Three trends from different cultural domains, each with concrete actions for marketers and brand builders.
fashion
Holiday ads face the craft test
Dior's six-minute animated holiday film, Christian Dior's Night in Color, directed by Sylvain Chomet and billed as hand-drawn, drew online accusations of generative AI, which producer Aton Soumache answered by saying artists drew it over seven months and an interpolation tool was used for a very small part. Prada, E.l.f. and Strathberry are also putting the human labour behind their holiday ads front and centre.
Why it matters for brands
When a brand sells craft, audiences now check the frames, so a hand-made claim needs proof ready before anyone asks for it.
What brands can do
- Publish sketches, process footage and named makers alongside any campaign you bill as hand-made.
- Disclose every automated tool in the production up front, however small its role, rather than explaining it after the backlash.
- Brief agencies to document the making of each holiday asset, so the evidence exists before launch.
local
Chef personality beats Instagram sameness
Gault&Millau 2027 made Boury in Roeselare the only Belgian restaurant with 19/20, named Gert De Mangeleer of Hertog Jan in Antwerp Chef of the Year and gave Pierre Wynants a standing ovation as Comme chez soi turns 100. Critic Jan Scheidtweiler pointed to a chef's personality as a possible deciding factor, since many restaurants now look alike on Instagram.
Why it matters for brands
When every plate looks the same on a feed, the person behind it becomes the difference, and the same holds for brands.
What brands can do
- Put the faces and convictions behind your product in your content, not just the polished end result.
- Partner with chefs or makers at the moment they are recognised, and let them speak in their own voice.
- Mark annual guides like Gault&Millau in your calendar as fixed moments for food, hospitality and premium brands.
gaming
GTA 6 launch clears the calendar
Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto VI launches on 19 November on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, unlocking at midnight local time in every region, with preloads open since 10 November and Xbox One owners able to stream it via Xbox Cloud Gaming. Take-Two says pre-orders have far exceeded its internal forecasts, and physical copies carry a download code rather than a disc.
Why it matters for brands
One release will absorb a huge audience's time and attention for days, so any brand launching that week competes with it whether it planned to or not.
What brands can do
- Move your own launches and big announcements away from 19 November and the days that follow.
- Acknowledge the moment with a light, relevant nod in your channels rather than borrowing the game's imagery without a licence.
- Plan content for the people around the players, such as partners, flatmates and colleagues, who lose them for a week.
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