Lauren Valencia, Grindr
š Thoughts on Gossipās āReal Powerā album, Bratz, and cutting out the BS.
Lauren Valencia is a multi-hyphenate marketer with expertise in all things social, influencer, and experiential. She is obsessed with pop culture and the unadulterated brain rot of the internet and has been lucky to bring that into her work spanning the tech, beauty, travel, and automotive industries. She truly thrives when sheās learning new things and loves to mix things up as a way to fuel her creativity.Ā
At Grindr, she gets to combine all of her experience to bring to life their 360 marketing campaigns, collaborating with tons of different functions and partners across disciplines. As a cis, straight woman, working at Grindr is a privilege for Lauren because she gets to create campaigns specifically serving the queer community with a brand that isnāt afraid to get sassy, down and dirty š.
Beyond work, Lauren is passionate about hosting dinner parties, exploring new restaurants (HELLO Leopardo!), and planning her next adventure to Japan, one of her favorite places in the world.
šÆ Current focus
We just launched the newest Grindr content series, Host or Travel, and spoiler alert, itās one of my favorite projects ever! The series follows queer travelers as they explore new cities and connect with locals through the app to get an insider's view of the city. It underscores a real-life app use case and is quite literally the antithesis of a TripAdvisor listāwe show how uncovering the cityās hidden gems and safe spaces for the queer community is just a chat away :). Our trips to Madrid, Rio and LA are now live and upcoming episodes can be found on Grindrās YouTube channel, airing each Thursday through the end of the summer.
We have a ton of fun at Grindr, but thereās also an important purpose aspect intrinsically linked to everything we do. We modified how our app functions in the Olympic Village specifically to protect users, while supporting their right to be who they are. Iām so proud to work at a company that thinks in this way and be an ally in a world where LGBTQ+ rights continue to be threatened.
š Answer the Call
I am incredibly energized by the momentum around Kamala Harris! The Gen-Z of it all, the Answer the Call movement, the coconut tree/brat/meme-ification of her campaign is everything we need right now. Many people are feeling a collective hope (myself included), and while the state of our country is still insane, itās clear that we need to band together for the good of our country.
š¶ Gossipās Real Power
Iām late to the party, but Gossipās newest album from earlier this year, Real Power, has been on repeat lately. Iāve been a fan for years and got to see them live at my very first Coachella in 2010. š„² They stopped making music for a decade plus and are making a comeback ā give it a listen!
šŖ Cutting out the B.S.
Cut the bullshit! Itās so SO easy to think of a million excuses about why we donāt want to do something, but when you cut the bullshit and focus on your goals, you can literally do anything! Iāve found that creating mini goals for myself makes things more achievable, plus you get that sweet dopamine hit when you complete what youāve set out to do. Win-win.Ā
ā½ļø Being sporty in San Diego
Iām a sporty spice, so Iām excited about heading down to San Diego to see ManU play next week. Truth be told, Iām a proud Arsenal girlie, but I couldnāt pass up a fun day trip with my girlfriends. Weāre taking the Amtrak train down so itāll be a cute adventure.
š New Balance re-defining the athlete endorsement landscape
New Balance is really doing things on so many levels. They have been killing the dad shoe style for years, and now are emerging as a true player in re-defining the athlete endorsement landscape. Coco Gauff, Shohei Ohtani, Bukayo Saka (go Gunners!) all possess a grit and determination to be at the top of their game while being doubted and facing intense challenges and scrutiny. Itāll be fun to see how they continue to evolve in this space, especially since the strategies of major players like Nike and Adidas have gotten a little stale.Ā
š¤© Canāt live withoutā¦Ā
I am obsessed with my HyperIce Hypervolt massage gun. I get neck and back pain pretty easily and realized that I could literally fix it just by using the gun. Miracles can happen! Itās amazing for muscle recovery and overall health and wellness.
My other honorable mention is the Megababe Thigh Rescue. Even though LA has a quote-unquote dry heat, those who know KNOW. This is a must-have item for me all summer long and you can get in a mini size to take on the go. Adorable AND convenient! The founder, Katie Sturino, is also an incredible body acceptance activist that I respect and admire.
š Bratz
It feels so funny to say, but the Bratz IG and TT absolutely slays. They do such a great job inserting their product into cultural conversations in real-time. This (likely) more planned post during Pride month was iconic, but referencing the āthis will ruin the world tourā controversy within 24 hours in a way that kept the brand and product at the forefront?! I am here for it!
š SSense
SSense also continues to impress with its truly unhinged Instagram presence with a healthy dose of fashion news and trend spotting. This post is a perfect example of why I canāt get enough.Ā
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