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As India gears up for its vibrant festive season, a notable surge in <keyword id="23052492" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="seasonal-hiring" source="keywords">seasonal hiring</keyword> is taking place across various industries, with gig roles leading the charge. According to data from job site Indeed, seasonal hiring is projected to rise by 20% this year compared to last, driven primarily by <keyword id="19990771" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="e-commerce" source="keywords">e-commerce</keyword>, logistics, and retail sectors, as companies prepare for heightened consumer demand. Sashi Kumar, Head of Sales at Indeed India, emphasised, "The festive season is a crucial period for businesses across India, and we're seeing a significant uptick in hiring for seasonal roles as companies prepare to meet heightened consumer demand." <h3 style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:14.0pt;margin-bottom:4.0pt;">What is gig work?</h3>Gig work refers to flexible, short-term, or freelance employment often facilitated by digital platforms. Unlike traditional full-time jobs, gig workers are hired on a project basis, allowing them to work for multiple employers or companies as needed. These roles are popular in industries like food delivery, transportation, and logistics. During India's <keyword id="21015356" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="festival-season" source="keywords">festival season</keyword>, when businesses experience a spike in demand, gig workers play an essential role in ensuring smooth operations across sectors like retail and e-commerce. <h3>Gig labour during festival season</h3>The festive season in India, spanning from September to December, is one of the busiest times of the year for businesses. As a result, companies ramp up hiring to cope with increased sales and customer demand. Seasonal roles in delivery, logistics, warehouse operations, and customer support see the highest demand, as businesses focus on timely deliveries, inventory management, and customer satisfaction. Indeed's data reveals that the top gig roles witnessing a rise in hiring this season include <keyword id="21462485" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="delivery-executives" source="keywords">delivery executives</keyword>, <keyword id="22103182" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="warehouse-workers" source="keywords">warehouse workers</keyword>, <keyword id="23052493" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="logistics-coordinators" source="keywords">logistics coordinators</keyword>, <keyword id="23052494" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="in-store-sales-executives" source="keywords">in-store sales executives</keyword>, and customer care executives. While major cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Delhi see a steady increase in demand for gig workers (18-20%), tier-2 and tier-3 cities like Nagpur, Jaipur, and Vadodara are emerging as key contributors, witnessing a hiring surge of 22-25%. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112999246" title="As fast as some jobs are growing, others are losing steam" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div><h3><keyword id="3480589" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="meesho" source="Orion">Meesho</keyword> major contributor</h3>One of the standout examples this festive season is Meesho, a leading e-commerce marketplace in India. According to sources, the platform has enabled around 8.5 lakh seasonal job opportunities, representing a 70% increase from last year. Of these, 5 lakh jobs were created within Meesho's seller network, while another 3.5 lakh jobs emerged in the logistics sector. Sourabh Pandey, CXO of Fulfilment and Experience at Meesho, shared, "This festive season, we are particularly thrilled to have enabled 8.5 lakh seasonal jobs, especially in tier-3 and beyond cities. Empowering SMBs, local manufacturers, and logistics providers to scale their business is resulting in meaningful economic opportunities that are driving financial inclusion in these regions." Meesho has reportedly also partnered with prominent third-party logistics providers such as Delhivery, Ecom Express, and Shadowfax to meet the increased demands of the festive season. These collaborations have not only expanded logistics capacity but also helped generate gig opportunities in first-mile, middle-mile, and delivery associate roles. Abhishek Bansal, CEO &amp; Co-founder of Shadowfax, commented, "We are particularly excited to nearly double our capacity across several value-added services, such as Reverse Quality Check-Based Pickups and Hand-to-Hand Doorstep Exchange. These efforts ensure smooth deliveries and returns during the festive rush." <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112720685" title="If you want to find a job, it&amp;#39;s time to specialize" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div><h3 style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:14.0pt;margin-bottom:4.0pt;">The future of gig work in India</h3>The rapid rise