Back at our desks after a busy week in Copenhagen for 3daysofdesign, we’re slowly stepping into a summer rhythm.

☀️ This is the first summer we’re testing “summertime hours” at studio playground. ☀️

Starting Monday, and for the next six weeks, we’ll work shorter hours Monday to Thursday and be offline on Fridays, reading books and magazines, eating ice cream, exploring exhibitions, and simply recharging.

While most clients go on vacation, we do too, just not all at once. We use this season for deep focus work: research, strategies, concepts, and planning for the year ahead. Living in the Nordics, work seasons feel very clear.

That said, we also love taking on new client projects during the summer, giving ideas a head start before autumn arrives. So if something is brewing, do reach out.

🪑 Yet before we fully enter a summer rhythm, reflections from one of Europe’s hottest design events, 3daysofdesign, are still very much on our minds. 🪑

This year, the event hosted more exhibitions than ever, welcomed more visitors than ever, attracting over 60,000 people, and the city map seemed to expand once again, with exhibitions now taking place almost everywhere. The promised “three days” are no longer just three either. Some shows open days before, while others stay open longer, giving local Danish brands a certain privilege when it comes to capturing the press.

And yet, despite all this expansion, before it turns into the new Milan, Copenhagen’s design week still feels different. It is less prestigious, more open, and highly aesthetics-driven. It is where fashion and design don’t fight for space, but somehow blend together. It is where design gets centre stage.

A wish: please stay that way.

Our most ambitious exhibition yet for Savo

This year also marked the third year in a row that we created an exhibition for our long-term client Savo at 3daysofdesign, as part of Framing at The Odd Fellow Palace.

It has been many months in the making, with a lot of work behind it.

We commissioned a white paper, which found that office chairs receive much less attention in the press and during design weeks. And when they do, they are usually presented through the lens of functionality.

Download the white paper here

This led us to create the exhibition The office chair reimagined, where we curated and invited nine creatives to reimagine an office chair for their own space.

From Swedish DJ Axel Boman, journalists Shawn Adams and Alice Morby, architects CAN, designer Sarah Gottlieb & Christoph Kuemmecke, photographer Morten Nordstrøm and perfumer Maya Njie, to ourselves, studio playground, together with Antti Kalevi.

The exhibition also featured a JOI room, inviting people to have some fun with Savo’s Joi chairs through a tic-tac-toe game setup, complete with games on the table and carefully created merch.

The chairs reimagined by the invited creatives were the true stars. Here are a few close-ups.

And, of course, our very own chair: a creative twist that turned the latest issue of Playground magazine into a chair. Isn’t this gorgeous?!

A big thank you to the brilliant Savo team, and of course the studio playground team, as well as all the contributors, freelancers and partners who helped make it happen.

The exhibition work continues.

If you’re planning one, or dreaming up one, don’t hesitate to reach out. We work from concept all the way through to production.

Big news, our bi-yearly Open Call for magazine Issue 6 just opened!

We’re officially opening up submissions for Playground Magazine Issue 6!

This is our fourth time announcing an Open Call for submissions. The first three went extremely well - bringing fresh takes, new friends and collaborators. We expect nothing less this time.

Playground champions honesty, collaboration, longevity & play. We are looking for people who resonate with these notions, and share the vision of a more open and supportive creative industry. We highly encourage and support brave ideas, opinions, unexpected insights, and humour from and around creative industries. If that’s you - make yourself heard!

🗓️ The deadline to apply is July 14, 17:00 CET.

Find all the details & submission criteria in the application form:

Apply here

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

Hope summer is getting into full swing wherever you are. Today, we’re bringing you a conversation to read from your desk, a park bench, or wherever this week finds you.

I first met Amirah almost four years ago while working on a design brand and incubator. I still remember how much I appreciated the clarity she brought into the group when things felt a little lost. Since then, we’ve met once in a while, chatting about the industry, ideas, and the many ways creative work can take shape. Lately, I’ve also had the chance to bring Amirah into a few client projects through studio playground, which made me even more inspired to share her story with you.

Meet Amirah Jiwa, an impact strategist based in Amsterdam. She has lived across five continents, worked on projects ranging from avocado farms in Ethiopia to suitcase factories in China, and collaborated with global brands like Sephora and IKEA, sexy startups like Away and Tenzing, and independent businesses including Tiipoi and The Lebanese Sajeria.

She is a brilliant thinker, and a brilliant side-gig lover too — from her wonderful Notion world, which first introduced me to the idea of the “second brain,” to her new love for picture books.

The chat is on the longer side, but I really wanted to ask Amirah all the questions. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Over to Amirah.

How did you get into the career path you live by now?

I grew up pretty politically engaged and thinking I wanted a career in international law or development. But when I got more exposure to those sectors via my university degree in Economics and ‘Peace, War, and Defense’, I saw how slow-moving they could be and became drawn instead to the idea of ‘business for good’. I was excited by the possibilities of ‘move fast and break things to make good things happen’. I interned at Warby Parker (one of the first D2C brands with a social impact model built-in), and at Sephora under its first-ever Director of Social Impact and Sustainability. Then, when I graduated, my first job was at a boutique consultancy literally called Good Business. Over a decade later, I’m still doing work that asks the same questions about how business can make a positive impact, the answers just look very different than when I first started my career…

You’ve been working as a sustainability consultant for years. What do you think is the biggest misconception about your work?

That there is a clear ‘good’ or ‘better’ option to direct businesses (or consumers) towards. Social impact and sustainability are about navigating tradeoffs — doing good in one area often means creating some harm in others, and vice versa.

Being a sustainability consultant in…

…2016 was about inviting excitement

…2026 is about addressing apathy

…2036 will be about envisioning entirely new systems

You’ve also worked on creative mentorship programmes – from Courier to the one for Atelier100 that we happened to collaborate on. What attracts you to projects like these?

Incubator and accelerator programmes can be a great way for businesses to leverage their unique resources and areas of expertise for good. The ultimate goal is sustained investment, or better-yet, positive impact built into the day-to-day decisions a business takes, but one-off programmes play an important role in platforming and developing emerging talent and ideas that might not get off the ground otherwise.

Lately, contemporary art has been on your radar too. What brought you there?

For me, engaging with art is a way to learn new things in a more experiential and embodied way. Contemporary artists often address issues I’m grappling with professionally and personally but invite totally different entry points to them.

Often, it’s not just the artworks that move me, but the whole experience of encountering art. This is an idea I’m exploring through ‘Curation Curated‘, where I write about how the curation and design of an exhibition or museum plays a huge role in what feelings and knowledge people take away from their visit. It lives on Substack for now but I’m envisioning it less as a newsletter and more as an ongoing archive.

Your career seems to be driven by curiosity, but it’s also united by sharp instincts, a clear way of thinking and a structural, strategic mindset. How do you see the connecting points between everything you do, no matter the field?

I love making ideas that feel complex, intimidating, or uncomfortable easier to understand and, even more importantly, easier to act on.

You have a massive “second brain” system on Notion – tell us about it! Any sneak peek we can see?

One of my weird quirks is that I really enjoy organising things. I use Notion to keep track of everything digital: from products I want to buy, notes from exhibitions I’ve visited, recipes I cook on rotation, and references and resources I lean on in my work — which is probably what could be considered my ‘second brain’.

Notion’s UX is a bit clunky but what I like about it is that you get the benefits of documents and spreadsheets together — every reference has a ‘page’ which I can fill with relevant images/links/text and then those pages are all organised in structured databases which means I can find exactly what I need (based on the topic or type). I populate and categorise everything manually. There are plenty of tools that promise to automatically clip, tag, and organise things for you. But I think the process of narrowing in on exactly what I like about something and where it fits is essential and can’t be delegated. It’s what makes my library personal and useful.

Off the record, I’d say that….

Less is more. Consuming less clothing, content, AI tokens, etc, etc, etc. is in our own interest, as well as the planet’s.

Fire questions:

What has been taking up the most of your mind lately?

Thinking about how good it feels to be rooted in the real, physical world: being recognised as a regular at spots on my street, watering my neighbours plants when they’re on holiday, and distinguishing local microseasons through daily walks in the park.

What is one subject you’ve been interested in recently that is completely unrelated to your area of work?

Children’s picture books! I recently became a mother and have been having a lot of fun building out my baby’s book collection (as well as a related side project 👀).

Where would you take us if we asked you to give us a one-day tour of the city you live in (editor’s note: Amsterdam)?

Louf de Molen, a bakery in a windmill, for a coffee and a pastry to start the day. Then a wander along Elandsgracht and the surrounding streets to pop into some well-curated concept stores including The Frozen Fountain, which gives you a strong sense of what Dutch design is all about. Either a canal boat tour with Black Heritage Amsterdam or a visit to the Suriname Museum to get you clued up how it was colonialism that enabled the Netherlands’ ‘Golden Age’. A walk through Oud-Zuid to admire buildings from the 1920s ‘Amsterdam School’ architectural movement — lots of curved brickwork and lovely decorative details. And finally, dinner at a local Turkish restaurant for a filling and tasty meal.

Snap a picture of your creative space / work desk right now! No cheating - do not tidy up.

What are the books/films/podcasts/any piece of media that truly influenced how you perceive creative work?

Slowness by Milan Kundera is a slim novella that I first read over ten years ago but think about at least once a week to this day. The story functions as a philosophical exploration of time, memory, and the quality of experience. All concepts that remain highly relevant in my day-to-day.

If you had one extra day in a week - what would you use it on?

I’d while away hours browsing in bookshops, flicking through coffee-table books, and reading fiction.

What is the one fail you made in your career that you would be happy to repeat?

I don’t really think about things in terms of failure and success.

What are the ways you incorporate play into your daily work?

Working sessions with my clients and collaborators — I try and pick them both carefully so my meetings are energising rather than draining. Site visits to factories, farms, and nonprofits are a fascinating aspect of my job. And, when I can, I get off my laptop and outline frameworks and concepts on paper.

One advice I wish I never had

That pro-con lists are a useful way to make decisions. Or that there is wisdom in a crowd. I’m a go-with-your-gut kind of girl.

How do you play?

With my baby! These days we’re singing silly songs and making lots of faces in the mirror.

To learn more about what Amirah does, visit her website, visit her Instagram, or subscribe to her Substack, Curation Curated.

3daysofdesign is already next week! We are yet again curating and producing an exhibition “The office chair reimagined” for Savo.

For too long, the design world has overlooked the office chair and its fundamental influence on our daily lives. Scandinavian office seating pioneer Savo is placing this unsung hero on the pedestal it deserves.

Curious to see how?

The exhibition takes place 10–12 June on the second floor of The Odd Fellow Palace – a stunning mid-1700s venue in Copenhagen’s central Kongens Nytorv district – as part of FRAMING.

Not only that – we are presenting a chair we co-created with Antti Kalevi. If you want to hear more, team Playground will be around during the daily breakfast sessions: every morning from 10-10.45AM. Come and say hi!

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

Playground readers,

Playground Issue 5 is here, and we’re so excited to finally share what we’ve been working on 🪁. As I mention in my editor-in-chief letter, this issue got a little bigger!! It introduces a new city feature – read along to find out which city made it in this time – adds an extra 16 pages on glossy paper for a special feature, and brings back the beloved Playground playlist.

So, what’s inside Playground Issue 5? Let’s dive in!

Playground is the magazine that dares to explore, question, and re-envision the creative industries. Through thought-provoking essays, reports, and bold, honest conversations, it’s where curiosity meets play and inspiration. Packed full of smart insights and egoless advice, Playground is a must-read for those working in, or curious about, Europe’s vibrant creative and cultural sectors.

About Issue 5

The fifth, 128-page issue of Playground brings together creatives from all across Europe – writers, illustrators, photographers, and artists – to map the current state of creativity across the continent and beyond.

