AYR Wall in English @ayrwallinenglish - Tumblr Blog

We moved to the next door.

On the 17th of May 2011 we created this “notice board” to share information about Consumer Mentalities and Trends, examples and manifestations of such Trends and Research Notes produced by our research team – such as our 1st post called “Sane Recession – or when Trends become facts”, something that, 18 months later, became a reality.

But our evolution and growth in the several areas where we are present dictate that today we will be publishing our last post here, not to end a project but, actually, to take it a step further and, thus, invite you all to visit and even subscribe www.ayr-insights.com, our contents platform.

Ayr Insights has been developed over more than a year, and now hosts more than 600 documents covering more than 20 subjects and spanning areas such as Entrepreneurship, Management, Innovation, Marketing, Trends and Coolhunting – from the environment to architecture, consumption, luxury, health, beauty, lifestyle, etc. In it you can find all the information hitherto published on Ayr Wall as well and many, more extensive, comprehensive and deeper contents, updated weekly.

Besides all that, and coming very soon, there will be a weekly and very innovative series of contents that can be subscribed for free.

Ayr Insights presently exists only in Portuguese, but during the 1st half of 2013 it will also be available in English and Spanish. And we’re right here.

The glasses that can detect feelings, moods and states of health

What it is:

Created by Mark Changizi Human Cognition Director at 2AI Labs, they were originated by an insight drawn from the study of the evolution of colour vision in primates, which changes to show the fluctuations in the levels of oxygen and haemoglobin in the blood. Based on this principle, these glasses enhance the visualization of the changes in oxygen and haemoglobin levels to – besides detecting feelings and tempers, have a better view of the veins in our bodies and, for instance, detect traumas or impending cardiovascular problems.

Mark Changzi asserts that this technology can also be used for security systems, sports and, more prosaically, at dates.

Why it is Cool:

More than simply being capable to “read” feelings and moods, because of the brilliant insight that moves it primarily into the field of health and violence prevention, since it can detect, simply and effectively dangerous and latent moods and health states that could hitherto only be detected – if at all – through costly and complicated systems and exams.

Related Trends:

Cool Creators of Cool;

Design = WOW + HOW + HOW GOOD.

Submited by:

Luís Rasquilha

Good for Gold at 54

What it is:

Aged 54, Nick Skelton could have taken the London Olympics as a chance to just watch the youngsters compete for gold, silver and bronze. But on Monday, 06/08, he became Britain’s oldest gold medalist for more than 40 years, and leading the team that won Britain’s first Olympic showjumping gold for six decades.

That itself would have been remarkable enough, but the fact is that, on top of his age, Nick was once injured so badly that doctors warned another fall from the saddle would kill him, and he has also had a hip replacement and two knee operations, which makes him find walking harder than riding…

Why it is Cool:

Because it proves that more and more the barriers and prejudices surrounding people over 50 are crumbling for good, in that not just modern medicine but fundamentally the right mental and physical attitude can keep one going virtually forever - active, productive and, above all, competitive at the highest level in many cases.

Related Trends:

Vitality Management.

Submited by:

Eduardo Garcia

Wi-Go – Mobility taken several steps further

What it is:

There are more than 140 million people with mobility problems all over the world, and, to a greater or lesser extent, such problems have been having total or partial solutions developed for them.

But for the wheelchair-bound, shopping for groceries on their own still causes almost insurmountable problems: how to reach the products on the shelves without the wheelchair bumping against them and, above all, where to place them?

But Luís de Matos, a young wheelchair bound Portuguese, thought of a solution (whilst shopping in a supermarket accompanied by his girlfriend) and developed the wi-Go, a device connected to regular shopping trolleys and that transforms them in “robot-trailers” which, thanks to a number of sensors incorporated into it, makes them not just follow the wheelchair but also keep it at a safe yet practical distance from supermarket shelves and displays.

wi-Go is nearing its completion and ready to go into mass production, thus restoring a more complete and individual degree of mobility to the many who will certainly appreciate it.

Why it is Cool:

1.Because of the simplicity of the concept and the execution, entirely based on existing systems that make it easier to manufacture and more accessible to many;

2.Because of the giant step it gives in devolving mobility with individuality to those who had been deprived of it and thus contributing to a greater and better level of physical and mental wellness and well-being for those who need it and making their social inclusion even more complete.

