2025 predictions

It's that time of year when we use what we learned in 2024 to imagine what's coming next in the world of brands.

In 2024, we spoke about escaping the great flattening of everything. As productivity, AI and controversy put pressure on brands, we’re looking at 2025 to give us the hope that great brands are built on brave, thoughtful new ideas. And built on authenticity. A genuine voice, unique behaviours and visual system that helps them build trust, vibe and everything in between.

When a brand achieves that, it becomes memorable, an essential fabric of our culture. Here’s a round up of views from across the business on what’s cooking in 2025.

1. Cultural DNA
Asian brands are about to eat Western brands' lunch by doing something radical: being themselves. Yes, DNA giant 23AndMe is unravelling. But, when it comes to brand DNA, the greatest unlock might not be innovation but authenticity. Turns out, being authentically yourself sells better than being inauthentically someone else.

This year, we saw Asian brands lean into their own unique cultural stories, thinking globally while staying grounded in their origins. More of this please.

2. The change conundrum
Disruption doesn't ask for permission. From AI and crypto to UX and voice– the list of ‘new’ never stops! Businesses around the world have to keep up with algorithms, blockchains, and the constant fear of becoming irrelevant. With change comes choice; will they invest in what runs the pipes or feeding the pipeline? Loyalty isn’t an ad campaign. It’s ensuring you deliver, over and over, above expectations. So businesses will have to inject resources and effort into perfect delivery.

3. Loyalty over reach (for talent)
Attracting talent isn’t a walk in the park. It’s not new stuff. But in an age of change (see previous point), keeping company knowledge and expertise might come of value as you change systems and improve productivity.

We believe brand is key in company culture and aligning who you are with what you do. Brands give deeper meaning and are a foundation for customers and employees to feel part of a broader idea. In 2025, the way to build a brand is to create something that people want to belong to.

4. Revenge of the Nerds
Thanks to TikTok (and a changing culture in Silicon Valley) being part of some weird micro-community has never been as hot. Every niche is a potential goldmine.

Some brands will be experts in chasing the cool, jumping on trends like the ‘demure, mindful’ videos, and the ‘brat summer’ movement started by Charli XCX. Hopefully some brands will make it from scratch.

5. Escape corporate beige
In troubled times, we will see plenty of brands playing it safe. But this should open new opportunities for rebels. The successful disrupters will be the ones which eschew the temptation to keep it bland and rely on gen-AI to create branding assets, and instead invest in the craft of design when it comes to their visual identity and digital presence.

6. The vibe tribe
Logos are so last century. Ok they’re not. But they’re not your brand. They’re a small part of it. Brands are now experienced in so many different ways, across so many different mediums that relying on too few, too static assets will undoubtedly make the experience poor.

The charm is in movement. Voice, motion behaviours and sonic will become tools more brands will want to connect with their communities, be unique and give the right vibe wherever they are.

7. The CEO renaissance
After keeping a low(er) profile for the past few years, CEOs are back in the spotlight. It’ll be a mix of ups and downs, having to weigh in on sensitive public issues whilst showing positive, ambitious and exciting vision for their business. And that takes skills.

Leadership isn't just about operations - it's about narrative. CEOs who can't tell their story will be replaced by those who can. The market rewards storytellers.

8. The human touch
As AI gets better at faking humanity, actual humanity should become more valuable - at least as long as ChatGPT stays oblivious to our emotions and need for reliability.

As people become more and more adept at recognising how much content is AI generated – be it the uncanny child staring out from an online ad to pernicious deep fake videos – we might see creativity that shows a clear human touch gain new cachet.

It’s early days, but the long-term impact of this is likely to mean businesses will seek out employees who’ve got AI-resistant skills. Universities still pumping out AI specialists are missing the point. The real money is in teaching what AI can't replicate: judgment, creativity, empathy.

9. Heritage: The third act
Brands are discovering you can't just slap a sans-serif font on tradition and call it innovation. But heritage isn’t keeping your serif either. The winners won't just update their logos - they'll reinvent their entire value proposition and deliver it with craft and quality. This isn't about staying relevant, it’s about knowing your worth.

10. Little tech champions
Big tech keeps getting bigger. But it isn’t lost for the little guys. In a changing global policy landscape, and with venture capitalists’ mood shifting towards so-called Little Tech, we’re going to see more investments in local tech champions (whether they’re AI companies or not). So we expect to see the rise of focused, capital-efficient challengers, looking to turn the crumbs of the big guys into gold.