GET YOUR COPY HERE

Inside, you’ll find:

• A report on the importance of play

• Essays on speculative writing, why ideas are like Monobloc chairs, refusal as creative practice, the allure of old-school gaming aesthetics, and more

• Our new city guide – Cities as playgrounds – exploring Finland’s capital Helsinki

• A deep dive into the world of workwear, along with the reveal of our latest workwear collaboration

• Conversations with creatives: artist Oliviero Fiorenzi, creative entrepreneur Carla Camilla Hjort, and more

Plus, more Play – reader favourites including The CV of failed projects, The culture shelf, insights on the new local economy, and “play breaks” that invite readers to think along the way

GET YOUR COPY HERE

The cover of Playground Issue 5, created by Antti Kalevi, a Finnish artist and illustrator, merges fragments of the magazine’s content into one composition.

Using ink and markers, Kalevi experimented with texture and looseness – keeping it playful and open, guided by instinct to see what might emerge.

To the curious souls, thank you! For reading, supporting, and giving us feedback. As always, nearly every piece in this magazine has been created by a different contributor – people we have met through open calls or reached out to directly. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who took part! Playground is, and will always be, a community effort.

Explore our publications

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

Playground readers,

Personally, I love a good, behind-the-scenes deep dive into someone’s process. It is one of the most honest ways of letting someone into your world for a little while – whether it is a film, an album, a book, a recipe, or really anything else being made.

This time round, I decided to look back and share fragments from the most out-there project we have done yet: creating our very own uniforms.

After announcing OXOX CLUB x studio playground Everyday Uniform last week, this piece is a quiet diary of sorts – almost a year captured through meetings, messages, fittings, ideas, and mine, as well as OXOX CLUB Creative Director Agnė Hultmark’s camera. It’s a story of how an every-other-Friday project of some sorts came to life.

If you have ever wondered how someone makes a collaboration, creates a fashion collection, or brings a project to life, this might offer some clarity. Not in a linear, step-by-step way, but in the way most creative things actually happen: through instinct, conversations, decisions, and a shared commitment to keep going.

After writing it all down, I think that is what carried the project through – pure creative energy, trust, and the will to make something real.

So, how does a kidswear brand and a strategy studio-slash-publisher end up making a workwear collection together?

June 2025 – first talks

3daysofdesign, Copenhagen. A few members of the studio playground team, Agnė, our partners and I are standing outside one of the evening events. Agnė and I start chatting about the uniform I was wearing for our client’s exhibition at that time.

The conversation moves from branded uniforms to the wonderful work OXOX CLUB does in the kidswear world – and then, naturally, to the question: have they ever made adult-size clothing?

I remember joking that if they did, we would all wear it as a team. Then I added something along the lines of: “hey, for real, why don’t you test adult sizing? Let’s do a collab – a uniform set for us!” (important note to add: I’ve always dreamt to make a suit-set!)

July 2025 – material research, debrief and OXOX CLUB’s jackets

Agnė’s suggestion was to discuss this further while reviewing their kidswear collection, alongside a few material options she brought with her. Since it was July in Stockholm, we obviously had to meet outside, with a drink and olives by our side.

This turned into a debrief session, really, and the first hook of: wow, this might actually be happening. I adore their kidswear, the love and quality in it, and we agreed to lean into their team’s strengths: jackets and trousers - the ultimate workwear set.

At the end of the talk, we landed on three material options, with the non-negotiable being the recycled part.

Let’s sleep on all of it until after summer, we said.

September 2025 – found shoot location

When the work peaked into new-season energy, an unexpected kick came from the side. I finally got a chance to visit our studio client European Furniture Group and Savo’s furniture factory in Tranås, Sweden.

Being on the factory floor, where so much of the magic happens, I immediately knew, and asked our client if we could potentially hold a photoshoot there, keeping the uniform project in mind. It truly felt like a playground for great ideas.

The response was positive, and in my own weird fashion way, I dropped another hook: we had the location. Now we had to make something worthy enough to travel there and shoot it…

November 2025 – research, wants and decisions on items included

Some time had passed, and maybe some messages had been exchanged, but we felt it was time to push it further. I told Agnė that Playground Magazine Issue 5 would include a deep dive around workwear, and that this could, and should, become our deadline if we wanted to make the project happen.

So we decided: let’s research a little more into what we actually want to do, before Agnė goes into the design phase.

So often, it is idealised that projects start with research, but by that point, we already had some limitations around our brief. So our “Friday research afternoon” that November in Stockholm became less about starting from scratch, and more about challenging our own views.

We visited a few workwear-focused stores, a few second-hand shops, and bounced ideas around. We knew that, alongside the jacket and trousers, we wanted to bring in some kind of accessory. A scarf was in the plans, until a utility bag came across our path.

January 2026 – planning meeting

This was a more technical catch-up. Agnė brought the debrief and first designs; I brought the timeplan and expectations.

We aligned quite immediately, with some steering on both ends, and agreed to check all the financials next. Somewhere between the functional chats, the idea to merge their potato face logo with our motto “more play” was born.

March 2026 – first samples and fittings!

Earlier that month, Agnė showed the first samples, made in different leftover materials. We discussed sizing, detailing and options, and checked where the embroidery would go. Then we moved onto the real deal, and towards the second part of the month, the outcome was there. We received the first sample!

A curious thing we realised was that we had kind of landed on an in-between sizing (Stockholm office co-workers got involved in fittings). So we decided to go smaller for S/M and larger for L/XL. Fun fact: for me, both work – I just look a bit more fitted in the smaller size, and more oversized in the larger one.

I have to say, massive kudos to Agnė and the whole OXOX CLUB team. We landed on the models and sizing so fast, and they are truly perfect.

Some of the last details left to discuss were: “Do the pockets really fit Playground Magazine?” and “How many blue buttons can we afford?” (Did I mention brief limitations, and how expensive it is to make high quality clothing?)

April 2026 – photoshoot and first finished sets

It doesn’t matter that we had talked about this for almost a year – suddenly it clicked: it was actually happening.

The thing is, everything from March to April happened so fast. Decisions on quantities, big and small details, launch dates, finances, photoshoot needs – all at once.

While I was visiting home in Lithuania for Easter, the first two sets were finished, and I got a chance to get my full family into them – including my mum, brother and even an uncle.

But the real quiet show-off happened later that month, at the talk I moderated in Stockholm, in the Form Us With Love studio. It was the first time the uniform stepped out into the world, before anyone really knew what it was.

The first public sneak peek felt exciting, and honestly, freeing, not having to think about what to wear – but right after that came the next big thing: we needed to get the photoshoot done.

What started as a lookbook idea turned into our first proper editorial, now living across eight sleek pages in Playground, shot by our dear friend and Playground collaborator Jacobo Campos.

The model search was long and draining, I am not going to lie. For a moment, I really felt like we were never going to make it in time, and I kept procrastinating. Then something clicked, and I remembered that Julia and her partner Chris in music and life – who together are the band Axnér – now live in Malmö. They felt like the perfect fit for this.

After a bit of ping-ponging, we finally had the people, the place, and the pieces. Now we just had to get everyone to Tranås.

May 2026 – ahead

Photoshoot done, magazine in print, collection live, ready to be pre-ordered on site – and we’re ready to roll.

I am writing this and thinking how amazing it is that all of this actually happened. How the idea to try new things came into the most unexpected shape and form this time round.

Six studio playground team members will now have uniforms for events and happenings, and we have a limited collection to share and sell.

None of this would have happened without Agnė, Loreta and the whole amazing OXOX CLUB team. The limited edition includes a jacket, trousers, and a utility bag. It is made from 100% recycled cotton from Spain, in two unisex sizings, all constructed and produced in Lithuania.

It features oversized pockets – yes, large enough to fit a Playground.

Jackets, trousers, utility bag & the full set is here. Available exclusively via studioplayground.cc. P.S. kids version jacket soon coming over at OXOX CLUB site!

That project you were thinking about… maybe a good day to start bringing it to life?

Photoshoot Credits

Models: Julia Axner & Chris Davies AXNÉR Music
Location: European Furniture Group factory in Trånas, Sweden
Photography: Jacobo Campos
Light assistant: Sam Britz
Creative direction: Auste Skrupskyte Cullbrand

About OXOX CLUB

For almost 20 years, Lithuanian brand OXOX CLUB has been creating playful, modern kidswear that inspires confidence and freedom to move. The brand may design for kids, but its clothes aren't childish. The unisex pieces are functional, expressive, and made for everyday life. Playful in spirit but clean in silhouette, OXOX CLUB’s clothes are designed to be lived in.

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

What a week over at digital studio playground headquarters!

Every year we start by saying, “let’s distribute our launches better throughout the year,” but then again – energy flows, things build up, and somehow everything happens all at once.

After quite some work last year, and very much all through the first months of 2026, I am so happy to share that our message to spread more play, honesty, transparency and experimentation now comes in even more shapes than before.

We’re launching a new Playground Magazine issue, our new publication Playbook, and a collaborative workwear collection!!

Some of these might be among our best projects and decisions yet. Some might be the worst investments we have ever made – let’s see… But with every one of them, we learnt new things, pushed ourselves in new and unexplored directions, and I really hope we inspire you to do the same.

So without further ado, here’s what’s cooking.

Our e-shop just got a massive update, have a look!

PLAY STORE

Playground Issue 5

Our twice-yearly publication is in print, with its latest issue coming out on 25 May. It’s a big one – literally and figuratively. We’ve added 16 pages, a new city section, and our first editorial shoot, printed on a new glossy paper.

If you’re new here, Playground is the magazine that dares to explore, question and re-envision the creative industries. Through thought-provoking essays, reports and bold, honest conversations, it’s where curiosity meets play and inspiration. Packed full of smart insights and egoless advice, Playground is a must-read for those working in, or curious about, Europe’s vibrant creative and cultural sectors.

We have amazing interviews and essays in this one, alongside a brilliant cover artwork we’re all obsessed with, created by Finnish illustrator Antti Kalevi. He brought elements from the issue’s content into the cover, making it a literal sneak peek at what’s inside.

First to pre-order, will be first to receive it.

Playbook

After a quick tease a few weeks ago, we’re so proud to announce that our second publication – with its own ISSN – is in print too and ready for pre-order. It’s a puzzle magazine with a twist.

Born from boredom, and from looking at a category that hasn’t been challenged for too long, Playbook is an object you’ll want to – we hope – play in, doodle in and carry around for a long time. It has more than 60+ games across its 56 pages!

Developed fully by studio playground with Belgian designer Davy Danduyver who we originally met through the Playground Issue Four Open Call – this book is also a brilliant design object that you will love once you see it too. Trust us, it’s even better than the mock-up. ;)

OXOX CLUB x studio playground Everyday Uniform

What started as a fun chat during last year’s 3daysofdesign with OXOX CLUB’s creative director Agne – and a dear friend – has now turned into a very real project.

Inspired by traditional workwear and OXOX CLUB’s signature kidswear style, this adult-sized uniform was created for the studio playground team, community and playful wearers who want freedom in how they dress – without compromising on looking good.

The set contains a jacket, trousers, and a utility play bag. Comes with a complimentary ‘more play’ tote bag.

• Limited edition

• Designed in collaboration with OXOX CLUB and studio playground

• Made in Lithuania

• Unisex fit in two sizes

• Developed with a focus on function, silhouette, and everyday wear

• Crafted in recycled cotton with custom co-branded detailing and utility elements, such as oversized pockets

• Each piece features studio playground’s motto ‘More play’ merged with OXOX CLUB’s iconic potato face logo

• Available exclusively via studioplayground.cc

Breathe out… We hope you love what you see, and feel curious to support our small studio and publishing projects. The team is rolling up its sleeves now to prepare all pre-orders for you and the shops.

All sales through us come directly to us, which really does make a massive difference. We also created everything with YOU in mind, and hope you’ll find new ideas, moments of play and inspiration in what we’ve made.

Next, we’ll unpack each process in more detail – from Playground Issue Five, to Playbook, to our workwear collaboration. If there’s something you’d like to hear more about, let us know and we’ll lean into that.

Auste & studio playground team

Our e-shop just got a massive update, have a look!

PLAY STORE

The plan was to write insights from Milan Design Week in the same way I have done the two previous times I’ve been there. I made my daily notes, collected reflections, and tried to shape them into something useful – but it never quite landed.

Why?

While writing, and thinking, I realised Milan Design Week didn’t feel especially influential, nor especially “design” this year. It felt more like entertainment for people who like design. Or, even more so, for people who like brands.

