After the infamous Fyre Festival and “immersive” Willy Wonka experience, Detroit’s Bridgerton-themed ball has joined the list of events that didn’t meet party-goers’ expectations. With 32% of US Halloween fans planning to go to an event this year, we hope organizers and influencers manage to make it a holiday to remember (for the right reasons, of course 👻).
Scroll down to read about ultra-luxury, charitable giving, and the truth about workplace AI adoption.
Stats to power your week
🎥 Appetite for international content has stirred a debate around dubbing vs. subtitles. Experts have weighed up the pros and cons, but consumers prefer subtitled over dubbed, with the main reason being it maintains the original tone and emotions. GWI Zeitgeist
🎾 Pickleball, often described as a mix of tennis, ping-pong, and badminton, has made the headlines time and time again for being America’s fastest-growing sport. But how popular is it, really? And can emerging sports ever catch up to their parents? Well, Americans in their 20s are more likely to play pickleball than ping-pong, and overall, it’s ahead of tennis in five states. GWI USA
☕ Coffee’s consumed pretty much everywhere, but not in the same way. Italian drinkers are most likely to use ground coffee pods (46%), Germans favor whole beans which they grind themselves (42%), and Brits’ go-to is instant or powder coffee (65%). We’ll leave it to Google to tell us what that says about each market’s personality. GWI Core Plus
🏖️ For many of us, using social media to plan vacations is second nature. But in the wider market, it’s a trend that’s still got a way to go. That said, we’re seeing movement in this area, with a 22% year-on-year rise in the number of people saying social’s their top source of information when researching or planning vacations. GWI Travel
🛍️ The “buy less, buy better” philosophy has been discussed a lot recently, and the message seems to be registering in places. It’s the first year that more UK Gen Z say high-quality products would drive them to promote a brand over rewards, while the switch happened in 2020 among older generations in Europe. GWI Core
What’s on our radar
Amid the textured hair care boom, California’s made a landmark move toward inclusivity by making all beauty and barber schools teach students how to style it.
A study in the Financial Times reveals the UK market for low-alcohol beer has ballooned more than any other in terms of volume, growing twice as much as the next-highest country, Venezuela. Meanwhile, Guinness 0.0 is being introduced in London pubs.
As reports emerge of Amazon surpassing its ad spend goal on its streaming service, Amazon Ads has unveiled shoppable ad formats for Prime Video and live sports.
This year, two of the world's biggest soccer gaming titles – EA FC and Football Manager – are allowing players to take charge of female teams. And developer Sucker Punch just revealed that its new spinoff game, Ghost of Yotei, will have a female protagonist.
As more people get news and medical tips on social media, WHO and TikTok are collaborating in the hope of giving them reliable, science-based health information.
We’ve heard a lot about the running boom, but less about the brands benefiting from it. Well, here’s one… SportsShoes.com, an online running shoes and clothing retailer, has seen its international sales jump 22% year-on-year.
The luxury market is said to be undergoing a shift as demand for ultra-expensive products declines in favor of mid-range ones. And according to the CEO of Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), luxury in the hospitality industry has moved toward tailored and immersive experiences at various price points.
Chart of the week
Despite ChatGPT being released in 2022 and AI moving at a very fast pace among consumers, we’re just starting to see things take off in the workplace: under 3 in 10 US/UK professionals say their company uses it.
This does reach 34% among Gen Z and millennial workers, though. Finding staff is the top business challenge according to professionals in these markets, and AI is a key part of attracting and retaining young talent.
Employees at companies that use AI generally score them higher for “collaboration”, “productivity", and “training for staff”. So, brands that openly discuss it and allow younger workers to bring these skills to the workplace will be better prepared as this trend evolves.
Local lowdown
Egypt: a history that keeps on giving
Donating to charity is harder when money’s tight, and we’ve seen a slight drop in people saying they do since 2021. But in some markets, giving back is deeply rooted in religion and history, which means even if people donate less, they do it as often.
Egypt’s a good example. Not only do consumers here rank top globally for making monthly donations, but this number has reached its highest point to date, growing from 69% to 75% in the last year; and the reasons behind it are well-established.
Islam is by far the most followed religion in Egypt, and Zakat is the mandatory Muslim practice of giving 2.5% of any accumulated wealth to charity. But even before Islam, ancient Egyptian sculptures stressed the importance of helping the less privileged; if people didn’t behave in accordance with “Ma’at” (the goddess of harmony, justice, and truth), they risked not reaching the afterlife.
