The Indicator | February 6th, 2026

By Sonal Gandhi
The Lead

In this week’s news, Levi’s is capitalizing on the Super Bowl being held in the brand’s hometown and its namesake stadium. Skin care brands are embracing ski care while wellness is driving DTC traffic growth in beauty.

'INNOVATION MOVES'

  • Levi’s is hosting a three-day “Home Turf” pop-up in San Francisco, before the Super Bowl. The event will offer live music, exclusive Jordan brand sneaker collaborations, discussions on the “Wear Longer Project”, appearances by local musicians and athletes (including 49ers members and rapper E-40), and live NPR Tiny Desk performances. (Retail Dive)

  • Anthropologie is significantly increasing its print catalog investment for 2026, raising annual issues from five to seven and circulation from 2 million to 2.5 million. Anthropologie is expanding the catalog strategy, including different formats and direct mail. The aim is to make the catalog a collectible item for both new and current customers, focusing on private labels and growth categories like sneakers. (Modern Retail

  • Occasionwear brand Lulus is expanding its wholesale business into Nordstrom and Dillard’s, aiming to draw younger customers to stores. CEO Crystal Landsem is optimizing assortment, improving cost efficiency, and emphasizing event dressing and attainable luxury while repositioning casual wear and footwear. (Glossy)

  • Beauty brands like Kiehl’s, Supergoop, Salt & Stone, Rhode and Utu are embracing “ski-core,” shifting branding from the beach to the slopes. These brands are promoting products at ski resorts and leveraging affluent sports trends bolstered by the Olympics and athletes like Eileen Gu. This focus on skiing allows brands to emphasize product efficacy in aspirational settings. (Business of Fashion)

  • Puma’s relaunched AI Creator platform saw 35,000+ users design Olympique de Marseille’s 2027–2028 third kit, boosted by new remix and conversational features. The platform revealed regional design trends (Marseille favored animal prints and graffiti). The winning design will be produced, and Puma will expand the platform to other clubs following Anta Sports’ 29% stake acquisition. (Glossy)

  • According to Similarweb, beauty and health website traffic rose 14.6% in 2025, continuing 2024’s growth. Unlike the mid-2010s DTC dominance of brands like Glossier, today’s growth highlights skin care and wellness. Similarweb data shows skin care is the main, stable traffic driver, with fragrance spiking seasonally. Makeup and hair care growth was flat. The top beauty brand by DTC traffic growth in 2025 was U.K.-based slow fragrance brand Ffern, followed by PeptideSciences. Other top growers included supplement brands like Black Girl VitaminsColonBroom, and Happy Mammoth. Deodorant was also a hot category, with sustainable brand Wild (acquired by Unilever) growing 217%, and Carpe (antiperspirants) also seeing growth. (WWD)

'Financial Moves'

  • Osmo (AI fragrances) raised $70M from Two Sigma Ventures.

  • Colorescience (skin & suncare brand) was acquired by RoundTable Healthcare Partners.

  • Biologica (Joey Zwillinger’s supplements brand) raised a $7M seed round from Addition, among others.

  • Evermark (personal care holding company) was formed by Yellow Wood Partners, and includes brands such as SuaveChapStick, and Noxzema.

Financial Moves Powered by MMG Advisors

'Career Moves'

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