Why THE BUSINESS OF FASHION Called Me
Why THE BUSINESS OF FASHION Called Me
On Monday, an article I was interviewed for in The Business of Fashion was published titled How Fashion Marketers Will Nab Attention in 2026. It takes a look at how fashion and beauty brands are rethinking marketing after several years of experimentation with AI, entertainment-led content (hello Addison Rae), and increasingly aggressive attempts to capture attention. The piece argues that the next phase will be defined by slower, more intentional and emotionally grounded ways of communicating, as brands respond to growing consumer fatigue and a loss of trust.
I spent time speaking with Haley Crawford from the BoF team while they were reporting this story, and many of the themes that run through the article reflect conversations I have been having with brands and creators for years about the erosion of real connection on social platforms.
The idea that keeps resurfacing, both in the article and in my own work, is the need to bring the social back to social media. Platforms have become extraordinarily efficient at distributing content, but they have steadily moved away from fostering the kinds of relationships, shared identity, and cultural intimacy that made them meaningful in the first place. What BoF describes as consumer exhaustion shows up as audiences who are constantly exposed to marketing but rarely feel understood by it.
The article is particularly sharp in its treatment of artificial intelligence. It notes that while AI will remain part of the marketing toolkit, audiences are increasingly sensitive to how it’s used and whether it serves a real creative or dare I say emotional purpose. When technology is applied without transparency or care, it quickly undermines authenticity rather than enhancing it.
This is something I’ve been telling my creator clients that they to be extremely aware of, because their audiences will respond immediately negative to anything that feels synthetic or manipulative.
BoF also highlights the renewed focus on physical experiences and community-based activations, from campus pop-ups to intimate brand events, as well as the growing role of creators as collaborators and cultural translators rather than just distribution channels.
Both trends point toward the same underlying shift, which is that people are looking for places, whether online or offline, where they feel a genuine sense of belonging.
When I talk about bringing the social back to social media, I am talking about rebuilding that sense of relationship and mutual recognition between brands and the people they serve. The future of marketing will not be decided by who produces the most content or who adopts the newest tools first, but by who understands how to create environments where people actually want to spend their time and attention.
Read the full article here.
XX Idalia
ps: Go ahead and subscribe if you haven’t already. I share creator economy and marketing tips…