Join the Club: Supercharging Socialised Programming

Smart brands cater for the rising appetite for interest-based programming in a bid to meet new like-minded people in real life (IRL). This evolution from the online attention economy to the offline connection economy will see community hosts supplant influencers. For brands, it represents the chance to support target consumers at critical moments of connection and growth.

Hang-Out Spaces Spark Low-Stakes Socialising

Evolving post-pandemic third places (see Civic Commerce: Socialising the Retail Revolution), low-stakes hang-out spaces particularly appeal to boundary-lacking remote workers and Gen Zers, who are increasingly likely to still live at home, and prompt small-scale casual connections. While being an escape from the confines of home, they’re often rooted in domestic spatial design, aiming to put visitors at ease.

Playtopias: Adventuring for Kids & Kidults Alike

The majority (85%) of global consumers want to incorporate play into their lives (Visit California, 2024) – an appetite that’s all the more important to meet in a stressful world. Forward-thinking sports and toy brands and malls are creating spaces and IRL programming that tap into the still-booming joyconomy, encouraging play and engineering an environment primed for connection.

Communal Wellbeing’s Immersive Evolution

As charted in Spaces: Cultivating Connection – Consumer Attitudes, group wellness experiences can boost wellbeing to a greater extent than solo practice (see Key Stats). Sports and beauty brands and next-gen wellness venues are responding by creating spaces and programming that enshrine connectivity as a core facet and using immersive experiences to enhance a sense of togetherness in isolation.

Re-Engineering Sporting Spectacles

Tapping into tentpole sporting moments, smart brands and arts and hospitality venues are rewiring communal sports consumption – galvanising its proven wellbeing-boosting properties. Key themes include carving out socialised spaces for the inclusion of marginalised sports spectators and harnessing tech’s connective powers to transform a lonesome experience into a shared one.