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Deciem unpacks chemical misconceptions in beauty

Everything Is Chemicals by Deciem

Canada – Addressing a common reticence towards chemical-heavy beauty, skincare brand Deciem is bolstering customer understanding through an awareness campaign.

Its Everything is Chemicals campaign seeks to help customers better understand beauty formulas and breakdown misconceptions that chemicals are harmful to their skin. Through a video explainer, the brand argues that many people fear the unknown, something that the industry has utilised to drive fear-mongering marketing.

As such, Deciem is leveraging the knowledge of its team of scientists to teach customers the truth about the natural origins of chemicals and combat unclear definitions of ‘clean beauty’ in the industry. ‘What is it about defining a substance by its chemical composition that makes it ‘unclean’ when compared to its common name?’ questions the brand. ‘What makes vinegar and baking soda cupboard staples, but acetic acid and sodium bicarbonate dangerous substances?’

By taking a more transparent approach to ‘clean’ beauty, Deciem is showing how our trend for Honest Products is evolving, moving from packaging into marketing language.

An AR video game improving real-life biodiversity

The Butterfly Bridge by Christoph Dichmann

London – Graduate designer Christoph Dichmann is using an augmented reality (AR) video game format to improve the biodiversity of urban spaces.

The game, titled The Butterfly Bridge, invites players to collect biodiversity data through their camera phones, using a plant recognition tool that allows users to identify existing butterfly habitat and food plants. This information is then shared with that of other players, allowing them to co-create travel corridors and habitat spaces for butterflies.

By moving through various levels of the game, players also become representatives of butterfly species on the UK red list, while contributing to biodiversity improvements in physical environments. ‘In this way, they become an easily identifiable proxy for the natural world in this ‘phygital’ rethinking of biodiversification strategies,’ explains Dichmann in a press release.

As we identify in our Natural Foundations trend within Equilibrium Cities, future city streetscapes will evolve to improve biodiversity and access to nature to bolster citizens' wellbeing.

ZigZag makes returning clothing greener for retailers

Global – Returns platform ZigZag Global is empowering retailers to turn clothing returns into charitable donations.

Through a partnership with social enterprise Give Back Box, the platform allows retailers to give customers the choice to opt for a charity box donation for their unwanted clothing. This offers an alternative to items being returned directly to e-commerce warehouses, and often sent to landfill. The option will be available to all retailers that meet the criteria to enable charity donations, with some of ZigZag’s existing clients including Selfridges, Superdry, Ted Baker and GAP.

‘Give Back Box will enable ZigZag retailers to support local communities and charities quickly and easily, with the added benefit that all outbound packaging is reused for the charity returns,’ explains Al Gerrie, co-founder of ZigZag. ‘We are excited to work with Give Back Box and continue to promote a more circular economy.’

Amid accelerating demands in online shopping, retailers have an opportunity integrate Eco-venience Retail solutions which allow consumers to shop for fashion in a way that minimises impact on the planet.

Future of Retail by Victoria Ling for The Future Laboratory

Stat: Generation Z drive the buy-now, pay-later market

Gully Guy Leo by OhkayChris

Almost 75% of users of buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) services in the US are Generation Z or Millennials, according to a new report by eMarketer.

While Millennials currently make up the greatest share of the userbase, by 2025 this is expected to shift to Generation Z. Some 47.4% of American Gen Z are expected to use BNPL services by 2025, surpassing Millennials at 40.6% and Generation X at 30.9%.

‘A major draw of BNPL services, particularly for younger cohorts, is financial flexibility,’ explains the eMarketer report. ‘These solutions provider younger consumers, whose cash flow tends to be more limited, with great flexibility in payments, especially for larger-ticket items.’

While Generation Z are generally considered to have a pragmatic approach to their finances, such fintech services allow them to maintain a level of flexibility in their money management.