Canvas8 reports are available to Canvas8 subscribers. What follows is an adaptation of the research; the full report can be accessed via the View Report link.
Abstract
The club opens on Saturday night. By Sunday afternoon, someone is passing around electrolyte sachets, a friend checks that everyone has eaten, and plenty of people at the bar are ordering mate. Berlin's rave culture, now on Germany's UNESCO-backed inventory of intangible cultural heritage, is famous for marathon excess. The people keeping the dance floor full now treat a night out as something to train for and recover from, looking after their bodies and their friends so the night can go on longer.
The research draws on interviews with Cédric Meister (C3D-E), Berlin DJ and co-owner of techno label Acting Press, and Miglė Kazlauskaitė, founder of Berlin jewelry brand MIGLĖ.
The findings
"Raving necessitates endurance," says Meister. "People have become healthier in their daily routines but they're also taking better care of each other – reminding each other to hydrate, eat food, and take breaks." A recovery market has grown around that. London's Happy Tuesdays sells post-rave wellness packs, and German brand Suppleminds makes a water-soluble mix of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. In Berlin, Hangover Refresh offers IV drips, from the €99 "Long Night" to the €149 "Sports Cannon." Even the bar is shifting: Club-Mate's success has spawned alternatives like Mio Mio and Sober Energy, sold as "unf*cked bio energy."
This is part of a wider movement. Gen Z Europeans spend 67% less on alcohol than their parents' generation, and global sales of non-alcoholic beer have risen 29.2%. "All risky practices are going down," says Amy Pennay of La Trobe University's Centre for Alcohol Policy Research. "Young people are more risk-averse in general."
Berlin gym chain John Reed runs live DJ sets twice a week, with the line "welcome to the first club where you come out fitter than when you went in." In London, Sauna Social Club pairs saunas and cold plunges with DJs and an alcohol-free bar. One in three health professionals name electronic dance music as the genre most beneficial to mental health.
Clubs and festivals can hit 120 decibels, and prolonged exposure above 70 can cause permanent hearing loss. Meister estimates that "less than 50% of clubgoers wear hearing protection," and design is starting to change that by turning earplugs into an accessory. Loop's €54.95 Switch earplugs look like jewelry and switch between "quiet," "engage" and "experience" modes. Happy Ears went further, teaming up with MIGLĖ on a line of earplug jewelry. "Promoting healthcare means promoting self-care, which naturally extends into seeking (and building) safe and supporting clubbing environments," says Kazlauskaitė.
What this means for brands
- Build for stamina: ravers want to last longer and feel better the next day.
- Earn it on the dance floor: "Ravers know what their bodies need and are creating their own recovery solutions," says Meister. Some of the most convincing products come from inside the scene, like Happy Ears' earplug jewelry with MIGLĖ, so work with the DJs, labels and designers already in it.
- Look after the group: care on the dance floor is collective, with friends checking on friends. Products that make looking after the group easier, from recovery packs to hearing protection, fit how ravers already behave.
- Bring the club into the workout: John Reed's DJ sets and Sauna Social Club's alcohol-free bar make exercise feel social, the way a night out does.
Canvas8 is a behavioural insights agency whose reports are used by brands and agencies worldwide. This page highlights key findings from the report; the full version is available to Canvas8 members.
Alice Sweitzer
