Foresight Friday: Alice Crossley, senior foresight analyst

Every Friday, we offer an end-of-week wrap-up of the topics, issues, ideas and virals we’re all talking about. This week, senior foresight analyst Alice Crossley dives into the summer of slowing down.

: Following the publication of our most recent macrotrend report, New Codes of Value, I’ve been thinking a lot about time as a precious resource that much of modern life is designed to drain, and the opportunity for brands to win loyalty by helping their customers slow down.

: Crown Affair’s new campaign Do Summer, Not Your Hair, perfectly encapsulates how brands can pull this off. Shot at a fairground under the sun, the social-first campaign has a simple message, Crown Affair products will simplify your haircare routine, leaving you with more time to have fun. ‘Summer memories aren’t made in the bathroom mirror,’ reads one Instagram caption from the brand. 

: Similarly, vodka manufacturer Grey Goose launched Grey Goose Hôtel this week, a global campaign featuring Zoe Saldaña. Two 30-second films rolled out on the brand’s social media encourage people to live like the French and savour moments of pleasure instead of obsessing over productivity. Saldaña is filmed drinking a martini in the rain on the beach and taking cocktail essentials after the bar closes to keep the night going. The campaign is accompanied by the tag line Make Time Wait.

: Perhaps this will be the summer of slowing down...