By Association

Twitter is fully under Elon's wrath of change. The movements include cutting employees as well as those who 'parody' him using the channel itself. With 3700 employees cut last week at Twitter, a desperate measure for the social media platform reportedly losing $4M a day.  The Metaverse is turning into a pretty bad bet. With less excitement around it's advances and opportunity, shares have dro...

The drama around Ye's brand partnership downfall and Elon's new take on Twitter continues, and so do we. Ye is ousted by Sketchers before a partnership even started & Elon had fun with a sink on his first day in the new workplace. We couldn't resist commenting. Other than that, we took on two Q&A responses we had from people within the same industry:  Our friend and colleague at citiz...

Adidas, Balenciaga & Gap have all severed ties with “Ye” (Kanye West) following his antisemitic remarks and showcases online and in live interviews. We discuss why it took Adidas so long to make the cut and how Ye's actions have cost him his billionaire status. Not to mention how much further this may lead in the fashion industry and develop in public perception overall.  Twitter are free...

Kanye West has agreed to buy Parler , a conservative social media platform following Instagram & Twitter banning him from using their platforms last week over antisemitic posts. What do we know/need to know about Parler? It's one of many right-wing-friendly social media platforms to emerge in the Donald Trump era. We question what entertainment or debatable content stream could ever trickle fr...

Elon Musk is abandoning his legal battle to back out of buying Twitter and now offering to go through with his original $44 billion (€44 billion) bid for the social media platform. He tweeted “Buying Twitter is an accelerant to creating X, the everything app” without further explanation and this has got us thinking about the potential shift in the Western world for more of a Weibo/WeChat shift in...

During the Coperni show at Paris Fashion Week , Bella Hadid walked to the middle of the runway - wearing only a G-string & holding her breasts for two men to spray her body with what appeared to be white paint. Sure, there were immediate connections to another moment in fashion history: Alexander McQueen’s SS 1999 show, when Shalom Harlow ’s white dress was spray-painted by robots. It looked s...

Apple have released the iPhone 14 keeping focus on software updates rather than hardware. Apple have chosen to prioritise creators with high-spec photo and video elements at its polished-up core. We're impressed by the new iPhone's potential life-saving features; crash control and signal sighting from satellites anywhere in the world. Maurice claims wearable tech is really where the opportunity is...

This week we welcome Sophie Blowfield  to join discussion over a mix of key UK-political topics and global news. Sophie has nearly 15 years experience in the creative brand industry working both in-house and as a consultant and worked with some of the world's largest brands and agencies, including the likes of: Charlotte Tilbury , The White Company , Apple , Google , 111SKIN , Coty and L...

Are you working above and beyond in your job description? Gen-Z say stop. “Quiet quitting" is the new trend for people who are unhappy with their jobs spurred by a viral TikTok video. Is this anything new? Do we agree, do we partake?  As of October, Nigeria will officially ban the use of non-native models in its advertising. Having grown up in Nigeria, Mo answers and shares wisdom from his he...

45% of Gen-Z creators surveyed by Adobe said they aspire to own a business and make money from content shared online. As this generation ditches the corporate ladder for the Instagram grid, we ask is it really that easy?  Instagram has found its next social media platform victim: BeReal. "IG Candid" is set to become a new feature on Instagram sending users a notification at random times promp...

A leaked private party video of the Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin sparked rumours around her drug use. In response, an influx of women are showing their support using #solidaritywithsanna. Should Sanna partake in these events given her position? We talk responsibilities and opportunities of a very-human Prime Minister and in reflection ask if this would be addressed the same way if she were...

Food delivery service, Deliveroo is set to halt in The Netherlands. With less than 1% of their takings in the country last quarter and having lost more money than the year before, it’s time to halt service. Why isn't this happening with its competitors? We look to post-pandemic affects on a recently thriving industry.  We couldn’t stay away from Elon Musk’s movements for long - the richest ma...

In the week where we welcome Maurice back from his holiday, we catch up together again and discuss an eclectic selection of news.  The evolution of luxury pop-up stores/experiences. Maurice shares his experience at Louis Vuitton Résidence Éphémère Champs-Élysées while on his travels, encouraging discussion of how pop-up has evolved for brands and the consumer.  Kansas City citizens have...

