Clean Sweep
Clean Sweep
The toxins closest to our physical being are under scrutiny, priming consumers for the detox of all detoxes.
1. Clean Cleaning.
The cleaning supply industry was an early target for the climate crisis and its environmental impact. Course correcting accordingly, big brands were born. As for the consumer, buying Seventh Generation cleaning products and the like was an easy fix and a step in the right direction for getting the chemicals out of the home and laundry and, subsequently, the septic and sewer systems. Now, we're making note of more provincial practices kicking in and doubling down on the effort to clear contaminants out of the cleaning process. Holding hands with homemaking's cool cousin homesteading, old-school cleaning agents, products, tools, and solutions are making a comeback. CD & Co. favorite, Boston General Store, features a complete section online and IRL for well-made brushes, bottles, soaps, and even clothes pins, with organic or vegan ingredients and materials, to help conscious consumers revert to homecare with a smaller footprint (but maybe a little more elbow grease). Complementing this consumption cut, a full department of sewing and mending items and an array of glass storage for the kitchen have a distinct returning-to-simpler-times message. Can cleaned-up be zhuzhed-up? Preston Lane would argue yes, with a line of luxurious home cleaning and care products, free of harsh chemicals and 1400+ ingredients banned in Europe. Knowing these chemicals are not restricted in the states is enough evidence for us to get tidying up.
The Consumer Insight? People are putting the work back into housework to keep themselves and their families safe.
The Brand Strategy? Partner with, curate collections, or concept your offering around clean cleaning and homemaking…extra credit for needle sports (embroidery, needlepoint, and knitting are still coming on strong).
2. Clean Beauty.
In concert with the broader climate concerns and environmental efforts, clean beauty and skincare stepped right in line. Enter a plethora of treatments, therapies, supplements, and regimens devoted to "holistic," "organic," and "natural" health and wellness. Clean beauty became the mantra of brands and retailers, not to mention owning and operating a lot of social media real estate. Some good for you, some not so good for you, the topic is in play, and questioning exactly what we're putting on and in our skin has been unleashed (especially as it relates to the youngest beauty buffs, see The Relevancy Read, Behaviors Turn To Businesses from July 30, 2024). So, what's new here? Adopting the French drug store beauty philosophy, long a best-kept secret of international travelers. Better ingredients and better formulations make these Parisian mainstays a good get, and the news is out, thanks to TikTok. The Co.’s neighborhood favorite, Thompson Chemists, has exploded, drawing customers in store from all corners of the country, primarily for elusive French favorites like Biafine and A313. Goop Pharmacie hit the nail on the head, timing-wise, with a Summer pop-up, and while we give them high marks for the concept, we give them low marks for execution (call us @Goop, we have a riff on the idea all ready for you). Violet Grey, a boutique beauty biz with considerable clout, also leveraged the French favorites in their French Pharmacy Edit, popping off the screen with the je ne sais quoi of French girl illustrations by Donald Robertson.
The Consumer Insight? The global consumer is comparing local legislation, formulations, and regulations with the rest of the world, particularly European and Blue Zone lifestyles.
The Brand Strategy? Create, merchandise, and curate skincare and other products that reflect a European sentiment, philosophy, and lifestyle.
3. Clean Fashion.
Taking its cue from the clean beauty movement, fashion zooms in on itself. After years of focus on the damage fashion is doing to the environment, consumers and the government are asking brands to take accountability for the effects apparel and accessories may have on the customer. Questioning what's in the materials touching our skin, journalist Alden Wicker's book, To Dye For, jumpstarted the conversation, exposing how the toxicity of dyes and chemicals used in fashion is making people sick. With incoming legislation like The Fashion Act, everything from product development, production, and messaging will need to adjust to meet consumer expectations and lawful requirements. And the urgency is there: for the past year, we have seen lots of attention on PFAs, known on the street as “forever chemicals,” which have been cited as the cause of severe illnesses and disease. Smart brands are taking the lead in the closet cleanup. Mate The Label's Detox Your Closet and Dress Clean initiatives guide consumers on what to keep and what to replace (conveniently, with safer Mate apparel) by reading the labels on their clothing, much like the nutritional labels on food. So, scooch over Clean Beauty, Clean Fashion is here. Projecting a bit, we can see a return to low-tech production practices and a renewed emphasis on natural dyes and fibers.
The Consumer Insight? People will be educating themselves on dyes, fibers, and processes rubbing off on them (literally.)
The Brand Strategy? Create easy-to-understand tags and labels for transparency in material, production, and finishing.
4. Clean Food.
CD & Co. anticipates what we'll call The Means Effect. A recent flurry of press, plus the endorsement of RFK Jr. in the announcement of his campaign pause, has Dr. Casey Means and her brother, Calley Means, in the spotlight. The attention their book, Good Energy, is getting has the potential to change the trajectory of our food, nutrition, and medical systems. Waging war on Big Pharma and Big Food with science, stats, and facts showing the increase in chronic health issues plaguing Americans, especially our littlest citizens, and the genesis of these issues makes for a meaty bipartisan topic putting the health of America on notice. Like the beauty and cleaning industries, ingredients and medications banned in the EU and other countries but permitted in American products and medicines are raising eyebrows. Ozempic, though produced in Denmark, is not widely prescribed in Denmark. The company's planned revenues are projected on meeting US demand. The list of snack foods and condiment recipes re-engineered to adhere to international standards has probably graced your feed. You can see the change in production between classic products over the years. Lore states that when the Surgeon General slapped a warning on cigarettes in the 1960s, Big Tobacco had a Big problem and later redeployed scientists to figure out ways to make food addictive. If the US doesn't start cracking down, we fully expect you'll be able to order your half-caf soy latte with two pumps of semaglutide.
The Consumer Insight? Chronic illness and long-term health will be an increasing focus, especially as they relate to "Big" industries.
The Brand Strategy? Play the long game and put the consumer first in the recipes, ingredients, products, and outcomes you are working with.
Clean products have been on my mind lately, especially after listening to Calley and Casey Means on a podcast recently. I think this is just the start of a more clean living revolution. I also reference Miranda Kerr's origin on starting Kora Organics from her family switching to non-toxic living to help her mom's cancer diagnosis. I'm sure there's so much evidence out there if we begin to look!