In the midst of everyone trying to focus on trend forecasting and figuring out what new campaigns are drawing each other’s attention, there has been a pull away from celebrity marketing alone.

What stands out to me most is how a brand can keep its audience. I feel like, as a generation—especially as a 23-year-old Gen Z consumer—I personally love going to the mall. I like to test out products and do what I call “product research.” Whether I’m walking into a store that isn’t just a high-end luxury market, I pay attention to the packaging, the details, and the instructions at Sephora, as well as the presentation when you first walk into a Uniqlo, Zara, or even Aritzia.

There are just certain things that, as a brander, you notice. Especially now, with more people unintentionally becoming interested in branding, whether it’s buying a new T-shirt and seeing how it’s boxed or watching your favorite creator receive a PR package.

I personally love seeing PR packages done right and done with intention—not only through beautiful labeling, packaging, details, and storytelling, but also through the people that brands choose to work with. I especially love when brands are intentional about the people they select. This is even more important now, with people wanting to be more conscious about where they’re buying from and what brands they’re supporting.

I want to make it clear that this is in no way meant to slander or shame brands. A lot of these are brands that I use, like, and respect. However, I also want to give people an analytical side of me that I haven’t really explored yet on this platform.

That is where the matrix comes in.

I personally love matrices. I think they’re a beautiful graphic way to explain how things are done. Of course, I’ll be having conversations in the future about each of these matrices, what I think about them, and how they relate to certain brands.

But, as far as this introduction goes, I want to start with the everyday brands.

Surprise—it’s not just the luxury ones.

We’re talking about your Zaras, your e.l.f.s, your Sephora Collections, and other everyday brands because, for every luxury brand, there is an everyday brand standing right beside it.

I want to take away the immediate thoughts people may have about a brand’s controversies, reputation, or whether it meets every possible criterion. Instead, I want to look at how the brand communicates, what it’s selling, who its audience is, and how it positions itself—not just through price evaluation.

I also want to look at brands on a scale, from in-person experiences to virtual experiences, and examine what we can learn from the data and positioning we see today to potentially understand where these brands could be in the next 10 years.

Maybe, hopefully, these brands will still be around. But, as we very well know, brands can disappear over the years. Just like restaurants, some become the “dinosaurs” that we eventually look back on in textbooks.

So, this is my short introduction to the Chic Matrix.