Mad-for-it, Meghan, Charli, brands in a cost-of-living crisis and The Wombles
Issue #22
Rise Up is a weekly round-up of the can’t-miss headlines on brands, marketing, start-ups and happiness.
Weekly Exhale
I was never much of an Oasis fan. The chords felt too simple, the Lennon glasses a bit contrived, and the ‘mad-for-it’ bravado clashed with Noel and Liam’s appearance at Number 10. Yet, here we are, decades later, their songs as iconic as the Beatles’, and their new tour set to be the most lucrative in history. The Oasis reunion will generate over half a billion in revenue, with more than $66 million landing in each brother’s pocket. Some think it’s a government psyop to get us back to Cool Britannia.
I’m struck by how powerful time is—not how long the band’s legacy has lasted, but how my close friendships from that era have endured. Maybe it’s because our school had a strong sense of community. Perhaps it’s because we talked to each other instead of staring at phones. Or, possibly, just another random blessing. If we could have told our younger selves, coming of age in The Woburn Arms with Wonderwall as the soundtrack, that we’d still be in each other’s lives all these years later, I think we’d have felt reassured. Things have worked out—not just for the Gallagher brothers, but for us too, in ways that matter most.
Let’s rise together with every issue. 🧡
Market Movements
UK house prices slip unexpectedly in August | Yahoo!
Forget the budget; there’s a more important economic date coming | FT
The Fed’s preferred inflation indicator is out today | CNBC
Brand Beat
Meaningful marketing in the back-to-school season | LBB
H&M and Charli XCX are taking over London Fashion Week | Vogue
How Megan Markle monetises herself by boosting sales with her outfits | The Sun
Nokia launches Barbie handset with no internet | CNBC
Should brands offer more escapism in a cost-of-living crisis? | Creativebrief
Pernod Ricard to do more brand activations, despite sales decline | Marketing Week
Luxury hotel merchandise is the new status symbol | Bloomberg
How Ozempic is shaping the resale fashion market | Vogue Business
Ad of the week goes to Orange in France, for Paralympics ad | System 1
Are M&S and Ocado ditching the luxury labels? | Startups
Trending: Mesobis, THC gummies in a variety of Latin flavours | Thingtesting
How long should a brand last? | Brandingmag
Attention spans are getting longer on TikTok and YouTube | AdAge
Specsavers new movie trailers | Creative Review
The big Britpop plot: Is the return of Oasis a government psyop? | Dazed
Startup Spotlight
‘Very demure, very mindful’; welcome to the modesty bandwagon | The Guardian
Seven alternative food startups to watch, according to investors | Sifted
Meet the startup helping schools ban cell phones | Forbes
Support for life science startups is needed | Maddyness
Tech Tidbits
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov charged over criminal activity | Wired
NVIDIA beats Wall Street bets as hype for AI continues to boom | Fast Company
Klarna continues profitable start to 2024 as it mulls US IPO | Sifted
Are Google’s monopoly cases 5 years too late or 2 years too early? | TechCrunch
Venture Vibes
Branding agency Red Antler launches $31 million consumer fund called Habitat Partners | Modern Retail
Wall Street just gave Warren Buffet an early birthday: Berkshire Hathaway now worth $1 trillion | CNN
The biggest trends young NYC investors are bullish about—and why | TechCrunch
Where VCs are playing their next AI bets | Sifted
Design Driven
The Wombles gets a charming rebrand | It’s Nice That
Creative directing my stage 4 cancer diagnosis | Fast Company
A sketch of the new Playstation 5 has leaked | Mashable
Hello, Happiness
‘Happiness recession’: UK 15-year-olds report low life satisfaction | The Guardian
I’m a happiness expert; here are 3-morning things for brighter days | Hello!
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