 |
|
|
|||||
Vaping devices are getting a makeoverone that seems likely to turn more teens into consumers. Experts have long worried that nicotine vapes appeal to minors with flavors like Cotton Candy and Blue Razz, along with bright candy-colored designs. Todays vapes double as digital gadgets. Some mimic video games, others resemble smartphones or tamagotchi-style pets that die if you stop puffing. Its gamified addiction. Behind the flashy designs lies a serious danger. Research shows that vaping harms both cardiovascular and respiratory health and can lead to nicotine dependency. Many of these new products are also unregulated, often smuggled in from overseas manufacturers. As vapes become more like toys, their health risksand appeal to childrenonly increase. Vapes are going digital Dozens of vape manufacturers have started integrating screens into their products, originally meant to show simple battery displays. Some keep it basiclike Fumots design, which features a digital-clock-style percentage gauge below its signature monkey icon. But others are going bigger. Raz uses animated fire symbols, while Geek Bar displays constellationsmini light shows embedded in a puff. Some devices push things even further, embedding full-on video games just inches from the mouthpiece. The Craftbox V-Play, for example, comes in flavors like Strawberry Blowpop and Grape Escape, and features three built-in games: knockoffs of Pac-Man and Tetris, plus a fighter jet simulator. Marketed as a Vapentertainment system, the device even plays music as you game. For those seeking more connectivity, some vapes now function like smartphones. The Swype 3000 is perhaps the most well-known. It syncs with the users actual phone, displaying notifications and offering a limited suite of apps on the vapes body. The tech is far from seamlessBusiness Insiders Katie Notopoulos reported issues like buggy games and blurry alertsbut the concept is catching on. Brands like Airfuze, Vookbar, and Feed Sync are also producing so-called smart vapes. Despite their digital upgrades, vapes remain cheap, often selling for less than $20 wholesale (comparable to their analog predecessors). And, of course, theyre still disposable. Once the nicotine runs out, youre left with a dead vape that doubles as a cheap video game consoleor a phone with no service. A legal gray area Many gamified, screen-equipped vapes operate in a legal gray zone. They’re rarely manufactured in the U.S. (most come from Chinese factories) and almost none have received marketing authorization from the Food and Drug Administration. In 2024, the FDA sent a warning letter to the online retailer Vapes and Such cautioning against selling products that may be attractive to youth by imitating a smartphone or imitating gaming technology. Vapes have long faced criticism for their appeal to minors. In 2023, Juul agreed to pay $462 million in a settlement over its marketing tactics, which regulators said were designed to target children. Over time, concern shifted from flavors to designsleek, candy-colored devices that looked more like tech accessories than tobacco products. If it looks glamorous and it looks appealing, thats going to be the first driver that will bring a horse to water, Brian King, at the time the FDAs tobacco regulator, told The New York Times. Screens represent the next evolution of that appeal. They dont just make vapes look glamorous, they make them status symbols. With built-in games and push notifications, theyre nicotine devices and conversation starters. But that allure can be dangerous, especially for young users.
