Trends & Artefacts: soft partying edition
In this week’s edition of Trends & Artefacts, we round up the snackable trends, stats and insights from around the world, including:
IKEA Launches Broccoli Leaf Soup
Premium Beverages Thrive as Affordable Luxuries
ASOS Charges Serial Returners Handling Fees
Explainer: Soft Partying
Beauty Brands Resurrect Exact 1990s Formulas
IKEA Launches Broccoli Leaf Soup
IKEA Sweden is adding broccoli leaf soup to restaurant menus, utilising leaves that comprise 50% of each plant but are typically left to rot in fields. Developed through a pilot with Axfoundation, the soup costs SEK 25 and could theoretically double broccoli yield without additional farming resources. When food waste solutions become menu items rather than marketing stories, does sustainability finally escape the premium price trap?
Premium Beverages Thrive as Affordable Luxuries
Consumers are embracing premium beverages during cost-of-living pressures, with the hot chocolate market growing at 5.4% CAGR as Gen Z seek evening alternatives to caffeine and big nights out. Celebrity-backed spirits benefit from a "drink less but drink better" mindset, whilst luxury hot chocolate brands navigate high cocoa prices through direct farm relationships. When indulgence becomes intentional rather than impulsive, does premium positioning finally escape the guilt economy?
ASOS Charges Serial Returners Handling Fees
ASOS now deducts £3.95 per returned parcel from customers with a 70% return rate across three or more annual orders, with an additional £3.95 fee for those hitting 80% across five orders. The policy uses economic friction rather than outright bans, preserving free returns for most whilst making excessive returns inconvenient enough to discourage them. When retailers price sustainability into customer behaviour, does that shift accountability or simply monetise it?
Explainer: Soft Partying
Early-evening dance events like Matinee Social Club and Earlybirds Club are selling out across US cities, catering to over-30s who want social connection without late nights or heavy drinking. Meanwhile, apps like Sweatpals, which has raised $16 million, connect people through fitness rather than bars, reflecting Gen Z's sober-curious values and post-pandemic hunger for in-person community. When nightlife shifts from exclusivity to accessibility, does that redefine what leisure actually means?
Beauty Brands Resurrect Exact 1990s Formulas
Clinique relaunched its 1997 Chubby Sticks with identical packaging and formula, joining Chanel's Rouge Noir revival and Lancôme's Juicy Tubes reissue as brands resurrect archive products rather than reference them. Unlike fashion resale, aged cosmetics can't be purchased secondhand, giving beauty brands an advantage in nostalgia marketing provided they copy-paste originals without reformulation. When authenticity demands preservation over innovation, does that signal creative exhaustion or just smarter brand strategy?
