Kontentino, portable bathtubs, +2 more exploding topics

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. Hyaluronic acid

Hyaluronic acid is a compound that’s produced naturally by the body. Specifically, hyaluronic acid binds to water, which helps the skin retain moisture.

(In fact, one gram of hyaluronic acid can hold up to 6 liters of water.)

These qualities make it a popular skincare ingredient. According to AmzScout, at least 5 Amazon products featuring “hyaluronic acid” in the product description generate more than $500K per month.

Overall, the hyaluronic acid market is forecast to be worth $16.6B by 2027. This accounts for all of its uses, including injectable fillers and some cardiovascular implant applications.

What’s next:

Hyaluronic acid is part of the ingredient-led skincare meta trend.

97% of beauty consumers want greater transparency about ingredients from skincare brands.

And more than two-thirds (68%) of skincare customers say that they read product labels carefully before making a purchase.

Vitamin C serum is an example of this meta trend. The term has seen 311% search growth in the last 5 years, while “anti-aging cream” has decreased by 13%.

Truskin marketing relies heavily on Vitamin C serum. Annual revenue is $1.41M.

Other fast-growing topics in the meta trend include retinol serum, BHA and arbutin.

2. Allform

Allform is a “couch in a box” DTC furniture brand.

Like in the DTC mattress space (Eight Sleep etc.), Allform offers a 100-day trial and a limited lifetime warranty.

Besides their modular sofas, the brand also offers pillows and weighted blankets.

Allform’s parent company, Helix Sleep, has raised $8.2M in funding.

What’s next:

Allform is a part of the DTC furniture meta trend.

DTC has been the fastest-growing channel in the furniture and bedding category over the past 6 years.

Furniture startup funding reached $456.63M across 45 deals last year (up from $413.24M over the previous 12 months).

Other examples of growing DTC furniture startups include ARTIFOX, Outer and Neighbor.

3. Kontentino

Kontentino is a social media marketing collaboration tool.

The product is geared towards agencies and brands with large social media teams.

(Specifically, those that need content approval internally and from clients.)

To that end, Kontentino’s software supports 6 user roles (from admin to translator).

The company has 950 customers and has hit $1.9M in revenue in 2021 — 23.7% YoY growth.

The startup is bootstrapped.

What’s next:

Kontentino is a part of the “community marketing tools” meta trend.

Publishing content is the 4th biggest challenge for professional social media marketers.

Here are examples of growing social media management tools aiming to tackle this challenge:

Tailwind: Social media scheduling tool for Pinterest and Instagram. The company reports that over 500K brands and 400 agencies use the platform.

Sendible: Social media management tool for agencies with over 30K customers.

Loomly: Loomly’s revenue is on track to hit $4.2M in 2021, a 110% YoY increase.

4. Portable bathtub

A portable bathtub is a foldable or inflatable container that users can fill with water and bathe in.

5% of US bathroom renovations last year were motivated by the lack of a bathtub.

Portable bathtubs often fit into a shower stall. Which means they can provide a budget bathtub solution. They’re also used as a temporary bathtub for those in the middle of renovation work.

Amazon’s best-seller mimics a standard tub shape. According to AmzScout, the product generates an estimated $26.5K per month.

But interestingly, 6 of the top 10 best-sellers are cylindrical. Designed for soaking, they allow users to submerge more thoroughly.

What’s next:

Portable bathtubs are part of the “portable everything” meta trend.

Average US house sizes have been declining since 2015. And many homeowners are looking to maximize smaller spaces.

And camping-style trips have seen an upswing thanks to the pandemic. “Covid campers” has been a popular search trend. Portable goods and appliances are a staple of camping vacations.

For example, the portable mini fridge market alone is worth $889M. And that’s forecast to rise to $1.985B by 2026.

Then there’s Supkitidin, a portable kitchen appliance brand. The online retailer brings in a combined $9.34K per month just from its two best-selling portable blenders.

Other fast-growing topics in the meta trend include portable washing machines, portable dryers and HotLogic (portable ovens).