Related Trends:

Cool Creators of Cool;

Design = WOW + How + How Good;

Wellthy.

Submited by:

Rosa Palma

KOAN FLOAT - Drowning the stress by staying afloat!

What it is:

Individual flotation tanks filled with high-density salt water kept at 35.5º Celsius and designed in such a way as to eliminate visual and sound stimuli.

The high-density warm salt water makes for effortless flotation and the absence of visual stimuli and sound induce a level of relaxation that can make the most stressed-out person relax, physically and mentally.

It acts fast, and a 45’session costs only 32.50 Euro.

Why it is Cool:

Because however much most of us are told that “we need to relax” in order to face the trials and tribulations of modern life, not all of us have the time or even the mental concentration in order to do so. Therefore, devices like Koan Float are a much welcome and needed “quick-fix” to the stress levels that threaten to drive many of us literally mad. It may not be forever, but in days like the present ones, anything that makes us feel truly relaxed – however fleetingly – helps immensely.

Related Trends:

Cool Relax;

Sane Recession.

Submited by:

Elsa Fernandes

Low-cost Fast Food with a visible human touch!

What it is:

2 “automatic” fast food chains from the Netherlands, serving burgers, croquettes, chips all of them prepared and made available in a “just-in-time” manner by cooks that one can see through the apertures of the ”pigeon-holes” from which the finished food is passed on to the customer.

Why it is Cool:

Because despite its harking back to the “Automatic Food Dispensers” introduced in the USA in the 1920’s as a means of providing the most affordable type of fast food possible, they add the all-important human touch that ensures – as far as fast food can – that what is going to be eaten is as freshly cooked as can be, thus adding a measure of dignity and even personal touch to what would otherwise just be “the cheapest snacks available”.

And also because they managed to add true local specialties like croquettes, that add a much needed touch of authenticity and even homeliness to the concept of fast-food.

Related Trends:

Bottom of the Urban Pyramid;

Sane Recession.

Submited by:

Pedro Fernandes

Master in Coolhunting & Innovation Management - Lisbon

Para mais informações e download da brochura informativa: www.ayr-consulting.com/pt/master/

DREAM PILLS

What it is:

This example is about a new sweet-shop in Oporto, Portugal, selling just about every kind of confection one could imagine. Only it is decorated, from top to bottom and including the packages… as if it were a pharmacy.

Their salespeople dress in lab coats and are ready to make recommendations to all their “patients” as to the best kind of sweets to tackle their maladies, problems and complaints – and in the right dosage at that, since all their “medicines” are designed (and can be combined) to cure things like “Extra strength to cope with one’s boss” and, “Changing football club allegiance without trauma”, to name but two. They have been a success thus farm and it’s not difficult to see why.

Why it is Cool:

1. Because it brings out in the open that life is made of small pleasures and, thus, that many times there’s nothing that some sweets cannot either cure or prevent;

2. Because it brings together “Help me De-Stress” and “Vitality Management” in a positive, good-humoured and very affordable way that can put a smile and a good taste on the faces and in the mouths of many;

3. And because it proves that when we give the consumer real innovation (that is, added value), even something as apparently banal as a sweet-shop can be transformed into a real Experience that can only do them good.

Related Trends:

Cool Relax;

Vitality Management;

Help me to De-stress;

The Very Many Faces of Experience Economy.

Submited by:

Catarina Varandas - AYR Consulting

Master em Coolhunting & Gestão da Inovação - LISBOA

Para mais informações e download da brochura informativa: www.ayr-consulting.com/pt/master/

Fill this bottle with par water and help a water project in Peru!

What it is: Never before have we seen so wide an offer of mineral waters – bottled water has never sold so much. But in Holland, the quality of tap water is excellent, so Neau is a very pretty bottle that can be filled with tap water and served at any table and displayed anywhere. And what’s more, a part of the proceeds of the sales go to finance a water project in Peru

Why it is Cool: Quality tap water is something that most western countries take for granted, but that for many countries in the world is still a luxury. That is why there are people willing to sell and buy an empty bottle which only purpose is to contain tap water and finance potable water projects in many such needy countries. In other words, by simply making use of a resource that we have, in abundance and with quality, we are also helping other countries to achieve a similar situation as well. Neau does that by making us more conscious of the potable water problem around the world, help solve it and thus contribute to our enjoying our tap water even more.

