The CQ | 5.5+ Million Rings
Plus the Forerunner Team's Must-Reads of the Week
The CQ is Forerunner’s weekly newsletter rounding up the top consumer news, plus bonus musings from our investment team and portfolio highlights. Subscribe to get the latest each weekend.
Sometimes a number is worth 1,000 words.
This last week, Oura announced an update on their recent momentum, and the numbers do all the talking:
On track for $1 billion in revenue in 2025
2x’ed revenue for the second year in a row
5.5+ million rings sold
Millions of lives changed
This venture dreams worthy progress, all for a company whose complexity has also been its biggest opportunity: a mix of hardware, software subscription, wellness, fashion, scientific advancement, and health education.
It’s been an incredible run for this team since Eurie joined as Chairwoman on the Board nearly six years ago, when Oura was still an unknown Finnish series B startup. And based on Oura’s ambitions, they are truly still early in what they’re out to achieve.
What We’re Talking About This Week:
Credit scores drop at fastest pace since the Great Recession. The national average FICO credit score fell by 2 points in 2025, driven by rising delinquencies and the resumption of student loan payments. Delinquency rates on auto loans, credit cards, and personal loans are now at or near their highest levels since 2009, a trend FICO says resembles a recession more than an expanding economy:
Nearly 15% of Gen Zers have had a large credit score decline of 50 points or more in the past year—that’s more than any other year and double the decline of 2021.
The student loan delinquency rate hit 29% among the 21 million borrowers with a payment due, and 6.1 million consumers had a delinquency added to their credit file between February and April.
To get by, 64% of Gen Z and 61% of Millennials with student debt are relying on credit cards, buy-now-pay-later loans, or personal loans to cover basic expenses.
Rich Americans are bumming. Although their consumer sentiment is still technically in positive territory, the slowing labor market and anxiety about a “white-collar recession” have caused consumer sentiment among Americans earning $100,000 or more to drop by about 10 points in the past month, according to Morning Consult. Meanwhile, the sentiment among middle-income earners has dipped into negative territory, and those earning under $50,000 have seen steadily declining confidence since spring. The top 10% of earners were responsible for nearly half of all U.S. consumer spending in the three months ending in August, so their mood is crucial to overall economic stability. “Economists believe that the full impact of higher tariffs is going to start pinching more as we approach the end of the year. Pair that with the weak labor market… and ‘the most likely outcome is that you’re going to see the high-income consumer start to feel worse about their personal finances.’”
WSJ on why marriage is increasingly for the affluent: Marriage in the U.S. has shifted from a “cornerstone” model to a “capstone” model. In other words, financial stability is now seen as a prerequisite rather than a goal achieved after marriage. The median age at first marriage has increased to 30 for men and 29 for women, up from 28 and 26, respectively, in 2008. Between 2008 and 2023, the first-marriage rate among 22- to 45-year-olds declined 9%, falling to 60 marriages per 1,000 never-married individuals, with sharper declines among those without a college degree. The marriage rate gap is growing by income: 59% of 37-year-olds with parents in the top income quartile were married in 2019, compared to only 30% from the bottom quartile. While educated women continue to marry at stable rates, this leaves less-educated women with fewer economically viable partners, contributing to broader declines in marriage among lower-income Americans. “Marriage has become a status symbol. People don’t want to get married until they have an education, have that job that can support them, and they can afford a house, and they are also looking for a partner that ticks all those boxes.”
This is how Gen Z is ‘AI-proofing’ their careers. According to Glassdoor, 70% say AI has made them question their job security, and a national survey found 65% of Gen Z believe a college degree alone won’t protect them. Instead of panicking, this generation is making quiet, strategic career moves by switching to jobs that are less likely to be replaced by AI, like in healthcare and the trades. What’s more, 57% of Gen Z have side hustles (compared to 48% of millennials, 31% of Gen X, and 21% of boomers), but they’re turning to them for peace of mind in the face of uncertainty, not for status. “They aren’t waiting for institutions to tell them where things are headed—they’re reading the signals and moving. In some cases, that means choosing stability over prestige. In others, it means doubling down on side projects that create agency and identity beyond a single employer. And again, they’re doing it without much fanfare. The anxiety is real, but the response is practical.”
How do guys really feel about the state of masculinity in America? GQ polled 1,929 men to find out. These are just a few of the snippets they discovered:
58% are comfortable with traditional masculinity, while 36% believe men are worse off than they were five years ago.
Cultural attitudes appear to be shifting: 47% think men have more privileges and advantages than women (compared to 52% in 2019), and 85% believe men should take equal responsibility in raising children (up from 79% in 2019).
What men are worried about: money (61%), physical health (49%), mental health (39%), their job (33%), and providing for their families (33%).
In comparison to five years ago, 33% have less sex, 49% go to fewer parties, 34% drink less alcohol, and 32% spend less time with friends in person.
Gen Z is deep in ‘financial nihilism’: Why young people are betting big on stocks and crypto. Fast Company explains how this generation’s distrust in traditional financial systems and skepticism about the value of long-term saving or investing has grown into “financial nihilism.” Many in Gen Z believe the American Dream is a scam, and fear they’ll never achieve financial independence or own a house. This mindset has led many to turn to alternative investments. According to a U.S. Bank survey, Gen Zers are more likely than older generations to say they are curious about or plan to invest in cryptocurrencies over the next five years. Rather than relying on traditional investments like stocks and bonds, Gen Z is gravitating toward riskier assets like crypto, meme stocks, and sports betting. “In short, what we are seeing is a loss of faith in the real value of money and the function of the market.”
This Wall Street Journal poll reveals a huge gender gap on the economy. A 31-point gender gap emerged: Significantly more women than men said the economy is in bad shape, marking the widest gap since 2019. Women reported greater economic pessimism, with only 20% expecting the economy to improve in the next year and half believing it will worsen. They were also more likely to worry about affording groceries, vacations, cars, and retirement. Factors driving this pessimism include the persistent gender pay gap, caregiving burdens (about 20% of U.S. children live in single-mother households), and the effect of career interruptions, which leave many women earning less even later in their careers.
Portfolio Highlights
Time recognizes Prenuvo, Headspace, Oura, and Hims in its list of the 2025 World’s Top HealthTech Companies.
Cotopaxi CEO Lindsay Shumlas speaks to Fortune about how the brand stands out from the competition.
Axios reports that AmplifyMD raises $20 million in Series B funding.
Jihan Merlin, the head of immigration strategy at Alma, is quoted in The New York Times and Bloomberg Law about the new H-1B visa fees.
Teal Health CEO Kara Egan is featured in CNBC.
Pie is featured in TechCrunch as a startup helping people build community and connection
Job of the Week
Product Manager at Jump, the company revolutionizing live events with the only end-to-end fan engagement platform.
There are ~1900 other open roles at Forerunner portfolio companies, check ‘em out.