He goes, go get the umbrellas. Andrés stayed at the pan, cooking through the downpour while the crowd slowly circled back. Champagne came out, people laughed in the rain and a messy situation turned into a shared memory. That scene showed the group what the company does best.
Sarah's appointment as CMO represents Lands' End's evolution as the team continues to grow the brand and attract new and younger customers, underscoring a renewed commitment to brand-building, modern marketing leadership and long-term growth.
To be part of our Hall of Fame, a company must rank for at least 25 years consecutively. In the Hall of Fame, brands are listed in descending order based on the number of years they have been ranked - starting at the top, with the three companies that have ranked every year that the Franchise 500 has existed.
Cool Spot first appeared in 1987 to try to refresh the brand's image. The character was essentially an anthropomorphic version of the red dot in the 7Up logo. In commercials, the dot transformed into a tiny animated figure with sunglasses, sneakers, and a very cool 'tude. His chilled-out personality fit neatly into the brand's long-running "Uncola" positioning, which sought to frame 7Up as the cool and quirky alternative to traditional colas.
Product knowledge is the sum of everything an employee understands about the products and services they work with. At its core, it means knowing "what you're selling" inside and out. This includes product features, benefits, use cases, pricing, and how the product fits into customers' lives and the competitive landscape.
Gone are the days when marketers can think in five- or 10-year plans. These days, it's about tomorrow, not the next 16 months, because culture and what captures consumers' attention is changing faster than ever.
We are always surveying the space of where individuals are consuming or might be consuming beauty, or where there's an intersection between beauty and a sports brand. [We heard] that young women are fans of F1, and there's a growing female [audience]. The excitement around [Netflix's] 'Drive to Survive' and the F1 Academy content series and being at one of the races is continuing to uptick.
To put that into context, Instagram and industry average engagement rates are two percent to four percent, so the fact that this was 18 is phenomenal. From a brand perspective, Megan is a true archetype. She built her career on being bold, confident and self-made. She's doubling down on a partnership that's already proven it can move the needle with Gen Z, and turn into cultural heat, which drives new customer acquisition and brand loyalty.
The clip took off after creators on X and TikTok started to mock Kempczinski for his overly corporate presentation and stiffness. In the video, Kempczinski takes a small bite of the burger - which he refers to as a "product" - against the backdrop of his office. This prompted rival fast-food execs from Burger King and Wendy's, along with general social media users, to recreate the video with their own taste tests.
Now more than ever, consumers want to use products and services that align with their values, causes and beliefs. In fact, 87% of consumers buy from organisations that share their own set of values. Because of this, it is essential that brands take notice of what their consumers have to say.
Messaging alone does not sustain a brand. It is sustained by belief and reinforced through behavior. When employees do not understand or believe in the organization's purpose and standards, customers eventually experience that inconsistency. This is where many branding efforts break down. Leaders focus externally while internal alignment remains underdeveloped.
Too many CMOs have been doing the business of marketing, which is the role of a VP of marketing. The business of marketing is doing campaigns, managing channels, communications, engagements, and brand. The role of the CMO should be to do the business of the company: vision, deciding where the company is going, what the company stands for, and how it grows.
