It is your JOB to consume. . .

The problem isn't with the fact that we consume.  The issue is with why we do it.  If we begin to challenge the premise behind why we consume, and begin thinking about the idea of "consumption" in different and unconventional ways, then we can begin to pursue truly innovative thinking about how to dig ourselves out of the recession we are in. 

If all we continue to do is consume, consume, consume (for the sake of consumption) and just do and act as we always have in the past, then we will not be able to position ourselves in a place where we really want to be: participating in an economic system that is truly sustainable. Because as Einstein said "we can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

Brands today need to think about who they are, the intent behind their actions, and the "value" they bring to the table, in radically different ways.

The Death of Gucci Capitalism

For at least the past 30 years the U.S. economy has been one built upon the act of consumption: seek, get, and buy more stuff. 

Now is this a problem? Well that will more than likely all depend on who you talk to. One thing that can't be denied is that we are in the midst of one of the most challenging economic times since the great depression, and the "value" in consumption is changing as we know it.

Just a couple of weeks back I went to visit my mom and dad in Las Vegas, (we moved there in the late 70's and for the last 25+ years personally witnessed it becoming a beacon of financial success) and had the opportunity to have in depth discussions with my dad (an entrepreneur and business man there since the mid 80's) about how the recession has both affected Vegas and his business.  Serious stuff. The Las Vegas unemployent rate is 13.1% and Nevada has the second highest state unemployment in the country. I also visited L.A where California's unemployment rate is 12.1% about 3% points higher than the national average. I had the chance to hang out with a few good friends of mine who had either lost their jobs or were working with organizations that were being TIGHTLY squeezed by the state's budget crunch.  It was cool hanging with my friends, but sobering seeing the predicaments that they were in. 

Now these two cities are famed for their glitz and glamour and as I was on the plane back to DC (where I live) an article I read, almost a year and half ago by Noreena Hertz called The Death of Gucci Capitalism, came to mind. Probably one reason is that nowhere is Gucci, Prada, and Louis Vuitton more popular than in these two cities that were the backdrop to my growing up.

Now Noreena is an academic (and ivory tower types I have mixed feelings about) and I tend to lean more in the direction of the school of Hard Knox (in the trenches is where the real learning goes on) but I respect what they do.

Even though I have some issues with a number of her assertions, I do agree with her premise that she opens up with in her article:

"We are witnessing the death of a paradigm. As is usual at moments of mourning, the new reality is being met by denial, resistance and anger from the initiators and defenders of the old faith."

She then wraps up her diatribe by stating that "The next phase of capitalism will combine policies of localisation with an understanding that there are problems we share - such as carbon-dioxide emissions - that cannot be tackled alone. And it will actively seek to redefine what is valuable, so children growing up today do not make the mistakes of this generation in confusing success with the ability to purchase another pair of Nikes or a Gucci bag."

I definitely agree with her.  Today, right now, we have to begin thinking in radically different ways about how capitalism in this country needs to re-define and re-interpret itself and be sustainable in the 21st century. 

The intersection of Content and Context

Innovation is about connecting the dots

TEDxNASA - Steven Shapiro

Highlights:

• Expertise is the enemy to creativity
• When the brain finds a solution it stops working
• Make connections to different areas
• Look at life through different angles
• Your big breakthroughs will come by looking outside of your area of expertise

In a three striped galaxy not so far, far away

What happens at the intersection of the dark side, culture, and a clothing brand?

The sickness!

When I came across the adidas Originals Star Wars Collection (launched a couple of weeks ago). . .I was like, "how dope is this?!"

Having grown up on Star Wars, and being a fan of adidas ever since the days of Run DMC, I was diggin' this somethin' serious!

Lovin' it folks! Looovin' it. . . .

 The adidas Originals Star Wars Campaign