Submitted by:

Catia Franco – The Cool Hunter Club

Related Trends:

Structural Eco Cool

Cool Hope

Master em Coolhunting & Gestão da Inovação em LISBOA

Este Master é um Curso Prático e Avançado para executivos e profissionais que pretendam desenvolver as competências de Coolhunting e aplicação dos Insights obtidos das Tendências em projetos de Empreendedorismo e de Inovação.

Para mais informações e download do folheto informativo: AQUI

Inscrições: [email protected]

Vogue launches model health initiative

What it is:

19 Vogue editors from across the world joined forces to create a set of guidelines to face the ever-present ill-health problem in and around the fashion industry.

The guidelines have 6 points, as follows:

1. We will not knowingly work with models under the age of 16 or who appear to have an eating disorder. We will work with models who, in our view, are healthy and help to promote a healthy body image

2. We will ask agents not to knowingly send us underage girls and casting directors to check IDs when casting shoots, shows and campaigns.

3. We will help to structure mentoring programmes where more mature models are able to give advice and guidance to younger girls, and we will help to raise industry-wide awareness through education, as has been integral to the Council of Fashion Designers of America Health Initiative.

4. We will encourage producers to create healthy backstage working conditions, including healthy food options and a respect for privacy. We will encourage casting agents not to keep models unreasonably late.

5. We encourage designers to consider the consequences of unrealistically small sample sizes of their clothing, which limits the range of women who can be photographed in their clothes, and encourages the use of extremely thin models.

6. We will be ambassadors for the message of healthy body image.

This builds on the guidelines already published by the Council of Fashion Designers of America and the British Fashion Council.

Why it is Cool:

Because it shows a responsible face of fashion, not just a recreation for the few but in truth one of the biggest industries in the globe, providing jobs, revenues and innovation for billions, and it was high time that a (possibly the) leading publication in its field recognised its social and behavioural importance and began to act like other industries such as the automotive, pharmaceutical etc in the pursuance of not just a better image, but a better quality of life for members and adepts as well.

And in the words of Jonathan Newhouse, chairman of Condé Nast International, "Vogue believes that good health is beautiful. Vogue editors around the world want the magazines to reflect their commitment to the health of the models who appear on the pages and the wellbeing of their readers."

Related Trends:

Cool Protection; The rise of resentment culture.

Submited by:

Eduardo Garcia - AYR Consulting

The Lake Bedsheets and Pillowcases, by Bless.

What it is:

A set of bed sheets and pillowcases bound to help us relax even further when we go to bed or simply by looking at them.

Why it is Cool:

Because they take our imagination back to relaxing, carefree childhood days or even the holiday breaks that we – now more than ever – yearn so much for on a day-to-day basis.

Related Trends:

Cool Relax

Let me Land

Submitted by:

Alexandra Dias - The Coolhunter Club

The cuddly side of the web

What it is:

These Teddy bears are an invention by Taiwan's Yong-Fu Chang, and cater to the ever more interactive – physically and virtually – world in which we live.

They are equipped with microphones and speakers and are connected to the Internet by wi-fi, thus allowing them to be not just mascots and comforters for children, but actually a learning tool for them and also a great help to busy parents who can interact with their children even from a distance.

Why it is Cool:

Because it brings together 2 major needs of today – that of providing our children with a loving, caring and fun environment from which they can also learn with the ever-mounting pressures on the time of parents (be they couples or singles) that reduce their face time with their children and builds in them feelings of guilt.

This invention does not solve those 2 needs to the full, but goes a long way to mitigate the problems and is also very nice and cuddly into the bargain!

Related Trends:

Cool Creators of Cool;

Give me Interactive Kicks.

Submited by:

Eduardo Garcia - AYR Consulting

"French Resistance" uses Tweets with WW2-Style codes to defy censorship

What it is:

There is a silly law in France, in force since 1977, that imposes a blackout on disclosing results, projections or exit polls before the last polling stations close during voting days at election periods. And during the recent ones, the ever-present bureaucrats threatened fines of up to 75,000 euros for breaches of this law.

