Post by Benoit Beaufils

I’m not an optimist. And yet, looking at today’s global turmoil, I feel surprisingly good about our 2028 outlook. Weird? That’s because I have a crystal ball — a murky one. Not a Nostradamus-style fantasy, but one built on the work of Helmut Gaus, who, back in 2001, analysed the cyclical nature of the 20th century. His thesis is simple and unsettling: history doesn’t just repeat itself — it oscillates. Roughly every 40 years, societies move through cycles of anxiety and hope that shape culture, politics, and behaviour. Personally, I find this deeply reassuring. What we feel today — distrust, tension, existential unease — mirrors what people felt in the 1940s, or at the height of the Cold War and the economic crises of the 1980s. And each time, something followed. The 1950s. The 1990s. Periods of renewed confidence, boldness, and empowerment. If the pattern holds — and my cloudy crystal ball suggests it might — the 2030s could mark another turn, with effects likely to be felt before the decade even begins. Professionally, this is where it gets interesting. Because even a murky crystal ball is useful. We can already glimpse some of the values likely to shape the next decade: self-affirmation, exploration, expression. The harder — and more meaningful — work is asking what this demands of businesses and brands. It’s not about predicting the future. It’s about being ready for a mindset change. The 2020s reward brands that soothe fear — by reviving the past and leaning on reassuring icons (hello Disney, hi Stranger Things). The 2030s will reward brands that dare to do the opposite: enable true individuality, exploration, and self-affirmation. Want to know more? Thaïs Gyurcsó and I are exploring this further at a LinkedIn event on February 3. #trends #2030 Innate Motion Severine Brichard-Rooney Konstantinos Delialis Nadine Cottet Karine Chik Amandine Morel Isabelle MARIA Gaelle LE GROUIEC

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