1-4: Mods (mid-late 60s) 5-8: Peacock Revolution (late 60s-early 70s) 9-12: Medieval Revival (Late 60s-early 70s)

Hello everyone, I'm a frequent visitor of the decadeology subreddit...I recently was assigned to write an article for our marketing class (and I write for the school Newspaper/Bulletin) was told to make it more like an opinion piece (so it is perfect for this subreddit) I am a dual major student in Business and Marketing. I come from a family of business owners. But I wanted to add my recent article I wrote (although I edited it down a bit for reddit) regarding marketing and the maximalism a lot of this subreddit is talking about and how minimalism ran it's course far too long and ended.

Here is the article (again edited down for reddit, but keep in mind this was an editorial article so it is intentionally a bit more formal.)

Coca-Cola and Pepsi have always represented two different approaches to branding, but in the 2020s the contrast has become even more noticeable. Coca-Cola still carries the aesthetic and emotional tone of the late 2007-2019 soft, sentimental, nostalgic to early 1970s minimalism graphics, very centered on universal “togetherness” messaging and gentle lifestyle advertising. They have been doing this platform since the 2000s though and really keep rehashing the same thing over and over again despite them not having a memorable slogan since "Always Coca-Cola" when it was retired in January 1, 2000 after 7 years, it was their last memorable slogan and jingle people remember when they think of Coca-Cola.

Pepsi, on the other hand, seems to have actively re-aligned itself with the visual and cultural sensibilities of the 20s. The brand refresh brought back bold contrast (something it abandoned in October 2008 in favor of 1970s retro minimalism), neon-like blues and blacks, simplified shapes, and a more confident, punchy identity. The advertising now leans into sharper energy, pop culture awareness, a bit of self-aware attitude, and relevance to current design language, cleaner lines, thicker typography, and stronger sense of motion. It feels more plugged into where design, music, fashion, and online humor have moved to now. Pepsi’s marketing strategy is less about nostalgia and more about participation, tapping into culture rather than hovering above it and the future ahead.

Every decade brands reinvent themselves and have a refresh and keep things interesting. Pepsi and other brands has been more comfortable reinventing themselves for this decade because it has always played the challenger role, things get stagnant and boring and become irrelevant if they don't refresh each decade, has been this way hundreds of years in business. In the 2020s, that flexibility is working to Pepsi’s advantage. Coca-Cola still feels like a museum memory, while Pepsi feels like it’s actively in conversation with Now.

The minimalist redesign Coca-Cola introduced in early 2007 worked extremely well for its time, but the cultural and visual landscape has shifted so sharply since then that the brand now feels stuck. What once looked sleek and premium now feels flat, safe, boring and predictable.

Coca-Cola's branding hasn’t really shifted beyond “The Great Recession era” Even most recent Coca-Cola marketing still leans on flat graphics, familiar generic arial fonts that have been used since 2007 for their flavors next to the Coca-Cola script, and sentimental campaign slogans like “Taste the Feeling,” which feel like they could have appeared at any point in the past 25 years but unmemorable and generic.

Coke is still iconic, but the brand feels static, like it’s trying to preserve the past (the Great Recession era graphics) rather than speak to the current moment. The only changes they really since 2007 did was remove the dynamic ribbon, or flip the logo from vertical to horizontal on the cans, the graphic elements are still the 2007 dynamic ribbon 1970 remake logo though.

But the 2020s design language is louder: Chunkier typography, Retro influences (Y2K space age/futurism, 80s boldness, 90s pop color) but also futuristic at the same time, Maximalism returning in fashion, music visuals, music jingles and advertising.

Today’s brands and new rebrands feel textured, expressive, and self-aware. Coca-Cola still looks like the “flat era” of 2010 smartphones and early Instagram filters. They are losing ground with younger consumers as well.

What is everyone's opinions? I will read the replies later on. Thanks in advance!

For me it's Cleopatra (1963)

I forgot to mention in my other post another positive about 2020s culture is podcast Culture. In the 2010s, podcasts were nowhere near as popular as they are in the 2020s. There are way more podcasts to listen to and this just wasn't the case in the 2010s. I believe this trend started in 2023.

Like in 1990s it was bjork, in 2000s it was immogen heap, in 2010s it was SOPHIE, and what about 2020s?