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30 : 06 : 23

Paris – Spanish luxury house Paco Rabanne is planning global expansion and is implementing changes across multiple fronts to build a more cohesive brand.

The Puig-owned fashion and fragrance house has kick-started its makeover by simplifying its name to Rabanne. Following this, it is looking at DTC expansion with a flagship boutique in New York to showcase its new visual identity across its product lines and retail spaces.

During its spring 2024 collection on the runway, Rabanne showcased an expansive range including eveningwear, denim and knitwear. By 1 October 2023 the brand will launch its make-up line on its e-commerce site which will also be available across the counters of department store groups Selfridges in the UK, Sephora in Europe and Ulta Beauty in the US.

This unification of the brand’s various facets was first proposed by the Rabanne team nearly 10 years ago, and the strategy has since been implemented incrementally. Logging 40% growth in recent years, the brand's resurgence through the crucial contribution of designer Julien Dossena shows the potential of heritage luxury brands gaining success in today’s markets, as tracked in our luxury section.

US – Hiki, the world's largest friendship and dating app for the autistic community, has partnered with Getty Images in June 2023 to unveil the #AutisticOutLoud campaign. The initiative aims to enhance the genuine representation of autistic individuals through curated images and videos created by autistic content-creators and photographers. The activation will contribute to Getty Images' Disability Collection and Unsplash, allowing media platforms and publishers worldwide to access the content and promote awareness.

With an estimated 15–20% of the global population being neurodivergent, the campaign seeks to showcase the diversity and resilience of the autistic community. ‘The autistic community is not a monolith,’ said Jamil Karriem, founder and CEO of Hiki. He emphasises the need to move beyond stereotypical portrayals of autistic individuals in mainstream media, which often focus on white males and infantilise the community.

'I wanted to be a part of this project because I realise there needs to be more realistic autism representation in the media and while this project won’t completely solve the issues, it is a good stepping stone for it,' said Gillis Williams, an autistic content-creator involved in #AutisticOutLoud.

In America puts the new in neurodivergence, we previously analysed how mainstream US businesses are adopting accessibility strategies, offers and imagery tailored to the neurodivergent community – given inclusivity is no longer optional.

US – Scientists from the National Cancer Institute are on the brink of a groundbreaking advance in cancer treatment with the development of vaccines that could transform the way the disease is managed. Unlike traditional vaccines that prevent diseases, these experimental jabs aim to shrink tumours and prevent cancer recurrence. Promising gains have been reported in experimental treatments targeting breast, lung, melanoma and pancreatic cancer.

To be effective, the vaccines must educate the body’s T-cells to recognise cancer as a threat. Once trained, these cells can travel throughout the body, hunting down and eliminating dangerous cells. The ongoing research heavily relies on the participation of cancer patient volunteers who are critical to advancing the development of these vaccines.

Researchers are optimistic that vaccines will play a significant role in reducing cancer-related deaths. Efforts are under way to develop personalised mRNA vaccines for melanoma patients, which can be customised based on the unique mutations present in their cancer tissue. But these personalised vaccines may be costly to produce compared with non-personalised versions.

As explored in our Longevity Lifestyles macrotrend, humanity is set to live longer than ever thanks to groundbreaking research and preventative treatments delivered in a rising number of longevity clinics.