What's flying off the shelves right now?An unusual ecommerce site, Hoxston Street Monster Supplies, is sold out of A Vague Sense of Unease, a flagship product. They can't keep it in stock.
It seems likely that inventory will recover, however, as demand shifts to Hoxston’s other pharmacy products, The Heebie-Jeebies or maybe Escalating Panic.
Welcome to Q2 2025. It may take all the humor we can muster.
So How Are Things Going?
Most people we talk to believe that things will settle down soon, economically speaking, at least. But clearly nobody knows anything. Which is why we are seeing all kinds of creepy headlines:
United Airlines issues guidance for two economic scenarios.
Young women are ditching hair color and Ubers as they prep for tough times.
Tiktok influencers are teaching their followers how to consume less.
And then there are the ads:
Tariff-affected brands aren’t shy about sharing their agita with potential customers. It’s less clear whether they are also creating more.
Our take: keep calm and carry on, if you must. But make sure you have a few alternative strategies ready to go.
Choose Your Own Adventure
Another thing we are seeing: businesses getting ready for different endings to the story of 2025.
Most of the time, business strategy is one of those things that gets a ton of attention and then, once it’s locked, zip, nothing. At that point, it’s all about implementation.
This year is different. Companies aren’t just thinking about how they’ll riff on current strategy if things go sideways. Instead, they are actually changing strategy—or at least preparing for it. A few examples:
- Big-box retailers are exiting small-format stores. Just when we were loving that tiny Target.
- We’re using AI for therapy—and at least one big platform is jumping on an opportunity to make AI more social.
- The exits are blocked for private equity firms; unable to sell portfolio companies, they are turning to private lending—for now.
Our take: when a door closes, a window opens. Start looking for windows so you’re ready for the slammed door.
Alt-Strategy
It’s tempting to feel passive when change is beyond your control. But you’ve got moves. You can anticipate what’s coming. You can even get ready to flex your strategy if things get ugly.
Need inspiration? Here are some “flex” questions that create strategic dry powder:
..Does my product/service have ‘hidden’ value that might increase its appeal in a different economic environment? How do I tease it out? How do I know if it will work?
..Are there customer segments who would trade down to my product? How do I identify them now so I’m ready?
..What’s the price elasticity of demand for my product/service? How much room do I have to increase price without killing demand? Conversely, what happens to volume at lower prices?
Let us know if you would like to quick-test a new strategy—we've worked up a skinnied-down version of Spark’s comprehensive experimentation approach for those who need to get a read on things ASAP.
We would love to help you flex. 💪🏻
P.S.
We are launching another Spark No. 9 publication. It’s on Substack.
Why the move? Substack is two-way, not one-way: it gives us a better way to have a conversation with readers like you. And it’s a bigger stage to share fresh thinking on innovation and business strategy.
Come join us → https://strategyland.substack.com
We’ll explore innovative strategies for growth. And we’ll dig into how-tos for making smarter moves—heat-testing ideas before launch, gauging market readiness, and finding your first, best customers.
See you in Strategyland.