What is a trend?
Does this actually have weight? Does this actually “mean” something? Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes, it’s just about entertainment for entertainment’s sake. What’s the undercurrent of human truth here.
- Physics 101: remembering the true definition of force — does this actually have weight and sustained energy?
- Psychology 101: remembering the human — does this actually mean something to a real person, not an algorithm?
- Business 101: remembering ROI — does this actually move a needle and is a sound investment of time, energy, and resources?
Matt Klein • ‘Trends have lost all meaning’
While the general rule in fashion is that trends and items begin to reappear after two decades, at this point teenagers — who were too young to participate the first time around and who are some of TikTok’s most ardent users — are already remixing styles that were popular just five or ten years ago, as is the case with the 2014 Tumblr aesthetic.
Rebecca Jennings • Fashion is just TikTok now
Trend cycles are shortening
In the span of maybe four months, we saw “mob wife,” “ballet core,” “rockstar girlfriend,” and “tradwife.” There was also the “office siren” aesthetic, which attempted to synthesize the sterility of the office with the mythological seductiveness of the siren.
Cazzie David • The "Vibe Trends" Are Out of Control
(In The Death of Trends, Vox's Terry) Nguyen is examining a more abstract consequence of this rapid acceleration, which is that it saps trends of their subcultural context, reducing them to status symbols that represent status itself, like a trail of breadcrumbs leading to more breadcrumbs. Her piece is focused on fashion trends, or aesthetic... See more
Haley Nahman • #100: New idea trending
Are trends fun or actively undermining development of healthy coping. Trends and brain rot?
The meme even expanded its seasonal footprint into Christian Girl Autumn and Short King Spring.
Callie Holtermann • Why Do We Brand the Summer?
We’re even branding seasons
Great trends reflect a moment in time, but that moment is never fleeting, and the basic idea is more elevated. Good trends always focus on the shift in an underlying human behavior or belief. They don’t describe a single interesting story or a hot new product or industry.
Rohit Bhargava • Non Obvious Megatrends: How to See What Others Miss and Predict the Future (Non-Obvious Trends Series)
70% of people would rather brands ‘serve their needs by understanding what they care about’ vs. 30% of people who’d rather brands ‘appear relevant by leaning into the latest trends’.