So instead of forcing a clean event recap, I want to share the real reflections I brought back from Milan.

Here are my field notes.

Part one

First things first, many of you probably have seen more or less all of Milan Design Week already. Truthfully, probably even more than I did, despite being in Milan for four days.

The media and social coverage has become so big that, as many people pointed out, you can almost forget the fomo and enjoy the sofa scroll instead. These commercial brands make content so well that, often, there is very little surprise left in real life.

This is not a complaint about one brand, or even a few specific brands. I actually think brands are doing their branding job very well – hence, you’ve seen it all. It is more a reflection on the creative industries as a whole, and on our collective vision ahead.

I don’t know when we stopped asking the big questions – researching, educating, pushing, learning, innovating, surprising. But this year, I felt very little of that. What I saw, mostly, was entertainment.

We are quick to critique AI, tech bros, politics – for the right reasons – yet sometimes forget to look at ourselves. We go to protests, encourage protest, speak about better systems, and then create digital ecosystems that mirror the very realities we say we want to challenge. We support the players who do not always play the game fairly.

Not everybody, of course. But do we really walk the talk?

One example that stayed with me was Capsule. Public conversations have circulated around unpaid collaborators, including those connected to their exhibitions in Milan Design Week. We know this. And yet we still go. Brands still fund the platform. James Blake still plays in a tiny venue in Milan for them. People still stand in line.

I kept wondering: why?

Part two

Looking back, I realised that so much of what this event now represents sits quite far from my own values.

Scream for the sake of screaming. Be for the sake of being. Do for the sake of doing.

And yet, I was walking around thinking: how do I become one of these fancy publishers, or one of these brands? Then I had to stop and shake myself.

Just because others are creating loud exhibitions that land on Instagram feeds of millions, it does not mean they are doing something meaningful. Nor does it mean that is what I should be doing.

This year, Milan Design Week reminded me of the Super Bowl or Coachella. But even there, what connects people is clear: sport or music. In this case, the original promise of design should be the holding glue of the week. Instead, it often felt pushed to the very edges.

Design, in many cases, was used as an aesthetic backdrop for content creation. What truly connected people was not always design, but the city, the crowd, and the performance of brands.

Part three

Partly, and always, the media has a role to play too. We help decide what becomes visible. I say this knowing I am part of it.

When everything covers one type of thing, everything else becomes invisible. Or even worse, almost impossible to find by surprise, because people only want to see the big few – the queues, the recognisable names, the moments already approved by the feed.

Truthfully, I am happy I am not at the very start of my career. I think this kind of event could have impacted me in the strangest way possible.

It is not that Milan Design Week is bad. It is more that its purpose has become unclear.

So let’s unpack it.

What is it good for?

• Showing up if you are a brand with money. The next time I go to Milan Design Week, it will be with a clear purpose or project – not just to stand in another line. I genuinely think people participating have more fun, and more purpose, than people visiting.

• Reflection. It is a good place to understand what you do and do not want to do. If you can think clearly about yourself in the middle of the noise, it can be useful. The event offers a very strange, skewed perception of the industry – but that, in itself, can make you ask: what kind of work do I actually want to make?

What’s the future?

Many brands showed up, and showed up well. You have seen them all. Many emerging designers and smaller brands came too, so my thoughts are not about individuals. They are about the event as a system – and about what we, as a creative community, are choosing to reward.

We often criticise the fair. But I still remember my first London Design Festival (when still had a fair) as one of the most impactful and inspiring design events I had attended, even with a fair at its centre. The Lithuanian national book fair is a real deal too – you explore new publishing, listen to industry talks, and feel part of a larger conversation.

So maybe the fair is not dead.

Maybe the better question is: who are these events for?

Who’s is Milan Design Week for?

→ Media

→ People who have money and want to watch a branded show

→ For brands to show up so they get featured in press

→ The industry, but only a very specific part of it

Who’s this is not for?

• People with disabilities or health issues. If you have any accessibility needs, are sensitive to the sun, or struggle with stress, the experience can be incredibly difficult. No lifts. Very little seating. Long queues in direct sun. It is almost ironic that an industry so often speaking about democratic design can create spaces that feel anything but democratic.

• Young creatives and designers. I worry it gives a distorted image of where the industry should be heading. I hope younger creatives can see through parts of it – because so much of it is a parallel reality.

  ---

As a strategist at heart, I don’t know what the promise of these events is anymore. I find myself looking for industry events that are not built primarily for image creation, but for discussion, challenge, learning, and exchange.

I truly believe there are more niche, useful, and interesting events we should be looking towards.

And look, maybe it is not all that bad. Maybe the expectations simply need to change.

These thoughts have probably been brewing because I am currently moderating the Testing Grounds talks, created together with Form Us With Love in Stockholm. Three talks in – first with fair organisers, then with brands, then with architects – I have been thinking a lot about what makes a good industry event.

The fourth talk, where we will explore this with a futurist and people from different creative industries, will be held on 28 May on Kungsholmen, Stockholm. If you are curious to explore this with us, save the date (and check on Instagram).

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Auste & studio playground team

Playground readers,

Like a true Northern European team, we’ve used the darker months to cosy up and get things done. And now, finally, a few of those new ideas are ready to step into the light.

The first is here already – we’ve created a new publication, and you can read more about it below.

But before that, a long-awaited curated list: a collection of things we’ve read, watched, bookmarked and genuinely enjoyed.

As a bonus, I’m also sharing a top 10 guide to Milan Design Week, as I’ll be there for a few days myself. Expect a bit of live reporting over on our Instagram next week!

Articles, reports & playbooks

Is Good Taste A Trap? - The New Yorker

Research as a form of pattern disruption - on Idle Gaze

The Social Study 2026 - Eventbrite

The Ecommerce Playbook: A Practical Field Guide for Modern DTC Brands - Mailchimp

A Report on the State of Shame -

Podcasts

Watch: A Conversation With Anna Wintour and Her U.S. Vogue Successor, Chloe Malle - The New York Times

Watching Anna Wintour and Chloe Malle (the new editor of American Vogue) together feels a little like seeing two generations meet – with very different energies, yet both fully themselves. It brought me back to Anna Wintour’s wider belief in the value of the “original thinker” – something that feels especially relevant now, when so much can start to look and sound the same.

I also loved following it up with The New Yorker piece. Anna Wintour as Vogue Icon

Book

‘Not a Playbook: the art of building a brand’ by Damian Bradfield (co-founded We Transfer) and Andreas Tzorzis

This honest story behind the Dutch file-sharing company WeTransfer – turned brand, (from a lower b) – is a beautiful and meaningful behind-the-scenes look at how a functional tech product created real meaning for its existence in the world.

From instinct-driven teams to a real focus on community, it truly is an ode to brand-building as a creative act – almost a rebellion, and a strong point of view.

The book reads even more tenderly knowing it was written as a goodbye from the founder, as he stepped back after the newly acquired company let go 85% of its employees.

The loudest design week of the year is few days away now! If you are around, or have your must-visits, share with us!

Osteria Fiori di Marimekko | Via Ascanio Sforza, 75, Milano​

Renaissance of the Real by USM x Snøhetta | Fondazione Luigi Rovati, Corso Venezia 52, 20122 Milano

Alcova | Via Giovanni Labus, 10, M1 Primaticcio & Via Mogadiscio, 2, M1 Gambara or M4 Bolivar

Metamorphosis in Motion By Lina Ghotmeh | Palazzo Litta, Corso Magenta 24, 20121 Milano

Apartamento Bookshop x Muller Van Severen | Ordet, Via Filippino Lippi 4, Milano

Apartamento x Jil Sander x Toogood Reference Library | Jil Sander, Via Luca Beltrami 5, Milano

Plaza 2026 by Capsule Global | Via Achille Maiocchi 8, Milano

Chasing The Sun by Yinka Ilori for Veuve Clicquot | Mediateca Santa Teresa, Via Moscova, 28, Milano

The drinks lab, ÖDD ÜNIVERSE AT ERIS | Via Bartolomeo Eustachi 8, Milano

IKEA Food for thought | Spazio Maiocchi, Via Achille Maiocchi 7, Milano

We created a new magazine title: Playbook!

Yes, a recommendation for Not a Playbook – and here we are, launching an actual Playbook you might not want to put down.

A team gathering in Vilnius last autumn, good mood, drinks, and a stroll through an airport magazine shop after – and just like that, a new idea was born: our second publishing title had to be a games publication.

We wanted to create something truly enjoyable to own and use, beautifully designed, in a category that has not felt particularly inspiring.

What else would a studio searching for more play make?

Designed by , it is currently in its test-and-play phase – stay tuned for more news. We’ll let you know once it’s out.

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Auste & studio playground team

Today’s “Off the record” conversation is with my dear friend, ex-colleague, and the person I still think of as my strategy mentor – Agustín Soriano.

Agustín is a Madrid-based strategist with 20+ years of experience across strategic marketing, brand management, and communication strategy. He’s worked across the US, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Spain, with brands like Adidas, IKEA, Volvo Cars, and Google – and his work has earned major industry recognition, including a World Grand Effie and multiple Cannes Grand Prix.

More than anything, I wanted to capture the way Agustín approaches strategy: with curiosity, precision, and an insistence on naming what’s actually going on beneath the surface.

We met in 2019, when we both joined Volvo Cars’ global creative strategy team at headquarters in Gothenburg. It was a strange, intense moment in time – a new team, big ambition, and then Covid hit and everything happened at once. Somewhere in the middle of that, I found my feet in strategy properly. Not because Agustín made it easy, but because he made us think sharp: pushing for clearer thinking, stronger logic, and braver honesty – always in service of the work.

We used to debate a lot daily (in the best way), so when I asked him to answer these questions, I knew we’d get the same energy back – generous, direct, and refreshingly unpolished.

You’re in for a good one. I’ll leave you with my friend’s words – meet Agustín.

How did you get into strategy?

I discovered strategy early in my career, during my time in the US working for a hispanic agency in Chicago. I realized the importance of understanding people when I saw the different levels of acculturation, tensions and worries among the hispanic community. That demanded a bespoke strategic approach for them, instead of just a translation of the creative executions inherited from the main US market. Basically, I realized I liked why creativity works. I discovered I was obsessed with why a message can make people lean in, open wallets and change behavior.

What’s the most common misconception about being a strategist?

There are so many! Ha.

That we’re the people who “write the brief”, when strategy is not filling templates. It’s cultural anthropology with a commercial agenda. Most people think strategy is about being right, but it’s actually about being useful.

Fill up, being a strategist in 2010 was…

about decoding consumers. We were translators between research decks and creative departments.

in 2026 will be…

In 2026 it’s about navigating change and uncertainty in a world where culture moves faster than brands and attention is fractured. AI is demolishing the industry and democratizing production. I think today being a strategist is a filter. Deciding what not to do is half the job. That is why we need more seniority in strategy than ever before.

but in 2036 we will see…

In 2036 everyone will have access to information, so the differentiator will be judgment. Taste. Ethical clarity. The ability to connect dots across disciplines: economics, tech, psychology, geopolitics… and still make it commercially sharp. I think strategy will look less like planning and more like systems thinking together in sync.

How, and when do you carve time to observe?

Observation is a habit rather than a calendar slot. Living in a big city and walking a lot helps. Then I read a lot outside my field. I pay attention to how people way smarter than me talk about the big concepts that are shaping our world. Following the right things on Social Media helps a lot too. And young people, they are the main source of inspiration for me today. They help me to see that I don’t understand the world enough.

What’s the most important thing in your work many people wouldn’t know?

Most strategies fail not because they’re wrong, but because they’re vague about the emotional tension. Strategy lives in the uncomfortable human truths.

Any tricks to get into strategy flow if you get stuck?

When I’m stuck, I explain the problem to someone smart who’s outside the industry. The second you strip away the jargon, you realize how much unnecessary complexity you’ve built in your head.

I saw you had a reading challenge last year, which led you to reading even more, anything you took from it?

