Ghost Stores and Meme Teams

Not the Halloween kind of ghosts

Oct 26, 2021

If you want to listen to me ramble on about Gen Z (as opposed to reading me ramble on about Gen Z), the cool kids over at Day One Agency just had me on their podcast. We talk about the future of malls, Depop’s stronghold on Gen Z, Crockpot NFTs, and more! You can check it out here.

Inside the “meme team” at LA Times; Barbie joins TikTok; Good Light launches vegan acne patches (which begs the question: do consumers care if an acne patch is vegan?); meet the stan who documents every Timothée Chalamet outfit; Clinique’s first NFT competition is inspired by its cult-fave Black Honey lipstick; and proving that resale isn’t always a win, Grailed pulls plug on women’s offshoot Heroine after four years.

THE “GHOST STORES” OF INSTAGRAM

‘Ghost kitchens,’ but make it fashion. The “sustainability-minded, ethically-sourced boutique” that’s marketing to you on Instagram might be sourcing its clothes from Shein. As reporter Terry Nguyen writes, “In the mission to produce and sell as many clothes as possible, these ‘ghost stores’ are constructing a fashion monoculture — one in which consumers are basically buying and wearing the same clothes, just sold to them from different boutiques.” Eesh. vox

HOW CHICO'S APPEALS TO YOUNGER CONSUMERS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING

This summer, Glossy reported on Gen Z’s love of vintage Chico’s, but now the retailer itself is apparently gaining popularity among young consumers, too. The brand chalks it up to “the younger generation’s rejection of fast fashion,” which feels a touch simplistic. It can’t hurt that they’ve also invested heavily in digital (like, for instance, its own studio for product demos on Facebook and Instagram). Look, I’m all for a good mall store comeback, but I must say I just do not get it. adweek

WHEN TEENS QUESTION THEIR GENDER, SOCIAL MEDIA CAN PROVIDE SUPPORT—AND PRESSURE

A look at how internet communities like Discord are changing the way adolescents find themselves. wsj

STRESS FROM THE PANDEMIC HAS MADE EVEN BASIC DECISION-MAKING DIFFICULT, POLL FINDS

We’re all still so collectively stressed out that even the smallest decisions feel untenable (if you saw me today at Whole Foods gazing at the soup aisle for 10 minutes before leaving empty-handed, well, no you didn’t). According to research, “finding ways to cope has been particularly tricky for Gen Z and millennials, who at 45 percent and 50 percent, had the highest rates of responding that they did not know how to manage these many stressors.” Painfully accurate. nbcnews

FACEBOOK PLEDGES $10 BILLION TO METAVERSE PROJECT, AS MARK ZUCKERBERG SIGNALS NEW FOCUS

With a new strategic “North Star” — i.e. serving young adults age 18-29 — Zuckerberg announced a significant $10 billion investment in the “metaverse.” He noted that the “plan to focus on young adults will take years, and will mean that its user growth will be impacted in coming months and years.” thr

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