Icons in the Making

When it comes to golf, country club memberships and strict dress codes are par for the course. But Topgolf is on a mission to change that. ​​As Chief Brand Officer, Geoff Cottrill is pushing the boundaries of marketing innovation and cultural strategy to make golf more accessible—and fun.​ In this episode, Geoff shares how Topgolf is reinventing the sport as well as lessons from his storied career at Converse, Coca-Cola and Starbucks.

Fortune favors the bold—especially when it comes to brands willing to take risks, embrace challenges and lean into culture. Take it from Michelle Poole; as the President of Crocs, she's led the polarizing brand to icon status with record-breaking sales in 2023, global expansion, and a spot on Time's 100 Most Influential Companies list. In this episode, we sit down with Michelle to talk her three decades of experience in brand building for global fashion and lifestyle companies, how she embraced the love-hate for Crocs to supercharge growth, and her approach to building teams that deliver in challenging times.

Michelle Peluso likes a challenge. Throughout her cross-industry career, she’s steered some of the world’s best brands in banking, fashion and travel through successful digital transformations. Now, she’s taking on healthcare at CVS Health where she’s revolutionizing the end-to-end patient experience across all of the company's care delivery and customer service channels. In this episode, Michelle shares what most companies get wrong about customer-centricity, what she’s learned throughout her cross-industry career, how she stays on the cutting edge of technology and the core principles she lives by.

When SXSW, arguably the world’s most iconic conference, expanded from North America for the first time with a new event in Sydney, it was the perfect opportunity to explore future trends and fundamental truths with the CMOs of the biggest brands in Australia. In this panel discussion, live from SXSW Sydney, we sit down with Zach Kitschke from Canva, Jo Boundy from Commonwealth, and Brent Smart from Telstra for a no-holds-barred conversation on what it takes to build an iconic brand.

Fernando Machado has never been one for resting on his laurels. From brand guru at Unilever, to global CMO at Burger King, to CMO at Activision Blizzard, Fernando’s career has been built on the desire to never stop learning. Now, this brand genius is taking on his boldest role yet as CMO of NotCo, a Chilean-based startup that uses AI power technology to develop plant-based foods. In this episode, Fernando pulls back the curtain on his most celebrated creative campaigns, and shares why AI isn’t a threat, why more marketers should be the CEO and the importance of staying present.

Barbie’s journey from iconic toy to cultural phenomenon has been a master class in marketing. But this branding triumph started well before there was Barbiecore and Kenergy—in fact, it has been a decade in the making. At the center is Lisa McKnight, Chief Brand Officer of Mattel and a 25-year veteran of the brand. In this episode, Lisa shares the genesis of Barbie’s transformation, how the movie came to be and how Barbie stays top of mind with 165 partnerships and counting.

With a career that has spanned 35 years, travel to over 54 countries and iconic projects such as Starbucks, Delta and PBS, Global Creative Director Connie Birdsall has left an indelible mark on the design industry. As a leader, she built Lippincott's design practice to be what is it today: a powerhouse of creativity that touches all facets of brand expression, from digital and social media to video and voice. In this live-recorded conversation on the eve of her retirement, Connie reflects on what has and hasn’t changed in the industry and her lessons for the next generation of designers.

How do you transform an 87-year-old financial institution into a modern brand? Through grit and vision—both which come to life in Morgan Stanley’s new, buzz-worthy campaign. At the helm of this evolution is Alice Milligan, Chief Marketing Officer of Morgan Stanley. Not just a believer in the vision, she embodies it: she’s paved her own path from a young age, putting herself through undergraduate and graduate school while working a full-time job. In this powerful conversation, Alice shares how she’s challenging what it means to be a modern bank while staying authentic to the brand, how she engages employees to be the brand’s best advocates, why you should own what makes you different, and more.

For most brands, culture-defining moments can be hard to come by. For iconic brands like Airbnb, it’s in their DNA. And as its VP of Marketing, Nancy King has been instrumental in helping the brand achieve that status, disrupting the face of tourism as we know it and with initiatives like the “Made Possible by Hosts” campaign. In this episode, Nancy shares the importance of integrating marketing and product within an organization, why brand purpose is more than a business opportunity, what she sees for the future of Airbnb, and more.