It started as a New Year’s resolution with the clear intention of reading more. I used to read a lot, but over the past few years I drifted away from it and wanted to get back. What I didn’t expect was the compounding effect. The more you read, the more good stuff finds you. One great book leads to another, and curiosity starts to grow wildly in you. It becomes a virtuous loop: you’re no longer forcing yourself to read, you actually want to. I’m keeping it going in 2026. It’s February 18th and I’m already eight books in 🙂

Off the record, I’d say that….

The most underrated asset a brand can have today isn’t money or data, it’s courage. We’re facing a global shortage of bravery.

Fire Questions

What has been taking up the most of your mind lately?

A new project with HOALA is on its way and it’s set to redefine how strategy is trained for the professionals shaping brands around the world. I’m genuinely excited about what’s coming.

What is one subject you’ve been interested in recently that is completely unrelated to your area of work?

Politics. I’m fascinated, and also concerned, by polarization and the resurgence of fascism across Europe and the U.S. I’m trying to understand how people you’d consider intelligent buy into them, and how culture absorbs, reflects, or pushes back against it. And then you see cultural responses like Bad Bunny turning political tension into mainstream conversation. The intersection between power, identity and culture is so interesting right now.

Where would you take us if we asked you to give us a one-day tour of the city you live in?

Start early with a good coffee in a traditional Spanish bar. Then walk to El Rastro and drift through La Latina and Lavapiés. Immigration, tradition, decay, reinvention… the raw Madrid. Late morning, hit Reina Sofía museum. Lunch in Chamberí, in a classic taberna that hasn’t changed in 50 years. Afternoon walk through the city center and golden hour at Templo de Debod or at any of the many rooftops the city offers. Dinner late at a nice place, sharing a very nice Spanish red wine.

Snap a picture of your creative space / work desk right now! No cheating - do not tidy up.

I’m in a Starbucks right now writing this!

What are the books/films/podcasts/any piece of media that truly influenced how you perceive creative work?

Recent pieces of media that have influenced how I perceive creativity:

A book: House of leaves, by Mark Z. Danielewski. It blew up the idea I had about the limits of what a book can be. And “THE BOOK, The ultimate guide to rebuilding civilization” is as ambitious and beautiful as it sounds.
A film: Marty Supreme. Not because of the movie (which I didn’t like much), but because of its advertising campaign and the hype A24 & Chalamet created around it. Have you seen A24’s website? It’s the movie studio that is really understanding culture.
An artist: Rosalía. Same reason as above.
A designer: Jonathan Anderson, Pharrell Williams, Rei Kawakubo.
A brand: Aimé Leon Dore, House of Errors, Jacquemus, Loewe.
A creative collective: MSCHF.
An advertising agency: Uncommon.

If you had one extra day in a week - what would you use it on?

Easy. I would spend it with my partner and my kids. And reading pendent books.

What is the one fail you made in your career that you would be happy to repeat?

Going to places or taking on projects that were far from my comfort zone. I’ve failed publicly doing that. I’d do it again. Safe growth is boring.

What are the ways you incorporate play into your daily work?

“What if” is a powerful tool.
What if the opposite is true?
What if [fill the blank] is not what we think it is?
What if we push the idea to an extreme, almost to absurdity, and see what survives?

That’s where the fun starts.

One advice I wish I never had…

I usually don’t listen to advice. For better or worse, that’s probably what got me here.

How do you play?

All in. Always.

To keep up with Agustín, follow him on LinkedIn or Instagram, and here’s some of his incredible work, including the Volvo ad we had the pleasure of collaborating on back in the day:

Testing Grounds Showroom? continues. And this time we are changing the table.
After our first panel at Form Us With Love, we are now inviting the brands to share: WHAT’S THE NEW DESIGN DISCOVERY MIX?⁠

A roundtable reimagining the future of design meetings!

March 12th, Thursday, 18:00, Form Us With Love studio, Kungsholmen.

Stockholm friends, RSVP here!

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

We’ve just wrapped another open call review sprint – and in the space of two weeks, we finalised two separate selections. For the magazine open call alone, we received 268 applications!

Every time we do this, I walk away with the same mix of feelings “so many talented people!” and, that “community” is one of the most misunderstood words in the creative industries.

Because somewhere along the way, “community” started to mean; invite people > buy drinks > post a recap > call it a day.

A party is not what builds communities!

What actually makes a community is simpler – and harder: creating real opportunities that people can step into and connect around.

Let’s start by saying, that not everyone wants to be part of a community. The word itself comes with an unspoken expectation to participate – and nobody wants to be forced into that.

In practice, people tend to sit in three buckets:

• Passive observers – they watch, follow, read, save

• Gatherers – they like being included and might show up occasionally, online or offline

• Active opportunity seekers and creators – they want to contribute, build, try, participate

All three groups matter. But the third one – the active seekers and creators – is the underrated superpower. They want a door to open.

And here’s the honest part: they’re often motivated by either (or both) of these:

1. Contributing to something bigger than themselves/being a part of a like-minded group

2. Benefiting from the opportunity – by bringing their own idea to life

And if you can design an initiative where both sides win – you and your community member(s) – you’ve got something going.

Why it matters?

At studio playground, we’ve run open calls across different contexts – from being part of the team at Atelier100 (with IKEA and H&M), where thousands applied and 30+ London-based designers received funding of up to £10,000 to bring products to life, to our open calls for Playground Magazine contributions, to the recent collaboration with Newspaper Club supporting people to print their ideas.

The pattern we have noticed is always the same:

• Open calls create LOADS of energy around a project

• They pull in people you would never reach otherwise

• They strengthen your role with your audience/ community because you’re co-creating with them

• They reach new audiences almost automatically, because people share opportunities

Open calls are powerful enough that, over time, they can even activate the other two buckets – passive observers and gatherers – simply because they can see something happening that feels accessible.

It’s a mindset shift! From inviting community to exploring what opportunity you can create together.

Our latest open call brought many learnings, so here, we are opening the ins and outs of one type of community engagement that really sticks in all cases we tried – the open call. It could be done for product, marketing, content, and truthfully, endless co-creation opportunities.

The open call playbook

1. The starting point

An open call is not “community building”. It’s opportunity building, and the number one rule, it has to be a value exchange – both ways.

Value for applicants: help people bring work to life, such as funding, mentoring, publishing, production, distribution, visibility, access.

Value for you: a clear return, such as talent discovery, stronger editorial pipeline, cultural relevance, product design, reach, long-term trust.

If you’re the only one benefiting, it’s marketing. If only applicants benefit, it won’t matter to you, and won’t stick.

2. Creating the Open Call

Make it impossible to misunderstand:

• Why this exists, why now

• What they get (be specific)

• Who it’s for (and who it’s not for, clear limitations!)

• What to submit (format, files, links, word count)

• Timeline (deadline and announcement date)

Tip: financial support, visibility or mentoring are some of the strongest reasons for people to apply.

3. Setting the criteria

Decide what “good” means before you open the doors. Pick three to five criteria and stick to them:

• clarity of idea

• relevance to the brief

• ability to execute

• originality and craft

• fit with your platform

• curatorial fit to overall project

4. Running it fairly

You have to make it VERY clear & democratic. One process for everyone:

• no fast lanes

• no side-door submissions

• no friend exceptions outside of open call

5. Distributing the open call

Your best channels in order are:

• previous applicants (they repeat, or recommend!)

• your digital channels

• partners and aligned communities

• universities and programmes

• press (only if it’s truly big)

6. For the applicants!

This is what we wish more people knew: “apply everywhere” doesn’t win!

Yes to:

• show the idea properly (sketch, outline, prototype, draft – anything concrete)

• be specific about why this open call (not just why you, in general)

• prove you understand who you’re applying to (reference the brief, the context, the audience)

• make it easy to assess (clean links, labelled files, one strong PDF beats 12 messy attachments and don’t forget to give the access!)

• make sure you can make it happen in time

No to:

• “we’ll figure it out later” (someone else didn’t)

• copy-paste applications (we can tell in seconds)

• AI-smooth text with no real substance (also visible)

Tools are fine. But the effort matters, and it’s also very visible.

7. Reviewing

This is the hard bit. A few learnings:

• review after the deadline (not as it comes in)

• shortlist fast, then go slow

• keep notes for yourself

• accept that saying no is part of doing it properly

Note for applicants: a no is not a “never”. It’s a “not this time”.

8. Closing the loop

You don’t owe personal feedback. Applicants got to accept that, giving hundreds of personal feedback is simply impossible. You do owe a response though.

• confirmation of receipt & a proper thank you

• results announcement - YES or NO

• what’s next (if there is a next)

Trust is built through how you treat the people who didn’t win too. This matters a lot.

Open calls are a muscle. The more you do, the clearer it becomes.

While writing this, I saw a brilliant example from Outlander – inviting two community members to capture Fred again… How good? (original invite) Exactly what we are talking about too.

If you’ve seen a great open call or community initiative lately, send it my way. I’m collecting examples – and I’d love to feature a few.

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thanks for reading,

Auste & Playground team

Playground readers,

2026 just keeps rolling. Lately, whether I’m reading the news for work or pleasure, I keep landing on the same thought – the big global bubble is bursting into smaller ones. It’s a curious time to be alive and watch that shift happen in real time.

What the internet once promised – one big global society – doesn’t feel like the dream for many anymore. The year ahead is giving me 2008 vibes (not in a “we’re stuck in the past” way, and not the 2016-style nostalgia loop either) but in the simplest sense: we’re craving cosier circles. Who isn’t, when politics seem to be failing no matter where you look? Comfort starts to feel like a baseline need.

Of course, none of us exist in isolation – we co-exist. But the tech-bro-built version of society is losing its shine. I’m finding myself curious about the return of forum-like communities, smaller places to meet in real life, better-run streaming platforms with clearer ethics, and all the in-between experiments that might replace what isn’t working.

These are the kinds of observations that come from reading. And it’s been a good few months. Here’s what I’ve read, noticed, and picked to share with you this month.

Articles/reports

How do you design … the Olympic Games? -

Highlight read for the winter games I’m really looking forward to. Starting this Friday in Milan, it’s a beautiful gathering to watch. This interview with the director of the “Look of the Games” (!) for Milano Cortina 2026 was really curious to read. What a project to accomplish!

Fifty People Control the Culture -

An eye-opening read that made me question where I’m actually collecting inspiration from – and how narrow that stream can get. “Broaden your sources” is the simplified takeaway from a much more complicated reality. Must read.

Gen Z is Rewriting Brand Relevance - Dazed Studio

I’m a bit sceptical of amplifying “a generation” to prove a point. In my experience, the people who gather in these circles tend to be a certain type – and honestly, I meet the same type among people aged 65/70+. The belief that business relevance matters (sometimes more than anything else) isn’t exclusive to Gen Z. Yet the quotes shared are interesting to read.

How to Found a Biennale, Berlin Edition -

Reflections on Maison & Objet Paris -

I’ve never been to Maison & Objet design fair in Paris, but it’s been on my radar – so it was fun to read a proper, in-depth review. If you’re design-curious, it sounds like one to add to your reading & visiting list.

Listen to This: Some Audiobooks Are Outselling Hardcovers - The Wall Street Journal

What Happened to the Library -

The surprising survival of fashion catalogues - Financial Times

Everything I Learned the Hard Way About Strategy -

“If you are entering the (strategy) field now, the greatest temptation is to mistake articulation for insight. Go beyond the surface. Strategy is the thinking that happens long before anything goes in a post.” WORD!

The EU single market’s elephant in the room - Financial Times

Quite an incredible story – and a sharp critique of how sustainability requirements get mismanaged across borders – illustrated through the label ‘tail’ of IKEA’s elephant toy.

Substack Print - an app that lets you turn your Substack into a newspaper (which pairs nicely with our open call to get it printed for free – try it, go ahead!).

Reports

• Report: Pinterest Predicts

• White Paper: Highsnobiety’s Guide to Good Product Storytelling

• Brand Strategy: 2026 Cultural Calendar - WGSN

Podcasts

• Our Interview with MONOCLE - had the pleasure of chatting on Monocle’s The Stack – my must-go-to podcast. If you’re curious what we’re up to (and what’s ahead), tune in.

