Cultural Trends 2009

Unless you spent 2008 under a rock (or wandering around Second Life) some of the biggest cultural trends actually had very little to do with mainstream media — television, film, music and the like. While it’s been simmering for quite some time, the Internet (or, as Senator Stevens famously observed “a series of tubes”) came to define the cultural trends of 2008.

LOLcatz, Threadless, The Gawker meltdown, Mommy bloggers, and that little thing called, say, the presidential election all transpired in real time. Television? All CNN could offer us on election night was an awkward holographic image of a C-list correspondent. Heck, even Saturday Night Live began its comeback (pre Sarah Palin) with Andy Samberg video shorts which screamed their way around the Web.

So, it should come as little surprise that our latest presentation on cultural trends arrives electronically, through the magic of something called The Internet.

Here’s a sample of what you’ll see in Cultural Trends 2009:

More and more retailers are reinventing themselves in innovative ways by opening small, limited-run boutique stores in unexpected locations.

Manhattanites recently flocked to Target’s Bullseye Bodega, a pop-up concept store modeled after traditional NYC corner shops. Bullseye Bodega featured celebrity guest designers, accessories, beauty products, and housewares at Target’s traditional low prices.

By offering specialty designs in limited-edition boutiques (four locations opened in NYC for four days only) Target successfully caught the attention of younger, brand averse consumers interested in playful and engaging shopping experiences.