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Goodbye Stanley cups; hello, tatty old used jars.

Looks like living 'normally' might be the next new trend 👀

But how do you still get sales when no one wants to buy? Well, luckily for you, we've pulled the Underconsumption-Core apart and discovered 3 ways your brand can embrace the no-spend trend (and avoid becoming stuck in the TikTok microtrend wasteland).

In today's newsletter:

• 3 Ways to embrace underconsumption-core (don’t worry—it’s not all doom & gloom for brands!)

• Founder of "Hoppy" dating app proves the power of a strong personal brand (find out why he made his dating history public)

• Trend plug - I don't even think you really know what a bad day is!

• Ask the Editor - How do I know what trends fit my brand?

-Maggie, Copywriter

To mark the start of 2025, Dove has just launched their "Un-Resolution" campaign.

And it’s a direct call to action to, well, not take action.

Instead of setting goals for the New Year based on trying to achieve unrealistic beauty standards, Dove is calling for women to identify a standard they've felt pressure to conform to and abandon it.

To write it on a piece of paper, then rip it up.

They're also encouraging online users to share something they're going to embrace about their bodies in 2025, using the hashtag #NewYearsUnresolution on TikTok to join the movement.

This campaign, launched alongside 12 UK influencers, promotes Dove's Self-Esteem Project for Women—an online learning module that went live on January 1st.

In many ways, it's the continuation of a growing trend of pushing against hyper-productivity by doing less.

And that means buying less, too.

This trend has been dubbed "Underconsumption Core"...

Just like its predecessors, Cottagecore, Barbiecore, and the rest, it's a way of being—something to achieve.

But, unlike the "cores" that have come before it, this trend promotes the anti-aesthetic. It encourages people to use what they have, to be more frugal. So pretty much the opposite of the overconsumption prompted by constantly shifting microtrends.

[Keep reading]

-Maggie, Copywriter

This isn’t traditional business news

Welcome to Morning Brew—the free newsletter designed to keep you in the know on the business news impacting your career, company, and life—in a way you didn’t know you needed.

Note: this isn’t traditional business news. Morning Brew’s approach cuts through the noise and bore of classic business media, opting for short writeups, witty jokes, and above all—presenting the facts.

Save time, actually enjoy business news, and join over 4 million professionals reading daily.

Check it out

Founder of "Hoppy" Dating App Proves the Power of a Strong Personal Brand

We always hear about the power of authenticity and vulnerability.

But what does that really mean? And what does it look like in building your brand, personal or otherwise? 

Authenticity is about showing your human side – letting people see who you really are so they can feel connected to you.

To build meaningful connections, you need to put yourself out there.  

Researcher Brene Brown, an expert on vulnerability and shame, puts it simply: if you want to build a connection, you have to be vulnerable. 

This might sound uncomfortable, but it works, especially if you also happen to have aspirations of building a business.

David Aliagas, the founder of BeReal, took vulnerability and authenticity to a whole new level.  

Leading up to the launch of his new app, Hoppy, he did something many founders would never dare to do: he went on four dates in four different countries in just 50 days.

And he shared the stories of those dates via TikTok on his “secret account,” also known as Hoppy’s account. 

It was unconventional, unexpected, and totally authentic. 

In the world of tech founders, this was unheard of.  

[Keep reading]

-Jillian, Account Executive

Trend Plug - I Don't Even Think You Really Know What a Bad Day Is!

Ever listened to someone else's issues, which, to you, just sound like another Tuesday?

Then you probably had thoughts similar to this line from the 2020 Netflix film Unhinged.

Early on in the film, main villain Tom (played by an unsettlingly American Russell Crowe) drives up next to mother Rachel and her son Kyle. After some drama on the road, Tom fails to pull an apology out of Rachel and lays down an eerie threat:

"I don't even think you really know what a bad day is... but you gon' find out."

Now, TikTokers are using the clip to recount moments when the struggle has been too real but not everyone gets it. You know, like when you help your tech-illiterate mom with a physical password book, or if you're going through life with just a sliver of phone storage.

How you can jump on this trend:

Use this sound, put the camera on yourself and add text describing a scenario where others' struggles sound tiny compared to what you're going through, or where you've DEFINITELY got it worse than others.

A few ideas to get you started:

• "When your coworker complains that their back hurts today, but you're over 6."

• "When you're conditioning your hair and a big clump falls out."

• "When all your shoes fall apart, so your last resort is sandals and socks."

-Devin, Copywriter

Ask the Editor

Q - Not sure which of the trends in the Trend Plug I should do for my brand. Should I do them all? - Laura

Hey Laura!

This totally depends on your brand and how you want to show up on social media. I don't suggest doing trends just for the sake of it. If it doesn't fit with your brand, it will come across as inauthentic.

The best way to use these trends is to customise them to fit your brand and audience. So if one of the ideas we've given works really well, that's great!

But the examples are more to get you thinking about how you could apply it to your business. The important thing is to only use trends when they fit your brand.

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

For the group chat

😂Yap’s funniest home videos: Little dude does NOT care
❤How wholesome: this made me, and will make you tear up
🎧Soooo tingly: Fufusquishy ASMR
🍝What you should make for dinner tonight: Juicy paprika lemon chicken

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