A Look Back at 2025 and What’s Coming Next

As we head into Christmas, it feels like a good time to look back over the year and take stock of what actually changed in the creative world. Not the big headline stuff, but the things that genuinely made a difference to how we work, how clients behave and what brands now expect.

2025 didn’t feel noisy, but it did feel like a reset. Quiet shifts, slow realisations and a few surprises that ended up pointing towards a very different kind of year ahead.

Here’s what stood out for me.

Affinity becoming free is bigger than people think

The conversation that kept coming up in the studio this year was the rise of the Affinity Suite. Canva put the money behind them and suddenly the software feels like a genuine competitor to Adobe. It’s fast, responsive and, for branding work, actually very good.

The real game changer is that it’s now free. Young creatives finally have a way into the industry without needing to spend fortunes on software. That alone will have a long-term impact. It also keeps Adobe on its toes. It pushes innovation. And for us as a studio, we’re starting to use it more and more because it’s simply quicker to work with.

Will it replace Adobe fully? Not yet. I still rely on things like After Effects. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Canva eventually move into video and build something that competes properly. If that happens, the landscape will change again.

Human-first creative came back for a reason

Glossy, over-polished content has had its day. With AI everywhere, people are craving real faces, real moments and real texture. We’ve all seen content this year that looks slick but feels empty. It just doesn’t land.

The work that felt human did better. It stuck. It connected. And it reminded everyone that not everything needs to be perfect. I’ve heard people saying they want to go back to the 90s. I get it. The imperfections feel honest.

This isn’t about rejecting technology. It’s about remembering why creativity matters in the first place.

AI stopped being the headline and became a tool

Last year, AI was the big talking point. This year, it settled into everyday use. It helps with workflows, saves time and can fill gaps when you’re up against a deadline. I used it the other day to animate a bit of artwork for a quick social post. It wasn’t worth spending hours on. AI made it possible.

The key thing is transparency. Use it when it helps, and say when you’ve used it. There’s nothing to hide. It’s no different to Photoshop adding a sky replacement tool years ago.

Where it becomes dangerous is in misinformation. Fake news, deepfakes, made-up content. Older generations especially can’t always tell the difference. For that reason alone, I think regulation will come. Labelling, watermarking, something official. And that’s not a bad thing.

Clients changed how they want to work with studios

Two things stood out this year.

First, more clients this year have been looking for a quicker, more direct way of working. They want conversations with the people actually creating the work, and that happens to suit our model really well.

Second, clients want more strategy. They want ideas rooted in something real. They want to understand what their audience cares about, and they want the creative to be shaped around that. This year, we’ve seen a much stronger appetite for deeper thinking alongside the visuals.

Creative inflation is real

With AI tools and free software everywhere, the market is noisier than ever. Anyone can open Affinity or Photoshop and start giving it a go, which isn’t a bad thing in itself. Everyone needs an entry point. I was self-taught too.

The challenge comes when people oversell where they’re at. It happens more now because the tools look impressive, which can make it harder for clients to know who to trust. We’ve seen situations where a business has gone down the cheaper route first, the work hasn’t landed, and by the time they reach a proper studio they’ve already lost time and budget. It’s no one’s fault as such, but it does highlight why trust and credibility matter.

This is exactly why brand identity and strategy are so important today. When everything around you is getting louder, a strong, consistent brand becomes a stabiliser. It helps you stand out for the right reasons. It shows people you’re genuine. And it gives you the depth you need to cut through all the surface level noise.

AI native brands will appear, but most won’t last long

We’re already seeing tools that can build dashboards, websites and basic brands in minutes. It’s impressive. But the danger is obvious. Speed doesn’t equal quality. Instant doesn’t equal understanding.

I think we’ll see a rise in AI-built businesses, but most won’t hang around for long. A lot of them will be built quickly, tested quickly and dropped just as quickly. It’s an easy come, easy go approach. More of a “throw s*** at a wall” mentality to see what lands. You’ll get a few success stories that make the news, but most won’t have the foundations to grow into anything meaningful.

It’s an interesting space to watch, but it isn’t really where our focus is. We’re built around people, ideas and long-term thinking. Creativity still matters. Understanding still matters. And if I’m honest, the idea of AI agencies working for AI businesses just doesn’t do much for me.

Supply chain storytelling is becoming more important than sustainability slogans

Audiences don’t care about broad, vague statements anymore. “We planted a tree.” “We offset our carbon.” It doesn’t mean anything if it isn’t backed up.

What people want now is provenance. Real roots. Real processes. Where things come from. How they’re made. Why they matter.

People want to buy from brands that come from a good place and act on good intentions. They don’t want to read pages of proof, they just want to trust it. Trust comes from consistency and behaviour, not gestures.

This shift is only going to grow.

Foundations need constant maintenance

A strong brand isn’t something you set up once and forget. The world changes too fast. More platforms. More formats. More pressure to adapt. Even good brands from a couple of years ago can start to crack under the weight of it.

We’re seeing more businesses realise their identity needs to work harder. Sometimes it’s a quick tune-up. Sometimes it’s a deeper reset. But either way, the foundations need looking after.

A strong identity has become almost like a badge of authenticity. It reassures people before they buy. And in a world full of uncertainty, that reassurance goes a long way.

Challenger thinking is spreading

I don’t know if all big brands will suddenly act like challengers next year. But the smart ones will challenge themselves internally. It keeps them sharp. It pushes innovation. And when bigger brands push harder, it forces the smaller challenger brands to push even further.

Challenger behaviour, to me, is about refusing to settle. It’s about pushing for better ways to do things. It’s about questioning the rules. It’s more human, more ambitious and more honest.

People want change. They want meaning. They want to feel like the world isn’t just stuck going downhill. Brands are one of the ways people try to make that impact, and that’s why this mindset is growing.

Where this leaves 2026

If 2025 was a year of resets, 2026 feels like a year of movement.

More challenger thinking.

More strategy.

More provenance.

More transparency.

More honesty.

Better tools.

Stronger foundations.

And a lot more emphasis on human-first work.

It’s been an interesting year with plenty to take away from it. I’m looking forward to seeing how these shifts play out and how we evolve alongside them.

Have a great Christmas and New Year. 🎄✨🎅🏻