retailers can make high-quality products available at a fairer price, read our microtrend Affirmative Fractions.

Previous News Articles
Brazil pilots world-first data wallet to let citizens profit from digital footprint

News

Brazil pilots world-first data wallet to let citizens profit from digital footprint

Brazil is launching a groundbreaking pilot that could transform personal data into a national asset. The dWallet initiative means that citizens can...
Technology : Data : FinTech
Stat: Gen Z is prioritising climate-conscious careers

News

Stat: Gen Z is prioritising climate-conscious careers

A new survey by Capgemini and UNICEF reveals the extent to which climate concerns are shaping young people’s career ambitions.
Nature : Work : Sustainability
Viva Technology 2025: AI client relationships, algorithmic dating futures and the new creator economy

News

Viva Technology 2025: AI client relationships, algorithmic dating futures and the new creator economy

On day three of Viva Technology in Paris, brand leaders gathered at the CMO Summit to explore how human insight and intelligent technology are resh...
Technology : Global Events : Viva Tech 2025
Viva Technology 2025: Personalised agency, circular retail and regulatory momentum

News

Viva Technology 2025: Personalised agency, circular retail and regulatory momentum

On day two of Viva Technology in Paris, the spotlight turned to the potential of personalised health data and the policies driving circular innovat...
Technology : Global Events : Viva Tech 2025
Foresight Friday: Alice Crossley, senior foresight analyst

News

Foresight Friday: Alice Crossley, senior 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, senior foresight ana...
Foresight Friday : Time : Friction
Stat: Beauty industry faces slower growth amid shifting consumer landscape

News

Stat: Beauty industry faces slower growth amid shifting consumer landscape

The global beauty industry, valued at £325bn ($441bn, €382bn), is entering a period of slower growth and is projected to expand by 5% annually unti...
Beauty : Luxury : Economy
Viva Technology 2025: AI in healthcare, building resilient cities and phygital fashion experiences

News

Viva Technology 2025: AI in healthcare, building resilient cities and phygital fashion experiences

As Viva Technology 2025 opened in Paris, speakers explored how technology can be used to address and help solve global challenges in healthcare, tr...
Technology : Global Events : Viva Tech 2025
TikTok creator Brandon Edelman re-imagines brand trips with Bran Trip

News

TikTok creator Brandon Edelman re-imagines brand trips with Bran Trip

TikTok creator Brandon Edelman (@bran_flakezz) has launched the first-ever Bran Trip – a fan-focused spin on the traditional influencer brand trip.
Pop Culture : Brand Trips : Influencer Culture
Stat: Young travellers prioritise the journey as much as the destination

News

Stat: Young travellers prioritise the journey as much as the destination

Nearly three-quarters (70%) of Millennials and Gen Z say they prefer to plan trips that focus on enjoying the journey as much as the destination, o...
Travel : Travel & Hospitality : Gen Z
Mud is rewilding the pet grooming industry

News

Mud is rewilding the pet grooming industry

London-based start-up Mud™ is making a clean break from the polished pet aesthetic dominating the market.
Society : Design : Pets
You have 2 free News articles remaining. Sign up to LS:N Global to get unlimited access to all articles.
BECOME A MEMBER
SIGN IN