in <keyword id="23052491" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="gig-hiring" source="keywords">gig hiring</keyword> reflects the evolving needs of today's consumers, particularly during high-demand periods like the festive season. The e-commerce industry, which saw a 35% rise in demand for seasonal workers, is expected to continue driving this trend, with logistics and retail sectors close behind. "The industries that are growing — e-commerce, logistics, quick commerce — are doing so because they're aligned with the needs and behaviours of today's consumers,” Sashi Kumar explains. “This is where the future of India's <keyword id="19916569" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="job-market" source="keywords">job market</keyword> could be heading". With a flurry of companies contributing significantly to job creation, particularly in tier-3 and tier-4 cities, gig work is becoming a vital source of employment across the country. As India's job market evolves, gig work is likely to play an even larger role in shaping the future of work, offering flexibility and economic opportunity to millions of workers. (With inputs from agencies)

E-commerce is expected to help seasonal hiring for gig roles surge by 20% this festival season: reports

India has witnessed the fastest jump in alternative payment share for <keyword id="21422684" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="e-commerce-payments" source="keywords">e-commerce payments</keyword> in the <keyword id="20122305" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Asia-Pacific-region" source="keywords">Asia-pacific region</keyword> from 20.4% in 2018 to 58.1% in 2023 as per a report by GlobalData, a data and analytics company. Options for payment other than traditional cash include <keyword id="19900911" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="UPI" source="keywords">UPI</keyword>, <keyword id="6354770" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="debit-cards" source="Orion">debit cards</keyword> and <keyword id="6387037" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="credit-cards" source="Orion">credit cards</keyword> among others. "This significant uptake of alternative payment solutions can be attributed to the widespread usage of <keyword id="21223853" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mobile-wallets" source="keywords">mobile wallets</keyword>, largely driven by UPI, which facilitates mobile payments in real-time simply by scanning <keyword id="19993724" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="QR-codes" source="keywords">QR codes</keyword>," GlobalData report elaborated. The report highlights that in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, the payment solutions such as mobile and digital wallets have displaced traditional payment methods like cash and bank transfers for e-commerce payments. The report states that such alternative payments are already immensely popular in countries like <keyword id="1334" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword> and India and are also gaining traction in other APAC markets as well. However, China led the way in 2023, with alternative payments accounting for nearly two-thirds of the total e-commerce payments value in 2023 that took place in the entire Asia Pacific region. However, India is also not far behind, with a significant surge in alternative payment methods since 2018. The e-commerce analytics by the company revealed that even traditionally cash-intensive countries in APAC such as the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia, are witnessing a similar trend. "While most Asian markets are traditionally cash-dominated, the adoption of alternative payment methods for both online and in-store payments is growing across many markets in the region, even outpacing the West. This trend is driven by the rising smartphone and internet accessibility, increasing convenience of electronic payments, and the proliferation of mobile and QR code-based payment solutions" said Shiv Gupta, Senior Banking and Payments Analyst at GlobalData. The report also highlights that within the Asia-Pacific region, China and India have a higher adoption rate of alternative payment methods as compared to their peers. According to the company's 2023 Financial Services Consumer Survey, alternative payment solutions account for more than 65% of the e-commerce transaction value in China, the largest e-commerce market globally. It represents a significant increase from 53.4% in 2018. Other Asian markets like Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Philippines are also seeing higher adoption of alternative payment solutions. "Alternative payment solutions accounts for lion share in e-commerce markets across many APAC countries, supported by rising internet and smartphone penetration, and growing acceptance of digital payments by merchants. With the convenience, speed, and security they offer, coupled with high expected growth in the overall e-commerce market in the region, these payment tools are anticipated to further gain traction and disrupt the consumer payment space in the region" said Gupta.