• 36 predictions about culture in 2026 -

Print

• Sålå Magazine – a new magazine (I found at the local Papercut) dedicated to Finnish design only. I love how niche it is – and how cosy the read feels. A beautiful window into the design scene in the North.

• Kinfolk: The Winter Issue is about (drum roll…) money. Lately, I’ve felt Kinfolk is having a bit of a revival – this issue has loads of energy, and I read it back-to-back.

Movie

• Marty Supreme - I’ll just be one more voice among many (and I’m writing this because I sometimes need the push too): it’s so pacey, so fun – you’ve got to see it in the cinema, on the big screen.

Highlight

• Our Notebook - I started writing in it early January, and I’ve already begun a new one (yes, I take ALL my notes on paper). Every page in this notebook is completely different, so you never have to start from an empty one. I am so happy we did this collaboration, it really is a notebook made with love.

• Playground x Newspaper Club Open Call is open for the last weeks. Get your idea made into print for free. I’m a bit jealous of whoever gets to have this experience – go on, try. The time is yours ;)

• Last minute call! We have a Stockholm Event tomorrow, February 5th, 2026 - RSVP here, join us!

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Auste & studio playground team

Playground readers,

We’re back with our interview series, with a little rebrand. Part of studio playground ethos is to bring more honesty and transparency to the creative industries, so these newsletter conversations are now called off the record. Here we’ll continue to invite curious people from our circle to share some behind the scenes (and slightly juicy) bits, because let’s be honest, the best parts usually stay “off the record”.

In this one, we welcome Megan Wray Schertler, someone I’d call a studio friend by now. We got connected through our magazine distributor, and Megan helped us look at Playground with a fresh perspective. And we did!

Megan’s experience is impressive. She’s a leading voice in print first strategy, the creator of Magazine Accelerator, and co founder of In Real Life Media. Formerly Publishing Director at Highsnobiety, she has worked across titles like Fantastic Man, Document Journal, Interview, CR Fashion Book, and Hypebeast.

With all of that, I couldn’t think of a better person to talk to about the print media business; whether print advertising really works, and what we should be reading this year. Her off the record note was spot on, and her Reykjavík tips made us dream about a trip there. Enjoy!

How did you get into print media?

I made my very first magazine when I was 8; “Meg Mag.” It was the front and back of a sheet of paper, and I convinced the local Blockbuster to “stock” copies at their check-out counter. I was much more interested in my distribution strategy than I was about making content which, in hindsight, was a sign of how my career would evolve.

What’s the most common misconception about the print media industry?

There are so many misconceptions! They keep me up at night and I rant about them weekly in my newsletter.

Print media in 2010 was…

valuable

2026 print media will…

be even more valuable

but in 2036…

will be absolutely essential.

Your favourite title(s) right now.

This is SUCH a tough question for me but I’d say Serviette, Playground, Merde, Hydra Book Club Journal, Viscose Journal, Untapped, Above the Fold, and Elastic are titles I have been referencing a lot recently.

Title(s) that made the biggest impact.

I luckily was surrounded by such a dynamic mix of printed matter as a kid, and I think that mix really shaped how I think about the power of “niche”. Titles like The Paris Review, Interview, Chesapeake Bay Magazine (I have such a soft spot for regional titles), and Jane Magazine. Omg, and of course George.

Titles that ‘came back’

I was thrilled that Dossier came back, and also am super happy that Life is relaunching. Mike Rogge has also done a stellar job bringing Mountain Gazette back in a big way.

Title(s) you wish would come back

NOVA, WET, The Village Voice

How, and when do you carve time to read magazines?

I read for an hour before bed every day, and always have a stack of magazines with me on flights. I refuse to use wifi on flights. Reading print magazines while 30,000ft in the air feels so luxurious; why waste being in the clouds on checking your emails?

Does print media advertising work? If so, how and how could brands lean into it?

Print media is the best way to build brand loyalty. Brands need to learn to trust print publishers, as they know best how to speak to their audiences.

Any good advertorial examples, or your favourite cases?

The print zine that i-D did in partnership with Substack. Genius.

Can print media be a “business”? If so, how?

Yes! Founders usually get so focused on their content idea but they have to be clear on their full brand ecosystem (distribution, DTC, content extensions, etc.). I developed a program called the Magazine Accelerator to help publishers create a roadmap for their print businesses.

Off the record, I’d say that…

When, in 2026, someone tries to convince you that print is dead, they are really telling you that they don’t read and have very shallow curiosity about the world. It has nothing to do with the realities of the print industry. Politely ignore them.

Fire Questions

What has been taking up the most of your mind lately?

Developing a new P&L (profit and loss) template for magazine businesses. Publishers deserve an easier way to get clear on their business, so we’re launching a new financials-focused workshop this Spring. I’m determined to make the P&L template as comprehensive as possible.

What is one subject you’ve been interested in recently that is completely unrelated to your area of work?

Learning how to predict when the Northern Lights will appear above our apartment in Reykjavik.

Where would you take us if we asked you to give us a one-day tour of the city you live in?

I feel so lucky to live in Reykjavik part of the year. Anyone visiting has to start the day at Kaktus cafe in the National Gallery, the go to one of the pools (we’re lucky to live just one block away from Sundhöllin), have the fish of the day for lunch at Tivoli, attend a talk or exhibition at marvaða’s new space in Grandi, grab a copy of Reykjavik Grapevine to see what other art exhibitions are on, and then end the day with a burger at Snaps in their new location inside Hlemmur Mathöll and drinks at Hotel Holt.

Snap a picture of your creative space / work desk right now! No cheating - do not tidy up.

I’m in a bit of a crisis moment because I’ve run out of shelf space!

What are the books/films/podcasts/any piece of media that truly influenced how you perceive creative work?

The video game Myst.

If you had one extra day in a week - what would you use it on?

Sleep. It’s where we do our most important work.

What is the one fail you made in your career that you would be happy to repeat?

Dropping out of college. I had graduated a year early from high school, so the fact that it took me 10 years to finish my BA degree felt like a major failure at the time. In hindsight, it gave me time to explore what I was really passionate about and gave me real-world experience before finally landing in my dream course at Central Saint Martins. It was a valuable lesson in not just doing something because you think you “should” be doing it, and that you always can change your mind.

What are the ways you incorporate play into your daily work?

I honestly approach my daily work like I’m playing Myst; an immersive journey of exploration and puzzle-solving. I’ll sometimes even project difficult scenarios onto Myst island in my imagination as a way to put my intuition and imagination in the driver seat.

One advice I wish I never had

A male boss once advised that I should smile more. At the time, I internalised it to mean all sorts of things about my actual job performance and personality. In reality, I now know it was just really lazy and inappropriate advice.

How do you play?

Travel is a big source of play for me; I love exploring and having new adventures. It was my favourite thing to do as a kid, so making travel a priority in my life now feels like a way to constantly stay in my inner-child excitement realm.

To keep up with Megan and her work, check out her strategy studio for magazine publishers, In Real Life Media, or marvaða, where she’s the Head of Brand. Also, on Instagram: @m.schertler , @inreallife.media , @marvada_creations

Print opportunities with us!

• Want to be featured in Playground Magazine? Our Open Call for Issue 5 is open now. You have 10 days before the deadline, don’t miss your chance - all the details in the link!

• Want your own publication? We got something for you too - make a newspaper & get it printed for free! This could be a great community project, promotion for a small business, or a pilot before something event bigger.

Let’s meet in Stockholm on the February 5th!

Stockholm Design Week might officially not be happening, but the grassroots movement in the city is big – and we’re happy to join the effort alongside Form Us With Love.

We’re kicking it off with our first talk on 5 February at 18:00, on the topic: “What are design weeks and festivals for?” from the ground – representatives from Nordic fairs and design weeks on why (and how) we still meet in real life.

TALK + PARTY February 5th, Thursday, 18:00–22:00 (or later)

RSVP HERE

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for supporting & reading,

Auste & studio playground team

I’ve been attending a beautiful Christmas concert in Stockholm, sung by a choir with a lovely vibe, when suddenly my view kept being blocked by phones. One phone, another. From one angle, another. Then my brother pointed out a guy in front constantly filming, uploading, then checking who liked his posts.

In that beautiful moment, I was reminded of the countless times I felt this way in 2025 – from festivals to restaurants – and I started to dream about a better way forward.

Guilty as charged myself, I started thinking about how aware I am every time I raise my phone. To text, scroll, take a picture, or film a video of something.

Living in Berlin had its own impact on me. On one hand, I was close to a community really involved in Instagram – phone-photo obsessed. On the other hand, the data protection, privacy, and completely anonymous club scene makes it clear – no one will take a pic of you. “Going out” = privacy in Berlin. Ever since, seeing someone taking a video or a photo where you might be visible feels like a complete intrusion of one’s existence on the dancefloor. Not for any wrongdoing, but because of the anonymity. Partying in Berlin equals a spa. Why would anyone ever take photos in the spa?

Shouldn’t more things feel that way?

@celeste.aria_In Berlin, all the best clubs make you cover your phone cameras and some even hide their addresses from google 😆 #clubbing #berlin #nightlife #club #berghain #fyp #lifestyle #party #experience #techno

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Punk Royale, for instance – a known “smoky, fast and close” restaurant with a caviar/vodka moment mid-service in Stockholm – locks your phone the second you sit down. If you want a wild experience, book yourself in now!

If you want an intimate one, go to Hosoi, Stockholm’s first listening room, which has a no-phone policy in their main room too. I spoke to the founder, Viktor Sanchez, for the first issue of Playground magazine – we talked about listening rooms, their origins in Japan, and the idea of bringing you back to an offline communal experience, with full immersion in music and sound. Sound only.

Then take Comedy Cellar in Greenwich Village, New York. No-phone policy, except after the show – applause, final thank-you minutes. The same applies to most theatres, opera houses, and dance performances everywhere.

What comes out of all these experiences is full attention – presence.

Other times, a mystique.

“Describe to me how it felt” should be the quote for 2026.

Less “I’ve seen it on your socials” – more “tell me how it was”.

Could we both, as individuals, and as brands…

… imagine phone-less happenings – where maybe the only time you can use your phone is five minutes at the end?

… allow everyone film cameras and Polaroids only?

… do more unique “offline only” experiences?

… create stickers for phone cameras – or lock phones during the experience?

There’s one thing to talk about a phone-less society – and another to actually break patterns. There are a few products I love, created by people equally craving more offline.

Phone Home, created by Matt Kelly for his label Plaey, is my “phone parking” station at home. That’s where my phone sits while I type this. Good design with a clear purpose.

Brick is on its way as I write this too. I stepped into 2026 with even more energy to be aware of my time on my phone – or more so, on socials at least. Brick – a physical brick – works like a contactless device (as I understand). Once you tap it, you get disconnected and blocked from the apps you’ve chosen. The only way to get “unblocked” is to tap the brick again. Excited to play around.

At the centre of this year seems to be a pattern – and a hope for 2026: the year of analogue is the only phrase that comes to me. Increasing DIY, hobbies – from knitting to cooking to DJing – is taking over. Long awaited. I don’t think Pantone’s white colour of the year got anything wrong. On the contrary, it captured the energy that seems to be out there – people want a step back, a fresh start, a pause at the very least. From constant bad news, constant notifications, and energy that doesn’t serve them anymore.

May 2026 onwards be as present as possible, as analogue as possible, and as settled as possible.

While we’re on the theme. The least phone-on activity I plan to do this year is very… cutesy? Join a snail mail club!

What’s a snail mail club? This video sums it up pretty well.

@catho_de_langeSnail mail is my new obsession!!! Leave some snail mail club/subscription recommendations in the comments! 💕🫶🏼📨✉️📬 #snailmail #printedmatter #analogmedia #print #create

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proud of you

I started a snail mail club.

We spend so much time on our screens…

Read more

a year ago · 50 likes · 6 comments · Kristine Claghorn

I like to play around and put things on my other things – notebooks, laptop, you name it. Maybe Playground needs a “play mail club” – a monthly “play” prompt for the time ahead for individuals/ teams/ businesses? Just tell me you’re interested….

Our “more play” slogan (I never intended it to be a slogan) feels so closely associated with us – and so relevant now. It feels like more people are tuning into it. Our black caps picked up speed, we’ve only got a few left (!) and the magazine presence will hopefully bring everyone as much joy in the years ahead too.