Their friendship started at work, Hobbs London HQ in 2015. Mary joined the PR team when Emma had recently started working as Social Media Manager. Now living in different cities (Mary in London, Emma in Amsterdam) they’ve continued their brand-digital-marketing journeys separately (but together in spirit) and Mary now spends her working days securing the latest and greatest PR & brand partners...

Nike pays homage to the real women of football with a powerful partnership Nike Shox re-launch with designer Martine Rose, just in time for the UEFA Women’s Champions League. Societal statements in marketing are forever our forte and love - and this campaign is pretty pivotal.  TikTok have announced employee layoffs, in the same way other major tech companies like Google, Apple & Tesla ha...

Maurice’s mystical predictions are correct again - that’s right - Elon has turned back on his purchase of Twitter, encouraging a lawsuit to ensue between the richest man in the world and a major social media network and business. We discuss the true victims surrounding this game of power-play.  As Dutch law is set to enforce working from home as a legal right to employees in The Netherlands,...

R.Kelly has finally been sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexual abuse to women, girls and boys. We ask how this impacts the #MeToo movement and where control and power now truly lies.  Self-proclaimed ‘Crypto Queen’ AKA the fraudulent founder of ‘OneCoin’ who scammed millions of users out of approximately $4bn is on the run, and - on the FBI’s most wanted list. Where could she be? We delv...

As the US Supreme Court ends constitutional rights to abortion, we look to how companies and states are upholding women’s & human rights. Is fashion art? Or a great example of experiential branding? We delve into the theatrical choices of high fashion brands showcasing new collections in Paris Mens SS23’.   Key gaming technology organisations have formed a standards group for ‘metaverse t...

Bill Gates bid farewell to Internet Explorer after 27 years with a public COVID-19 conspiracy jibe on Twitter. We discuss his thoughts on NFT’s & crypto being “100% based on greater fool theory”. Meanwhile, SpaceX fired 5 employees who circulated a letter criticising Elon Musk, but are we surprised? Fickle trading and the economy dip causes Robinhood shares to plummet.  Fake news alert Ze...

Emma speaks candidly with Kaidon Ho, an inspiring advocate for the LGBTQ community in Texas. Kaidon is deeply thankful to her city for her enriching experience in transitioning from male to female, and so her take on the recent banning of family-friendly drag shows in Texas is close to her heart but not without a fire burning inside for her city and all of its positive glory too.

So who predicted Boris surviving the confidence vote? After last weeks bet, we discuss what the results mean for the future of Boris, and how he got away with it. We discuss Apple 's Pay Later scheme and what this means for the "Buy Now, Pay Later" industry and individuals. We also touch upon the European Union's ruling to mandate USB-C charging port for all devices by the fall of 2024, and end on...

What does the judgement in the Amber vs Johnny case mean for abuse victims? We discuss the what the trial was really about. We also discuss the new Star Wars series, Obi-Wan Kenobi , and how Racism is showing its ugly head. Our good friend Elon is in the news again, as he says "get back to work, or leave'" but are workers all quitting over "Return to Office" Policies? And Travel is Back! Delta rep...

Is it a smart move for Airbnb to close shop in China? This week we discuss what this move can mean for the Asia Pacific region. We discuss Snap Inc. share tumble this week, taking the rest of social media stocks with it, and what this means for the overall tech market. Tik Tok launches creator subscriptions? Is it going down the Only Fans route? And Marcel Wanders take a sabbatical. We discuss how...

Is Elon a mad inventor or a genius business man? This week unpack the new drama around the twitter bid and the latest allegations of sexual assault. We discuss the latest move by Thailand in legalising the growth of cannabis, and how examples can be taken from around the world. We wonder what is happening with all the censorship around the female body, focusing on the latest ad for the Adidas spor...

Introducing my new co-host Emma Hooper, we discuss the ongoing drama around Elon and his acquisition going on hold. We touch upon the struggles of Netflix and their moves to increase revenue with Ad-supported plans, password fees, and their live-streaming. We talk about our shared admiration for Lewis Hamilton and our thoughts on the MET, past & present. We then end on Emma's obsession for Pri...