Happy Monday everyone,

I came across a statistic this week that genuinely surprised me: apparently 80% of millennials and Gen Z use astrology in some form to guide their decisions. The source was relatively reputable. I'm firmly in the remaining 20% - I couldn't tell you what my rising sign is, but if this is even directionally true, it's remarkable how few brands are actually leaning into it in any meaningful way. For something that supposedly influences how a huge portion of consumers think about timing, compatibility, and even purchases, astrology is strangely absent from most brand strategies. If nothing else, it's a reminder that what drives people to make decisions is often far less rational than we'd like to believe.

Caught my eye

The Bubble Palace (Palais Bulles) on the French Riviera, designed by Hungarian architect Antti Lovag and later owned by Pierre Cardin.

Trends — what’s bubbling underneath the headlines

• We need to talk about community

  Iris Ventures published a report this week that I think is worth reading. The core argument is that "community" has become so overused it now means almost nothing — every brand has a run club and a curated dinner series, but most of it is optimized for content capture rather than genuine connection. The distinction they draw is between access and transformation: access says "I was there," transformation says "I changed". The bottom line: when people find others doing something that matters to them, they stop being customers and start being members, and that's when a brand becomes and that's when a brand becomes nearly impossible to compete with.

• The end of demographics

  Afterpay's latest trend report identified consumer archetypes affecting spring/summer spending: the Wellness Junkie, the 2016 Nostalgia Seeker, and the Main Character. The report's broader thesis is that culture and identity now drive purchasing decisions more than demographics — people are buying to signal who they want to become, not just what they need. What I find interesting is how this connects to the Iris Ventures report above — the brands winning right now aren't just selling products, they're selling belonging to a version of yourself.

Business moves, big numbers & “wait, what?”

• Family politics behind a $20B deal. Estée Lauder and Puig confirmed they're in merger talks, and the deal would create a beauty company with roughly $20B in annual sales. On paper, it fills the fragrance gap that's been Estée Lauder's Achilles heel against L'Oréal. But the market's reaction was quite telling: Puig shares jumped 13% while Estée Lauder dropped nearly 10%, which is Wall Street's way of saying this looks better for the seller than the buyer. What fascinates me most is the family dynamics — the Lauder family controls the company through a dual-class share structure but is divided on the deal, with William Lauder supporting it and cousin Jane opposing it. Meanwhile, the Puig family would emerge as the largest single shareholder in the combined entity at around 20%. Two family-controlled businesses, trying to merge given the politics on both sides, I wouldn't assume it's a done deal.

• More wins for family capital. The Ruffini family's Ou(r) Group has acquired 40% of the Da Vittorio Group, the family-owned Bergamo-based restaurant group, at a reported valuation of €250M to €300M. The Cereas family - owners of Da Vittorio Group spent nearly a year fielding interest from Advent, Three Hills, Investindustrial, and even LVMH before choosing to negotiate exclusively with another family— which tells you everything about their priorities. Da Vittorio itself has grown well beyond the three-starred restaurant in Brusaporto into a diversified group doing roughly €100M in revenue across bistros, catering, pastry, and consultancy. Family capital over fund capital, patience over hold periods, generational thinking over exit clocks — this is the kind of deal structure I wish we saw more of in hospitality.

• Herbalife, but make it premium. Herbalife is acquiring Bioniq, the personalized supplement company backed by Cristiano Ronaldo, in a deal worth up to $150M. I honestly was surprised to learn that Herbalife still exists, and had to look up Bioniq — they use blood biomarker analysis to generate custom daily supplement formulas, genuinely interesting science that feels like it belongs in the world of Lanserhof and high-end hotel wellness programs. But Herbalife is… Herbalife. Scaling through 2 million independent distributors is not exactly the same as building a credible wellness brand.

Wish I were there - pop-ups,  collabs, etc.

Pencil in, book the ticket, or just follow on social media — choose your option and let’s discuss afterwards!

• Until 08.11.26 | London - V&A Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art Exhibition

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