Zag To The Zig #57 :: Soft as nails, hard as marketing & fashion-tech
Hope you’re having a great mid-week. It’s your diligent Chief Curiosity Officer here, with a few tidbits to possibly, maybe trigger your reading pleasure button. 🖱️🖱️
Let’s start in the Economy Room this week
While the impact of the Corona pandemic may not immediately become obvious ("back to normal", anyone?), it seems that the American job market is seeing an unusually big rise in resignations. Apparently that is no coincidence, as major 'calamities' like the pandemic do run deep and shape our economic choices in the long run. Let's just be patient.
I enjoy the Quartz Weekly Obsession format. They always surprise and investigate. And include polls. Like in this edition about Cash. The form of money. Not the singer. Nor the crypto (seriously?).
But yeah: how come that both the printing of physical money ánd the use of digital payment methods are going up?Oh yes - how we recognize this.
If you're in marketing or you just want to read a good rant, spend some time on Mark Ritson's lovely post on the total lack of strategy and quality briefings from companies' marketing teams.🐑🐑 More on marketing. Again, hold back on the innovation, make sure you do the basics. Because, in all these tech novelty times, it's easier to focus on the stuff that doesn't change, i.e. our human behaviour.
Bonus: the article makes a reference to where I got the title of this newsletter from. Zag.
In the Tech Basement
Sometimes though, it is a question of ‘innovate or die’. I didn't know that the luxury fashion group LVMH is running its own accelerator, where 25 (!) start-ups can experiment. 🪡🧵👘
I'm not a big fan of forecasting, future and trends. But this article on how professional trend forecasters (what a job!) work and think was actually pretty useful. 🔮👂
I missed this when it came out a few weeks ago, bit it feels relevant in these Metaverse times. Netflix bought a game studio, known for its storytelling skills.
It's not always Amazon. The 'traditional' supermarket chain Tesco is opening a Just walk Out shop in Central London. Just pick up your groceries, walk out and your card will be charged accordingly.
In the Meeting Room
Some supermarkets prefer to write about softer topics. The CoOp have shared 7 guidelines on how to run inclusive (read: effective) meetings/workshops.
Simple. Which means they thought about it.
Random ZTTZ
Wow. This metal-eating bacteria cleans up a nail in 3 days. Mining industry takes note.
And finally: this is what you get when you combine crypto mania and live streamers on Twitch. Watch this guy watch the shitcoin Squid (of the tv series, sort of, not) be rugpulled (ie. dumped) to 0.
Stay safe in the crypto space.
🏁 End note: 1 thing I’m doing this week
I’ll be moderating a session with start-up mentors for the Birdhouse Accelerator. Really looking forward to that. It makes a change from talking to too many builders recently.