News 05.12.2019

Need to Know

Trip in the Dark is a virtual audio city tour, Amazon streamlines orders for business clients and WeChat’s growth could be reaching deceleration.

A luxury eco-resort made using 3D-printed sand technology

The Kisawa Sanctuary Hotel, Mozambique
The Kisawa Sanctuary Hotel, Mozambique
The Kisawa Sanctuary Hotel, Mozambique

Mozambique – The Kisawa Sanctuary Hotel uses design to integrate itself into the natural environment.

The resort, built from materials including patented 3D-printed sand mortar, is setting a new standard in sustainable design. Set to open in 2020 off the east coast of Mozambique on Benguerra Island, the hotel offers 12 bungalows set across 300 hectares of private beach, forest and sand dunes. Each house includes a personal beach front, swimming pool, massage hut and electric vehicles to get around the island.

With prices starting at £4,200 ($5,500, €4,964) a night, the hotel encourages eco-tourism among high-spending luxury consumers. To connect culturally with the area, local designers were brought in to implement Mozambican weaving, thatching, carpentry and textiles within the 3D-printed sand structure.

Although eco-conscious hotels have long existed as a niche in the hospitality industry, HNWI consumers are increasingly looking to offset their impact.

Trip in the Dark is transforming the way we visit cities

Trip in the Dark, Russia Trip in the Dark, Russia
Trip in the Dark, Russia Trip in the Dark, Russia

Russia – The virtual city tour allows people to experience a city without visual stimuli.

Led by visually impaired entrepreneur and coach Vladimir Vaskevich, Trip in the Dark is a guided excursion around a city. Now, the project has launched a website that lets visitors explore a digital version of the city that merges art and technology, focused on sounds, touches, tastes and trust.

Users can explore the website through voice commands, audio marks and 3D orientation. The more they explore, the more the noise of the streets guides them through the digital city. ‘Today’s society faces super-abundance of visual stimuli of all sorts,’ reads the press release. ‘Being overflown with colours and pictures, people can’t keep track of their emotions any more.’

The project encourages people to experience cities in new ways, encouraging travellers to get in touch with all five of their senses. For more, read our microtrend Tourism Decelerated.

Amazon targets SMEs with intuitive shelving

US – The retail giant’s latest B2B solution aims to streamline the management of everyday business supplies.

Dubbed the Dash Smart Shelf, the weight-sensing, wifi-enabled smart shelf features a scale that tracks inventory for products – from pens to paper cups and Post-its. It recognises when particular supplies are low, instantly re-ordering them for company stock rooms.

The system, which uses Amazon Dash technology, was created to help small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and Amazon Business customers spend less time monitoring stock levels and carrying out re-orders, and more on their operations. ‘It can place a replenishment order for you automatically, or it can be set to send a notification when supplies run low,’ reads a company statement. ‘You can also check on stock levels any time through the Amazon Shopping app.’

The Dash Smart Shelf also offers discounts on regularly ordered items from partner brands such as KIND snack bars, Bic pens and Scotch tape. In this way, the system taps into the trend for Office Stores, where technology is allowing FMCG brands to explore the workplace as a profitable retail opportunity.

Amazon Smart Shelf

Stat: WeChat becomes the world’s fastest-growing brand

The all-in-one China-founded app has grown 1,540% in terms of brand value in the past five years, according to the Fastest Growing 100 report by Brand Finance.

Examined alongside 5,000 other businesses, WeChat’s accelerated growth is aligned with its swelling user base of one billion people globally, and increasing appeal for Western companies as a platform through which luxury, beauty and fashion brands can reach Asian consumers.

According to Brand Finance’s research, Chinese brands dominated the Fastest Growing 100 list in 2019, claiming two out of every three spots in the top 30, with these companies’ combined worth equating to £654bn ($856.8bn, €773bn).

‘WeChat has successfully entrenched itself in Chinese society, a feat unmatched by any other brand. However… now the Chinese economy is starting to stall, it raises the question of whether Chinese brands can match domestic growth internationally,’ notes Alex Haigh, valuation director at Brand Finance. In this future, brands that want to reach Chinese shoppers must consider the innovations driving e-commerce in the region.

Previous News Articles
Camdom is the world’s first digital condom for safer intimacy

News

Camdom is the world’s first digital condom for safer intimacy

This Sexual Health Awareness Month, condom brand Billy Boy and creative agency Innocean Berlin unveiled Camdom, an app that acts as a digital condo...
Health & Wellness : Technology : Pop-culture & Media
Resting Reef memorialises pets as eco-friendly marine reefs

News

Resting Reef memorialises pets as eco-friendly marine reefs

Eco-friendly funeral company Resting Reef has launched a pet memorial service that blends pet ashes with crushed shells to create eco-friendly unde...
Design : Health & Wellness : Sustainability
Netflix new unveils Moments feature to save and share scenes

News

Netflix new unveils Moments feature to save and share scenes

Netflix has launched a new feature called Moments, allowing subscribers to bookmark, save and share their favourite scenes from shows and movies.
Technology : Pop-culture & Media : Society
Stat: Mars’ study reveals strong pet devotion

News

Stat: Mars’ study reveals strong pet devotion

Mars has unveiled ‘the largest global pet parent study to date’ of more than 20,000 pet owners across 20 countries.
Pets : Society : Retail
Samsonite’s new durable suitcase can survive travelling to the edge of space

News

Samsonite’s new durable suitcase can survive travelling to the edge of space

Samsonite has unveiled its latest innovation, the Proxis Space collection, setting new standards in travel gear with sustainability and advanced te...
Luxury : Travel & Hospitality : Design
The Saudi Investment Bank celebrates national identity with bespoke typeface

News

The Saudi Investment Bank celebrates national identity with bespoke typeface

The Saudi Investment Bank and creative agency Impact BBDO have launched I am Saudi, a campaign celebrating national heritage with a bespoke typeface.
Design : Advertising & Branding : Finance
Foresight Friday: Simar Deol, foresight analyst

News

Foresight Friday: Simar Deol, foresight analyst

Every Friday, The Future Laboratory team offers an end-of-week wrap-up of the topics, issues, ideas and virals we’re all talking about. This week, ...
Society : US Elections : The Power Of Precision Micro-Influencing
Stat: Rapid increase in e-waste raises need for circular solutions

News

Stat: Rapid increase in e-waste raises need for circular solutions

As AI computing demands surge, researchers warn of unprecedented e-waste levels that could equate to discarding more than 10bn iPhones each year by...
Technology : Sustainability : Society
Emteq Labs unveils emotion-sensing smart eyewear

News

Emteq Labs unveils emotion-sensing smart eyewear

Brighton-based Emteq Labs has introduced Sense, a wearable technology innovation that uses nine optical sensors embedded in lightweight glasses to ...
Technology : Health & Wellness : Design
El Departamento turns Barcelona’s historic building into cultural learning hub

News

El Departamento turns Barcelona’s historic building into cultural learning hub

Architecture studio El Departamento, led by Alberto Eltini and Marina Martín, has repurposed Barcelona’s Casa Degli Italiani, a Renaissance-era bui...
Youth : Architecture : Design
You have 2 free News articles remaining. Sign up to LS:N Global to get unlimited access to all articles.
BECOME A MEMBER
SIGN IN