what's trending on my algorithm - 5/24/26
Products, brands, & news I can't escape.
Happy Memorial Day Weekend from a rainy and cold New York!
It still baffles me how good TikTok and Instagram are at personalizing our feeds. I know that’s the entire point of these apps (I am a digital marketer, after all), but I can’t help but marvel at the fact that my fiancé - who I live with, sleep next to every night, and share almost everything with - has absolutely no idea that Olivia Jade launched a brand this week. Or that Everlane sold to Shein. Or that there’s suddenly a new water brand every cool girl seems to be drinking.
It got me thinking: are other people consuming and obsessing over the same niche things I am? And if so… can we obsess together?
So, without further ado, here are the products, brands, trends, and internet rabbit holes currently taking over my feed.
Victoria Beckham Water Tint Bronzer + Blush
I’ve been a fan of VB Beauty for a while now, but no product has had me in a chokehold quite like this one. Every time I open TikTok, I see another glowing review of these watery pigments and god, they look good. I have been scouring NYC department stores and obscure British online beauty retailers trying to track them down, to no avail. TikTok, as usual, did its thing and sold these out everywhere. My quest for these tints continues, and I’ll report back once I finally secure the goods.
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Loonen Water
If you are remotely a CPG/wellness girlie or happen to do Forma’s hot pilates class, chances are you’ve already seen Loonen on your feed. The six-month-old bottled water brand has gone viral for doing the exact thing I built my agency around: getting their product into the hands of the right people.
Completely organically, Loonen has seeded influencers like Hannah Chody and Tinx, along with celebrities like Dua Lipa, at enough scale to create that powerful and elusive “wait, I am seeing this brand everywhere” effect.
THIS, my friends, is the power of great organic influencer marketing. And, I should add, a great product - the water is delicious.
Laurel Supply
A new gourmet grocer has entered the chat.
Erewhon may have finally met its match in Laurel Supply: an even more beautiful, more curated, and somehow even more expensive luxury grocery store. Opened earlier this month by the team behind Laurel Hardware, the store has already been drawing lines for its smoothie and hot food bar.
Should we take bets on when they start rolling out smoothie collabs?
Everlane sold to Shein for $100M
Earlier this week, Lauren Sherman of Line Sheet broke the shocking news that Everlane, the beloved DTC darling and pioneer of the “radical transparency” era, sold to Shein, the ultra-fast-fashion giant known for it’s insanely low prices and insanely high carbon footprint.
The news sent shockwaves across fashion and consumer circles, largely because Everlane once positioned itself as the anti-fast fashion brand. It feels emblematic of a broader shift happening across consumer startups right now: growth at all costs is out, profitability is in, and many of the brands that defined the 2010s DTC boom are struggling to maintain relevance in an increasingly crowded and unforgiving market.
Olivia Jade launches o.piccola
Beauty and lifestyle influencer Olivia Jade launched her long-awaited beauty brand, o.piccola.
The brand’s first release is the “Bronze + Glow Balm,” a dual-ended bronzer/highlighter stick designed to create “effortless warmth and dimension.” Unfortunately, I didn’t move quickly enough, and the lightest shade sold out before I could get my hands on it.
I think this is a very smart launch timing-wise: bronzy/glowy makeup products right before summer almost always hit (i.e. Westman Atelier Bronzing Drops). That said, the biggest criticism so far, and rightfully so, in my opinion, has been the limited shade range for deeper skin tones. Olivia has already addressed the backlash publicly, saying shade extensions have been in development.
I’m very curious to see how this brand evolves….
Please let me know in the comments - do we have the same algorithms? Are you like “I didn’t even know Victoria Beckham had a beauty line”? Would love to discuss!!
Until next time!
xAuri