India's non-cash payments on e-commerce platforms surge to 58.1% in 2023

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Fast-moving fashion micro-trends on social media can drive impulsive spending.</li><li>Keeping up can also harm people's mental health and the environment, and mess with their style.</li></ul>In the fast-moving world of TikTok and Instagram, it can feel like there's a new fashion trend every time you swipe.A novel aesthetic or "-core" circulates on social media every few weeks, prompting consumers to buy in.Sometimes, it's a dress; other times, it's a top, a skirt, or a pair of boots. If an item is on the expensive side, there will be dupe options for less.But what fits into the "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-clothing-office-siren-business-casual-fashion-2024-8">office siren,</a>" "mob wife," or "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/roundup-tiktok-style-trends-barbiecore-goblincore-2022-12#still-trending-normcore-is-around-for-the-long-haul-2">normcore</a>" aesthetic one minute is soon outdated, and it's time to buy whatever's next. These things that go out of fashion just as soon as they come in are known as micro-trends."It's not sustainable for your money, it's not sustainable for your mental health, and it's not sustainable for our environment," Ylva Baeckström, a psychotherapist and senior lecturer in finance at King's Business School in London, told Business Insider."It all adds up, and it becomes extremely stressful."<h2 id="4ec37053-21a8-4502-8907-7fa409b94078">'The perfect profitability storm'</h2>Fast fashion, social media, and retailers like Shein have together created "the perfect profitability storm for the businesses and influencers using them," said Anthony Miyazaki, a marketing professor at Florida International University."It's like watching a natural symbiosis where fast fashion producers drop the products, influencers create the buzz, TikTok and Instagram facilitate the sales, and the buyers swarm the marketplace," Miyazaki said.TikTok and Instagram did not respond to requests for comment.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-sell-on-tiktok-shop">TikTok Shop,</a> the app's e-commerce platform, has grown to more than 500,000 US-based sellers in eight months since launching, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/transparency/en-us/shop-safety-2023-2/">according to the company's Safety Report</a> released in April. It has around 15 million sellers worldwide.On average, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-is-betting-its-future-on-e-commerce-should-it-2024-7">US users who made TikTok Shop purchases</a> spent about $67 between mid-June and mid-July, compared to around $54 over a four-week period in January, per <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-shop-better-at-keeping-customers-than-temu-shein-2024-4">data</a> from Earnest Analytics, a research firm that tracks credit-card and debit-card transactions.TikTok takes a 2% commission plus 30 cents on every TikTok Shop transaction, and is planning to increase its cut to 8%, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.tubefilter.com/2024/01/05/tiktok-shop-ecommerce-revenue-commission-price-hike/">Tubefilter reported</a>. The company does not disclose how much it has earned from its shopping platform, but individual sellers have been reported to have made <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://cosmeticsbusiness.com/made-by-mitchell-on-making-one-million-on-tik-tok-shop">over $1 million in a single day</a>.Sites like TikTok Shop often promote micro-trends to consumers. That has benefited the likes of the Chinese company Shein, which adds thousands of items to its store each day. It was valued at $66 billion in its latest fundraising round — an <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessofapps.com/data/shein-statistics/">increase from $5 billion</a> in 2019. (Shein also did not respond to a comment request.)The power of influencers and algorithms on spending is huge. Elysia Berman, a content creator who makes videos about fashion, told BI she is paying off a large amount of credit card debt which she built up due to a shopping addiction fueled by social media.At the start of this year, Berman owed close to $48,000 and has cut that almost in half thanks to her commitment to the "no buy year" — a trend focused on reducing spending.Berman said she believes the cycle of micro-trends is a big problem, saying she spent a lot on clothes she didn't even like or wear."Micro-trends are meaningless without an understanding of your personal style," Berman said. "If you do not know yourself and your style, you are at risk of being caught up in the endless pursuit of trendiness and overspending."<h2 id="5d5c31f2-aa71-4fd0-a913-c6e69c3e5c01">Doom-spend or save?</h2>Along with social media algorithms, micro-trends are being fueled by the cycle of<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/shoppers-are-doom-spending-to-cope-with-financial-stress-2023-11"> doom spending:</a> buying unnecessary stuff to feel better.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://newsroom.transunion.com/q2-2024-ciir/">Per an analysis from the credit reporting agency TransUnion</a>, the average debt per borrower in Q2 of 2024 in the US is $6,329 — an increase from $5,947 in Q2 last year.