The Hummer and the Mini: Navigating the Contradictions of the New Trend Landscape

Robyn Waters provides an eye-opening look at some of the biggest trends influencing consumers and businesses today. I like her concept of "trend and countertrend," which is a fresh way to glean insights for the development of new products, services, and communications messages. There are examples from a variety of industries such as auto, health and beauty, airlines, packaged goods, home services, toys/books/entertainment, clothing, fast food, hotels, liquor, footwear, housing, retail, etc. There are also great ideas from around the world, as well as from big and small businesses in the U.S. This book will make you re-think how you go about identifying the purpose and passion for your brand, your category, and your consumer. By Robyn Hall, Director of Strategy & Content, the TrendSight Group

Actually it's a Land Rover. But at 5979 pounds and 14 miles per gallon (on a good day) it's almost the same deal. Living as I do in this marital paradox, I couldn't help but react when, on the first page, the author quotes ancient Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu, "When opposites supplement each other, everything is harmonious". Okay. But the wisdom doesn't stop there. We learn that Dr. Marty Grothe, author of Oxymoronica, has pointed out that "paradox is a particularly powerful device to ensnare truth because it concisely illuminates the contradictions that are at the very heart of our lives". Just as I was getting on a roll with this heavy stuff I turned the page again and stopped short as I read Waters' earnest sounding pledge, "You will find no big pronouncements here". Whoa! A bit of a roller coaster ride. Or perhaps another paradox. And then, just when I thought that things were calming down, this quote from Margaret Mead totally ambushed me, "We should remember that we are absolutely unique, just like everyone else". And Waters adds, "If you can embrace that thought, you'll have no problem embracing the paradoxes contained within". So that's what this is - a book about paradoxes. Waters' essential thesis is that in today's paradoxical world, for every trend, clever marketing mavens can uncover a perhaps counterintuitive but nearly always powerful countertrend. The companies that are good at doing this are the ones that get ahead. Beyond this, the author spins a rich series of interesting brand stories as she illustrates happening countertrend paradoxes chapter by chapter as follows: * Everything old is new again. * Mass customization. * Luxurious commodities. * Less is more. * Healthy indulgences. * Extreme relaxation. * Social capitalism. I particularly liked her description of the "Trend to Tiny" ad campaign of Schonbek Worldwide Lighting, a 137 year old manufacturer of generally gigantic and often ostentatious crystal chandeliers. As she writes, "Here I was looking at glittering monuments to wealth and power, mansions staffed by servants, decorated by some of the biggest designers names in the business, and somebody was promoting `Tiny instead of titanic. Playful rather than palatial. More darling than dazzling'". She goes on to write, "By thinking big about small, Schonbek created an entirely new product category that they now own. They were smart enough to recognize a countertrend when they saw one". After a number of such anecdotes, by the end of the book, I felt that I had been on a dizzying and exhilarating odyssey. And then, a straightforward landing: "Life may be more complicated than we'd wish, but it's also simpler than we realize". Okay - so where's the keys to the Rover?

In The Trendmaster's Guide, Robyn Waters offers a series of brief but stimulating discussions of 26 subjects which range from A (Antennae by which to "tune in to the little things, the trivial nuances, and the irrelevant data which everyone else misses") to Z (Zen which embraces opposites, paradoxes, contradictions, etc. while celebrating duality and embraces polarity). Waters urges her reader to learn to practice "the Zen of trend." As she carefully differentiates, a "trend tracker" is someone who is alert for indications that help his or her business to stay [begin italics] up to the minute [end italics] whereas what she calls a "Trendmaster" uses that information to determine [begin italics] where that minute is going [end italics]. Years ago when asked to explain his effectiveness as a hockey player, Wayne Gretzky replied that others know where the puck is while he knows where it is going to be. Larry Bird once said that when he played basketball, he saw plays develop as if in slow motion and he could "see" exactly what would happen next. There are countless other examples of precisely the same skills on which Waters focuses, all of which almost anyone can possess and then improve. In short, she explains the "how"of Trend In The Hummer and the Mini, Waters explains the "what" of Trend. Throughout much of the book's narrative, she cites examples which illustrate how paradox "illustrates what's going on out there in the world while at the same time cautioning that things are always as they appear at first glance. When examined with an open mind, paradoxes will help you read between the lines and reframe your perspective." In this instance, I am reminded of the writings of the ancient Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, who suggests that the nature of reality is best understood as a multiple of paradoxes. For example: "Expect the unexpected or you won't find it" and "You can't step into the same river twice." This is precisely what Waters has in mind when asserting that there is no single "next best" whatever. Rather, there are many. She quotes Charles Handy: "The more turbulent the times, the more complex the world, the more paradoxes there are." Therefore, she suggests that today, "success belongs to those who learn to embrace complexity by reconciling the contradictions." In terms of providing superior service, "There are many different ways to satisfy the same customer." Waters believes (and I agree) that many of the best new ideas are really just old ideas reinterpreted, that customers will continue to demand a more personalized shopping environment and the ability to customize products to suit their individual needs, that more and more people will "trade-up" (as Michael Silverstein and Neil Fiske assert) to "luxurious commodities," that consumers will (in Leonard Koren's words) be attracted to products that "pare down to the essence" but which do not "remove the poetry," that a new nomenclature is needed to describe the newest trends (e.g