Podcast Summary: Style-ish Episode - "Is hair suddenly all over your feed, too?"
Release Date: May 27, 2025 | Host: Shameless Media | Description: Style-ish is the podcast for all things fashion, brand, business, and beauty.
1. Beauty Routines on Long Haul Flights
The episode opens with a discussion on the rising trend of performing beauty routines during long-haul flights. Joanna Fleming introduces the topic by referencing an article from nine.com, highlighting that influencers and travelers alike are incorporating skincare and makeup routines while airborne.
Key Points:
- Cabin Environment Impact: Dr. Sapna Palip, a dermatologist, emphasizes that low humidity and recycled air on planes can dehydrate and fragilize the skin's outer layer, the stratum corneum (06:56).
- Skincare Practices: Hosts share their personal routines to combat the dry cabin air. Madison Sullivan Thorpe describes her regimen, which includes pre-flight skin prep, facial mists like Tower 28 SOS spray or rose water, and hydrating masks such as Mecca Cosmetica’s hydration mask (06:56).
- Makeup on Flights: Madison admits to carrying a full makeup bag on flights, often leading to amusing interactions with fellow passengers (08:15).
- Annika’s Comprehensive Routine: Annika Joshi Smith reveals her extensive skincare routine, including spritzes, thick masks, and even an LED face mask to manage anxiety and maintain skin health during flights (08:38).
- Host Insights: Joanna and Madison advocate for maintaining skincare routines on flights, arguing that proper moisturizing and hydration prevent post-flight skin issues like dryness and breakouts (10:05).
Notable Quotes:
- Madison Sullivan Thorpe: "I am not someone you want to sit next to on the plane if you don't want to see a beauty routine." (06:56)
- Annika Joshi Smith: "I even get James onto it when he travels with me. I've got some funny content of him literally like lapping it all up." (08:56)
2. Controversial White Glow Teeth Whitening Campaign
The hosts delve into a significant backlash against Australian teeth whitening brand White Glow for their recent advertising campaign featuring the slogan "Make the white choice."
Key Points:
- Campaign Overview: White Glow launched an ad campaign with the slogan "Make the white choice," displayed prominently on trams and buses in Sydney and Melbourne.
- Public Backlash: The campaign was criticized for being tone-deaf and racially insensitive. Critics argue that the phrase echoes historical messaging that positions whiteness as superior, invoking associations with white supremacist rhetoric (14:18).
- White Glow’s Response: Director Jeffrey Wong attempted to defend the campaign by stating it was a playful wordplay on "make the right choice" to emphasize product effectiveness. However, the response was widely viewed as inadequate and dismissive (15:03).
- Hosts' Reactions:
- Madison emphasizes the importance of intent versus impact, stating, "It actually doesn't matter what the intent is. Impact is what it has been."
- Annika shares her personal experiences with racism, highlighting the emotional toll of such insensitive campaigns (15:17).
- Approval Process Critique: The hosts question how such a slogan passed through multiple approval layers, including creative agencies, legal teams, and media agencies, suggesting a failure in oversight and cultural sensitivity (17:01).
Notable Quotes:
- Kriti Gupta (clip): "The phrase make the white choice echoes a long history of messaging where whiteness was positioned as superior." (14:18)
- Annika Joshi Smith: "No, that is so culturally insensitive. This is loaded language." (15:32)
3. Phoebe Gates’ AI-Powered Shopping App: FIA
Transitioning to a lighter topic, the podcast highlights the launch of FIA, an AI-powered shopping app developed by Phoebe Gates, daughter of tech mogul Bill Gates, in partnership with Sophia Kiani.
Key Points:
- App Functionality: FIA aims to streamline online shopping by comparing prices of clothing, shoes, and accessories across various websites and listings. It’s available on iOS and as a Google Chrome browser extension (20:27).
- Unique Features: The app features a "Should I buy this?" button that, when clicked, scans the web for both new and used listings, providing insights into whether the current price is high, low, or typical.
- Sustainability Focus: FIA encourages sustainable shopping by including secondhand options from platforms like Vestiaire, Thredup, StockX, Poshmark, and eBay, alongside offering potential resale value information (21:28).
- Phoebe’s Transparency: During a recent interview on the Call Her Daddy episode, Phoebe openly discussed her privileges and the effort required to establish her brand, aiming to balance her inherent advantages with personal hard work (22:18).
- User Reception: Hosts express enthusiasm for the app’s potential to save time and money, noting its alignment with current consumer trends towards informed and sustainable shopping (23:17).
Notable Quotes:
- Joanna Fleming: "I find it really refreshing just to see her go, fuck, yeah, I had a lot of privilege." (23:39)
- Madison Sullivan Thorpe: "I think this is a genius app." (26:01)
4. Joanna Fleming’s Algorithm: Hair Trends and Brands
In the segment titled "Welcome to My Algorithm," Joanna Fleming shares insights into the current surge of hair-related content dominating social media feeds.
Key Points:
- Current Trends: The algorithm reveals an influx of content related to hair growth brands, styling products, and hair health routines. Brands like Bouff, Kerastase, K18, and Lola V are prominently featured.
- Brand Launches and Campaigns:
- Bouf: Founded by Rachel Wild of TBH Skincare in partnership with Indie Clinton. The launch faced criticism due to promotional content featuring wigs and extensions, which contradicts the brand's hair growth focus (29:55).
- Kerastase’s Glaze Drops: Significant investment in influencer marketing, with major Australian influencers like Riley Hempson and Jackie Alexander promoting the product in New York (30:25).
- K18 Innovations: Expanding from hair treatments to include styling products, demonstrating substantial growth and innovation within the brand (30:36).
- Jennifer Aniston’s Lola V: Jennifer Aniston's haircare brand launched at Mecca, generating excitement among fans and listeners (32:07).
- Consumer Behavior: The hosts discuss the "skinification" of hair care, where consumers demand active ingredients and environmental protection in their hair products, paralleling skincare trends (32:23).
- Market Evolution: They note the shift from closed-door industry discussions to mass consumer awareness and adoption, partly driven by influencer marketing and technological advancements like Dyson's hair tools (36:03).
Notable Quotes:
- Joanna Fleming: "Hair is now becoming as popular, if not more popular at the moment than skincare has been." (32:23)
- Annika Joshi Smith: "I've actually been loving Kerasilk, which is insane for my hair. Cause I've got keratin in my hair." (33:14)
5. Final Thoughts and Future Segments
As the episode concludes, the hosts reflect on the interconnectedness of beauty, fashion, and technology, emphasizing the importance of staying informed and adaptable in a rapidly evolving industry. They tease future episodes, including more in-depth algorithm analyses and continued exploration of emerging beauty and fashion trends.
Notable Quotes:
- Joanna Fleming: "Welcome to your algorithm... it's hair-focused because I'm seeing a lot of hair on my feed at the moment." (29:04)
- Madison Sullivan Thorpe: "We're all sitting in each other's brains. Now we've all got a little deck to remember." (38:16)
Conclusion:
In this episode of Style-ish, the hosts navigate through pressing beauty industry topics, from the practicalities of maintaining skin health during flights to addressing serious missteps in advertising ethics. They celebrate innovative ventures like Phoebe Gates' FIA app and dissect the burgeoning hair care market, offering listeners a comprehensive overview of current trends and controversies. With engaging discussions and insightful critiques, the episode serves as a valuable resource for anyone interested in the intersections of beauty, fashion, and business.
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