Lettuce corsets and the B Corps debate

Plus, the brand making streetwear for dirt bikers. 27 October 2023 [View online]( / [Sign up]( Today we’re highlighting the founders who followed through on their vision – even when it seems intimidating – and built a career out of their unique take on art, camping chairs and dirt biking. Plus, the sweaty category that’s seeing a boost. *Special thanks to our sponsor [Guru Conference.]( 01. Dresses made out of band-aids, heels made with forks and corsets made out of kale – nothing is quite as it seems in the world of [Gab Bois](. Her surreal pictures have catapulted her from studying to be a teacher in Montreal to a full-time artist with 700,000 followers and some great brand deals: recent collaborations include a bomber jacket made from popcorn for [Apparis]( and a pair of lettuce shorts for [Marc Jacobs](. We interview her [here](. 02. A pretty hot topic right now in the world of modern business: B Corps. The certification – expensive and extremely time consuming – is given to businesses who can prove they are a 'force for good' (usually when it comes to sustainability and ethical practices). However, it’s also been the subject of greenwashing debates. We take a [deep-dive]( to find out whether it's worth it for small businesses. 03. Streetwear for dirt bikers? Italian clothing brand [24/7]( makes bandanas, combos and race jerseys, recently seen on bikers doing wheelies in Milan, Paris, London, Berlin and Marseille. Meet ups by the Italian brand with other European communities like Marseille-based[Moulaga Clique]( British bike brand [Collective]( and German [Sport Mafia Boys]( have widened the brand's appeal. BRAND PARTNERSHIP Elevate your email marketing Are your email marketing strategies feeling a bit stale? It's time to level up! Join us for a career-altering two-day virtual experience at GURU Conference, tailored for marketers like you. No more guesswork, just real results. Register now for FREE and take your email marketing to the next level. [Don't wait, register now!]( 04. Meanwhile [GRIN27]( is bringing a more casual approach to road cycling – a sport that has been more associated with wealthy middle aged men in lycra. Originally started as a blog to share safety tips and routes vetted by local athletes to encourage new entrants to the sport, it now makes sustainably produced cycling vests, base layers and accessories. 05. There’s still a ton of opportunity in new ways to cater to those who want something different from their workout. In Tokyo, [Sam Millen-Cramer]( told us about two new ideas: - ‘[Mini Gym]( is a trailer-sized gym – it’s a way to provide people with the personal space they want when working out with no waiting for equipment to be free. Customers get a monthly membership, like a usual gym, but book a personal slot for when they want to use the tiny workout space.’ - ‘Also, [Totoken]( is a new spot for runners to meet, recover in the sauna and get a drink after a run. As part of its launch they partnered with eyewear brand Izipizi and have a bunch of other events in the works.’ 06. Another active niche to watch: endurance sport athletes. Following the boom in run clubs, [there’s been an increase]( in marathon applications – and that means there are more people looking for products to aid in performance and recovery. Check out soon-to-launch [Endure Sport Nutrition]( (started by Anja Westhues, an intern for food-and-drinks brand bible [Snaxshot]( a snack system for before, during and after workouts. 07. [Minuit 12]( is a dance collective running workshops and performances, founded by three friends who met at dance club at Science Po university in Paris. They've just been given free rein by the Musée d'Orsay to come up and run their own performance art in situ until the end of November. 08. For wannabe dancers, there are more and more fitness classes and studios pulling from the dance world, no professional training needed. See: East London-based [Disco Barre]( which combines ballet fitness with club culture. BRAND PARTNERSHIP Portfolios with 5% invested in art outperform How is the average person supposed to get access to an asset that has been the exclusive domain of the ultra-rich for centuries? The answer is Masterworks, an award-winning platform for investing in fractionalized works of art. Masterworks has completed 14 exits on their artwork, all of them profitable. See important Regulation A disclosures at [masterworks.com/cd](. [Skip the waitlist.]( 09. We thought that every outdoors subculture had already had a merch drop… but then Los Angeles brand [Misters]( and outdoors collective [Usal]( collaborated on a line of apparel celebrating open water angling. Yellowtail fish fans, your time has come. 10. The global wigs and extensions market is growing fast (around 10% by 2030). There’s a high-end bubble with some wig makers pushing the boundaries of hair expression – think gravity-defying bouffants and tentacle-like fringes – such as Japanese prop artist [Tomihiro Kono](. He’s previously worked with Björk, Junya Watanabe and Maison Margiela. 11. Another fast-growing category: deodorant. The average American uses two different deodorants per week, according to [Unilever]( opting for a wider variety of smells. Brands such as [Salt & Stone]( are a good example, with premium scents such as santal and vetiver, while [Curie Bod]( offers three-packs for variety. 12. There’s been a steady increase of food brands and restaurants who aim to mitigate the real issue of food waste, but none have gone quite as far as Copenhagen-based [REDUCED](. It develops ingredients out of forgotten food waste – such as spent laying hens – turning it into umami flavorings sold to chefs. The team frequently does pop ups with Copenhagen hotspots – you can try its mushroom prototype at [Ramen to Bíiru]( through December if you’re around the Danish capital. 13. Wine is another industry that’s taking a closer look at its sustainability credentials, as the production of glass bottles has a large carbon footprint. Boxed wine has been given a refresh, with brands like [Hey Tomorrow]( and [Ami Ami]( making cardboard worthy of your dinner table, while [Viavino]( is giving the Tetra Pak – the plastic/aluminum/cardboard packaging usually used for the cheapest of wine – a glow up. 14. That so many products designed for the great outdoors are bad for the planet is depressing. As such, designers Soichi Terashima and Hisashi Teramoto wanted to give the traditional camping chair an eco-friendly makeover. [Chair1987]( is the (biodegradable) result – ‘Should the chair ever find itself left outdoors, it's designed to decompose naturally, returning to the Earth, even serving as firewood,’ they say. More from us (and elsewhere) 💃🏻 [Divorce parties]( are on the rise in China. 🍊 Off coffee? There’s now [caffeinated orange juice](. 🧶 ‘Your sweaters [are garbage]( 🦠A $5,000 jacket [dyed with bacteria](. ⚡️ A collapsable, portable microwave. [Why not]( [Advertise with us]( Drop us a line any time at [hello@couriermedia.com](mailto:hello@couriermedia.co). Update your preferences [here](. Unsubscribe [here](