Sustainability – Culture Group

Culture Wire | KraveBeauty spotlights Indonesian farmers

Culture Group — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 09:32:02 +0000

17 NOVEMBER 2023

Welcome to this week’s edition of Culture Wire, a newsletter brought to you by Singapore-based pop culture and lifestyle marketing agency Culture Group.

In this week’s edition:

Innovation of the Week: A skincare brand’s clean recipe for winning with younger consumers
Fax, No Printer: Can you guess Vietnamese Gen Z’s latest pursuit?
Regional Round-up: The Rise (and rise) of K-pop, a side dish of friendship bracelets, and ‘I solemnly swear I am up to no good’…

Innovation of the Week

GEN Zs KRAVE SOMETHING MORE

Earlier this week, KraveBeauty launched two limited-edition tamanu oil products* made from oil sourced directly from a farm in Indonesia. For every purchase, Krave Beauty will donate 5% to the Women’s Earth Alliance (WEA) to support the women farmers involved in the production. The brand also worked with Indonesian illustrator @thef00lswhodream to create the packaging.

*For all our non-beauty junkies: tamanu oil is a multipurpose nut oil that’s used to treat scars and cure a variety of skin conditions. It’s derived from the seeds of the tamanu nut tree, which is indigenous to Southeast Asia

OUR TAKE

First, some background. KraveBeauty was founded by Liah Yoo, a K-beauty creator who saw success sharing skincare tips but became increasingly disillusioned with the volume of products and the pace of skincare trends. By focusing on product efficacy, sustainability, and transparency (how’s that for a trend bingo?), Yoo and her team built a niche beauty brand that has reached cult status. Other activations that link back to the brand’s mission include an Anti-Consumer Consumer Grant, the Waste Me Not pop-up, and a Rewind series that traces products back to their raw materials.

It’s not surprising that Gen Z beauty consumers — increasingly concerned about the climate crisis, interested in ingredient provenance, and are looking to purchase honest products that work — are gravitating towards brands like KraveBeauty. These storied products don’t just look good on the shelf; they actually deliver results in more ways than one.

After all, as regular readers know, this demographic is tired of empty promises: they want action and accountability. Liah Yoo provides that with insightful videos that explore the hidden side of the beauty industry — see how this Reel breaks down the tamanu supply chain and explains why the brand decided to change their strategy and work directly with a farm. Meanwhile the partnership, with the WEA promises a tangible outcome: per a press release, it’s expected to result in more than a 50% increase in income for tamanu farmers in two Indonesian provinces. These aren’t vague promises, they are tangible commitments.

Of course, KraveBeauty isn’t the only creator-led brand that’s looking to disrupt the industry by zeroing in on responsible sourcing. Launched just this month by Indonesian creator and public figure Maudy Ayunda, From This Island is a clean beauty brand that utilizes super-ingredients native to the archipelago. We expect more to emerge in 2024.

Fax, No Printer*

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

What’s the hottest new activity among Vietnamese Gen Zs?

A. Friendship bracelets

B. 24-hour cafes

C. Slow travel

Scroll down to the end of the newsletter for the correct answer!

Regional Round-up

K-pop is going global: JYP Entertainment and Live Nation have signed a strategic partnership to produce world tours for all of JYP’s artists (which includes TWICE and ITZY) and their emerging talents. With HYBE and UMG’s Geffen Records building a global girl group, 2024 could take K-pop to the next level… we’ll be watching and reporting on all the updates!

Attention, Muggles! Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Experience is coming to Singapore in February. The immersive walking trail will feature scenes from the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts movies, so expect magical creatures and charms galore. In 2024, how will you give fans a new way to immerse themselves in their favorite stories?

To celebrate the 18th anniversary of K-pop group Super Junior, Filipino ELFs constructed a public garden in Rizal Park. Not only is this a space for fans to heal through nature, it benefits the wider community. Fandoms are teaming up and changing the world for good, but there’s still room for brands to support their endeavors.

Bangkok’s first gaming truck will launch at the Ploenchit Fair next week. Kitted out with seven internal screens, PS5s, a PS4, Nintendo Switches, XBox X, and an Oculus, plus an external screen for spectators, there’s something for everyone. This concept has worked well in other markets… will this truck pop up at more locations across the city?

