Chips + Dips - DIP 037: A little bit taller
DIP 037: A little bit tallerPlus, artful urns from a Brooklyn funeral home, androgynous swimwear, and Lucali's garlic candle
👋 Hi. Is this thing on? Is anyone out there? Maybe you’ve missed me, maybe you forgot that you had even subscribed to this newsletter, or maybe you altogether forgot that it exists. Either way, it’s been a while. I’ll explain why in a minute. As always, reply with questions, comments, or thoughts about anything you read here. This issue features 19 brands. Fifty-eight percent are white-led, 16 percent are Black-led, and 16 percent are led by non-Black people of color. You can find the complete Chips + Dips inclusion index here. The Chips 🔮
The Dip 📌I haven’t sent a newsletter in almost a year because I no longer know what to write about. I’m no longer energized by the things that earned me an audience and I don’t know what the next evolution of Chips + Dips can or should look like, if anything at all. So here’s where I’m at: Consumerism has increasingly felt like a distraction from the bigger picture. Digital-born, venture-backed businesses are fueled by a sense of urgency — messaging that tells you that you need this ASAP, with discount codes that discourage you from pausing to question whether you actually do need it, or even want it, or if you’re just being told that you should. The urgency conveyed in DTC marketing translates to internal cultures, too. It makes it so that in order to achieve goals, employees can only focus on what’s directly in front of them. There’s little time to take a step back and examine the bigger picture, especially with a critical eye. ↯↯↯ I left my job at a DTC company a little over three years ago. Removing myself from that culture of urgency allowed me to see things differently — namely that the majority of DTC companies are guided by the principles of fast fashion. We’ve grown accustomed to messaging about high-quality products at a lower cost. But the quality is often extremely mediocre and low costs typically come at the expense of those actually making the product. I still find a handful of exceptions — companies selling specialized goods with equitable supply chains like East Fork and Diaspora, or Soft Services, whose bodycare products really do work. But for the most part, I’ve simply lost interest. ↯↯↯ Part of this shift has been guided by the evolution of my own priorities and how I spend my time. I’m investing in myself and my own growth in ways that I hadn’t previously. I’m less interested in keeping up with everything that’s happening and being first to know or see something. I’ve started opting out of trends and hype cycles entirely. I’m much more concerned with engaging in the world around me and immersing myself in what challenges me. I’m finding myself drawn to businesses and people that seek to solve real problems and increase access, not offer cheaper alternatives. It’s not just what they do, it’s how they do it. It’s strategies like non-coercive marketing, as outlined by Rob Hardy. And it’s Liz Jackson’s talk about disability and design, which illuminates the ways disabled people have been erased from their own stories and outlines the necessity of involving disabled people in creating solutions for all of us. Companies and corporations won’t solve systemic issues, but they can create products that improve access and increase awareness of needs or challenges. Just as important, they can choose to foster a supportive environment for employees. Diaspora’s queer business manifesto and Chani’s employee benefits are small acts of rebellion, pushing back against norms to say, “it doesn’t have to be this way.” ↯↯↯ If I used to feel energized by products and marketing tactics, I now care about people and ways of being. I want people to feel safe and cared for, to be affirmed, to feel powerful. I want people to find spaces that allow them to be fiercely and unapologetically themselves, so much so that pretending to be anything else becomes an impossible compromise. I want people to put their own growth first. There is always room and time to change. We’re capable of more than we can know. Still hungry?
Real Dip 💎Beet + sweet potato dip (a riff on a Falastin recipe) Roast four golf ball-sized beets (or three tennis ball-sized beets or one softball-sized beet) and two medium sweet potatoes (or one large one) at 450 degrees until everything can be easily pierced with a knife — it’ll be at least an hour. While everything is roasting, heat a three-second pour of olive oil in a small pot over medium heat. Add a few cloves of garlic and wait until they start to sizzle and brown. Add a half teaspoon of cinnamon and a bit of nutmeg and clove. Cut the heat and swirl everything around in the oil. Let everything cool, then add the beets, a big pinch of salt, and the contents of the small pot into a food processor. Blitz it for about 30 seconds, then add the sweet potato. Blitz for another 30 seconds, add a big splash of apple cider vinegar, and blitz it one last time. Swirl it with the yogurt of your choice before eating and, if you’re feeling fancy, sprinkle chopped pistachios and mint on top. Plays well with roasted radishes, sliced cucumbers, and good bread. Thanks for snacking, — Emily 📅 |
Older messages
DIP 036: Surfing the net
Wednesday, December 1, 2021
Plus, DTC TVP, Korean spa culture-inspired loungewear, and a psilocybin lifestyle label
DIP 035: Caps! Caps for sale!
Friday, July 16, 2021
Plus, a digital solution for PCOS care, Gustav Klimt-inspired vacationwear, and room service ghost kitchens
DIP 034: Hand over the keys
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Plus, doulas on demand, whipped coffee concentrate, and solution-oriented skincare
DIP 027: Political bodies
Thursday, April 8, 2021
PLUS: A Marcel Breuer dream home, good design at the dentist, and Simmons for Gen Z
DIP 028: Out of bounds
Thursday, April 8, 2021
Plus, time-aware site design, anti-polish nail care, and United's Elite Status mixed nuts
You Might Also Like
4 marketing lessons John Deere can teach us all
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
To view this email as a web page, click here The Content Marketer Today, we're exploring John Deere's content marketing strategy, how to craft B2B2C copy and succeed, Google's latest Search
CZ's Sentencing Hearing Today
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Samourai Founder Rodriguez Pleads Not Guilty
New data: Get the keys to influencer marketing success
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Insights from 2000 consumers and 300 influencers
The new Amazon fee is here—why it will hurt you [Roundup]
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Get personalized business advice every week with EcomCrew Premium. Hey Reader, Amazon's newest fee, the Low Inventory fee, goes into effect tomorrow (May 1). This new fee continues the trend of
ET: April 30th 2024
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Exploding Topics Logo Presented by: Exploding Topics Pro Logo Here's this week's list of rapidly trending topics, insights and analysis. Topic #1 Flat Back Earrings Chart Flat-back earrings
How to Sort in Excel and Keep Your Data Organized
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
In this handy guide, you'll learn how to organize your data in Excel using the plethora of built-in sort options.
Gmail's Latest Updates, MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Boost, + 300 FREE Newsletter Landing Pages
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Gmail's upgrades, MicroStrategy's Bitcoin buy, and your key to 300+ newsletter landing pages!
How to cash in on this $6.8B niche – a thread 🧵
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Sewing is so in, of course we're dedicating a whole email to it. View in browser Trends logo Happy Trends Tuesday! My first encounter with a sewing machine — an ancient Butterfly with a table and a
Heard about the Cookie changes?
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Changes in cookie policies are reshaping strategies across all digital channels. What do these shifts mean for your marketing? How should you adapt? Proactive strategizing for cookie deprecation is
Hong Kong Launches Crypto ETFs To Lackluster Trading Volumes
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Listen now (3 mins) | To investors, There were six new crypto ETFs that started trading in Hong Kong on Tuesday. These were the first spot bitcoin and spot ether ETFs to launch in the region, but the