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/a-better-way-of-understanding-the-u-s-consumer-decomposing-retail-spending-by-household-income-20241011.html">Economists at the Federal Reserve</a> earlier this month found that inflation-adjusted spending on retail goods was up across the board compared to 2018.Baeckström, the finance lecturer, said impulse buying is all about feeling control "when everything else is out of control.""You might as well splash out on something that makes you feel better right now because it's hard to think about the long term when things are feeling a bit hopeless," she said.Dan Pallesen, a licensed clinical psychologist and financial advisor, told BI that following trends is part of being human."For our ancestors, keeping up with trends was a matter of life or death," he said. This was because not being part of the in-group put us at risk of rejection and thus in danger to the elements and predators."Fast forward to today, most of us are not in physical danger if we are not part of the in-group, but we still carry the same brain above our shoulders as those ancestors," Pallesen said.<h2 id="5c649480-8542-454e-bf5f-d4055e821462">A growing problem</h2>Most people can afford a few trendy pieces. But repeated, unconscious spending can soon snowball.Bill Ryze, a certified chartered financial consultant and a board advisor at the financial-services platform Fiona, told BI that frequent impulsive purchases can lead to maxed-out credit cards and high-interest debt."Continuous spending can lead to accumulating debt that can become overwhelming," Ryze said, "which could impact mental health and overall well-being."Julie Guntrip, the head of financial wellness at <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/banking/jenius-bank-review">Jenius Bank</a>, said young people are particularly susceptible, especially when they follow influencers who make a living getting others to buy things."While it's easy to get caught up in what others are doing, it's important to remember that not everything is as it seems on social media," she said.Guntrip recommended making a budget and developing a "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/deinfluencing-is-the-anti-influencer-trend-rich-with-paradoxes-2023-1">de-influencing</a>" mindset — focusing on not buying things and the dopamine hit of saving money rather than spending it needlessly.<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-micro-spending-on-concert-tickets-to-collectibles-2024-10">Gen Z's interest in micro-spending</a> could signify a shift — spending small amounts on collectibles and items that reflect their personal tastes and don't break the bank."Make it trendy not to buy things," Baeckström said. "Make it trendy to think about the sustainability of your consumption patterns, for you, and for the environment, and, of course, for your money."

Micro-trends are taking over social media, and keeping up can be really expensive

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The "TSA tray aesthetic" trend is taking over <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-ban-app-american-us-not-worried-2024-9">TikTok</a> with over 16 million posts.</li><li>Some creators are having fun with their flat lays, while others are just documenting their travel.</li></ul>In the ever-evolving world of travel trends, it's time to say goodbye to raw-dogging — flying without devices or any other distractions — and hello to the "TSA tray aesthetic."Gen Z's fall travel trend requires participants to conceptualize, style, and photograph their personal belongings at the TSA's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/american-express-platinum-card-perks-annual-fee-worth-it-2024-5">airport security</a> checkpoint before hopping on their flight.The "TSA tray aesthetic" has been all over TikTok for the past few weeks, with over 16 million related posts drawing thousands of views.Before her trip to Mexico, 24-year-old creator Ckalysta Hutchings made one such video, in which she artfully arranged her personal belongings in a gray bin.In her video, she shows an iPad in a black textured case, matching headphones, a pair of sunglasses, a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rhode-hailey-bieber-addressed-golloria-georges-pocket-blush-issues-2024-9">Rhode Beauty</a> lip gloss on a gray iPhone cover, and a blush, which are methodically positioned. "We just got a bin and snapped a few photos in under 10 minutes," Hutchings told Business Insider, emphasizing that she and her sister had only done so "after we had gone through security."Like many other people her age, Hutchings uses <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-grow-online-business-with-pinterest-social-media-2024-8">Pinterest</a> to plan her trips. From outfits and accessories to aesthetically arranging her airport security bins, everything is conceptualized in advance. She thinks of it as a way of organizing her life and planning for what's next.Not everyone can creatively thrive under airport security pressure, though. Some, like Vicki Rutwind, a former lawyer turned travel content creator, prefer photographing in the comfort of their home. That meant purchasing a plastic security bin before travel to keep up with the trend."I created my video all in one afternoon in my kitchen. I am not a put-together person at the airport, and I fly a lot," Rutwind told BI. <h2 id="f554022e-56f6-4c2e-8d08-117598ff51f4"> A travel ritual before it turned into a viral trend</h2>The practice isn't totally new, though. When Emily Abbate, a former magazine editor and current podcast host