Need to Know
03 : 07 : 18

London – At this year’s Central Saint Martins degree show, product designer Taeheon Kim presented Croono, a modular make up brush dedicated to men.

Tapping into the New Masculinity mindset, the project aims to encourage men to comfortably participate in a daily make-up routine by providing an alternative to traditionally female-oriented beauty tools. The Croono set features four optional heads, each designed for a different use, and is presented in an oak box.

‘The world is realising that an orthodox definition of masculinity places restrictions and limitations on everyone’s identity and men – more and more – wish to not be defined by those limitations,’ explains Taeheon Kim. ‘Yet, most designers have been only taking an aesthetic approach to the masculinity that is asserted through objects. I wanted to redesign the masculinity of the object by addressing the experience of the product and its use.’

As men become more comfortable exploring cosmetics, brands have the opportunity to develop a new generation of grooming products that support genderless beauty.

New York – Urban skateboarding collective Brujas has transformed Performance Space, an East Village art venue, into skate destination that uses the colour pink to emphasise its genderless cause.

Brujas enlisted industrial designer Jonathan Olivares to create a space for those who may not feel welcome at a typical male-dominated skatepark. Decked out with skate obstacles, pastel-pink camouflage bleachers, and a library of political theory books, the location encourages women, LGBTQ people and those from cultural minorities to visit and take part in urban street sports and collaborative workshops.

‘Grey and industrial tones in skateparks are as hegemonic as the masculinity within them. Pink actually provides gender neutrality within the space in the way of stark contrast to the otherwise ‘normal’ effect of male dominance. Pink is the symbol of the newest gender-free punk-wave’, states Brujas in a press release.

London – 50m is an experimental concept store that enables new designers to invest in – and be part of – a retail space in exchange for an affordable monthly fee.

Due to high rental prices in London, up-and-coming designers often struggle to find and maintain quality retail space in the city. In response, collaborative and activist-led collective Something & Son has established 50m, a new space that can host up to 30 new designers at once. Beyond its retail purpose, the location in London’s Belgravia will feature a shared workspace, spaces to hold meetings with clients, and a programme of workshops and talks that offer advice and support for its resident designers.

‘50m exists to radically change the balance of power between shops and designers and create a store where people don’t simply consume stuff but can meet designers, hang out with friends, cooperate and collaborate’, says Paul Smyth, co-founder of Something & Son.

For more on how to build retail strategies that are fit for the future, book your in-house Retail Futures presentation here.

A new report examining Generation Z’s travel habits discovered that teens are becoming increasingly independent when it comes to travel, with 62% stating they work and save to finance their trips. In addition, 69% of respondents described their travel style as ‘affordable’, with US students spending the equivalent of £190 ($250, €215) to £570 ($750, €644) per trip.

In contrast to their Millennial predecessors, Gen Z are demonstrating a wiser approach to spending and saving, embracing new technologies that assure them of a more stable future. For more, read our Generation Z Money Market.