Two bits of news as we step into 2026!

First – we’re hiring. Read all the details in the link.

Second – our Open Call for Playground Issue five is live. You’re the early bird to read this – all details also in the link.

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just added fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for supporting & reading,

Auste & studio playground team

Playground readers,

With less than two weeks left until the new year, and after all the love for 23 from 23 and 24 from 24 – here comes 25 from 25: insights, learnings, personal notes, and a few failures from the year.

Looking back at everything that happened, a few keywords came to my mind: community and co-creation projects, exhibitions, creative concepts, smart planning and strategy, and blank space for new opportunities. I’m ending the year proud, and genuinely impressed by everyone who wanted to collaborate with us, and by those who shared that they learned something after reading this newsletter. I’ve also loved hearing success stories from the clients we work with.

This year felt like a leap, and I’m curious to see where 2026 takes studio playground. I feel really excited. But before we make that leap, here are 25 things from 25 – somewhat grouped into five areas.

Community and co-creation projects

1. The energy around Playground Magazine – this is the single biggest community project we run twice a year, bringing more than 100 creatives from all around Europe together. This year, we made two issues, hosted four events to celebrate them, and published fantastic ideas. The way the magazine gives the energy back is incredible – I love every bit of it. This year, I promised myself it’s not about making at least 10 issues (the promise I made to myself when starting). It’s about continuing to do it for many, many years to come – and there are so many exciting ideas planned for next year.

   

2. Notebook inspired by community notes – we launched this just over a month ago, and it still feels like a dream project. We got the chance to collaborate with designer Julie Joliat – someone we’ve loved for a long time – and to involve you, our community, who submitted over 120 images of your inner notebook pages. Enjoy the play-outs, because thinking or playing doesn’t have to start from an empty page, and this notebook will challenge you in new ways.

   GET THE MAG + NOTEBOOK HERE

3. Exhibitions – from Stockholm Design Week to 3daydofdesign, and into new concepts for next year, this remains one of the most creative parts of what we do for our clients – creating, curating, managing & bringing a lot of people together.

4. Creating more exciting community initiatives is at the top of our agenda, so we’re expanding our mission with other brands we love. You can now print a newspaper for free through our new Playground x Newspaper Club Open Call!

   Your concept can be anything: a creative manifesto, a visual portfolio, your small business presentation, a zine dedicated to your granny’s 80th birthday, or even a collaboration you’ve been dreaming of. Bring us your most fun and playful ideas. Apply here.

5. Meeting people IRL, thanks to partners. The latest Berlin event was so great, and these gatherings only happen when we’re invited to stay in comfortable places. In Berlin, we had a brilliant chance to stay at STAYERY apartments – you can work, there’s a self-served Späti downstairs, and the rooms were super cosy and full of charm.

   We even got you a discount code: if you’re planning a trip to Berlin, head over to their site and use PLAYGROUND10 for a 10% discount (valid until 28-02-2026).

Smart Strategy & Curation

6. Repetition: re-listening, re-reading, re-watching – not for surprise, but for depth.
   I find revisiting something I’ve already consumed not only comforting, but also surprisingly revealing – it helps me notice more, find depth, and get closer to the thinking behind the words. It’s taught me to spot details I didn’t catch the first time.

7. Start on paper, always. Decks are a beautiful way to show strategy, but truthfully, it’s the content that matters. If your strategy is exciting when written out on an A4 sheet, it will only get better from there.

8. Goals > content > platform.
   Goals should sit above your content and your platform. Case in point, our goal with the newsletter is to reach the right people and engage them with an interesting content in their inbox. Substack is simply the send-out platform for us – with the added value of keeping the archive in one place. I like that you can comment (and when times are calmer, I do that too), but you don’t need to obsess over the platform.

9. Perspectives. I still believe that in order for strategy to work, you need to learn how to bring more people to understand it. I wrote the whole post around it.

10. Everything is research – you just have to learn how to carry ideas through. It’s an incredible privilege to do the kind of work we do, but to do it well, you have to follow the work all the way through. The best ideas often land when you’re furthest away from work. Keeping notes, staying curious, and learning not to over-consume what comes your way really matters.

Way of working & being

11. We shouldn’t fear AI – we should fear people and businesses that track success only through efficiency. Why do we complain about AI taking over, and yet keep killing the things we love? The amount of love I’ve seen online for receiving a physical letter this season has been huge. At the same time, the news arrived that Denmark’s national postal service, PostNord, will stop delivering letters – with its final letter delivery planned for the end of 2025. Can you imagine a world without post? Send more letters, show it still matters! postnord.dk+1

12. Flow state – running, swimming, cooking. I’ve been chasing, and will continue chasing, the things that get me into flow: kind of addictive, meditative, and truly special.

13. Planning papers. At some point this year, I abandoned my planner. It felt heavy, mentally and physically, to carry the whole year around. So I started writing my top list on a single piece of paper, and using tiny paper planners (like the ones I love – or similar weekly versions I grab in stationery stores) for daily or weekly to-do lists. Things have been flowing since. It’s a bit harder to archive, but it’s incredibly satisfying to throw them out daily or weekly once the day is done.

14. Discipline – a boring one, but nothing happens without it (the tip above helps make it happen).

15. Patience.

Partnerships & collaborations

16. Most great business development happens offline.

17. It’s cool to be the one who initiates. (84% of respondents in our Issue four study said they are actively looking to connect with others through their work – don’t be shy, reach out.)

18. It all starts with a conversation – but it can take 50 of them with the same people, or team, before something really happens.

19. You can’t go far alone. Embrace lifting each other up and collaborating – just like Charli XCX bringing Lorde on stage, and handing over the ‘summer’ during her Coachella set.

20. You’ve got to have great people around you. Stop listening to those who say the world doesn’t need more “things” or “design”. It’s a sad, limiting belief, often reinforced by gatekeepers. If you don’t start, you won’t make great things – you won’t make anything at all. Change only happens by doing. If you start, you do. You learn. You improve. You make better ideas, solutions, and projects. So it’s not about more, it’s about better, through doing.

Failures

21. Failed play experiment – I made it public, and then failed. About 50 days in, I stopped my daily play. If I learned one thing from this project, it’s that it’s important to do something you kind of suck at. With time, you’ll either improve or ditch it – but by playing and experimenting, you get closer to be patient with yourself, and with who you are. Looking back, the experiment probably needed clearer rules and constraints to be successful. I might try a new one next year.

22. Overplanning – leaving no space for unexpected things to happen. I’m already actioning this, and trying to keep 10% of space for the unexpected.

23. The money issue – I’m not sure what happened this year, but quite a few invoices had to be chased (and some still are). Dear clients who pay: we love you. Still, I’ve heard from more or less everyone we spoke to that they’re dealing with unpaid invoices too – and it can really throw a business off course. I was journalling angrily about it one day when a thought landed: maybe we should make a special Playground “The Money Issue”. It seems like a real problem in the creative industries, something also wrote about in Playground Issue 4.

24. Shipments – not a failure, per se, but something we overlooked. The team is now properly taking care of it. Bottom line: creating products creates logistics – boxes, returns, and lost parcels. We didn’t address this well enough this year, and we’ll find better solutions next year.

Final extra

25. Bonus end-of-year curated tip: watch The New Yorker at 100 on Netflix – I loved it, and it’s full of inspiration, editorially and business-wise.

What to expect in 2026 from us? Cooking fun things.. new products, big collaborations, presence across multiple Nordic capitals, and more. I’ll manifest here that our 26 of 26 is filled with data visuals too!

This newsletter is dedicated to all people around me, our team, their partners and friends, and all our collaborators, clients, you readers – it takes a village to create great projects and businesses, and I’m incredibly grateful for the people around making great work together.

Thank you for reading Playground! It means a lot.

Happy holidays, and here’s to the start of 2026,

Auste

Playground readers,

Wherever I looked, November seemed full of happenings. Everything felt a bit intense – maybe it still does for you – and there’s somehow never any time left to read all the other great things waiting in your tabs, inboxes and saved folders.

But it’s exactly in these moments, when everything is slightly messy, that slowing down and grounding for even five minutes to see the bigger picture makes a massive difference. “Take some time for that,” I remind myself.

So I’ll invite you to see this as a moment to pause. I’ve collected a small, curated list from the last few months – articles, reports and books that genuinely helped me reflect and see the wider picture.

Think of this as a handful of links, that I really believe are worth your time.

Articles

How much is too much knowledge to give away for free? -

A great essay that feels like an echo of the conversations Matilda and I had in London a month ago – circling around knowledge, generosity and whether we should “gatekeep” or “gateopen” what we know. If you’re constantly wondering how much to share with the world, this one is truly worth a read.

Museums are no longer afraid of ‘selling out’. But have they forgotten about the art? - FT

A sharp look at how cultural institutions flirt with commerce – and what might get lost along the way. Perfect if you work anywhere near brands, culture or partnerships.

Social Media is now shrinking - Ted Gioia

Probably the topic of 2025 (alongside AI) – covered in-depth and with proper nuance. It’s behind a paywall, but I really recommend seeking it out if social media, culture and “what comes next” is your ongoing agenda topic. Less hype, more structural thinking.

The Future Of Work Isn’t Remote Or Hybrid—It’s ‘Microshifting’ - Forbes

This is probably one of my favourite theories of the year. If you are able to embrace change, “microshifting” is a beautiful testament to a different way of working.

Pockets aren’t just practical — they’re political - Woman of Substance

That’s one smart read via – the new Substack of my dear friend, long-time collaborator and in-paper magazine editor . If you love curious facts, tiny details and well-researched topics, head there right now.

POV: Adverts are about to get longer - It’s Nice That

A great deep dive into how advertising formats are shifting – and how platforms like Substack are pulling brands into slower, more narrative forms. As of now, Nike has joined the game here, and Charli XCX also has a Substack, did you know? It’s a good one if you are wondering what “content” might look like beyond the 15-second scroll.

Reports

This is an absolutely incredible shared Drive folder from the LinkedIn community.

From macro trend decks to niche cultural scans, this link gathers most of the big reports you might want to skim for the year ahead. You might need two cups of coffee or tea to go through it all.

Treat it with care, and add to it if you have anything worth sharing:

All the trend reports of 2026.

Book

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight

I tend to skip the “it” shows, books, etc. when they are at their loudest, then come back later to understand why something really reached the mass. My read of the month has been Shoe Dog by Nike’s founder Phil Knight and, honestly, it is probably the greatest “starting my business” book I have ever read. It’s genuine, messy in a good way and sometimes reads more like fiction than a business biography. Worth all the love and hype.

A few curated newsletters ago I wrote about The Secret of the Highly Creative Thinker: How to Make Connections Others Don’t by Dorte Nielsen. I read it half a year ago and I still think about it weekly. I had the honour of interviewing Dorte as part of IKEA’s panel at Democratic Design Days alongside Gustaf Westman and IKEA’s Emma Dafnäs – that conversation actually landed in Playground Issue 4, where we explore some really good theories about creativity.

Movie

The Aalto documentary – a slow, atmospheric look at architects Alvar and Aino Aalto’s work and life – is my “slow watching” recommendation. Perfect for an evening when you want to feel inspired by space, light and thoughtful design rather than overstimulated.

Show

I am not into celeb culture per se – I often feel it offers “quick fixes causing big effects” – yet the Victoria Beckham series on Netflix genuinely inspired me. A reminder that careers, families and creative lives are long, complicated stories, and changing your career comes with its pain no matter your level of fame, or money.

Podcast

The NDA Podcast – a favourite for anyone interested in what really happens behind the glossy version of creative careers. Smart guests, honest conversations and enough nuance to leave you thinking, not just nodding along. A lot of shared values with Playground over there!

Play Shop

Playground Issue 4, our latest notebook and caps await – last moments to receive them before Christmas, so you can both get inspired and plan the year of play ahead.