A hotpot chain in Singapore has a surprising side dish: friendship bracelets. Diners at Hai Di Lao’s Clarke Quay branch can make the accessories while they eat — apparently there are plenty of colors to choose from and a manicure service is also offered. Who do you think might be the inspiration behind this trend? Answers on a postcard…

ICYMI: In the latest example of a culture x commerce mash-up, McDonald’s has teamed up with Gen Z favorite Crocs for a limited-edition line of shoes, socks, and Jibbitz charms inspired by brand mascots Birdie, Grimace, and Hamburglar. So if you’ve ever dreamed of wearing a Happy Meal… run don’t walk

This Week's Trivia Answer

B. 24-hour cafes

Young people in Vietnam are staying out past midnight and camping at 24-hour cafes… to work. Cafe-goers aged 18-27 make up the main clientele, and they usually turn up after 9pm armed with their textbooks and laptops. Some cafes see twice the number of visitors at night compared to during the day.

These around-the-clock joints aren’t new, but outdoor cafes that began popping up in Hanoi have been gaining popularity with Gen Zs looking for a different environment to work in. Many young people also say they are more productive at night and prefer working in cafes for the ambience.

Concerns about poor sleeping habits and mental health aside, this burgeoning phenomenon is another example that Gen Zs are doing life on their own terms — flipping conventional rules of when and where they engage with work. If your brand is considering an activation in Vietnam, could a 24-hour pop-up generate buzz? More generally, how will you empower and celebrate Gen Z’s lifestyle quirks?

Over and Out!

This newsletter could improve your skin and your strategy. So do subscribe, forward it on, or share the love on social media. Thanks for reading!

Your Culture Mavens,

Acacia, Angela, Kiko, Teri, & Vicki

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Culture Wire | Pandawara and the rise of cause-driven creators

Culture Group — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 00:00:27 +0000

11 AUGUST 2023

Welcome to this week’s edition of Culture Wire, a newsletter brought to you by Singapore-based pop culture and lifestyle marketing agency Culture Group.

This Barbie is breaking records! Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie reached USD 1B at the global box office. No movie in Warner Bros.’ 100-year history has sold so many tickets so fast. Time to finally retire the idea that films and entertainment geared mostly towards women can’t become cultural and economic powerhouses?

Innovation of the Week: Creators as a force for good
Fax, No Printer: What are Singaporean singles looking for in a new partner?
Regional Round-up: All the music updates you need… and an alien adventure!

Innovation of the Week

CONTRIBUTE SOMETHING REAL

Following disastrous floods in Indonesia last year – some of which were caused by rubbish-clogged rivers – five young men started cleaning up the country’s waterways. Now, the @pandawaragroup has 9.4M followers across TikTok and Instagram and they’re inspiring others to join in: 3K people turned up to help clean up waste from a beach in Lampung on Sumatra Island after Pandawara put out a call for volunteers. They have been invited to meet government officials and done collaborations – including with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and local beauty brand Avoskin.

Our take

This week’s story is a reminder that in addition to the more frequently discussed pop culture spaces like music and gaming, climate and sustainability rank pretty highly on young people’s list of passion points. In fact, 92% of Indonesians (versus ‘only’ 79% globally) believe that we’re on the brink of an environmental disaster if we do not change our habits quickly. And of course, Gen Zs are organizing for good using the tools they’re most familiar with: social media.

The success of the Pandawara group is rooted in its authenticity and clarity of mission, but there is a space for brands here. Consider where the environmental issues that Gen Z is passionate overlap with your brand’s purpose, and run social media activations that inspire them to take action. Of course, this isn’t about putting the onus on young people. Instead give them a way to connect with other eco-activists and work with them to make their local area better.

One bigger, underlying shift to keep in mind here is the changing nature of the creator economy, including the rise of deinfluencing. Shameless #haul videos are a thing of the past, and content that focus on materialistic aspirations are increasingly seen as out of touch. Instead, more people are looking to social media creators to use their influence for good. The rising wave of cause-driven creators are encouraging their followers to consume and do better. How might you work with them and their passionate followers?

Fax, No Printer*

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

What are Singaporean singles looking for in a new partner?

Kindness

Good looks

The Eras Tour Tickets!

