Emerging trends: Sauna blankets and AI paraphrasing tools [+2 more]
Exploding Topics scours the internet to find emerging trends before they take off.
Here are four of the latest developments, along with some insights and analysis to help you take advantage.
1. Sauna Blanket
A sauna blanket is a covering that heats the body directly using infrared rays.
Infrared saunas have been linked to chronic pain relief in various studies. And the IR blanket is designed to replicate these benefits.
The blankets have gained significant traction on TikTok: videos using the sauna blanket hashtag have been viewed 1.6M times.
S Smautop sells a popular sauna blanket on Amazon that can be adjusted between 95 and 165 degrees Fahrenheit. That blanket generates an estimated $5.78K per month.
What’s next:
Sauna blankets are part of the “at-home spa day” meta trend.
Home spa kits have seen strong growth since the pandemic.
And after initially ranking first among the most missed activities amid COVID restrictions, “pampering” has dropped below the likes of bars, nights out and festivals. Which indicates growing satisfaction with home spa options.
Other topics growing as a result of the at-home home spa day meta trend include Farmhouse Fresh, spa headbands and CBD ointment.
2. Quillbot
Quillbot is an AI paraphrasing tool.
Users enter a body of text, and the software returns a version with different wording.
COVID-19 has been a “significant boost” for the company – with overall growth hitting 3.5x year over year.
Today, 5 million people reportedly use Quillbot every month.
After raising $4.25M in seed funding last year, Quillbot was acquired by Course Hero in August for an undisclosed sum.
What’s next:
Quillbot is part of the AI writing tools meta trend.
According to Airtable, there are 69 active projects using GPT-3.
One such project is ShortlyAI, software billed as making “writer’s block a thing of the past”.
The technology mimics the writer’s voice, taking existing prose and carrying it forward with new content. The software has already been used to help generate short films and music lyrics.
The AI writing space is seeing a lot of activity. Other products with strong growth include Copy.AI, Conversion.AI and Flowrite.
3. Mushroom Grow Kit
A mushroom grow kit is a DIY set for growing and harvesting edible mushrooms at home.
The packs contain the spawn of the relevant mushroom species, as well a growing container. This is often simply the 3box in which the kit is sold.
Popularity surged during the pandemic. North Spore, a Maine-based mushroom grow kit brand, saw demand for introductory kits grow 400%.
And Back to the Roots has enjoyed immense success selling kits on Amazon. The oyster mushroom kit has been reviewed 18.9K times.
The company’s estimated annual revenue is $5.7M.
Some kits allow customers to grow psychedelics. The so-called “shroom boom” saw psilocybin-related stocks rise roughly 10X in the six months to February this year.
However, the regulatory picture varies significantly by region. For instance, Red Light Holland is a Canadian psychedelics company strategically registered in the Netherlands. And it technically sells truffles rather than mushrooms in order to bypass local laws.
What’s next:
Mushroom grow kits are part of the lockdown hobbies meta trend.
According to one survey, more than 1 in 5 people have started a new pastime over the last year. And 35% have rediscovered an old one.
Furthermore, 79% of people who have started a new hobby intend to stick to it long-term.
Macramé (a knotting craft) has continued to see extremely strong post-pandemic growth. A brand named Flipped sells reels of macramé cord on Amazon in various different colors. The most popular cord generates $80K per month.
Other hobbies and hobby brands enjoying lockdown surges include Gskyer (telescopes), gravel bikes and needle felting kits.
4. Canned Cocktails
Canned cocktails are mixed spirits sold ready-to-drink in a can.
Growth in the sector began during the pandemic (in September and October 2020, canned cocktail sales were up 131% year over year.) However, the space continues to see sustained growth.
Cocktail Squad was launched in 2018.
The startup has since expanded physical distribution to 13 states, with online delivery to 31 states.
There’s also been astronomical search growth for canned cocktail brands owned by the big players of the drinks industry. Cutwater Spirits (Anheuser-Busch) and Cape Line (Molson Coors) have both surged to all-time highs.
What’s next:
Canned cocktails are part of the DTC drinking meta trend.
Online alcohol sales grew by 80% last year alone.
And annual revenue from Ecommerce alcohol sales stands at approximately $5.6B.
Flaviar is a spirit tasting subscription service with 850K members.
The startup has raised $14M in funding. And Flaviar’s annual revenue is $12M.
Other related topics with strong search growth include bartender kits, Appleton Estate and Craftshack.