Only the march of communications technology has made this silly law look not just sillier than ever but also like the Maginot line, which, this time was circumvented with coded tweeted and SMS messages like "Netherlands-Hungary qualify for return leg," and (this one with an irresistible WW” twang to it) "According to observers returning from Syria, Russian tanks left at dawn, due to arrive in Paris at 20h (8pm)," alluding to a possible left-wing victory and closing time at polling stations.

Aliases for Mr Hollande included "Gouda", the "Flan and "Rose of Correze", combining the Socialist colour with Mr Hollande's rural constituency in central France. For Mr Sarkozy, they included "platform heels", "Rolex" and "Goulash". Mariune Le Pen became Daddy’s girl" and firebrand leftist Jean-Luc Melenchon was branded "hot red pepper" by one micro-message sender.

Why it is Cool:

Because it shows that no matter how bureaucrats try and impose bans on freedom of thought and expression, there are always ways to breach them, and the combination of creativity, a healthy sense of humour, a love of freedom and the unstoppable march of the empowerment that the Web gives us make for an infallible weapon for truth and thus, for good and for all.

And also that the age-old Lating proverb “Ridendo Castigat Mores” – To Tell the Truth While Laughing – is more alive and relevant than ever, and the fact that it was immortalised my Moliére gives this Cool Example an extra pleasant flavour.

Related Trends:

Social Web Continued;

Cool Nostalgia;

Total Transparency;

Empower Me.

Submited by:

Eduardo Garcia - AYR Consulting

Deeds are Worth More Than Millions of Words!

What it is:

Matthew Epstein is a young and brilliant Marketer, who wants to work for Google. So rather than join the certainly endless queue of CVs sent to that giant, he decided to demonstrate his abilities to them. On his own terms, or course, but in a medium that Google could not fail to notice. So he combined all the right ingredients, in a very serious and potent package, and dressed it up with lashings of good humour in order to “take the mickey” out of the pompous, staid normal CV language to get Google’s attention and left the recommendations to those best suited to give it: Google’s peers.

Why it is Cool:

1. Because, once again, it proves that being good at one’s job – present or potential – does not rule out good humour and informality, rather the opposite, in fact;

2. Because of the brilliant way in which he demonstrated how he can actually add value to the potential employer – not by words, but deeds;

3. And because he combines “Total Transparency” with “Peer-to-Peer Marketing to show how he is also a “Cool Creator of Cool”, and, therefore, worthy of attention.

Related Trends:

Cool Creators of Cool;

Total Transparency;

Peer-to-Peer Marketing.

Submited by:

Luís Rasquilha - AYR Consulting, Trends and Innovation

Fast, furious and fundamentally FEMININE

What it is:

A new and unstoppable generation of women racing drivers who are making their mark at the highest levels of motorsport: Formula 1 in Europe and Indy Car in the US. Susie Wolff, Sarah Fisher, Ana Beatriz, Maria de Villota, the list has only been growing.

A far cry from times past when there every 10 years or so there was only the token female representative, always much photographed at their debuts and much reviled soon afterwards because of their comparatively inferior performance – always owing to the fact that their cars were better suited to a junkyard than a circuit but also always ascribed to the notion that “women simply could not cut it” in motorsport – and ridiculed for their looks and general appearance.

But now this is changing, for the better and for good, since this generation of lady racing drivers not only has and demands the right conditions to compete at the highest level, but is also fundamentally feminine.

Have a look at any race or pre/post race event where they are present and what you will see there is a group of very feminine women whose competitive spirit simply adds to their attractiveness.

Why it is Cool:

Because it proves that the role of women in modern society has toppled most of the silly old conventions of gender, and in this case it brings a much wanted breath of fresh air into a sport that mostly had women in secondary or simply objectified roles far away from where the real action and thrill are.

And also because it also proves that competitiveness and female beauty are not enemies but firm allies that can feed off one another and take women one step further and higher to their deserved position in society: the top.

Related Trends:

Females: The only way is to the top

Submited by:

Eduardo Garcia - AYR Consulting

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