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LIX Bodega

@lixbodega

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The corner store for culture
Where the shelves are always changing

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It’s Mid Autumn Festival today 🌕🥮

But what’s actually behind one of China’s biggest traditional festivals? And why are the moon, mooncakes and family such a big part of it? Swipe & learn!

#midautumnfestival #midautumn #chinesemidautumnfestival #china by @lixbodega

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5 days ago

For me this is a very personal story. Writing it makes me feel very vulnerable and a bit emotional. But I want to share this, because I know there are a lot of third culture kids out there, and especially Chinese adoptees, who might recognise parts of themselves in this story. For years I felt alone in this, and I wish younger me had seen these kind of stories, to feel not so alone. Over time I see more people share similar stories, and I think that matters, the more we share, the more we realise we are not alone. This is not a scream for attention or whatsoever, this is my story, and I think it’s important to show your vulnerable side sometimes.

For a long time, being Chinese was something I tried to distance myself from. But today it’s something I’m incredibly proud of. I realise that the culture, my roots, and the characteristics my face carries are the greatest gifts my biological parents gave me. But it took me a very long time to get to this place.

Lately I’ve been watching the world grow more and more interested in the country and culture I once was very ashamed of. I see people who used to make fun of my identity now travelling to China and are obsessed. It gives me a strange feeling, but a good one too. I want people to see the beauty of China, I’m still discovering it myself. The only thing I hope is that China doesn’t become just another trend, something that’s cool now and forgotten in a few years. Because for me, China is where my roots are. That will never be a trend.

So it made me wonder: is China being maxxed, or is it finally being seen?

#chineseadoption #adoption by @lixbodega

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8 days ago

Every year around Mid Autumn Festival, luxury brands release their own take on mooncakes. Prada, Louis Vuitton, Vivienne Westwood, the list keeps growing.

But what are brands actually celebrating here, the culture or the commercial opportunity?

#mooncake #midautumn #luxurybrands #luxury #brands by @lixbodega

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8 days ago

Yayoi Kusama died last month at 97. Her hallucinations shaped one of the most recognisable styles in the world, but her legacy also includes racist writing she apologised for decades later, just before a major exhibition. #yayoi #yayoikusama #kusama #yayoikusamaexhibition taken in Tokyo, Japan by @lixbodega

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10 days ago

When brands try to stay connected to culture, authenticity can easily get lost with all the rules, approvals, and people involved. But sometimes, the coolest things happen when creators are given enough freedom to do what they do best.

We asked Mike van der Pouw, who used to lead Global Sponsorship Activation at Just Eat Takeaway.com, about a test project that put this idea to the test.

For the UEFA Super Cup, Mike and his team brought creators Oussi and Chatmo onto one of football’s biggest stages, with access UEFA had never given creators before. It took some convincing, but they finally agreed to try it out as a pilot. Just Eat gave them some loose rules, but let Oussi and Chatmo connect with their fans in the way they normally do.

The livestream wasn’t perfect, there were tech issues, Mike ended up filming parts, and the initial viewership wasn’t huge. But then, their fans started clipping, editing, and sharing the moments all over social media. What didn’t catch on at first eventually blew up because people kept sharing it.

Brands often want to tap into culture, but creators already have that. They know their audiences, speak their language, and get what works. The real value isn’t just in putting someone’s face in an ad, but in trusting the cultural knowledge they bring.

And that’s what’s really interesting: cultural relevance isn’t always about making something new. It’s about knowing who to give the platform to.

#uefa #uefachampionsleague #chatmo #oussifooty #justeattakeaway by @lixbodega

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16 days ago

This is a real one for the books: a mother in her 60s and her son spent five years making an 86-minute animated movie about animals. The budget? Apparently just $200.

Niu Lai somehow made it into Chinese cinemas, but almost nobody went to see it. It reportedly made only around $1,000 in its first week. The film was made without AI and had almost no marketing budget. Cinema staff across China even started hand-painting their own Niu Lai posters.
Then the internet discovered it.

