Neo-retro-leisurecore is having a (decadent) moment

The glitz, glamour, and consumerist materialism stereotypically associated with the 80s is back in a big way. A few interesting brands are drawing inspiration from the era to create richly designed brand fantasy worlds.

What's driving this trend? Why is it so popular? What does it mean for the future of community and consumer branding?

The Poolsuite era

Arguably this was all started by Marty at Poolsuite. Sick of the rainy gloom of Scotland, he envisioned a brand that would capture the aesthetic of sunny Miami in its 1980s heyday. And just like that, Poolsuite was born:

A still frame of the Poolsuite Executive Member NFT, which entitles you to attend various Poolsuite events

The thing that makes Poolsuite's brand so incredible isn't just the way it perfectly captures this particularly slice of history; it's how it self-referentially plays upon the materialism and status-signaling that has become so deeply embedded within crypto bull markets. There's a reason these are called "crypto summers".

Poolsuite hosted a cobranded event with Ralph Lauren in Miami to kick off their NFT partnership

This is a real sunscreen that was invented just a few years ago

Vacation's commitment to airtight brand storytelling is truly incredible: when I ordered Vacation, it came in an old-timey pharmacy paper bag with a dot-matrix-printed receipt! I'm not sure how they're physically creating these nowadays. You literally can't plug one in to any modern computer.

Racquet Rose and The Rochambeau Club

Then there's the Rochambeau Club, a fictional tennis and health club set in the real town of Saint Paul-de-Vence in Cotes-de-Provence. Here, too, there's an almost crazy commitment to playing the part: the website features fictional staff members with fictional jobs, a drawn map of the fictional club grounds, fictional hospitality industry membership affiliation logos, and of course, a live-updated notification of what appears to be the real temperature in the real town.

There's even a map of the (fictional) club grounds, complete with such features as a "Panoramic Sorbet Lounge". Simply perfect.

At their London pop-up shop, you could buy (and I did) a keyring with the promise it'll correspond to a locker in a future physical club

All of this extensive brand storytelling is actually in service to a single primary end: Racquet Rosé, a (real) rosé wine they sell (for about 120 pounds for a case of 6), alongside other Rochambeau Club merchandise at the club shop.