Brands in Review
It's Q4 baby, we're Locking In
Happy 1st of October lizards. Spooky season is upon us, the saccharin scent of pumpkin spice lattes are in the air, the leaves are turning orange and Panera is celebrating with a brilliantly on-point Gilmore Girls ad.
The beginning of Q4 is here, the make-or-break quarter for most brands, when budgets get spend, campaigns go live and revenue targets have to be hit before year end.
I’ve been seeing a ton of locking-in content recently, which seems to be a slightly less red pill coded version of Monk Mode. It seems like everyone is *going offline*, having an Analogue Autumn, or joining a book club, Gen Z are setting themselves a Fall Curriculum to fight brain rot. Polyester wrote a great piece on the Smart Girl Industrial Complex which reminded me of Ochuko Akpovovbo’s brilliant 2024 essay “Why Everyone Wants to be the Internet’s Librarian” which captures the Venn diagram between the smart and hot (mostly female) celebrity.
On a personal note, I really enjoyed Vincenzo Latronico’s Perfection, a satirical take on the Millennial condition, as well as Culture is Bad for You, an insightful look into inequity in the cultural and creative industries, by Orian Brook, and Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino.
I also really enjoyed this meme format via the Art Forcaster Tatum Dooley.
Anyway! onto Brands in Review… L x
Beauty News
Glossier and the WNBA dropped a super limited-edition hoodie, marking five years of their partnership. It’s less about merch at this point and more about cultural alignment: beauty’s favourite millennial brand staking its claim in women’s sport.
Sports News
Frame Fitness announced the Service95 Founder and sometimes singer Dua Lipa as their new Co-Founder and Creative Director, blending celebrity power with fashion credibility. It’s part of the growing trend of the celebrity creative director (*Ahem* Jaden Smith 👀). If the campaign shots don’t inspire you to finally book that reformer Pilates class, I’m not sure what will.
South London brand Knwls pulled off a bold pivot in Milan, unveiling a collaboration with Nike via a theatrical show in an industrial Visconti space. It combined pointed sneakers, athletic corsets and second-skin separates in their signature denim wash.
In more Nike news. Skims finally unveiled their long-teased joint with the brand, including sleek, interchangeable activewear that blurs performance and fashion. The campaign, fronted by Serena Williams, Sha’Carri Richardson and a wave of collegiate athletes, positions the partnership as more than a capsule: it’s Nike’s play to win women away from Lulu Lemon and Alo, by borrowing Skims’ cultural heat. What do we think?
On partnered with Japanese streetwear brand Beams and swaps elite performance for stone skipping, capturing the world record holding Kurt Steiner tossing pebbles across water. Daniel-Yaw brilliantly unpacks the nichification of sports marketing in his Substack SportsVerse.
Sport England’s This Girl Can is back with its first new TV spot in five years, We Like The Way You Move. The campaign celebrates women moving in all their forms, from belly dancing in the kitchen to jogging with a buggy. It’s a joyful reset against the polished fitness culture dominating social feeds.
Fashion News
Could not be more obsessed with Kith tapping Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander as the unlikely face of its New York Yankees collab in partnership with Major League Baseball. It’s nostalgia at its best, blurring fashion, fandom and sitcom lore into one very New York moment and further proof that choosing the right talent fit is brand alchemy.
Reformation has teamed up with the internet’s favourite trad wife Nara Smith on a capsule that is described as nostalgic, theatrical and a little impractical. Made with materials like regenerative and recycled wool and deadstock fabrics, it perfectly capturing Smith’s aesthetic of aspirational homemaking.
Stüssy and Grace Wales Bonner’s highly anticipated collaboration has finally dropped, a surf-inspired collection that fuses Wales Bonner’s meticulous tailoring with Stüssy’s laid-back codes. Shot in LA by Zoë Ghertner, the campaign pulls in global references from Accra to Tokyo, turning archive nods and beachwear into one of the most anticipated streetwear-luxury linkups of the season.
Ganni and New Balance linked up on a limited-edition 1906L sneaker, fronted by a Dazed-shot campaign exploring the “duality of personal style” with rising musician Samara Cyn. The partnership leans into Ganni’s playful, fashion-forward edge while giving New Balance yet another interesting fashion crossover.
Moncler’s latest Genius drop fromA$AP Rocky, fuses AWGE attitude with the house’s alpine heritage. The collection riffs on vintage skiwear with utility details and high-voltage colour-blocking, stamped with bold graphics like “Don’t Be Dumb”, the title of his new album.
Tech News
OpenAI launched its first major ChatGPT brand campaign, showing the AI as a helper in everyday life, from cooking date-night dinners to planning trips. Shot on 35mm and styled by Euphoria’s Heidi Bivens, the ads stress human craft, positioning ChatGPT as supportive rather than dystopian - ngl I kind of love it…
Homewear News
Rains’ new HOME AWAY line takes the brand from rainwear into kitchenware and homegoods, blending industrial aesthetics, durable steel, and “hybrid living” utility for both indoor and outdoor life.
During Fashion Week, Millennial homewear brand Coat Paint turned convention on its head by having models carry a can of paint like handbags.
Food News
The dons of a left-of-field-brand partnership Liquid Death went full “turn it up to 11” by teaming with Spinal Tap on a collector’s 11-pack of mountain water. Each one hand-signed and phrased as high-voltage parody merch.
Finally, Coca-Cola marks 125 years in GB with an emo campaign spotlighting local corner shop bosses. Not sure how I feel about it…
Sibling Studio is a strategy practice exploring how culture and human behaviour shape the brands and ideas of tomorrow. Get in touch if you’d like to work with us hello@sibling.studo
I need to write about the fake celebrity creative directors. Remind me!!!