of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.hurdle.us/">Hurdle</a>, began traveling a lot for work in 2015, she wanted a unique and quick way to capture her adventures.That's when she turned to airport bins and began putting together flat lays."I started throwing a few things into my bag before I would travel that would be indicative of where I was heading," she told BI, adding that she only took photos after going through security and taking her tray off to the side.Her items included a mix of practical products, such as a Lonely Planet book on Paris when she attended the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/olympian-adeline-gray-raising-twins-harder-than-the-olympics-2024-9">Olympics</a> earlier this year, or a pair of sneakers if she collaborated with a particular brand.Abbate saw this as a fun way to commemorate her travels. While she has not participated in the recent viral trend, she understands its value."I found it really fun to look back at [them] end of the year and have a personal scrapbook of all the cool places that I had been to," she said. Rutwind also considers it a unique way to relive her travels. Upon seeing the trend, she ordered a $17 bin on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rto-amazon-relocate-remote-work2024-8">Amazon</a> — which doubles as a storage bin — and then styled it using different colorways representing destinations and products, such as a pair of red sneakers and matching NARS lipstick for Paris or a pair of blue Adidas and matching knitwear for Santorini.<h2 id="8546f31a-1967-464e-8355-166a8095db7f">Some lifestyle brands and creators are monetizing this trend</h2>From fashion label Reiss to publishing house Faber, brands have participated in the trend by showcasing a collection of products — books, mules, designer knitwear, or claw clips — that would be part of their "airport aesthetic.""This trend specifically aligned perfectly for us, curating an aesthetic selection whilst focusing on our travel-friendly products," storage solutions brand Stackers told <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/08/travel/why-people-are-making-videos-of-their-airport-trays-now/index.html">CNN</a>. Lifestyle <a target="_blank" href="https://businessinsider.com/what-is-onlyfans-content-platform-explained-2024-4">content creators</a>, like Symphani Soto, have also used the microtrend to boost their personal brands, arranging everyday essentials she uses and linking them to their LikeToKnow.It or <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ltk-weapon-against-affiliate-competition-from-youtube-shopping-tiktok-2024-7">LTK</a>, an e-commerce platform that allows creators to share and sell products from partner brands."It's just a fun way to curate what I actually use every day and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://liketk.it/4MKZa">share</a> with people; if they want to purchase something like a lipstick or a bag, for instance, they can automatically go over there and purchase it," Soto told BI.<h2 id="0b7a2dbe-e128-4773-a54d-7f43dc6b4417">Not everyone is on board with the trend</h2>When Caleb Harmon-Marshall, a former <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ex-tsa-agent-what-not-to-do-during-air-travel-2024-1">TSA agent</a>, started receiving calls from his old co-workers stating that several people at the airport were holding up the lines to take photos of their bins, he knew he had to say something.Since leaving his job, Harmon-Marshall has run a travel newsletter, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://gateaccess.substack.com/">Gate Access</a>, which focuses on passengers' flight and security rights. So he decided to make a video and "not tell people not to do it, but just be mindful of the people behind you," he told BI.Harmon-Marshall isn't the only one to flag this. Several news outlets have reported that some <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/acquisition-spree-in-influencer-marketing-is-bolstering-the-creator-economy-2024-9">influencers</a> have made what's already an annoying part of traveling even worse by holding up the lines.Creators who spoke to Business Insider emphasized they would never hold up the security line or encourage their followers to do so.A TSA representative told BI they're aware of the trend and that "as long as the staged glamor photos are not causing delays or issues with other passengers in the checkpoint, there are no issues."The spokesperson added that people who wish to snap their bins should do so after they've crossed security and that "setting up a bin 'just so' for that ideal <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/names-easy-spell-for-kids-2024-9">social media</a> photo might take a minute or two, so best to go through the security checkpoint and take the photo afterward. At that point, take all of the time you want to set up the bin."As with most online <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/popular-trends-interior-designers-dont-like-get-rid-of">fads</a>, this one has received strong and mixed reactions from people online.Hutchings said she had a series of hate comments on her video, but what really matters is "how you, as an individual, feel about your feed."The cute photos she uploads make her happy and hopefully inspire others, so, she said, "at the end of the day, if it's not for you, keep scrolling."

TikTokers are taking 'aesthetic' photos of their TSA trays in the latest travel trend. But not everyone's on board.

