Need to Know
08 : 02 : 18

US – Luxury B2B skincare brand Babor has launched an awareness campaign in collaboration with All Woman Project (AWP), a non-profit-making organisation that pioneers unretouched images of women in photo and video campaigns.

The series of images promote the collaborative Beauty Ampoule Set, with half of the profits donated to AWP. The models include founders Charli Howard and Clémentine Desseaux, alongside activists, mothers and editors, all of whom are shown in skin-coloured underwear with minimal make-up to reinforce the message that ‘women do not need to be changed to be beautiful’.

‘Just as in life, women have more or less insecurities when it comes to their bodies. Some of them want to be more covered up, some of them don’t mind being totally bare. But overall, our models have very minimal make-up on,’ Desseaux tells LS:N Global. ‘[We] did not try to hide anything or change their natural beauty.’

In our Rethinking Bodycare microtrend, we examine how beauty brands are now using ad campaigns to celebrate the body in a way that was traditionally reserved for the face.

Sweden – The H&M group is redefining the outlet store with the launch of its new brand Afound, which focuses on discount culture. Unusually, the space will amalgamate products from a curated selection of fashion brands, offering what it describes as a ‘style- and deal-hunting paradise’.

‘Afound cares about both the value of the products and the mix,’ says Fredrik Svartling, managing director of the company. ‘And by offering personal style inspiration, quality labels and the sense that you’re getting a really good deal, Afound will offer a new form of off-price experience.’ Afound is tapping into the growing desire among consumers to spend less on fashion items while not compromising on quality.

New York – Founded by pastry chefs Olivia Leung and Eddie Zheng, The Little One is a new small-scale confectionery spot in New York’s Chinatown. The nine-item menu has been designed around wagashi, traditional Japanese desserts typically served with tea. The experience has been designed to encourage diners to consume the tea-flavoured sweets accompanied by teas such as matcha and hojicha, a Japanese green tea.

While there are a plethora of new Asian-inspired dessert rooms in New York, The Little Ones pairing of confectionery with tea will help to inspire interest in the Tea Market, which has often faded into the background in recent times as coffee culture dominates.

As explored in our Parenting Market, starting a family nowadays is no longer about relinquishing individuality in order to assume the role of parent, leading to the demise of traditional maternity specialists like Mothercare. The maternity market in general is, however, thriving, with brands such as Hatch offering more sophisticated products that recognise that expectant mothers want products that reflect who they were pre-pregnancy.