Ice globes, laundry strips, and frictionless mental health support
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. Ice Globes
Ice globes are facial skincare devices that use extreme cold to reduce inflammation and acne.
(The massaging spheres are designed to be kept in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before use.)
French startup Fraîcheur is the most prominent player in the space. The brand claims that using the product reduces puffiness in 10 minutes.
And the product is now sold in 220+ countries and regions worldwide.
MonétBeauty is another successful ice globe seller. Their product generates $38K per month on Amazon alone.
TikTok is helping to fuel the growth of this novel beauty trend. #IceGlobes videos have been viewed 8.5M times.
What’s next:
Ice globes are part of the “TikTok skincare” meta trend.
The skincare hashtag on TikTok has amassed 67.8B total views.
And some “skinfluencers” have millions of fans. For example, “Hyram” has 6.5M followers on the video-sharing platform — and #skincarebyHyram content has been viewed 2.4B times.
Exfoliating gloves have risen to prominence primarily through TikTok. Viewed 64.7M times, the sloughing effect of the gloves is showcased in multiple videos.
Evridwear, one of the biggest brands in the space, makes $84K per month through Amazon sales.
Other high-growth topics in the meta trend include Kaja Beauty, Good Skin Days and BECCA Cosmetics.
2. Laundry Strips
Laundry strips are lightweight pre-measured strips of detergent.
One fast-growing brand is Earth Breeze, which sells plastic-free laundry detergent sheets that are packaged in biodegradable cardboard.
Tru Earth, another popular laundry strip brand, has built a consumer base of over 175,000 customers, including some with recurring subscriptions. The startup was recently ranked as the 2nd fastest growing startup in Canada.
What’s next:
Laundry strips are part of the “sustainable household care” meta trend.
A third of consumers who purchase eco-friendly household cleaning products have increased their spending in 2021.
Recently-launched DTC brand Homethings specializes in cleaning tablets and biodegradable laundry pods.
The company claims to have saved 275,000 plastic bottles since its launch in mid-2020. And got early support from 1,243 backers on Kickstarter and plans to fuel its growth with a new crowdfunding round soon.
Other growing startups in this space include Puracy, Branch Basics and Blueland.
3. Healios
Healios is a digital therapy medtech startup specializing in mental health needs for children and young people.
Specifically, the service provides assessments and treatments for children with ADHD and Autism.
In addition to video consultations with licensed specialists, the service offers digital exercises on mental health via their mobile app.
Healios has delivered over 70,000 clinical sessions since it’s launch in 2013, and has partnered with the NHS.
The UK-based startup has raised $13.1M in funding to date, including a $10M Series A round.
What’s next:
Healios is a part of the “frictionless mental health support” meta trend.
An estimated 10,000 or more mental health apps are available for consumer use. And there are more than 300 apps for anxiety in the US App Store alone.
Examples of apps seeing success in this growing market include:
Spill: Slack app for mental wellness in the workplace. Spill offers a data questionnaire hosted on Slack and remote consultations for those who seek assistance with therapists. The startup has raised $3.5M in funding to date.
Wysa: Mobile mental health app with AI-powered chatbot and a library of self-care exercises. The startup has 3M users.
Terapify: Online mental health therapy platform for the Spanish-speaking market. Terapify connects users with their choice of psychologists using various therapy models, from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to psychoanalysis. The early-stage company raised $125K in funding from Y Combinator.
4. Color-depositing Conditioner
Color-depositing conditioner is a hair care product designed to preserve and infuse color after wash.
What’s next:
Color-depositing conditioner is a part of the “hair wellness” meta trend.
Sales of natural hair care products in the US are growing 14.4% year over year (IRI data).
Here are examples of fast-growing hair wellness brands:
Viori: Rice-based shampoo and conditioner bars. The startup raised $39.2K in a crowdfunding round last year.
Act+Acre: Scalp-focused product line. Their product portfolio includes scalp detox (company’s bestseller) hair cleanse, and conditioner. Act+Acre raised $7M in a funding round announced in May 2021.
Young King Hair Care: Plant-based hair care line targeting multicultural boys. The startup raised a seed funding round for an undisclosed amount in April 2021.
Other growing topics in this meta trend include scalp mask, biotin shampoo, purple shampoo, curl refresher, scalp scrub.