It took something surprisingly small — something that's been described as "teeny tiny" and "ultra-cropped" — to propel <keyword id="19948011" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Prada" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Prada" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Prada">Prada</keyword> to its place as one of the year's few luxury winners. In fact, it measures under 10 inches long. <keyword id="20885719" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Miu-Miu" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Miu Miu" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Miu Miu">Miu Miu</keyword>'s micro miniskirt, which debuted in 2021 and subsequently went viral, taking over both TikTok and magazine front covers, is emblematic of the brand's show-stopping couple of years — and has no doubt helped its parent company, Prada, do what few luxury companies have been able to do this year: grow. "I think the 'miracle' at Prada is Miu Miu," Luca Solca, a senior analyst at Bernstein, told Business Insider. Thanks to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/miu-miu-revenue-jumps-93-gen-z-asia-sales-prada-2024-7">Miu Miu's hot streak</a>, as well as a series of smart business moves at Prada itself — a focus on a controlled retail pipeline and store productivity, plus some experienced new hires — the company is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zara-inditex-pandora-thrive-amid-luxury-downturn-aspirational-consumer-trends-2024-9">bucking negative luxury trends</a>. It's selling well in Asia, its stock is up, and investors are excited. Net revenue for the first half of the year was 14% higher than in the same period in 2023 and 34% more than 2022. At luxury bellwethers LVMH and Kering, first-half sales fell 1% and 11%, respectively, compared to last year.Its stock is up more than 30% year-to-date, even more than that of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hermes-became-ultimate-status-symbol-2024-2">Hermès, luxury's perennial market leader</a>. Along with Moncler, it's one of only two buy-rated luxury stocks at HSBC. The 111-year-old, family-run, Milanese leather goods shop turned cutting-edge fashion superhouse is now enjoying one of its greatest runs in history. <h2>The trendy little sister</h2>As any elder sibling knows well, sometimes the flashy, fun younger sister can outshine even the most well-prepared eldest. Miu Miu is doing just that. The more experimental brand has become the "It" girl of the fashion industry. It's number two on The Lyst Fashion Index, a quarterly measure of the hottest fashion brands. Searches for Miu Miu are up 47% this year on luxury resale platform The RealReal. The micro minis that stormed the runway in 2021, a sneaker collab with New Balance, and the quilted Wander bags have become must-have looks. That's translated into impressive results: <keyword id="19957111" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="retail-sales" source="keywords">Retail sales</keyword> were up 50% in 2023 and 86% in the first half of this year. Last quarter, website traffic was up 110% year over year, Stifel's Rogerio Fujimori reported in his July note. The brand will likely hit $1 billion in revenue this year. <div type="image" title="Miu Miu micro miniskirt" height="3109" width="4663" msid="113815737" hostid="261"></div>Part of it is the brand's messaging. "Miu Miu is resonating with consumers because of a savvy mix of product and communication marketing," Solca said. In a recent note, he highlighted the brand's events — a tennis club, literary club, and film series — that go beyond just fashion to form a "cultural aesthetic." Miu Miu has embraced stars (Sydney Sweeney and Gigi Hadid were featured in recent campaigns), which has energized its following. The brand has also managed to tap into Asian markets — one of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-luxury-retail-sales-slowdown-brands-fashion-2024-7">most challenging sectors for luxury brands</a>. Again, some smart marketing has helped. The brand enlisted K-pop icons as ambassadors and dressed Chinese stars Lexie Liu, Zhao Jinmai, and Wu Yanshu. It also increased spending on Little Red Book, a social media platform in China, and threw events in Tokyo, Taipei, and Nanjing. In short — pun intended — you can't get trendier than Miu Miu right now, and being trendy is good for business. <h2>The business behind the boom</h2>But Miu Miu's popularity, as attention-grabbing as it is, is only part of the story. The brand accounted for 15% of Prada's sales last year. HSBC analysts called its growth a "(big) cherry on the cake" — the cake being Prada (which didn't respond to a request for comment from Business Insider for this story). Behind Miu Miu's Mary Jane shoes and Arcade bags is a success story at its parent company. The group's namesake line is growing, albeit at a slower and steadier pace. Prada's retail sales were up 3% in the first half of the year compared to last year and 7% in 2023. It's been among Lyst's top five hottest brands since 2022. This didn't happen by accident: In 2017, Prada committed to a turnaround strategy following a few losing yearsand a drop in profitability. At more than 100 years old, Prada hadn't entered the new millennium: Its full product line wasn't available through e-commerce, and