The online world is dominated by influencers and advertisements showing the perfect life. Drinking champagne all day, having the cutest boyfriend and looking flawless in every single picture. People are constantly confronted with the instafabulous life of heavy editing and phony filters and they’re a bit fed up. The picture-perfect life is unrealistic and boring. They want the real deal, unedited.

We all need a bit more wabi-sabi!
No, we are not talking about the condiment wasabi. Wabi-sabi … It’s a Japanese philosophy! Which stands for: “Finding beauty in imperfections.” It’s a worldview centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The concept is broad and can be applied to nearly every aspect of life.

The wabi-sabi life
As a reaction to the omnipresence of the artificial, picture-perfect life splashed across social media, you’ll see more and more people living a wabi-sabi lifestyle, and wabi-sabi products are popping up everywhere! Wabi-sabi furniture, which is likely to include imperfection as a major design feature. Wabi-sabi nails: a pair of beautifully mismatched nails. Instagram accounts displaying the wabi-sabi life. No instafakeness, no editing. The real deal.

Why brands should implement wabi-sabi
People like imperfections because we recognize them as real. They seem so close and personal. For a brand they can evoke associations of authenticity and humanity. With so many brands declaring that their product or service is the best, the cheapest, the most environmentally friendly, people just don’t trust brands anymore. Make them trust you again: embrace these perfect flaws! It will make your company come across as more trustworthy and endearing.

How to implement wabi-sabi
Go on a quest! Discover what makes your brand human, find your flaws and embrace them. Communicate in a transparent, human way and show that your brand cares about more than just profits. We’re human just like you, we’ve got flaws as well … And that’s just perfectly imperfect!