Separating Fads from Facts

Verdict: here to stay, but by no means replaces the bar experience

With bars closing down and lockdown restrictions in place, the pandemic has heightened the importance of packaging in to-go containers and stimulated a boom in canned or bottled cocktails. While canned cocktails were initially accelerated by the inability to visit bars in-person, consumers are popularizing more varied occasions for drinking that go beyond the bar to intimate gatherings at home, home cooked dinners with a cocktail for two, or even winding down in the evening with a solo drink at home. To-go cocktails has gone from a replacement for the bar to a whole new category on its own, broadening the drinking experience to not just the night out, but a night in as well. 

Usual Wines – single-serve glasses for winding down at home

Buy Five Drinks – a cocktail-party pack to combat the bad homemade margarita

Nio Cocktails – expertly-crafted cocktails in a paper sleeve (you don’t even need a bar cart)

Verdict: temporary alternative

During quarantine, Instagram stories boasting parties and restaurants were replaced with the practice of posting one’s fitness progress on apps such as Nike Run Club or Fiit. Purchases of at-home fitness equipment and digital fitness solutions surged as people looked for alternatives to going to the gym in-person. However, as gyms and group fitness classes begin to open up, it becomes difficult for digital fitness to compete with the push of a physical instructor in a studio setting and the endorphins that people get from working out as a group. It’s likely that the future of fitness in a post-pandemic world will see a mix of both sides, with a multi-platform fitness landscape that spans both digital and in-person experiences (see: Soul Cycle resuming in-person classes while still continuing their mobile app and streaming platform).

Lululemon Mirror – a digital fitness solution that fits seamlessly into your home decor

Peloton – a cultish status-symbol amongst luxury competitors 

SoulCycle At-Home Bike = immersive live and on-demand fitness when you’re stuck at home

Verdict: here to stay, and evolving

Quarantine has helped people rediscover the joy of staying in, giving rise to JOMO (joy of missing out) rather than FOMO (fear of missing out). Loungewear and comfy homewear has grown tremendously as people spend more time at home, and is well suited to complement a rising prioritization of sustainability as well, paving the way for a future of slow-fashion where a single piece of well-made loungewear is worn both outside and at home.

Entireworld – loungewear that you wear everywhere, not just at home

LUNYA – nightwear that works for the daytime too

Aritzia TNA – an entire category dedicated to the cozy sweat fleece

Verdict: here to stay, but very oversaturated

The pandemic dramatically amplified a pre-existing consumer trend in health and wellness, with the supplements market defying the retail slump in almost every other market as consumers looked to boost their immune systems and combat the virus. That being said, the supplements market has become so normalized that it is almost inseparable from many consumers’ daily routines. Already health-conscious consumers are continuing to invest in their wellbeing even in a post-Covid world, shifting the perception of health foods and supplements from being a solution to a daily necessity. 

Rae Wellness – a one stop shop for mind, body, skin, and sexual wellness

Seed – a science-backed approach to probiotics

Ritual – better ingredients and traceability for supplements

Verdict: an option rather than a necessity 

The concept of the flexible workplace has been in the talks even before the pandemic, but when people all over the world were forced to WFH almost overnight, companies quickly realized that WFH (even post-pandemic) was not only doable, but may even increase efficiency and employee satisfaction. While big companies like Spotify, Google and Twitter tout new long-term WFH or flexible workplace policies, we remain big proponents for gaining inspiration through experiencing new environments — even if “new” is merely moving from the home to the office. Now that WFH is no longer a technical necessity, we’re likely to see workplaces adopt a more blended approach that encourages in-person collaboration while accommodating for WFH options as well. 

Spotify – Work from anywhere, because ‘work isn’t something you come to the office for, it’s something you do’ 

Google – hybrid work model where 60% spend a few days per week in the office, 20% will work in new office locations and 20% will work from home.

Constant – committing to true human collaboration and stimulating creativity through our 4000 square foot office space, so that we physically have the space and movement to feel inspired.