its advertising wasn't digitized. "In 2015, the tide really turned for them," Jelena Sokolova, a senior analyst for Morningstar, told Business Insider. "They fared worse than the industry: Sales were negative for a number of years; their earnings plummeted." In response, Prada focused on retail, a channel in which it can control prices and cut back on wholesale, which now represents only 11% of sales. It made an effort to cut down on discounts — a problem that has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-burberry-became-fashions-biggest-fail-stock-drop-ceo-ousting-2024-8">plagued labels like Burberry</a> and Gucci and can lead to diminishing brand perception. At its retail stores, new CEO Andrea Guerra, who arrived in 2023 from LVMH, has drilled down on productivity, or how much money each square foot of retail space generates, by launching in-store installations, forming one-to-one relationships between sales associates and customers, and infusing stores with wearable pieces and collaborations. The company closed stores that weren't performing and renovated the ones that were. It's worked: Retail productivity has increased 32.5% between 2019 and 2023. <div type="image" title="Prada store" height="3333" width="5000" msid="113815742" hostid="261"></div>There has also been a slew of management changes. In 2020, the company brought on Raf Simons, heralded as one of the biggest stars in the design world, as co-creative director, sharing the title with Muccia Prada — the company's billionaire heiress who The New York Times has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/04/style/miu-miu-chanel-louis-vuitton-paris-fashion-week.html">referred</a> to as "the most influential woman in fashion." Prada now has more time to use her keen sense of design at Miu Miu. In the years following, it recruited talent from LVMH and Goldman Sachs to join its top ranks. And then there is the sheer cyclicality of fashion and the fact that, after a few years of being less-than-hot, Prada is once again on the rise. It has embraced the 1990s and Y2K aesthetic — a heyday for Prada — popular with Gen Z and was the most searched brand among the demographic on The RealReal. Hit products pushed the profitable leather goods category to revenues of more than $2 billion last year. There was a reimagining of the early 2010s it-bag, the Galleria, complete with a Scarlett Johansson-led campaign. Other handbag rereleases, like that of the Nylon, have taken off, while new purse styles like the Buckle and Arqué got callouts in last year's earnings report. That momentum gave the brand an upper hand going into the luxury downturn. "People prioritize which brands they want to spend on. With a limited budget, first, you drop the ones that were not hot to begin with," Sokolova said. <h2>Can Prada's hot streak last?</h2>Just as fashion comes in, it can come out. And Prada's story — particularly Miu Miu's rapid-fire growth — in some ways mimics that of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gucci-sales-profit-reputation-falling-luxury-kering-michele-china-2024-5">Gucci's hype-driven rise and plummeting fall under Alessandro Michele</a>. "You kind of become a victim of your own success," Sokolova said. Both Prada and Miu Miu are susceptible to volatility, though for different reasons. Miu Miu is still relatively small, meaning its brand identity is not yet established enough to withstand the whims of consumers. CEO Guerra has acknowledged that such incredible growth can lead to a challenge. "There appears to be a glass ceiling," Solca wrote in a recent note. "Being prominent brings fatigue: after a while, consumers feel they have seen and done enough with these brands and move on." Prada, meanwhile, is more exposed in the cyclical ready-to-wear category — which makes up 32% of sales — than other brands like Gucci and YSL. But there are signs of continued growth: Miu Miu is adding 10 to 15 stores next year, while Prada is adding five to 10, the company has said. The brand's retail footprint is particularly underpenetrated in the US. The company's beauty business is still nascent. Last year, it launched skincare and makeup through a partnership with L'Oréal, and there is more money to be made in that sector. With so much control of its sales chain, the company can raise prices and limit overexposure through low-end collaborations or expansion into cheap categories. Plus, the slowdown hasn't happened yet: Miu Miu website traffic and sales continued to grow between the first and second quarters, and the company maintains it's not a flash in the pan. "This is a result of many years of work on the brand, on the products, on the people," Guerra said about Miu Miu's success on the company's most recent earnings call. Meanwhile, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prada-white-tank-top-status-symbol-2024-2">Prada has maintained its brand value</a>. But the woman Miuccia Prada herself knows the pressure is on. "I was very nervous for this show," she told reporters backstage at the line's fashion show earlier this month about the new collection, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/20/style/prada-fendi-milan-fashion-week.html">The New York Times reported</a>. "Much more than usual." September 30, 2024 — An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of Miuccia Prada.

