🚑 STAYING ALIVE

“Create epic s–t.” This is Nike’s new battle cry and employee mandate, courtesy of Phil McCartney, the sportswear giant’s new Chief Innovation, Design, and Product Officer.

In the face of revenue decline, share price obliteration, and accusations of an innovation drought, Nike has taken former Adidas partner Ye’s (formerly known as Kanye West) hit song “Stronger” to heart: “Harder, better, faster, stronger.” This includes a C-suite overhaul and internal reshuffling of more than 8,000 employees, product launches brought forward by 12 months, moonshot projects (remember when tech companies did those?), and robotics-forward footwear like Project Amplify.

OUR TAKE

In the attention economy, it’s more complicated than ever for brands to stay relevant and compete for thinning wallets. Nike now has to fend off classic rival Adidas (whose strategy is to be even “more American” than Nike) alongside rising challengers like On and Hoka.

With new product innovation, brands must consider relevance to their target demographics. In the age of woke keyboard warriors and pilates princesses, we’re seeing a strategic shift as brands aim squarely at Gen Z and their robust, multi-hypenate lifestyles. Starbucks, for example, now lets customers add protein to almost any beverage, tapping into health and wellness trends. Gym brand Amino has rebranded itself as a “super-boutique,” combining classes, retail, F&B, and coworking spaces to give Gen Z a new kind of hybrid experience, as every location is now a destination and a lifestyle.

Marketing playbooks continue to evolve as brands turn to culture in search of the consumer sweet spot. Hobbies once seen as niche—like writing and collecting—now command scale and dollars. In China, bubble tea brand Mixue harnessed the power of juicy plotlines by printing fanfiction about its mascot, Snow King, on customer receipts. Other beverage brands are tapping into microdrama tropes like “CEO romances” or inviting fans to write their own endings through social media activations.

Experimentation with IP and collaborations has become a marketing staple, with cross-cultural partnerships helping brands amplify their message and move fast. South Korean entertainment giant HYBE recently partnered with the Los Angeles Football Club (new home of South Korean soccer star Son Heung-min), starting with sponsorship of the Audi 2025 Major League Soccer Cup Playoff and K-pop activations during games.

From sports to arts, brands are also getting their feet wet in controversial cultural moments that shape public opinion. One great example is the Louvre robbery, which dominated the public consciousness—sparking pro-heist sentiment and appreciation for the well-dressed “detectives” on the scene (who, caveat, were probably neither detectives nor AI-generated). The company behind the freight lift allegedly used by the thieves launched a tongue-in-cheek campaign in response, which drew mixed reactions. Netflix subtly joined the conversation, heroing heist-related content and quietly tweaking its algorithm to push anime like Lupin and Detective Conan all over your homepage.

And since everyone now has fine jewelry on their minds, when better for Tiffany & Co. to collaborate with Netflix on Frankenstein? The partnership includes a reskin of Tiffany’s Fifth Avenue flagship store and a London exhibit dedicated to the lore and craftsmanship behind both the jewelry and the original novel.

With this growing appetite for cultural experiences, brands are seeking out new touchpoints and moments to connect with shoppers. Whether you’re a legacy brand or new to the game, you need to be firmly embedded in culture to tell your story.

For those of you born before 1997, ‘fax, no printer‘ is Gen Z speak for ‘undeniable facts I agree with’

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