Martin I'm Marketer/founder trying to build a brand for "creators" that stands for having " an obsession for a creative passion" (be it art, music , film etc) . The idea is to co-create lifestyle products with upcoming creators (10k to 100k following) and share the profits. solving distribution and making customer's feel closer to their fellow artists, Thou it's early for us,
any advice for a startup founder trying to crack the lifestyle space?
Thanks for the feedback Pranjal's! My advice is to build a community around your brand from day one and build in public. Highlight the creators’ stories to connect with your audience authentically. Start small with limited-edition collabs to generate buzz, and focus on distribution channels that align with your brand’s vibe. Stay flexible and be ready to adjust based on what creators and customers are telling you.
Thanks for sharing Brian. I agree. Effective marketing should be aspirational not too realistic. People want some escapism. What brands you think can replace Nike as the King?
This read was pure gold.
Martin I'm Marketer/founder trying to build a brand for "creators" that stands for having " an obsession for a creative passion" (be it art, music , film etc) . The idea is to co-create lifestyle products with upcoming creators (10k to 100k following) and share the profits. solving distribution and making customer's feel closer to their fellow artists, Thou it's early for us,
any advice for a startup founder trying to crack the lifestyle space?
Thanks for the feedback Pranjal's! My advice is to build a community around your brand from day one and build in public. Highlight the creators’ stories to connect with your audience authentically. Start small with limited-edition collabs to generate buzz, and focus on distribution channels that align with your brand’s vibe. Stay flexible and be ready to adjust based on what creators and customers are telling you.
Great article here! Without a brand your conversion ads just won’t convert.
Exactly. Too many brands chase quick wins and ignore the long game of brand investment.
Brilliant article, it’s fascinating to see the other side of branding, aka when it doesn’t work.
Great to see another one of your break downs!
Thanks Daniel! Hopefully they can turn it around. Shame to see a great brand fade away.
They have to bounce back and correct their course. As soon as I read they’d gotten rid of their focus on categories, I knew it wasn’t good news!
In your opinion, what’s the best thing they can do?
I think they should go back to their core value of "Inspiration", re-engage their ecosystem and make DTC solely for exclusive drops Supreme style.
I like your thinking with exclusive drops, that’s something I didn’t think about. It works though and opens up a lot of avenues to explore.
I’m keen to see what they come up with going forwards!
Good article. The below piece dovetails nicely with many of these points. To me, it crystallizes the downfall of a brand in one image.
https://open.substack.com/pub/brianhoward/p/just-buy-it?r=c50dd&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Thanks for sharing Brian. I agree. Effective marketing should be aspirational not too realistic. People want some escapism. What brands you think can replace Nike as the King?
Any brand that is positioned to be like Nike was in its heyday. NOBULL?
I think Nike will make a come back but big changes needed.