Reigning Things In
Last week I went on a gorgeous press trip with Boots’s beauty department, where they presented the retailer’s 2022 trend report. One theme centred on the demand for affordable beauty, given that we’re collectively feeling the pinch. (Contradictory, I know, as we sat in a fancy hotel eating polenta cake and drinking picantes.) |
But despite the fact that I write for a luxury title, the need to rein things in still resonates. Of course, savvy consumerism transcends a trend, and is something we’re right to focus on – whether considering value for money or conscious consumption in its wider sense. No doubt in line with this mood, I’ve noticed a paring back of extravagant press gifts – the kind accompanying product mailers to enhance the brand experience. It makes sense; press comms should echo a brand’s messaging, and increasingly that messaging is about less being more. The alternative thoughtful gestures are appreciated and prove that modest in cost needn’t mean minimal impact. A favourite has been QR-style Spotify codes delivering playlists curated by a brand – the 21st Century mix tape, essentially. It instantly makes a mailer multisensory (and is genuinely zero-waste). Others have been celebrating components of products in creative ways, like sending messages on plantable cards embedded with seeds of flowers found in skincare formulas. Granted, it’s quite different to receiving a bouquet or posey, but the token may prove longer lasting. Which is kind of the point. |
What Bridget Thinks… “Here’s a great example of a clinic sharing their own data in an insightful way. Sure, it may not be nationally representative, but a top plastic surgeon revealing that male eyelid surgeries have doubled, and that arm lipo procedures are rising – plus the techniques he uses when performing them – is definitely of interest to beauty press.” |