There’s potential for brands to tap into kids’ daily & cyclical lives with relevance whilst injecting newness & excitement.

by Pete Maginn

Welcome to Coolest Brands 2024! In my (admittedly biased!) view, this just gets more interesting each year! There are clearly some Top 10 ever-presents who although their precise ranking might change year to year, manage to achieve consistent coolness with kids over time.  Once again being a cool brand is simply not the preserve of one particular category – it’s not all about entertainment brands or gaming brands. Within the Top 20 we have 14 different categories represented – ranging from confectionery to physical play, from lifestyle to retailers. I believe that all brands – irrespective of which category they sit within – have the potential to be cool for kids today, if they want to. But to do this does require an understanding of the brand attributes that make them cool for kids.  these coolest of brands. We know that having a low barrier to entry that enables kids to easily, quickly & safely engage with the brand is key. In the context of the cost-of-living crisis it is no surprise that the low barrier to entry has included price/ affordability for kids – saver menus & offers, free access to a large amount of content. There’s no doubt that the impact of the cost of living has reached beyond adults to kids too.  Brands that have leaned heavily into highly emotive, sharing opportunities with family & friends, whether food & drink, gaming, play, music have performed strongly again, moved higher up the rankings. Cracking inter-generational enjoyment and appeal should be a top priority, if it is not already, for your brand. The brands that have taken risks and pushed far out of their comfort zone this year are also noteworthy. This includes some surprising cross-category collaborations – savoury snacks & footwear - as well as well-established brands diversifying from their original & core category such as long-form content into gaming and gaming into short-form content. There’s no doubt that these collaborations, merges & extensions echo the fluid world that is Gen Alpha’s reality – they expect it and are engaged by it. Some of the most absorbing conversations I’ve had this year with clients have been around the huge potential to tap into kids’ daily & cyclical lives with relevance whilst injecting newness & excitement too. There are great examples of this in the Top 100. McDonald’s, a 50-year-old familiar, tried & tested brand for so many families, harnessing & delighting with limited editions (whilst also lending themselves strongly to social media virality too).  Squishmallows, a relatively new, all- year round play brand, credibly harnessing the whole Hallowe’en & Holidays vibe. These brands show an intelligent understanding of kids’ worlds and the attributes which make them cool in their eyes. I hope you enjoy diving into the coolest brands this year!