How to nail brand nostalgia, and turning your campaigns into a Wes Anderson film
Ceramics factories, the lads are hosting at Cannes - a true smorgasbord email
HYPER is getting back to its core - a wonderful, chaotic mix of value, in email form. This week we’re… headed to Cannes, breaking down campaigns, showing creatives how to scale email, talking about bringing influencer to paid ads, and talking about AI inspired design (for better or for worse). Oh, and supplier for ceramics, because we need to keep yall guessing.
First up… we have a grip of community events loading if you’d like to join!
Headed to Cannes Lions? So is the HYPER team, and we’d love to connect!
Oren and Ashwinn are hosting a private workshop called Cannes Confidential at a local villa with the Darkroom team to discuss 8 brand strategies that will shape the future of marketing. RSVP Here
In LA next week? Oren is hosting an event Wednesday June 11th with Shopify & The Lighthouse on monetizing creativity and the creator economy. Limited spots are available here - would love to see you there.
The 7 Day Challenge - Oren, Alex Garcia and Landforce are doing another 7 day free content challenge. Make your first three short form videos, or if you’re an existing brand or creator, try a few different styles, with hundreds of others in a big support group. Create with us for a week starting next Tuesday! Signup here.
Using your influencer content in paid ads
Ever run into this problem?
Your team sources great creators.
They deliver solid content.
Then it ends up missing out on ad spend.
Which is wild.
Because Meta Partnership Ads drive 19% lower CPAs and 53% higher CTRs, but most brands don’t amplify creator content through paid.
Why?
Authentication is clunky. Business Manager slows things down. Creators don’t follow through.
But Superfiliate’s new Meta Ads Suite (a built-in partnership with Instagram), solves this.
You get:
One-click ad account authentication inside Instagram
ROAS, CAC, CTR, and purchase tracking tied directly to each creator
A dashboard to manage live, pending, and inactive collabs—so creator partnerships don’t end after one post
It’s a cleaner way to connect your influencer and paid teams—and actually get more out of the content you already invested in.
Shooting your brand campaign like a Wes Anderson film
What if you stopped thinking about your products as if they were something you had to promote, and instead, a story you wanted to tell?
Like you’re a filmmaker.
Gitman Vintage just dropped a perfect example of this with their latest campaign. Instead of the usual lookbook or short ad, they made a Wes Anderson–style short film.
It’s playful, it’s weird, it’s unmistakably stylized—and it works.
Why? Because it gives people something they actually want to watch, not just scroll past.
It’s a reminder that product doesn’t always need to be the main character. When you build a creative world first—like Gitman did here—the clothes become part of the story, not the whole story.
And that’s what makes it sticky.
It’s not about going viral or mimicking a trend. It’s about crafting something with taste, tone, and point of view.
Thinking beyond the product shots if you’re running creative or working on a brand. Think like a director. What’s the world you’re inviting people into?
Why Nike’s Total 90 comeback actually works
A lot of brands get stuck in the nostalgia trap.
They bring something back—not because the timing is right or the audience is asking for it—but because it’s easier than building something new. That’s when it falls flat. A retro logo. A vintage colorway. A weak remix. And no one cares.
But sometimes, going backward does move things forward.
Nike’s Total 90 revival is a perfect case study of that.
Originally launched in the early 2000s, the T90 line was all over your favorite footballers’ feet—Ronaldinho, Figo, Totti. It was bold, functional, and ahead of its time. Hell, it was even my (Clayton’s) favorite boot growing up.
But now it’s back—not just as a boot, but as a lifestyle sneaker.
And here’s why we think it works
They kept the DNA intact. The asymmetrical lacing. The quilted upper. The iconic 90 badge. All still there.
They shifted the context. Instead of relaunching it as a boot, Nike dropped it as a lifestyle shoe. It’s no longer just for the pitch—it’s for the tunnel walk, the street, the post-match fit.
They designed with intention. This isn’t a lazy archive drop. Nike introduced fresh colorways, built out streetwear-ready versions, and gave it the right cultural runway.
They activated it properly. Nike launched the line with Block 90 in Shanghai—a full-on experience designed to immerse people in the Total 90 universe. Football nostalgia, music, content creators, physical product storytelling—it’s worldbuilding, not just a drop.
They timed it right. Y2K nostalgia is peaking. Gen Z and Millennials are both reaching for early-2000s aesthetics. The T90 hits at the exact cultural frequency people are tuned into.
This is how you bring something back.
Honor the source material, update it with purpose, and drop it into a cultural moment where it can actually mean something.
More brands should take note.
Growing Email for Creatives - A Guide
If it seems like everyone has a Substack now (including us), you’re not wrong. But many struggle to break the key thresholds for growth and monetization, 2000 subscribers, 10,000, and then hitting escape velocity. We’ve been through this building HYPER and on other projects, and Oren shares a complete recap from platforms to growth, to monetization in the Youtube below.
AI and espresso machines — the linkup we didn’t expect
La Marzocco makes some of the best espresso in the game, and this recent collaboration with German designer Tina Bobbe flips the idea of “product” on its head.
And it makes you wonder: what if espresso machines weren’t just functional, but objects of wonder?
Bobbe used AI to explore that by imaging something new altogether. One where machines are sculptural. Made of recycled cement. Or plastic. Or tinted glass.
And to be honest, the outcome feels more like a surreal art installation than something you'd actually use in your kitchen.
But that’s exactly why it works.
It’s not about practicality. It’s a creative prompt. A visual essay on how design, sustainability, and storytelling can overlap. AI just gave her more room to play—to test, to push, to dream bigger.
And whether or not these machines ever get made isn’t really the point.
Ceramics Suppliers
Continuing Oren’s recap of his latest China trip, below are selected Ceramics suppliers of different styles if you’re looking to product home goods.
Yixing Ceramic
Mdj-ceramic.com
Meizhou Yufeng Ceramics
Santai Ceramics
+86-768-2922316.2922328
Fujian Dehua Sanfeng Ceramics
Chaozhou Lianda Ceramics
Ceramics
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