Need to Know
11 : 09 : 23

US ­– American architecture firm NBBJ, in collaboration with musician Flea, has transformed the Nickerson Gardens Playground in Los Angeles. The Watts neighbourhood playground is situated in the largest social housing project west of Mississippi and spans 17,656 square feet (1,640 square metres).

Thanks to NBBJ’s designs, it now boasts new features like slides, swings and a carousel for the community’s children, all provided by Kompan, a playground equipment company. To ensure durability, the playground’s activity areas feature play-specific surfaces made from recycled materials in fade-resistant shades of orange and yellow.

Given southern California’s high summer temperatures, misting poles and shade structures have also been added. The renovation also includes an adult exercise facility. Flea’s funding of the project and collaboration with community members, the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles and designers to enhance the public housing complex’s outdoor space aligns with the case studies we explored in our analysis of the emerging Urban Wellness Market.

UK – High-end consumer tech brand Bang & Olufsen has teamed up with luxury car-maker Ferrari on a collection of audio products, re-imagined in Ferrari’s iconic Rosso Corsa red.

The two brands collaborated on a customised Beosound 2 home speaker (the ‘supercar of speakers’), Beoplay H95 headphones, Beoplay EX earphones and a Beosound Explore portable speaker. Featuring geometric designs, anodised black and laser-etched logos and the unmistakable Ferrari red, prices range from £219 ($274, €255) to £4,449 ($5,570, €5,195). Much like a sports car itself, the products are designed to be both seen and heard.

‘This project is where two great design institutions meet,’ says Bang & Olufsen’s senior vice-president of business development and brand partnering, Christoffer Østergaard Poulsen, while suggesting the partnership between the two brands is only just getting started.

Our Automotive Accommodation report explores how automotive companies have been applying their craftsmanship to the lifestyle industry in the face of declining car sales, part of a wider shift as the luxury industry recrafts itself to appeal to changing consumer values and priorities amid the economic recession.

Global – CreativeX, a creative ad tech firm, has revealed that only 4% of individuals featured in advertisements globally in 2022 were over the age of 60. Released in August 2023, the study used CreativeX’s technology to analyse over 126,000 ads with more than 25,000 individuals. The findings exposed a significant oversight by brands in targeting older consumers. Despite representing about 25% of global spending power, this demographic receives only 3% of digital media budgets.

When older adults appeared in ads, 65% were placed in family and domestic settings. Astonishingly, fewer than 1% were featured in professional or leadership roles, despite the average retirement age being 66 and rising in the UK. ‘Today’s ads continue to paint a picture of our society that’s not representative, or inclusive, of what we see in the real world,’ said Anastasia Leng, founder and CEO of CreativeX.

CreativeX’s previous research, released in March 2023, found that female representation in ads diminishes further in the over-60s age group. Women aged 60+ accounted for fewer than 2% of all ad characters.

Our analysis of She Is Mother and Youth Culture Entering Its Flat Age Future suggests that the media and entertainment industry’s ageist views are shifting. Women over 60, such as actress Jennifer Coolidge and TikToker Grandma Droniak, are rallying audiences of all ages.