Scroll down to the end of the newsletter for the correct answer!

Regional Round-up

88rising – the media company that’s bringing Asian music talent to the US and the force behind the Head in the Clouds festivals – collaborated with Honda on an exclusive merchandise shop at the event. Stocking the new Honda X 88rising limited-edition capsule collection, it’s a reminder that the right partnerships can help brands authentically connect with younger audiences.

You’ve heard of Grimace, the McDonald’s character that spawned a viral TikTok trend and helped boost sales by 11%. Now the fast food giant is looking to another mascot for its new restaurant idea. In an analyst call, the brand revealed plans for ‘CosMc’s’ – a small format spinoff based around an alien character. Will it take revenues to outer space? We’ll be watching!

To celebrate ASEAN day, AirAsia has partnered with Malaysian synth-pop musician Sam Lopex on an audio journey. Featuring songs from five cities (Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila and Singapore), ‘Sounds of ASEAN’ allows listeners to immerse themselves in SEA’s diverse cultures. Celebrating culture Uplifting local talent This campaign could have come straight from Culture Group’s playbook!

Apple Music is also spotlighting SEA talent with ‘Here’s to the Dreamers’. The new series, which will run through August on Apple Music, spotlights six artists and mixes live performance video with interviews and exclusive content. How will you help music lovers discover the next big (local) thing?

ICYMI: It’s not just Barbie that’s breaking records. Earlier this week, YouTuber MrBeast (174M subscribers), revealed that his latest video titled ’7 Days Stranded At Sea’ had received the highest number of views in 24 hours for a non-music video. At the time of writing, it’s been viewed over 87M times. MrBeast has a huge fan base and with a Sideman/PewDiePie partnership on the horizon, he could be reaching new heights very soon.

This Week's Trivia Answer

A. Kindness

If you voted b) or c)… shame on you According to a recent survey conducted by Bumble, Singaporean singles are looking for kindness: 81% of respondents are more attracted to this quality than outward appearances, with 53% noting honesty and compassion (45%) as the top defining qualities of being kind. In light of these results, the dating app just launched a new campaign called Kindness is Sexy with actor and singer Glenn Yong.

So what’s contributed to this shift? Bumble has some answers there, highlighting bad experiences, wider education around gender equality and women’s empowerment and the ways relationships are portrayed in pop culture. But let’s be honest, given the challenging events of the past few years, kindness will go a long way, not just in relationships. How might your brand infuse this value into the next initiative?

Over and Out!

Last but not least, a very happy National Day to our Singaporean readers. Majulah Singapura!

Pop culture insights are better when shared. Subscribe, forward this on, or share the love on social media.

Your Culture Mavens,

Acacia, Aliya, Angela, Kiko, & Vicki

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2023 CultureCast

Culture Group — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 02:30:29 +0000

Your Pop Culture Marketing Cheat Sheet

What’s Up, 2023!

Welcome to another year – full of promise, potential, and pop culture opportunities.

Just a handful of macro shifts we have seen in the last few months:

In media – the importance of hyper-localization for Southeast Asia is coming to the forefront. There has never been greater focus on collaborating with local creators, both micro and established, for offerings that cater to local sensibilities.

In tech – the hype surrounding Web3-related buzzwords came full circle last year. In 2023, we’re betting on utility-based tokens and token-gated commerce models that revolutionize the consumer experience.

In social – TikTok is continuing its unrelenting march towards global dominance. Its role in trend-building – combined with the nature of short-form, less filtered video content – are shaping Gen Z’s preferences for authentic consumption.

What do these shifts, among many others, tell us about changing consumer expectations? And in turn, how will evolving consumer preferences further shape pop culture and their interaction with brands in 2023?

To navigate these big questions, we have distilled the different strands of cultural currents and pulled out five actionable pop culture opportunities that brands can leverage.

And we promise, we’re making it as easy as your ABCs

Your Pop Culture Cheat Sheet

Scroll on to read the full deep dive into Theme 1: Authenticity, or click below to download a complimentary copy of the full report!

Download here!