People started sharing clips because the animation looked so bizarre, they had to see it for themselves. What started with people laughing at the movie turned into memes, packed screenings and people eventually falling in love with it.

Now, Niu Lai has reportedly made millions at the box office.

#niulai #niulaimovie #chinesemovie #china by @lixbodega

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17 days ago

I glued my very first rhinestone onto something before I even knew the word “aesthetic.” Probably a phone case or maybe a diary. Didn’t really matter what it was, if it had a flat surface, I’d probably stick a stone on it.

Like most things you love as a kid, it quietly stopped being cool. The gems went back in the drawer. Years later, they’re back in style.

The internet has come up with new words for it, like “whimsymaxxing” or “gem-maxxing.” Or just bedazzling, if you’re like me and remember doing this before everyone started adding “-maxxing” to everything.

That’s what I find interesting. Not that bedazzling is making a comeback, trends always do, but it seems like it needed a new name to feel fresh again.

Kylie Jenner adds some sparkle to a birthday cake, and suddenly, what I did as a kid is a cultural thing with a hashtag. Maybe it says more about how we consume trends now than about rhinestones themselves.

Something comes back, everyone gets into it again, and by the time you finish gemming up your own birthday cake, the internet’s already moved on to something new.

Seeing it everywhere makes me want to grab my gems again. Maybe that’s just nostalgia, or maybe I’ve been influenced by my own feed.

#bedazzle #whimsymaxxing #gemmaxxing #maxxing #kyliejenner

Picture: @kyliejenner @khrykinas @v.gribanova by @lixbodega

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20 days ago

I scrolled past @giverachelashot once and had to scroll back. Leopard print skirt, high heels, walking through the streets of Lagos like they were her runway.

She was recreating a Chanel runway show, but on her own terms. Instead of an elaborate set and a fashion house budget, Rachel took to the streets of Lagos, wearing pieces sourced from local markets and created together with designer and stylist @flygirl____debby

So naturally, I kept scrolling. Purple capris with fringed leather boots. Y2K pink hair. High volume silhouettes. Together, Rachel and Debby mix custom pieces with thrifted and locally sourced finds to create looks that are hard to scroll past.

The more I watched, the more I realised the clothes were only part of it. It was the people passing by, the traffic, the buildings. Streets that were never designed to be a fashion set, but somehow become one anyway. There’s an energy and roughness to it that no studio could ever manufacture.

And maybe that’s what I like most about it. Fashion can make creativity feel expensive. Like every great image needs a budget behind it, a big name or the right location before anyone looks twice. Rachel and Debby make you question that.

What they have is a point of view and an eye for what’s already around them. No perfect set, no fashion capital, just their own version of fashion, created right on the streets of Lagos.

#africanfashion #africa #nigeria #fashion #fypage

Model: @giverachelashot
Styled by: @flygirl____debby
Photographer @sr_odey taken in Lagos, Nigeria by @lixbodega

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21 days ago

I once tried explaining my job at a dinner party, and all I could say was, “I connect people and make stuff happen.”

That’s @lixprojects , six years of building relationships, creating things, and connecting culture and knowledge. But somewhere along the way, I realised I’d developed a second habit.

Wanting to know who the new creative director of that fashion house is. Which restaurant everyone will be talking about next. Or catching some ridiculous TikTok trend just before my little cousin does.

It’s not exactly knowledge. More like a constant curiosity about what’s happening in the world around us. That curiosity’s become a huge part of building my agency. Because how can you say you work in culture without actually knowing what’s happening in it?

For a while, I felt like I needed to write all this down and share it with more people, everything we notice, what we like, what’s worth paying attention to.

So I decided to give all of that a place: LIX Bodega. A story-driven online shop for everything on our radar.

The corner store for culture, where the shelves are always changing. by @lixbodega

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22 days ago