How Prada is beating the odds and bucking the luxury slump 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Walmart is enjoying the results of a flywheel effect between three major trends.</li><li>As inflation attracts more customers to the retailer, its relative costs come down.</li></ul>With summer in full swing, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-finding-groove-should-terrify-target-2024-5">Walmart continues to find its groove</a>.In a call with investors on Friday, executives at the retail giant shared how the business is benefiting from a flywheel effect between three major trends.The first element is inflation — both the lasting impact from the past few years as well as the slight uptick in the latest numbers.US households <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-wealthy-customers-shop-for-food-items-general-merchandise-inflation-2024-2">across income brackets</a> have come to Walmart seeking refuge from high prices elsewhere."During inflationary periods, we want to try to be the last to go up," Walmart US CEO John Furner said. "We want to remain low price for the customer as long as we can."And a growing number of customers are also choosing to shop online. More customers and higher sales give Walmart the flexibility to lower the relative cost of offering goods and services. That plays into the second trend: lowering e-commerce fulfillment costs."Densification has been a big piece of that," said the chief financial officer, John David Rainey, referring to the efficiency of delivering orders to more households in a given route.Furner added that other "bifurcated" customers were increasingly placing orders online to pick up in-store, then buying more when in the shop getting their goods — and those fulfillment costs are negligible.Walmart can then reinvest some of those savings into the third element: price cuts. Furner said there were some 7,000 items with reductions, about 45% more than this time last year.Those discounts (paired with improvements in the store fleet and a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/upscale-products-you-might-not-expect-to-find-at-walmart-2024-5">sharp merchandising strategy</a>) bring in still more customers, the execs said, and the cycle repeats.Taken together, that's a recipe for winning — and keeping — new customers, especially during a period of uncertainty in the consumer economy.

3 big trends are working in Walmart's favor

<ul class="summary-list"><li>More TikTok users are using the app to find their next vacation, the company's travel lead told BI.</li><li>Companies have leveraged the destination dupes trend, promoting alternatives like Bruges over Paris.</li></ul><a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-ban-explainer-bill-courts-2024-4">TikTok</a> is helping travelers find new places for a vacation as users increasingly use the app for search rather than just scrolling for entertainment.That's according to Hannah Bennett, the travel lead in TikTok's global business solutions team. "People are now really leaning into TikTok to search for <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-trips-to-book-for-2024-underrated-destinations-travel-planner">the next destination</a>, where to travel, and who to fly with," she told Business Insider.Bennett said that since 2021, TikTok has seen a fivefold increase in views of travel content. In a survey of UK users last year, 82% said the app inspired them to consider new destinations.Bennett told BI the "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-2024-destination-dupes-according-to-intrepid-travel-2024-5">destination dupes"</a> trend has been noticeable, with users interested in a location that's "not completely off the beaten track, but somewhere that's a little bit more undiscovered."Travel companies like Booking.com and Expedia have been leaning into the travel dupe hype with videos on the app promoting <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/major-tourist-cities-alternatives-2017-6">alternative destinations</a>. As examples, Bennett pointed to people choosing to visit Albania or <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millionaire-lifestyle-montenegro-yachts-luxury-photos-2019-4">Montenegro</a> instead of Greece or Italy, or the Slovenian capital <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-european-cities-according-to-frequent-traveler-2024-4">Ljubljana</a> instead of Prague. Taipei and Zanzibar have also recently seen more traction, she added.A record 6.19 million people visited Slovenia last year, and the Zanzibari government's most recent statistics show a 66% increase between February 2022 and this year.Airlines have also been taking advantage of TikTok's popularity.Bennett recalled how <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ryanair-easyjet-wizz-europes-budget-airlines-compared-2024-5">easyJet</a> capitalized on the virality of scenes from "Airline" — a reality TV show about the budget airline — by reconnecting with its former operations manager Jane Boulton to make a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@easyjet/video/7315094126217743648">video</a> for TikTok.She also said she liked how <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/british-airways-first-class-learned-how-to-be-cabin-crew-2023-4">British Airways</a> "championed their crew" in videos, making the company more personable. "We've focused very much as a company on the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-shop-better-at-keeping-customers-than-temu-shein-2024-4">e-commerce side</a>, and now we're able to really lean into travel as we continue to see that steady growth following COVID," Bennett told BI.Booking a holiday isn't an option on TikTok Shop, but she said the app will "dynamically serve you the destination that we think you would like based on the algorithm.""So the ultimate purchase will happen on the brand's website, but we'd be able to track that and optimize toward it, which is the next step for our brand conversations."

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