Category:
E-Commerce
In todays dynamic, diverse, and rapidly changing workforce, organizations’ success is dependent upon creating an environment where different perspectives come together. That’s how we produce the best ideas. Despite the recent attacks on them, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion principles provide a crucial foundation for thriving companies. If companies want to experience the benefits of broad ideas, they need to attract talented employees from different backgrounds. And once theyve hired those top talents, they need to make sure that they dont exclude anyone from participating in discussions and sharing their honest views. Many arguments support why successful organizations need to be able to capture the best from as wide a range of people as possible. Here are a few of the main ones. 1. Results in greater creativity and innovation By bringing a wide range of perspectives, experiences, and ideas to the table, organizations ensure that they have a large enough reservoir that they need to come up with fresh approaches and new, groundbreaking solutions. In my book, Emotional Intelligence Game Changers: 101 Simple Ways to Win at Work + Life, I delve into how to create a culture of creativity. In an organization, employees need to be able to bounce new and diverse ideas off each other. They also need to trust that the company will value their uniqueness and contributions. In a diverse and rapidly changing landscape, organizations that limit their circle to people of similar backgrounds risk stagnation. Theyre also likely to fail in their quest to recruit and keep talented people who are necessary for ongoing growth and success. 2. Boosts connection and collaboration When all employees feel free and empowered to share their thoughts and ideas, it builds a culture of connection and collaboration. As a result, teamwork skills begin to develop among diverse groups, breaking down barriers and increasing understanding of and respect for those who are different from us. The effect of this is increased motivation and commitment to work toward shared goals. CultureCons latest showed that when employees feel their voices are genuinely valued, they are 3.5 times more likely to report higher job satisfaction. 3. Increases the organizations ability to attract and retain top talent Being known as an organization that supports DEI principles is attractive to people who are looking for a place to work where they will be treated fairly and equitably. These individuals are looking for places where they can thrive and get the opportunity to work with other talented people. When they find a place where companies appreciate and recognize them, they are more motivated to remain with the organization. CultureCons research found that 63% of employees are more likely to stay at a company that actively prioritizes DEI. 4. Improves job satisfaction and well-being When staff witness a genuine commitment to ensuring that they value, hear, and appreciate everyone, an atmosphere of trust and loyalty spreads through the organization. This leads to reduced turnover and enhanced job satisfaction, which makes people feel excited to be part of the organization. The result is greater productivity and overall organizational success. 5. Enhances the organizational brand and reputation Having a strong commitment to diversity, inclusion, and social responsibility has far-reaching effects beyond the organization itself. The reputation that it builds will make the organization stand out as a leader. It will also attract new loyal customers, and secure more business opportunities. Customers and clients will search out organizations that they trust will develop fair, equitable, and diverse workplaces. DEI might be under attack, but organizations that continue to invest in it will reap the rewards in the long run. An inclusive, supportive workplace that encourages a broad range of ideas to flourish will result in creativity, innovation, and a positive work culture. And in the long term, those are the organizations that will last.
Category:
E-Commerce
Billy May is now deeply familiar with the intricacies of bedsheet factories. In 2023, May became CEO of Brooklinen. A retail veteran, he’s spent his career in top roles at J.Crew and Abercrombie, before becoming CEO of Sur La Table. But now, as head of a millennial-loved bedsheet brand, he’s learning about the warp and weft of cotton sheets, and which countries have the most expertise in manufacturing bedding. (Portugal and India are leading fabric-producing countries, he tells me.) May has been tasked with helping Brooklinen transition from a DTC startup into a nationally-known brand. He believes the way to do that is to create high quality sheets that you cannot get anywhere else. So Brooklinen is now redesigning all of its key products so they have unique fabrications. For instance, it has worked closely with its factory in Portugal to update its linen sheets to a weave that is exclusively available at Brooklinen; it’s softer and stronger than before, and made from traceable European flax. Brooklinen relaunches these linen sheets today, but we can expect the brand to unveil redesigned versions of its other classics in the months to come. [Photo: Brooklinen] This year, however, there’s been a new wrinkle in May’s plans: Trump’s tariffs. The administration has already announced steep levies on Canada, Mexico, and China which go into effect today, but it has also threatened tariffs on the European Union and India, which is where Brooklinen makes the majority of its products. May isn’t panicking. He’s strategizing. I’ve been here before, he says, referring to his tenure as CEO of Sur La Table during the last Trump presidency. There are things we can do to mitigate the risk. What Brooklinen Learned From the DTC Movement To understand Brooklinen’s deep relationship with factories in India, Portugal, and Turkey it’s important to understand the brand’s