OUR SHOP

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for supporting & reading,

Auste & Playground team

Issue 4 is now available here

Playground readers,

Playground Issue 4 is here, and we’re so excited to finally share what we’ve been working on ❤️‍🔥. As I mention in my editor-in-chief letter, we’ve reimagined our front look, design, and spine – giving the magazine a new rhythm, a kind of melody – all in the spirit of better exploration, readability, and fun.

So, what’s inside Playground Issue 4? Let’s dive in:

Playground is the magazine that dares to explore, question, and re-envision the creative industries. Through thought-provoking essays, reports, and bold, honest conversations, it’s where curiosity meets play and inspiration. Packed full of smart insights and egoless advice, Playground is a must-read for those working in, or curious about, Europe’s vibrant creative and cultural sectors.

About Issue 4

The fourth, 112-page issue of Playground brings together over 70 creatives – strategists, artists, designers, and writers – to map the current state of creativity across Europe and beyond.

Inside, you’ll find:

• An expanded State of the creative industries report, built on original data and insights

• Essays examining the creative exchange – from the value of home and paying it forward to pitches and money

• A deep dive into the world of notebooks, revealing how our tools shape the way we think, write, and make

• Conversations with creatives: DJ and producer Axel Boman on intuition and improvisation; Julie Joliat on turning stationery into self-expression; and architects and artists on play and experimentation

• Plus, more Play – a new community board, prompts, and “play breaks” that invite readers to think along the way

Across essays (including some people you might know from Substack Viktor Wendt, Davy Denduyver), data, and dialogue, Issue 4 reflects on the invisible economy that powers creativity, asking what it takes to keep it fair, connected, and alive, and how experimentation and play move things forward.

GET YOUR COPY HERE

Talking about the cover look! Created by Alexis Jamet, a French designer and illustrator based in Tokyo, the cover translates Playground Issue 4’s ideas into abstract form. Its shapes speak of connection and collaboration – forms that link, overlap, and respond to one another.

Somewhere between abstraction and landscape, the composition feels like an open space – a field where ideas, and people, meet.

GET YOUR COPY HERE

We’re celebrating the launch in Berlin next week! Come by, bring a friend, and share an evening with studio playground!

🗓️ Thursday, 20th of November
🕡 starts 18:00
📍 Klimaite Klimaite Studio, Ackerstraße 152, Berlin

To the curious souls, thank you! For reading, supporting, and giving us feedback. Each essay, illustration, photograph and interview in this issue brought so much play and wisdom. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who took part – whether through our open call or by answering our spontaneous emails. Playground is, and will always be, a community effort.

GET YOUR COPY HERE

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for supporting & reading,

Auste & Playground team

Playground Readers,

Long time, no interview. This time round, I’m very excited to introduce you to Lithuanian-born, Berlin-based sister duo Klimaite Klimaite – whose work you’ve probably pinned on Pinterest more than once.

I met Laura through a mentoring programme, and I’ve been so impressed not only by their work, but also by their honesty and deeply human approach to design. The level of thought they put into every little detail is truly inspiring.

We’re thrilled to have them featured here, especially as our Playground Issue 4 launch event; happening in just two weeks, will take place in their intimate and cosy design studio in the heart of Berlin. We can’t wait! Come by for a chat, or forward this conversation (and the invite) to your Berlin friends.

And while you’re here… Playground Issue 4 pre-orders are now open. First to order, first to receive.

Over to Laura and Indre, aka Klimaite Klimaite, and their curious minds – loved every bit of it.

What has been taking up most of your mind lately?

Indre: To find time, space and motivation for continuing my free work. And how to get rich.
Laura: Balancing roles: me as a designer, a mother, a wife, a friend, a sister, a student, a woman. How to work efficiently and earn more money.

What is one subject you’ve been interested in recently that is completely unrelated to your area of work?

Indre: Renovating my summer house. Learning and dancing tango.
Laura: Creation of a daily-life through the lens of a cosmic consciousness.

Where would you take us if we asked you to give us a one-day tour of the city you live in?

Indre: Probably a stroll around the Maybachufer canal, coffee, then an early drink on a rooftop of Neukoelln Arcaden, then finish for a sunset in Tempelhofer Field.
Laura: From Treptower Park, a walk along the river Spree, stopping at Zenner Biergarten. Then taking a BVG ferry to another side of the shore (Wilhelmstrand station), walking along summer garden houses, and finally reaching Funkhaus. Enjoying around and chilling on the shore.

Snap a picture of your creative space / work desk right now! No cheating – do not tidy up.

What are the books/films/podcasts/any piece of media that truly influenced how you perceive creative work?

Indre: TBH I don’t engage in the media that has to do with my profession much, I watch zombie movies as I need to switch off. What truly inspires me is art, from classical to contemporary.
Laura: Dutch education. Limiting information from outside helps me to listen to myself and find my own creative ways. I am influenced by the places I live in and by the people I meet.

If you had one extra day in a week – what would you use it on?

Indre: Reading books
Laura: I would either develop my creative project (because I am a postgraduate student now!) or watch Soft White Underbelly channel (interviews and portraits of the human condition) on YouTube all day!

What is the one fail you made in your career that you would be happy to repeat?

Indre: None of fails that became a lucky accident, they have unfortunately stayed fails.. Maybe when I was 21 I gave up my job in advertising agency, left my boyfriend, and moved away from Lithuania to study in the Netherlands, to what I thought would be typography, just to figure out later it was a type design.
Laura: Cannot somehow come up with a real fail… Only mistakes that I am learning from.

What are the ways you incorporate play into your daily work?

Indre: Creative process is a play in itself. If you are bored, you are doing something wrong.
Laura: Margarita for lunch (preferably on a rooftop).

As a sister duo, how did you decide to work together and form the studio partnership?

Before we moved to Berlin, we worked separately. After we started to look for tables to rent and ended up renting tables in the same co-working space. We started being involved in each other's creative process much closer, we realised we profit from feedbacking each other a lot. So Laura had this idea to make a studio together that took 2 years to convince Indre.

What does a ‘perfect’ project brief look like for you?

Cultural client that knows our work and style. Clarity, clear and realistic deadlines, material on time, good budget.

You mostly work with cultural initiatives and institutions – what do you think sets that work apart from more commercial design projects?

It is not so much about serving or fitting the taste or understanding of so called mythical ‘average consumer’ or target audience. Our audience is our client: a curator, art historian, artist, musician, writer, philosopher.

Posters, exhibition identities and books seem very close to your heart – how do you typically begin a new project in those areas?

Brainstorm.

Berlin is a vibrant design and cultural hub – how does being based there shape or influence your work and your view of the cultural sector?

Berlin shapes rather political and social views that influences us and sometimes our work.

When designing for cultural institutions (e.g. exhibitions or books, editorials), you often deal with content that has history, significance or archival material – how do you approach working with that kind of content versus something entirely new?

We often (if not always) find inspiration in the content, it gives us answers for the formal and visual expression. That is why for us it is important to work with meaningful assignments.

Looking ahead, are there areas or formats you’d like to explore more – such as digital, immersive, or motion design – or new sectors outside the cultural sphere you’d like to engage with?

Laura would like to explore analog formats of how to express content to people through storytelling, tours, lectures, and discussions. Indre would be interested in the fashion sector.

To keep up with Indrė & Laura, follow their studio on Instagram. Also, check out their personal work & projects: Indrė’s www.kompotas.lt & Laura’s lauraklimaitelusa.com

🗓️ Thursday, 20th of November
🕡 starts 18:00
📍 Klimaite Klimaite Studio, Ackerstraße 152, Berlin

Come by, bring a friend, and share an evening with studio playground!

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for reading,

Auste & Playground team

You know those quotes that sit on websites and never get practised? I’m laughing at myself re-reading one I once wrote.

“At the heart of it, at studio playground we are curious to launch our own independent projects, continually collaborate with other creatives and are not afraid to experiment, so we know what it takes to do the work. Every half year, we indulge ourselves into a new self-funded project. No matter if it is writing a newsletter, rolling out a new campaign, publishing a book, a collection or the whole new brand. We like to explore new creative turfs with different creatives. It allows us to experiment, understand recent trends, test new mediums, and use those in practice.”

And you know what? We do practise what we preach. We dive into so many projects that it probably happens every few months, or at least once a quarter.

This week is a big release week for us as a studio, and I’m truly thrilled to share what we’ve created in our Play universe this time.

First things first – our ever-first notebook – co-created and designed by Swiss-born, Berlin-based designer Julie Joliat!

Born from studying the note- and sketchbooks of countless creatives (thank you for sharing your inspiring pages and scribbles!) this notebook is both an ode and antidote to note-taking. A playground for your ideas, drafts, and drawings. An open invitation to create and play - without the fear of ruining a page.

Each page is filled with unique, fun and unexpected “playouts”, designed to have a fresh look at your notes!

I can’t wait to share more; the story of how it was born, the thinking behind it, and all the ways it can be used.

GET THE NOTEBOOK HERE

Secondly – we made a new print Playground issue!

It’s our fourth one, and I’m thrilled to say we’re creating the magazine of our dreams – one you want to read, look at, observe, and play with. It’s full of great stories. We interviewed a DJ, an architecture studio, an artist, and a stationery designer. We’ve got essays and artworks from writers and illustrators, a long report about the creative industries, and a deep dive into notebooks, alongside play breaks and whatnot.

Playground Issue 4 is now available for pre-orders!

First come, first served – this is a limited, print-only edition, crafted with community hearts and an award-winning (but always humble) spirit. Did we mention we won gold at Svenska Design Priset last week for our Issue 3? 👀

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY

Let’s meet to celebrate the news

And then, not to forget – the events. This time, we’re celebrating in one of our favourite cities – Berlin – with some of our favourite people.

And you’re all invited.

Hear the stories about Issue 4, inspirations and creation of notebook from myself and the stationery designer Julie Joliat, meet the team & collaborators, enjoy fun popcorn flavours from Knalle, our favourite lemonades from Lynxmonadas, beer and more surprises.

🗓️ Thursday, 20th of November
🕡 From 18:00
📍 Klimaite Klimaite Studio, Ackerstraße 152, Berlin

Come by, bring a friend, and share an evening with studio playground!

We’ve learned so much from each project this year! It really feels like a full circle. From summer experiments to new collaborations, every step is teaching us something about how to build, not just create.

And a small insight… funny how, as someone who works in marketing, I hear so many people say how hard it is to communicate about themselves or their own brand. I can really relate. It’s genuinely difficult to make something and then talk about it. You create so much, you care so deeply, and somehow it still feels like it’s not enough – so you got to keep talking about it. But having this perspective as a studio really adds value to everything we do. It gives us empathy for others who are building, making, and trying to articulate their own work, too. We see you, no matter big or small!

While reflecting on all this, I’m definitely scheduling in a slower moment to look back and learn. Maybe even an Open Accounting piece at some point, a behind-the-scenes reflection on how we’ve been building studio playground, what’s worked, what hasn’t, and what we’ve learned along the way.

Maybe that’s one for our three-year birthday – a story on how to start a magazine, grow a studio, and keep playing. Because we’re still young, still learning, still curious, and still going.

Thank you for subscribing – and for being part of our Play universe.

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for reading,

Auste & Playground team

Too often, strategy – whether business, brand, communication, assortment, or influencer – lands in a PDF file, tucked far away in some digital drawer. Great visions, disconnected from teams and reality.

I’ve seen so many great ideas end up there, never seeing daylight. Why is that?

I believe there are usually two ways strategies get made.

Strategy from the top down

Situation: management creates a new brand, business, or marketing strategy and shares it with the team.
Potential problem: it might be great, even inspiring – but too often, it doesn’t get implemented, or gets executed in the wrong way.
Reality check: employees who actually do the work aren’t involved early enough. They don’t get the chance to give feedback, and therefore feel disconnected. Often, strategies are shared without people even knowing they exist.

Strategy from the bottom up

Situation: the design team develops a new product strategy, or marketing launches a global influencer strategy.
Potential problem: it might be great – but budgets, priorities, or long-term business plans aren’t considered due to a lack of alignment or communication.
Reality check: the work hasn’t been approved at the brief stage (the best moment to align), or it’s “kind of approved” without full clarity on what can realistically be done to bring it to life.

Both situations have something in common – the gap problem.

