FORWARD THINKING
Attention Is Rented. Rituals Are Owned.
Most brands fight for attention. The smartest ones fight for a place in the daily routine. Mental availability gets you considered. Behavioural integration makes you irreplaceable....
AI Shopping — Finally, Digital Discovery?
AI shopping is here — and it changes everything about how people discover and buy. With ChatGPT now handling the full journey inside the chat window, digital retail finally gets...
The Cost of Contempt: How Adobe’s made room for Canva and Figma
After decades of monopoly, Adobe’s Creative Cloud empire is under threat. Canva and Figma aren’t just building better tools—they’re building better relationships. This is the story of how customer contempt...
Living Heritage: How to Modernise Nostalgia Without Getting Stuck in the Past
Every few months, another beloved brand "modernises"—and forgets that heritage isn't a problem to solve. It's an unfair advantage waiting to be re-energised. When done with care. Learn why protecting...
Is your HFSS-Compliant Advantage about to Evaporate?
Think your HFSS compliant advantage is secure after January 2026? Brand-only advertising means big indulgent brands will still win on mental availability. Here’s how to fight back....
Ad Age: Pizza Hut’s new logo—what designers like (and don’t like) about the refresh
While Pizza Hut fiddles with typography, Domino's owns digital ordering, Papa John's owns quality, and local pizzerias own craft. Each competitor has clear intent driving every decision. Pizza Hut has...
Crocs: the $4 Billion Strategy of Ugliness
Crocs were mocked as the world's ugliest shoe and ranked alongside asbestos as one of TIME's worst inventions. Instead of redesigning, they doubled down on what made them different. The...
The Founder Advantage: Why 2% Brands Are Stealing 39% of Growth
Brands with less than 2% market share captured 39% of all incremental category growth in 2024. Up from 17% in 2023 and just 6% in 2022, according to Bain's research...
Sriracha: When Category Creation Becomes Competitive Suicide
David Tran built an empire on authenticity and product obsession. But when sriracha shortages hit, shoppers like my wife grabbed any red bottle with a green cap. That’s the danger...