origin story. The company was founded in 2013 by a husband and wife team, Rich and Vicki Fulop, who wanted to make it more accessible for everyday people to afford the kind of luxurious sheets you get at a hotel. They studied the bedding supply chain, then tapped factories that made sheets for high-end brands. They believed they could price these products more affordably by selling them directly to consumers without a retail markup. This was a playbook they had seen from a new crop of DTC brands, like Everlane, Bonobos, and Warby Parker. Over the next decade, hundreds of other DTC brands would enter the market, from Casper to Away to Allbirds. And, as Fast Company has reported in detail, many of these brands struggled in their efforts to scale and become profitable. One problem was simply how much competition there was. At one time, there were hundreds of brands making mattresses similar to Casper’s and dozens of brands making suitcases similar to Away’s. This also happened in the bedsheet industry. As Fulop said in Fast Company, I made a tactical mistake: I just told everyone about this amazing niche that were in, and now we have all these competitors. [Photo: Brooklinen] Many DTC brands failed to compete in this environment and folded. Brooklinen was among the survivors, and May says the brand is profitable. To transition to the next stage of growth, May believes that product differentiation is the only way forward. Brooklinen’s original pitch to customers was that it offered high quality. But now, May also wants to ensure the products are truly unique, such as the new linen sheets. If a customer falls in love with them, they cannot get this fabrication anywhere but Brooklinen. But to create these high quality fabrications, May says that Brooklinen needs to have close relationships with its factory partners. They work closely with their partners to create prototypes, source materials, and get certifications, like the one that traces the origins of the flax in the linen. These are deep, long-term partnerships, says May. It’s the only way to create a high quality product. [Photo: Brooklinen] Brooklinen’s Tariff Strategy Trump’s tariffs threaten to undo many brands’ relationships with their factory partners. Brands that produce products in China and Mexico, for instance, are suddenly going to pay significantly more to import their products into the United States. When the tariffs were first announced, some brands sad they would immediately start finding factories outside of China. Steve Madden’s CEO, for instance, said he would start exploring factories in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Brazil. But this can have an impact on product quality. It takes years to build a relationship with a factory and work closely to ensure products are made to a brands’ standards. Moreover, some countries have far more expertise in making particular products. China, for instance, has thousands of footwear factories that have been making products for American brands for decadeswith a workforce that is well trained in manufacturing. Finding factories in other countries that can make products at a similar quality can be a challenge. May says that Brooklinen has not been immediately affected by this first wave of products because it manufactures primarily in Europe and India. But the Trump administration has already threatened tariffs on both of these territories, and May is strategizing about what to do. [Photo: Brooklinen] Rather than abandoning factories, May’s first step is to work even more closely with them to navigate looming tariffs. In many cases, factories bear the brunt of tariffs, since they are exporting products to overseas warehouses. Some American brands will refuse to pay the higher costs incurred by the tariffs, so the factories will have to simply absorb these costs. But May is already talking with factory partners about how to share the burden. We’re working hand in glove with them on ways to share any potential cost increases, he says. It’s been an ongoing dialogue. For May, this isn’t just a responsible thing to do. It’s also an important way to ensure that the company can maintain quality, since it has spent years working closely with these factories to make sure the product is exactly how they want it. That said, having run a retail business in Trump’s previous term, which also involved tariffs, May says it’s important to have many tools to mitigate cost increases. Right now, the company is identifying its bestselling products that are always in stock, then preemptively sourcing materials and manufacturing large quantities, in case Trump makes good on tariffs. And in the longer term, May is expanding its network of factories. Over the course of the last year, it has added 10 new factory partners across many different countries and started training them to make its products. This is partly because Brooklinen is growing fast and needs to be able to expand its capacity. But as new potential tariffs emerge, May says there will be some flexibility to increase orders in places where tariffs are lower. May is also taking this moment as a chance to innovate. As Brooklinen explores new factories, it is also thinking about how it can develop new kinds of products that customers are looking for. It has developed a waffle blanket at one of its new factories so that it has a proprietary weave that holds its shape better and has a deeper pocket. It has also redesigned its plush towels with its Turkish factory to give them a unique fabrication that is more densely woven so it is softer and absorbs water quicker. Ultimately, May believes this moment of economic uncertainty doesn’t need to squash innovation and growth. In some ways, it might even spur it. We think about other companies we admire like Apple and BMW, he says. They don’t rest on their laurels, but are constantly innovating product, and that’s how they keep their edge.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||