Spice it like Beckham—Gen Z's celebrity CPG era, Bold Beans and venture capital's sexual harassment problem

Issue #26 | Weekly Exhale

In today’s chaos, the only truly investible people are those who practice self-care. I just returned from Retreat & Rise Up—two days in a 4,000-year-old rainforest, where the air was clear and the ideas even clearer. Liminal spaces like these—those moments in between the big events of life—are where you stop, breathe, and let your mind wander.

But here’s the thing: you don’t need a rainforest to find them. They’re everywhere. It could be on a long flight, an hour at the gym, or just staring out the window.

Ogden and I have been friends since we were 13. He listened to a lot of Ice Cube, which meant, of course, so did I. This week, Ogden found out that the iconic track Good Day—also about a brief escape from realities—might actually refer to a specific date: January 20th, 1992. A flurry of texts later, I’m in my car blasting the song while Ogden’s at his desk doing the same. We were laughing so hard we could barely breathe.

So, yes, go on that retreat. But also text an old friend. Over the years, my connection with Ogden has been a tonic deeper than any ancient forest. If we mapped out our lives, the chart would show the big milestones and zillions of small laugh-my-ass-off moments. And honestly, it's the latter that gets you through the noise.

Let’s rise together with every issue. ??

Market Movements

UK economic growth 'robust' in 2024, think tank says | BBC

Rachel Reeves signals change of speech and could release billions | The Guardian

Chinese stocks post their best week since 2008 | Financial Times

Brand Beat

Brands don't need to choose between playfulness and purpose | Marketing Week

Supermarkets misleading shoppers with fake farmer brands | The Times

Cath Kidston set to reopen stores | Instagram

Coca-Cola is pulling its newest permanent flavour already | CNN

Mr Beast's Lunchly kits criticised by health campaigners | The Grocer

And, Feastables joins Tony Chocolonely's supply chain, anti-slave labour | Mr Beast

Shein workers have had it—and they're going public | Wired

Cano-Water appears for free on front of Harpers Bazaar | LinkedIn

LVMH backs Moncler chief to increase his stake in luxury jacket maker | Financial Times

TikTok launches search ads taking Google on directly | TechCrunch

Autism is not a superpower; ad strategist speaks out | The Drum

The case for physical retail catalogues | Vogue Business

System 1's ad of the week goes to Arsenal x Addidas | System 1

Spice it like Beckham, entering Gen Z celebrity CPG era | Snaxshot

Trending: Gush is Korean pear juice that reduces hangovers | Thingtesting

Starting Up

Bold Bean Company founder Amelia Christie-Miller gives interview | The Grocer

UK's Top 2024 startups according to LinkedIn | LinkedIn

Akt Londong deodorant secures ￡10 million from Felix Capital | Business of Fashion

Meet Miracamp, video editing BootCamp with teachers from HBO, Netflix and Disney | Maddyness

Moth drinks just raised ￡4.6 million; here's the rationale | Medium

Tech Tidbits

Lionsgate, the studio behind The Hunger Games and John Wick partners with Runway AI | Forbes

Musk hits back after being shunned from UK summit | BBC

Meta updates it's Ray Bans | TechCrunch

OpenAI's CTO Mira Murati is leaving the company | Wired

Venture Vibes

L Catterton to acquire pilates chain Solidcore | Reuters

VC has a sexual harrasment problem | Sifted

Caroline Ellison sentenced to two years for $8 billion FTX fraud | TechCrunch

London leads VC ecosystem in Europe, with Paris and Amsterdam | The Next Web

Did this VC obtain trade secrets for China? | Financial Times

Design Driven

When did colour palettes become content? | It's Nice That

Mozilla re-brand wants to reclaim the internet | Creative Bloom

Matercard's new haptic logo is a stroke of genius | Creative Bloq

Hello, Happiness

Play it again: the link between fun and resilience | Big Think

How to stop self-obsessing and be happier | The Atlantic

Why your definition of 'happy' probably needs a tweak | Forbes

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