Nvidia is Hot and Online Media is Not
and other news you need to know about
Good morning everyone, this newsletter will be supersized to make up for missing yesterday’s, but we are back with the best daily newsletter giving you insights into business, fashion, culture, and more. I spent yesterday working from the Public hotel again. I read once that the space you’re working in plays a huge role in your creative output. I do my best work in expensive hotels. It’s lovely their and I even got to witness 5 girls in Acne scarves having a full on content shoot for a new totebag (spoiler alert: it’s big and beige)
Let’s get into the news—
The biggest stock market event of the year was the Nvidia earnings call. All eyes were on the chip maker as they were set to report Q4 earnings. The stock, fueled by an AI boom, has rallied 225% in the last year alone. Analysts predicted a potential selloff if the company failed to meet revenue expectations. Rather, Nvidia reported its revenue tripled from Q4 2022, earning over $22B. As more companies race to integrate AI into their tech stack, the proverbial champagne and coca*ne of the Nvidia stock shareholders will keep on. Fun fact: the magnificent 7 stocks (highest valued companies on the S&P 500) make up 33% of the value of the entire index.
Buzzfeed is selling Complex to NTWRK for $108M. The ailing media conglomerate that once ruled the early to mid 2010s is faltering, seeing their stock fall below $1 for some time, and risking being delisted from the public markets, is selling off their assets. Complex, a mainstay for relevant fashion, music, and sneaker news, will lay off 16% of staff. Not sure how this will affect Sneaker Shopping with Joe La Puma. This latest acquisition follows a trend of formerly successful media companies failing to find profitability and success in an increasingly dynamic media landscape. Think of how big Pitchfork or Vice once was, and now has been wrapped under GQ. While these companies have created some media darlings like Hot Ones and Sneaker Shopping, they ultimately have a lot of bloat that makes them unsustainable, especially as people look to independent content creators for their news. This tweet summed it up well,
Louis Vuitton has partnered with Tyler the Creator for a capsule collection. The whimsical collection features colorful, preppy clothes, accessories, and all feels very reminiscent of Tyler’s own label, Golf Le Fleur. Tyler has been known to love waffles, so the collection features a waffle inspired bag adorned with a Louis Vuitton branded syrup charm.
I think this collection makes sense, as Pharrell and Tyler have a long history of collaboration. Pharrell’s role as LV’s mens creative director is interesting. Rather than being the atelier’s leader of design, he is essentially responsible with being their marketing orchestrator, partnering with external creatives to bring different interpretations of the brand to market. Financial Times recently wrote that Pharrell is, “implicitly tasked with building buzz, grabbing as much attention as possible, in as many different ways he can.” In this role, he is forgoing the grunt-work of pattern making, and leaning into what he does best: bringing the best talent aboard to keep Louis Vuitton atop the media landscape with dynamic collaborations and divisive collections. Similarly, Balenciaga would have a difficult time remaining relevant without Demna Gvasalia, who has been masterful in keeping the brand relevant with out of the box PR stunts via the lens of fashion.
Jacquemus is releasing a Nike swoosh shaped bag. Honestly, this may end up being the best thing to come out of Jacquemus’ collaboration with Nike. Albeit and odd shape, this bag feels much more appropriate for the brand behind the viral tiny bags. Things this bag could fit—
Banana
Boomerang
Frankie’s Bikinis is getting mocked for putting ballet flats in the pool. Their new collection features this divisive styling choice, but I don’t know? Its eye catching and has people talking so f*ck it who cares about practicality.
Fashion content creators are dressing like their Polo bear sweaters. The hottest way to wear a classic Polo bear sweater is by copying their swag and doing a little matching fit. This creator got the look down pat, and I think this will inspire a larger trend for Spring, which I am glad about because if you’re going to rock a Polo sweater the bear is wayyyy cooler than the American flag one. I do think Polo should lean into this and use this styling as creative direction for a campaign. The lookbook could feature this matching style and they could do strategic partnerships with influencers and celebs, making custom Polo bears that resemble the style of the partner. Ralph Lauren pls call me.
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Okay that’s all from me today! Have a great day!
About the Writer
Jake Bell is a content marketing and creative strategist based in NYC. He specializes in content creation, branding, art direction, creative strategy, and making things cool.
To learn more about Jake visit www.jb.studio
Have a tip email me jake@jb.studio
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