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B Surf is Burberry’s latest gaming experiment

B Surf by Burberry, global

Global – Burberry has unveiled a video game, B Surf, to promote the launch of its monogram summer collection.

The game lets players dress up their characters in the brand’s outfits before challenging friends to a surfboarding race around a track. Burberry’s in-house development team created B Surf as the brand’s first multiplayer game. Available on the brand’s website, Farfetch and in WeChat, the game is available for all Burberry fans to engage with.

Players even have the opportunity to win real-life prizes through the game, including a limited-edition monogrammed surfboard and Burberry bucket hats. Within the game, users can win digital prizes such as face filters and AR-themed characters.

The worlds of fashion and gaming continue to collide, with brands and retailers seizing the opportunity to use games as an alternative storefront for physical goods.

Blueland re-invents sustainable dishwashing

Blueland, US

US – Sustainable cleaning brand Blueland has launched two new dishwashing products, including a powdered dish soap for hand-washing and a tablet for the dishwasher.

The powdered dish soap comes with a refillable, silicone shaker and is also available in a refill pack that comes in compostable packaging. For the dishwasher tablets, starter kits are available with a sleek, re-usable steel tin, and the tablets are plastic-free.

‘From the moment we launched, the number one product our customers have asked us for is dish soap and dishwasher tablets,’ said Sarah Paiji Yoo, co-founder and CEO of Blueland, in a press release. ‘We worked hard to develop a tablet that wasn’t wrapped in a plastic PVA film to ensure we weren’t putting more plastic into our waterways.’

With consumers becoming more concerned about the environmental impact of their everyday products, they’re seeking re-usable packaging solutions that minimise plastic waste.

East meets west for Farfetch’s influencer strategy

China – Farfetch is pairing British designers with Chinese influencers as a way of boosting sales in the region.

The concept was launched as part of London Fashion Week’s digital showcase, with popular Weibo influencers promoting the collections of British designers including Roksanda Ilinčić and Erdem Moralıoğlu. As part of the digital showcase, the influencers – including Sunni, Dipsy and Anny Fan – took part in a series of four interviews.

Farfetch sales show that British designers already perform well with Chinese youth, and the partnership marks an opportunity for increased brand awareness across the country. The initiative also follows the brand’s unveiling of its Chinese name, Fafaqi, and the launch of a tailor-made mobile app which uses payment methods such as Alipay and WeChat.

As Chinese consumers continue to embrace online shopping, brands are launching initiatives to better engage customers with international designers. For more, explore our China E-commerce Market.

Farfetch, UK

Stat: Australia’s youth feel the fallout from Covid-19

Plenaire

Research into the economic impact of Covid-19 in Australia shows that Generation Z are bearing the economic brunt of the crisis.

Despite a £141bn (A$260bn, US$178bn, €158bn) injection of financial and economic support, unemployment amid the pandemic has risen to 16%, compared to about 5.5% for those over 25. Many young people in Australia are also ineligible for the government’s wage subsidy package, with most on casual contracts or having been employed for less than 12 months.

Jordan Steele-John, 25-year-old Greens senator, and Australia’s youngest sitting member of parliament, said: ‘The narrative is that we don’t work as hard as our parents, we complain more than they ever did and that we waste our money on silly things.’

Our Emerging Youth: Australia market considers how the country's youth are turning to digital platforms to amplify their values.