navigating venus

NAVIGATING VENUS

V E N U S

navigating

Queen For A Day

03Flexible ImperfectionismBack To Mother EarthEmbracing Mars

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An in depth exploration into the ever (r)evolving woman.

PATTERNS

Queen For A Day THEMES

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�e sexual revolution and its resulting consequences have le� many women with a hangover. �e race for equality and gaining access to male dominated �elds le� them exhausted and disappointed because women were asked to leave their femininity behind. Political correct-ness le� them all frustrated and walking on egg shells. �e time has �nally come to acknowledge and articulate that ‘women are di�erent’ and for many, the di�erence comes with special characteristics. �ey start again to celebrate female behavior and embrace romance and nostalgia. Women are still seeking equal opportunities, yet if they don’t win the �ght, on some level they want at least some of the old perks of “being a girl” back.

Hyper FemininityWomen are dropping the blue suits and the comfortable heels and are embracing femininity like never before.

Beauty As CurrencyBeauty has become the new social currency used to gain success, acknowl-edgement and a competitive advantage - women are exploiting their beauty as never before.

Romance NostalgiaA new independence has also lead to a new need for ‘strong shoulders’ from men...or from other means.

His & HersWomen ‘demand’ some of the advantages that came in an ‘unequal’ world - men as bread winners, gentlemen, payers of dinner bills, but also the special perks that came with being a girl.

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OPPORTUNITY SPACES

1. How can your brand create a counterpart to the queen?2. How can your service make customers feel like a queen?3. How can you gender separate your brand?4. How can your brand take on noble elements from the past?5. How can your brand beautify everything around the queen?6. How can you “pink up” the functionality of your product?7. How can you add elements that help women to self improve?8. How can you create a more female friendly environment?9. How can you beautify everything around your brand?

Navigating Venus is an in-depth research study and exploration on how women are acting, reacting and rede�ning them-selves today. �e study identi�es 4 emerging patterns of womanhood and implications for brand strategies in both communication and innovation. For more information, please visit our website www.navigating-venus.com.

Flexible Imperfectionism THEMES

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Women have undergone a series of transitions since the sexual revo-lution when they broke out of the expected molds and norms. What’s remained unchanged is certain expectations and demands. that still dominate perceptions and actions. Now in all aspects of life, women are snacking, sampling and just making it up as they go along refus-ing to accept that there is only one way to be a woman and to live a woman’s life. �ey are creating their own looks and styles rather than following standardized approaches to beauty. �ey are creating new careers and professional opportunities rather than force �tting them-selves into established systems and they are �nding their own way to motherhood and lifestyle in general – a liberation from expectations.

Imperfect MeWe are seeing a new imperfect beauty rising and with it the beginnings of backlash against plastic surgery and age rage driven by the desire to simply be real.

M.O.M.S. (My Own Motherhood Solutions)

More and more mums move towards a relaxed and intuitive motherhood, instead of aiming at being perfect moms, breeding ideally adjusted genius kids.

My WayWomen are embracing patchwork lifestyles from relationships to interior design, open to the idea that the future is something you �exibly make up while moving on.

Flexible RulesAs the economy opens new opportuni-ties, women enjoy a business landscape that is more open to career concepts like freelance, part time or entrepreneurship.

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OPPORTUNITY SPACES

1. How can you add �exibility to products and services?2. How can you help women to solve time issues?3. How can you strengthen self esteem among your female customers?4. How can you mash up your brand?5. How can you relieve tensions with a sense of playfulness?6. How can your customers remix your brand, products and services?7. How can you challenge assumptions of perfection?8. How can you reward the black sheep?9. How can you make your brand more �exible and agile?


Back To Mother Earth THEMES

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Women are re-discovering their motherly and earthy sides and a strong longing for all things natural. �is pattern can be found in many parts of life - on the fashionable surface we see the return of the hippie style, but this goes much deeper. Naturalness and a connection to the earth and the self are growingly important on many levels. Even though women enjoy all the possibilities that technology gives them, it should feel as natural as possible. In general there is a strong longing for cooking and baking, re-discovering the skills of mothers and grandmothers. A trend towards the desire to be a mother, o�en a stay at home mom shows the recognition of motherhood being the natural order of things, albeit sometimes later in life.

Fashionista HippieWomen are again in love with being a hippie: �owery dresses, beeds & braids, long skirts. All aiming for natural looks & eco-friendly materials.

Digging EarthinessConnecting with the earth in a true sense, tactile experiences like gardening are part of women's lives again - on their own patch or in the mid of the city.

Natural MotherhoodWell educated older mothers aim at caring and nurturing the natural way. From pregnancy to childcare, women want to feel much more connected to nature again.

Inner NatureNature in a health & spiritual sense - the rise of natural health practitioners, the love for yoga & a growing number of vegetarians among women.

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OPPORTUNITY SPACES

1. How can you add a tactile experience to your brand?2. How can you expose the nurturing side of your brand?3. How will your brand behave hippie-ish? Sharing, community, social?4. What other dimension can �t the naturalness of your brand?5. How can you not restrict but reward nature friendly behavior?6. How can you add an element of self made and DIY to the brand?7. How can you add a sense of cra�manship to the brand experience?8. How can you make your brand more authentic?9. In what way can you inject your brand with positive karma?


Embracing Mars THEMES

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Females are not only from venus anymore – they have acquired many skills that are needed to get ahead in a male dominated world. On the way they have also taken up male iconography, hobbies, sports and leisure behavior. �ey have become signi�cantly physically stronger – without completely losing their femininity. Feminism 3.0 for example takes up a rather provocative tone of voice, playing with sexuality and self-con�dence on a new level, claiming everything for themselves and seeing the world as their playground. �e countertrend is de�-nitely the “pinki�cation” as in Queen For A Day: strong emphasis of all things feminine and a rise of classical romanticism as well as the return to clear gender roles.

Let’s Get PhysicalWomen are discovering their physical strength. A rise of active females in male dominated sports is proof as well as a growing rate of physically aggressive women.

Alpha-Girls & She-GeeksBusiness is becoming more female - and women are tech savvy: already equal regarding higher education, they are even catching up in tech domains.

Dark & Demanding Females adapt male iconography and roles: not just the biker look but the bike itself, having le� the role of the hunted, becoming the hunter themselves.

Feminism 3.0Feminism today is more physical, provocative & playful. Not shy to speak up and play with sexuality - but still be conscious of stereotyped gender models.

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OPPORTUNITY SPACES

1. How can you add functionality, strength and muscle to your brand?2. How can you use a more explicit language as a brand?3. How can you balance and/or mash up mars with venus?4. How can you add competitiveness and/or alpha to your brand?5. How can you reinterpret male symbols in female style?6. What punching bag can you give her?7. How can you “unpink” your brand and make it more male?8. How can you make technology and features not feel like technology?9. How can you add intellect and rationality to your brand?


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Joanna BakasManaging Partner LHBS Consulting GmbHRasumofskygasse 26, 1030 [email protected], www.lhbs.at

Nina RiekeManaging Partner doubleshiftColonnaden 18, 20354 [email protected], www.doubleshift.de

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