Authenticity - Ugly Cakes and Reversing the Rules of Cool

FEATURED SNAPSHOT

Ugly Cakes

This viral trend saw people (deliberately) gift ridiculously ugly cakes that are so absurd the recipient can’t help but be entertained and amused. Google searches for ‘ugly cake prank’ spiked in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines between August and September 2022. It’s been a huge success on TikTok – #เค้กตลก (funny cake in Thai) has 4.1M views, #kuejelek (ugly cake in Indonesian) has 24.6M views. Globally, #uglycakeprank has 293.7M views and counting.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The Gen Z quest for authenticity, and the explosion of anti-culture pop culture

Beyond ugly cakes, in 2022 we saw ‘Goblin mode’ revealed as the Oxford Dictionary crowdsourced word of 2022, signifying a departure from perfectly manicured lives in favor of embracing one’s raw self in all its messy glory.

Underpinning all of this is the shift towards greater authenticity. Younger consumers’ enthusiastic embrace of all things ‘ugly’ can be seen as a rebellion against convention – in terms of both aesthetics and aspirations.

By subverting all rules of what’s considered cool and pushing back against markers of success, many of which were set by older generations, Gen Zs are determined to live their most authentic lives. More snapshots on how this shows up in pop culture below.

Growth Drivers

REJECTION OF NORMS

Growing up in Asia’s pressure cooker environment, many young consumers are opting to live life on their own terms. Movements like bai lan (摆烂, ‘let it rot’) in China, hitting mung in South Korea, and quiet quitting highlight this mindset. This generation is pushing back against standards of the ‘best life’ society says they should aspire to, and they are making a statement through their consumption. Gen Zs are boldly choosing products that are traditionally considered ‘uncool’ and finding freedom in reversing the rules. Contradicting what comes before is a rite of (youthful) passage, and Gen Zs are keeping it going.

POINT OF DIFFERENCE

While Millennials came of age with curated photo-based social media platforms (yep, we’re talking about Instagram), Gen Zs in SEA grew up amidst a video and livestreaming boom, where unfiltered content is the norm. The growth of TikTok in Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines is mainly driven by younger consumers seeking raw, unedited short-form content. This difference in content preference also translates to brands – in the case of Crocs, for example, the clogs have a big favorability difference between the two demographics.

CHOOSE YOUR COOL

Gone are the days when an elite acted as the gatekeepers of good taste – social media challenged, and ultimately nullified, that. As social media evolves into interest-based communities, the grassroots effect will be amplified, and the sphere of influence will get smaller – 77% of Gen Zs in Hong Kong would rather look at pictures of their friends than celebrities. The ability to ‘choose your cool’ is important for a generation that’s unapologetically unique.

Brand Takeaways

FUNCTION OVER FORM

Take a look at your core products and, if you have not already, prioritize substance over style. The switch from pretty confections to ugly cakes wasn’t just an act of Gen Z rebellion. All too often, these pretty creations looked good, but tasted bad – a physical manifestation of the Instagram aesthetic. This current also runs through the popularity of the Sacred Trinity in fashion – when comfort comes first, clunky is cool.

CHECK YOUR BAGGAGE

Consider what your brand stands for. As Gen Z’s preferences evolve, does your brand’s heritage become baggage that prevents you from connecting with younger audiences? If the answer is yes, dare to flip the script and surprise your audience. Marc Jacobs created a new line to better appeal to Gen Z sensibilities, then collaborated with creatives like Wong Kar-wai to continue evolving. Pop culture doesn’t stand still – and neither should your brand.

VIBE CHECK YOUR REALISM

The quest for authenticity will impact Gen Z’s expectations of brands, too. Bold brands will acknowledge their flaws and be honest about both their impact and limitations – the ESG hot potato, anyone? Brands need to move beyond one-off campaigns and sweet-talk messaging. Ultimately, this consumer group is keen to challenge established norms. How can you help them do that while standing up for their values, whether that’s on a personal level or a society-wide scale?

Like what you’re reading so far? Get your complimentary copy of the full 2023 CultureCast below, and access your complete pop culture marketing cheat sheet for the year ahead.

Download here!

And as always, insights remain nice-to-know unless you act on them.

If you’re keen to understand which opportunities are most relevant to your brand, and how you can activate a specific space in pop culture, we are here to help.

Drop us a note at hello@culturegroup.asia and let’s chat.

Here’s to a fantastic 2023 ahead!