There are more brands across more categories than ever before, and a seemingly unlimited supply of reviews, recommendations, likes, aggregators, and now chatbots to help us choose. In a world of endless options, why be loyal when there’s so much to explore? In this panel discussion live from SXSW, Heather Stern unpacks this and more, alongside Ari Levin, Vice President of Strategy and Partnerships at Hyatt Hotels, Jonathan Clarkson, Vice President and Head of Marketing at Southwest Airlines, and Georgie Jeffreys, Director of Marketing for Uber Eats North America.

Joanna Peña-Bickley knows what it takes to create a magical brand experience. As both the former global Chief Creative Officer of IBM and the Head of Research and Design for Alexa devices at Amazon, she has imagined and launched some of the world's most transformative inventions used by millions of customers every day. Now, as Director of Product Design at Uber Eats, she's reimagining what mobility means for the brand and for the world. In this powerful conversation, Joanna discusses how she approaches design management with a human-centered mentality, the importance of re-skilling our workforce, why Earth's problems and business problems are inherently linked, and why creating magic and making mistakes come with the territory. ​

A seasoned marketer with over 20 years of experience, Roxy Young has perfected the art of using the power of brand to inspire connection. Now, as Reddit's Chief Marketing Officer, she has the unique role of doing just that for over 100,000 communities across the platform. In this episode, Roxy shares how Reddit's brand attributes come to life in the experience; the strategy behind going all-in on a winning Super Bowl ad and how brands can benefit by engaging with Reddit users authentically.

Known for its vintage clothing, streetwear and fresh cohort of online influencers, Depop, the peer-to-peer social marketplace, is the epitome of cool. So, it’s only fitting that its Chief Brand Officer, Peter Semple, would be too. In this episode, the self-acknowledged sneakerhead and passionate brand builder shares how he's leading Depop's global efforts to drive cultural influence at scale. You’ll hear how he and his team maintain an always-on dialogue with the brand's Gen Z consumers and why secondhand fashion is becoming the most credible and viable choice for shopping new.

What it's like to work for the crown jewel of the streaming world? For Fonz Morris, Netflix's Lead Product Designer, Global Conversion, it's the confluence of everything he's passionate about: Design. Engineering. Finding out what makes customers tick (and click). In this episode, we sit down with Fonz to discuss his career, the Netflix culture and approach to streaming competition, harnessing the power of your own voice, and more.

How did Domino's transform itself from a pizza place to a digital disruptor? In this episode, we sit down with the woman instrumental in the brand's pursuit of the unexpected: Kate Trumbull, SVP of Brand and Product Innovation at Domino's. From benchmarking outside of their category, to infusing innovation in everything that they do, to their selective approach to partnerships, Kate shares the brand's recipe for success.

Even before Kenny Mitchell became Snap Inc.’s first-ever chief marketing officer, he had a deep understanding of the platform and the value it delivers. In this fun and unfiltered conversation, Kenny shares how Snapchat is leveraging AR to enhance community engagement; the unique way brands are using the platform to tell their stories; lessons learned from his dynamic career at powerhouses such as McDonald’s, Gatorade, NASCAR; and more.

In the travel industry, a connected customer experience is the holy grail. No one knows this better than Molly Battin, Delta’s former SVP of Global Brand Marketing. In this episode, Molly shares how connection is infused in everything the brand does—from customer personalization to department structure, how the airline built back stronger than ever post-COVID, and why a winning brand experience starts with the employee.

Aude Gandon is a true global marketer. As Nestlé’s first-ever Global Chief Marketing Officer, she oversees the company’s vast portfolio of 2,000 brands across 186 countries. In this episode, Aude shares why marketing and digital teams must work together, how she led the charge on the company’s 2050 sustainability roadmap, the importance of brand fundamentals, and how she’s using her platform to build a more equitable future.

Despite its 100-year legacy, Gucci has managed to stay iconic while constantly evolving. At the helm is Robert Triefus, who has been instrumental in the brand’s exploration of the digital landscape. As the newly appointed CEO of Gucci Vault and Metaverse Ventures, Robert discusses Gucci’s brand strategy for empowering self-expression, the yin and yang of business and creativity, and more.

In the saturated world of cannabis brands, Houseplant is in a league of its own. Co-founded by Seth Rogen, this cannabis and lifestyle company has set a new bar by offering design-minded products delivered through an elevated customer experience. In this frank and fun conversation, Chief Consumer Officer Melissa Greenberg talks about Houseplant’s core customer (from the curious to the connoisseur), its commitment to social impact, and why it’s unlike any other celebrity-backed brand out there.