Inspiration from July…
#1 – The wages of sin – how the internet changed gambling (The Economist)
#2 – Stéphane Malka; a permanent state of insurrection (Bldg Blog)
#3 – The cult of the Uniqlones; faster fashion business models (NY Mag)
#4 – Historical opportunity for small agile luxury brands (Reuters)
#5 – Ginsberg’s Howl, for the Tweet generation [...]
Much has been written about the devotional relationship between Apple fans and the brand. For example… The Apple brand promise offers transcendence to a “marginalized” creative minority. The retail structure appears to echo Christian ‘retail’ with welcoming disciples, theaters where iMovie sermons are preached, and sins can be absolved at the Genius Bar confessional. The [...]
Smashing magazine recently published a nice history of the evolution of the logo; from an indicator of tribal affiliation, through sacred statement to corporate identity. And forward into a possible post-logo era…
Read The Evolution of the Logo
Thirty years ago today, Andy Warhol recounting a neat example of the importance of a certain amount of honesty when luxury brands deploy influencer strategies…
Another example of a modified hotel business model has been launched in Milan.
The Town @ House Street project provides an alternative to most hotels which, it argues with their high floors, unopening windows, and generic design tend to disconnect guests from the city in which they are staying.
Town @ House Street turns shop-owners into hoteliers, [...]
Lítill is a terrarium company which delivers the curatorial responsibility of Farmville with the emotional adorability of Tamogochi.
In their Venice, California headquarters, they create tiny hand-made gardens of real plants housed in hand-blown glass landscapes. If a tiny plant dies, they will ship you a replacement to fit into the existing ecosystem.
Six models are currently [...]
The Handbook of Folklore, published in 1913, is a thundering good read; it explores the global tradition of myths, beliefs and folk culture.
It represents an inspiring way to think about ways that these myths and beliefs can be leveraged on behalf of luxury brands.
Part 1; Belief and Practice deals with various ideologies of folk belief [...]
David Rees, based in New York’s Hudson River Valley, will sharpen your pencils, by hand, and ship them back to you. Not only will they be returned extra-sharp, and hand-crafted, owners will also receive the removed shavings and a “certificate of sharpening”.
Artisanal Pencil Sharpening is an idea much bigger than just putting the lead back [...]
Diamonds on a Boat, by Samuel Chase, is the song most likely to be incorporated into fashion runway shows next season…
The demo version above exists as a four minute piece of music split into two haunting fragments which manage to deliver a hybrid of Portishead, Massive Attack, Burial, Chris Martin, and Antony Hegarty…
Yesterday, we chatted [...]