Infusing strategy into an organisation – whatever the situation, whether you’re a company of one or two thousand – is a bit of an art. And not every strategy owner knows how to carry it through, because implementation is often an operational matter. You might ask, “so why isn’t operations taken on board?” The truth is, strategy and operations tend to sit miles apart – sometimes even as quiet rivals. Even as a one-person business, wearing those two hats demands completely different mindsets.

I love strategic work and seeing it come to life is the biggest strategic success I must say. One of studio playground missions is to help close that gap between strategy and reality – to focus not only on how to make strategies, but how to bring them to life. To give long-term actions, not just short-term fixes.

Here are a few of the principles and small tricks we’ve learnt along the way – relevant whether you’re part of a large organisation or building something on your own.

1. The brief – crucial, crucial, crucial

I adore briefs (everyone knows that). The better the brief, the better the outcome. Few clients create them these days, but they’re essential. Get stuck on the brief. List the reality, the problem, the goals – and the limitations. That’s where many projects slip.

I’ve worked on global channel strategies where crucial limitations weren’t included – for example, clients couldn’t close certain channels or didn’t have the resources to carry things through. Even when the strategy was right, it went flat because the operational setup wasn’t there.

One side of me says: strategy should always aim for the best outcome. True. Yet if something can’t realistically be done within six to twelve months, that strategy will end up binned.

2. The workshop – people power

Not every strategy needs a workshop, but hear me out.

I’ve met many talented senior strategists, and some insist workshops are a waste of time or political theatre. Sometimes, yes. But businesses are still run by people (for now), strategies are made by people (for now), and implemented by people (for now). We need people on board.

Workshops are fantastic for alignment. I’ve run sessions where employees shared insights that even the brief owner didn’t expect. A well-thought-out workshop can become a true playground for both the team and the strategy itself. (Planning to do a piece on workshops soon – stay tuned.)

3. The implementation - keeping strategic momentum

3.1 Strategic assumption check-ins

Every strategist knows that lightbulb moment – when suddenly it all makes sense. In that moment, ping-pong with someone. The client, or someone from the outside. Test your assumptions. Ask: what will make this come to life? Note it down.

3.2 Strategy briefing sessions

Some strategies are so clear and elegant that they should speak for themselves (and they really should!) – yet they still need to be implemented. The strategist should be able to brief everyone involved, answer questions, and help connect the dots.

3.3 Strategic next steps

Every strategy needs next steps – not hidden in the deck, but clearly defined and owned.

I recently worked on a strategy where the logical next step was an organisational change – requiring roughly one and a half full-time roles for at least one to two years. Because we discussed it early in check-ins, it wasn’t a surprise to the CEO. The strategy became a roadmap for real implementation, not just a vision.

Moving Ahead!

The strategy owner should come back – quarterly, twice a year, or annually. It’s strange how often this doesn’t happen. Schedule it in the calendar!

Take editorial strategies: teams meet, and eight out of ten times they brainstorm new ideas instead of revisiting the existing strategy – which should already be a beautiful playground for ideas to spark.

Because what is strategy if not a playground for things to happen?

The best strategies – and their implementation – are built on collaboration, trust, transparency, openness, and patience.
And most importantly, the habit of asking: when do we come back here, are we on track, and how do we bring the next steps to life?

To the season of strategies & strategic implementations!

Housekeeping

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the Playground alive.

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for reading,

Auste & Playground team

For me, I realised, just like Yuri, the most successful brand activations are the ones that spark engagement and invite play. When done well, they do stick in my memory far more than a meet-and-greet or another round of drinks. With connection in high demand, ‘play’ is fast becoming a more powerful strategy than passive participation.

My deep dive when it comes to brands and play began with research, but also with recalling the moments when a brand really “played” well.

Nike and Pigalle’s basketball court takeover, which painted Instagram feeds and drew photo-chasers to Paris, is still unforgettable. In fact, the Pigalle Duperré basketball court is still there and actively maintained, receiving a new design or restyling every few years by Ill-Studio, Nike, and Pigalle.

Then there’s the simple joy of claw machines at events – they just work, every time. Recently, one featured a Hermès Birkin bag during New York Fashion Week. The twist? The claw was unwinnable. Conceived by Uncommon Studio and titled Pain (nice one!), it was a metaphor for hustle culture and luxury’s unattainable nature – a playful PR stunt that turned sticky for the game itself.

And of course, everything Jacquemus touches, with his mischievous brand gestures, continues to set the tone & the trends for playful brands.

Beyond fashion, there’s Red Bull’s adrenaline-fuelled activations and brands stepping into the gaming arena – though for this piece, I’ve focused on what we often call “brand activations.”

So, how do brands really play – and why should we care?
Research and real-world numbers converge: when people are actively involved in playful, immersive experiences, they remember them more deeply.

• Experiential marketing builds memory structures that support brand recall, purchase, and relationship. (Source: Measuring The Return of Experiential marketing)

• The more immersive and emotionally rich the activation, the stronger the memory imprint. (Source: Revisiting experiential marketing: a Delphi study)

• In practice: 72 % of consumers say they feel more positive toward brands with meaningful event experiences; 74 % say it makes them more likely to buy. (Source: Event track Report)

• In the “What do 9,000 brand lift studies teach us about attention and memory?” research, attention was shown to be a strong predictor of brand outcomes – implying that experiences that command attention (i.e. playful, immersive activations) can drive awareness, consideration, preference and intent. (Source: Havas Study)

Play is more than play – it can be strategic.

And from my research, four clear categories of brand play start to emerge…

• Toys – tangible prompts, often small objects, designed to be touched, tested, collected or carried away. From branded card decks to limited-edition trinkets, toys invite physical interaction and extend the memory of the experience beyond the moment.

• Games – structured activities with rules, challenges and outcomes. Think table games, chess set-ups, or competitive tasks. Games give people a clear way in, tapping into our natural drive to compete, collaborate and win.

• Interactions – open-ended, DIY-style moments where the visitor becomes the maker. From customising an object to building something together, these activities turn passive audiences into active co-creators.

• Playgrounds – the larger arenas, built environments or installations that immerse people. These are the stages where a brand sets the tone, creating a shared context for exploration, connection and play.

Each acts as a prompt – an invitation to join in rather than just observe. They turn “networking” (who likes it anyways!) into something more meaningful: connection through fun. And at the same time, they become the bridge between brand and audience, transforming engagement into memory.

I keep noticing how often brands show their most playful side at festivals – and the lovelier the experience, the better the image I carry of that organisation afterwards. Playful brands seem to breathe a healthier, more positive culture from within. When a brand allows itself to step outside the box and do things for real, it becomes more than a message – it feels like a genuine way of speaking about who they are.

Gamification in practice: the rise of branded advent calendar

Every fall, there’s a noticeable influx of branded advent calendars. Not just the classic one-chocolate-a-day variety, but calendars filled with beer, socks, beauty products – even sex toys. What started as a seasonal tradition has become a widespread marketing format: a daily prompt that mixes surprise, nostalgia and brand touchpoints.

And it works. At Playground, our team received a stationery advent calendar from Pen Store last year – it became a daily ritual that initiated conversation and connection.

That’s the power of tapping into known ‘games’ and gamification: taking something familiar and infusing it with brand . Advent calendars, in their new branded form, have quietly become one of the most successful examples of everyday “playgrounds.”

Play of thought

So, how do you truly engage your audience? What’s the one step further - the ‘playful’ side of your business? How can you organically and playfully invite your audience to play?

For us, this is only the beginning. As myself and the team dig deeper, “play” keeps unfolding into an endless list of opportunities and strategies. We’ll keep writing about it, exploring how brands experiment, connect and create through play.

Play Experiment Update

I’m now more than 25% into the play experiment! I first wrote about it when launching the Rebranding Play series – and since then, I haven’t skipped a single day or regretted joining the fun. From writing silly short stories, making moodboards, and playing UNO with my partner, to a longer “play-date” in the library, each session has been so-much-fun. It’s not always easy to think what to play with, so I am in the works setting myself a ‘play box’ and a playground full of ‘prompts’.

These 30 minutes a day, spent on something playful and unproductive in the best sense, have been incredibly rewarding. I feel calmer at work, more focused in my strategic tasks, and overall more energised. I’d almost go as far as saying this already feels life changing….

Three of my studio playground co-workers are doing the experiment alongside me. And since I was the one who sparked the idea, I feel I can’t collapse — even when I caught a cold, I kept going. I know some of you also raised your hands to join in: how’s it going for you?

A few insights after 25 consecutive days of play:

– Play is a getaway, almost a small rebellion against the day

– It’s hard to start playing, but fun to continue — like many things in life

– Play is always an invitation to something unexpected, creative, new.

I’ve been keeping a careful archive and daily notes, and plan to share a mid-way reflection at day 45 – with maybe a bigger piece to come in the next year... who knows what gets out of it!

Housekeeping

• If you like what we do, the biggest support is picking up our print magazine or merch – it keeps the playground alive.

• If you like how we think and you’re a brand, consider working with us. We’ve just launched a new site with fresh cases at studioplayground.cc!

• A small gesture goes a long way. If you liked what you read, share it with a friend, subscribe to our newsletter, drop us a reply, join the comments – or simply give it a like. Every feedback keeps us moving.

Thank you for reading,

Auste & Playground team

The conversation that followed – with brilliant people from companies like Lego and IKEA – was really great, but too short. Ever since, I’ve had the urge to explore this thought further. Which lead us to today.

The need for a “rebrand of play” came to me after noticing two recurring patterns.

On the one hand, play is often seen as fluffy, childish, circus-like – colourful shapes, toys, games, silliness. During that very panel, three people burst in dressed in fluffy bird costumes. It was funny (I love a good costume), but it also perfectly illustrated this cliché: as if “more play” automatically means dressing up or being brought back to childhood.

On the other hand, play has become a buzzword. It pops up in trend reports and media articles, often framed as a lifestyle tip – “add more play for escapism” – or a brand activation idea. Playfulness is usually described as light-hearted fun. Which is fine, but, I usually feel, it still reads surface-level: they sound fun, but also vague, distant, and hard to action.

Meanwhile, in our own editorial meetings last week for Playground magazine, we kept reminding ourselves: play is more than childhood relived. For us, play is also a process, a method, a way of being.

With all this brewing, I’ve decided to dive in. To spend time unpacking what play really means – and maybe help redefine it for others too, whether you’re an individual, a group, a business or a brand.

So welcome to Rebranding Play – a limited series that will be split in two parts.

1 – Theoretical. Deep dives that look at play through different lenses: how it works in events, retail, creative processes, strategy, daily experimentation. We might review cultural happenings that claim to be playful. Think of it as essays of play.

2 – Practical. The big one. Starting today, September 1st, I – together with Emilija, our creative producer, and Ieva, our freelance video editor – begin a 90-day play experiment. Every day, for 90 days, we commit to 30 minutes of play.

No daily goal, nor outcome – except for keeping an archive of what happens. Just time carved out for whatever feels like play. You’ll hear from us along the way and again at the end!

Why this felt right to do it now? I couldn’t help but wonder…

Remember when your parents told you to “go play outside with the ball”? Then later that same ball turned into tennis practice, or basketball training, or a medal to win. That’s when play usually slips into something else – a hobby, a sport, a commitment. And once it’s regular, serious, structured… the play starts to fade.

The more I thought about it, the more I realised: so many things are play, but we stop allowing them to be. Our culture pushes us to turn play into progress – to get better, get consistent, perform. But when the few things that once brought joy get absorbed into a to-do list, the play of it all is gone.

In my world, play is experimentation, not a bright colour palette. It’s a card you can pull that says: explore, mess around, see what happens.

I’ll be honest – I’m nervous. As we kick this off, I’m heading into a three-day client workshop. Calendar screams no, but my gut feeling screams a louder yes! And if I’ve learnt one thing, is that there’s never a “right” time. The urge to play is louder than to do’s on the calendar.

So this series will be both: theory and practice. Digging into play as an idea, while actually making space for it in daily life. Because what is theory without practice?

If you’re curious to join our experiment, leave a comment and I’ll share our “playground rules.”

Let’s see where play takes us,

Auste & the Playground team