LSN : News : This mindful game lets you nurture digital houseplants

A luxurious private gym embraces holistic wellness

Heimat, US

Mother Tongue at Heimat, US

Heimat, US

Los Angeles – A holistic approach to wellness finds its way into a luxury members’ club, as Los Angeles’s newly opened Heimat, developed by fitness brand RSG Group, looks to elevate both fitness and indulgence in equal measure. Members can take in views of the Hollywood Hills from the rooftop pool, or join a class in the bootcamp studio located beneath the club’s in-house Michelin-starred restaurant.

With luxury consumers increasingly recognising the benefits of a rounded approach to health, Heimat will encourage members to unwind as well as stay fit. The 75,000-square-feet wellness concept club transforms a 1930s building in Hollywood’s Media District into a beautifully executed space combining carefully sourced premium materials with an industrial edge. The private gym will offer state-of the-art equipment and classes with top-level instructors across a wide range of disciplines, while a well-stocked and beautifully decorated bar offers a place to relax. Exclusivity is built into the philosophy of the space, with membership numbers strictly limited to avoid overcrowding.

Stay up to date with the latest developments in this fast-developing space with LS:N Global’s forthcoming wellness tourism update, which will be published later this month.

Strategic opportunity

Consider how fitness-orientated spaces and products can cater for a growing consumer desire to take a more holistic, rounded approach to their health and wellness

This mindful game lets you nurture digital houseplants

Kinder World

Australia – With consumers increasingly bringing self-care rituals into their daily lives, gaming developer Lumi is creating a mindful game that invites players to nurture virtual houseplants. Called Kinder World, the game allows users to take care of digital potted plants through short and simple wellbeing exercises such as naming emotions or recalling a pleasing scent.

By prompting users to practise mindful tasks, the game’s virtual plants mirror the intended goal of achieving self-care and relaxation. With this in mind, Lumi intentionally chose to ensure that plants within Kinder World will never die. ‘We’re making Kinder World because it can be very hard to work on being compassionate with ourselves, especially amid a global pandemic,’ says Lauren Clinnick, CEO of Kinder World. ‘If you’ve struggled to make a habit with meditation or mindfulness apps, we’re making this game exactly for you.’

Here, the game aligns with the values we explore in Mundane Gaming – a trend that embraces the blandness of daily tasks to counter our hyper-emotional online existence.

Strategic opportunity

Traditional mindfulness activities won’t appeal to all consumers. Game and app developers can therefore take cues from this project and integrate wellness-focused content into entertainment platforms

Ocushield’s weighted sleep mask prevents dry eyes

UK – As the importance of thorough eyecare comes into sharper focus, the eye health brand has unveiled a bamboo weighted mask to promote better sleep and prevent dry eye syndrome. The eye mask, which can be worn while sleeping, features beads to distribute a calming, weighted sensation across key pressure points around the eye area.

It can also be heated or cooled to treat the symptoms of dry eye syndrome. With both sleep issues and poor eye health on the rise, this product serves a dual purpose for wearers. ‘As qualified optometrists, we are increasingly concerned by our patients’ complaints of a growth in dry eye symptoms as well as poor sleep quality adding to this,’ says Dhruvin Patel, CEO of Ocushield. ‘We wanted to develop a solution that we feel goes beyond the existing sleep masks available, as most do not work to solve dry eyes as well as improve sleep.’

This innovation follows a number of eyecare products that similarly promote holistic eye health – in particular, against a backdrop of increasing screen time and mental health concerns.

Ocushield Bamboo Weighted Sleep Eye Mask, UK

Strategic opportunity

Looking ahead, eye health is set to be an increasing concern. With this in mind, beauty brands have an opportunity to develop cosmetics that integrate eye health-boosting ingredients and vitamins

Stat: Global FMCG e-commerce sales are on the rise

Gorillas, US

At a time when retailers are focusing on physical store environments, a recent study reveals that many everyday items are still being bought online. According to findings by WARC, worldwide FMCG e-commerce penetration grew from 31.6% in 2019 to 39.8% in 2021.

The research also reveals that online FMCG sales increased by 15.8% year on year in 2021, more than three times faster than the next best performer, cash and carry. While the rise of online FMCG ordering was essential during pandemic-related lockdown periods, the research also forecasts that e-commerce will increase its share of the global FMCG home market to 9.2% by 2025.

This strong and continued growth demonstrates the continuing need for convenient and accessible services for purchasing FMCG brands. As we explore in our Next-gen Grocery Market, there has also been a surge in elevated online grocery services that prioritise speed, speciality and even sustainability.

Strategic opportunity

To retain consumer demand, digital grocery retailers can consider introducing strategies such as e-commerce rewards schemes and online-only price freezes