Interview With Josh Rubin : The Cool Hunter

Q. Tell us about your business(es)?

JR. We are a creative consultancy offering design strategy, brand articulation and trend research for tech based products and services. We also publish web sites focused on of-the-moment creativity. The main site, Coolhunting.com, is a daily update for influencers looking to find new stuff from art to gadgets to sneakers. Two new sites will be launching this Summer, so stay tuned.

Q. How did you get here? What’s the history of Coolhunting.com?

JR. I started the site over 2 years because I wanted a database of all the things I found exciting and relevant to my dual life as a product designer and turbo consumer. About 6 months ago I began inviting writers to contribute to the site as a way to generate more content. Traffic has grown by word of mouth and Googlability and the site has recently arrived at a place of commercial viability. We’re following a straight forward advertising based business model, but we’re pushing and guiding advertisers to create custom campaigns that are more meaningful for our audience.

Q. Would you provide some insight into how you go about spotting the trends you advise your clients about?

JR. We use various methodologies, both passive and active. On the passive side we have over 130,000 monthly readers of Coolhunting.com who often write in to show stuff they’ve found. On the active side we’re perpetually researching on-line and scanning the real world, for specific projects we’ll conduct surveys, interviews and immersion
studies.

Q. How does the pubilishing business support the consultancy and vice-versa?

JR. The publishing business serves as indirect marketing of the consulting service and also gives us an audience for research participation. Tangents off of the consulting work sometimes result in new content for the publications.

Q. What tip(s) would you give a brand/marketing manager to help them become more aware of consumer/cultural trends in their day to day worklife?

JR. Get up from the desk, go outside and walk the streets. If you’re not in an urban environment, move to one. Travel often to get perspective. Learn how to search, sort and filter the blogosphere.

Q. What 3 trends that are important for brands to consider today?

1. Back to the cobbler: The evolution of limited edition is customization– consumers are increasingly interested in creative expression but need some guidance on how to do it.

2. Sustainable development: Productize your by-product– reuse of ‘waste’ materials is just as important in the digital space as it is in farming or building.

3. Luxury freeload: We’re figuring out how to live large on a small dime.

Josh Rubin Inc +1.866.478.8795 inquire@joshrubin.com