Business aesthetics

Aesthetics are growing in importance, or perhaps rather, the loss of aesthetic appreciation is waning. Even aesthetics of products that are mostly visual and not very functional, such as Philippe Starck's "Juicy Salif" lemon squeezer, shows that aesthetics themselves can sometimes be the point. The lemon squeezer is apparently poor at squeezing lemons and is primarily to be appreciated as a way to "start conversations". It sold well and lived up to its description.

Similarly, a business may have aesthetic appeal that is broader than the design or use of its products and relates to a larger impact it has on the world.

But there has to be strength of both artistry and finance. Dotcoms for example, did not have an enduring aesthetic. Their value came mostly from potential financial upside and much secondarily from their output. Once the upside disappeared much of the excitement disappeared with it. Older, stodgier, more established companies that worked on similar issues did not reap the temporary benefits of the dotcoms.

Industries that meld aesthetic appeal with financial upside include environmentally friendly technology (health, social and climate benefits / upside tied to high oil prices), pharmaceuticals (health and lifespan benefits / upside tied to waning regulatory regimes that protect drug patents), architecture and urban development (comfort of the local population / upside tied to real estate market). If the importance of the financial upside gets too extreme and is lost, these industries may also lose some of their aesthetic impact.