Welcome to the Brandsider: where brand meets business strategy
Starbucks' turnaround, Apple's new campaign and America's (new) favourite Halloween candy.
Meet the Brandsider
Welcome to the first edition of the Brandsider, a weekly newsletter that brings you business news with a brand strategy lens.
When I moved back to London and rejoined Lippincott, I knew I wanted a side project that would combine my two loves: writing and brand strategy. And yet when I started to develop brand analysis content (like these reels I worked on last year), I realized I had no place to keep track of the latest in brand news.
Sure, there are business publications. And lots of design reviews. But nowhere to uncover what business news means for the world of brand strategy. And so a light bulb went off 💡
The Brandsider is a weekly newsletter that delivers the biggest stories in brand strategy: company transformations, rebrands, refreshes, brand-led advertising and more. We’ll explore how the world’s biggest brands (read: mainly F500s) respond to internal shifts, market struggles - and shape their brand perceptions accordingly.
In each issue, expect:
Developing stories: the biggest market stories, and what it means for the brands involved
Quick headlines: other brand-related news you probably want to know about
Tidbits: things I consumed that were interesting or might just make you smile
I’d love your feedback on format, content - or simply hear your own takes on the stories covered. The beauty of a newsletter is that I always have email open (ha!)
Talk soon,
Tamara
❶ DEVELOPING STORIES
The biggest market stories, and what it means for the brands involved.
☕️ A Brand New Chapter for Starbucks
The story: Starbucks is undergoing a corporate turnaround under new CEO Brian Niccol, with a ‘Back to Starbucks’ plan launched in mid-September. The focus is on streamlining operations (like simplifying the menu) and enhancing the in-store experience to “re-establish Starbucks as the community coffeehouse” - and boost falling revenue. Additionally, Niccol is prioritizing storytelling to reconnect with customers, appointing Tressie Lieberman as the company’s first Chief Brand Officer—who brings experience from Chipotle, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut.
The Brandsider take:
This overhaul reflects a need to revive the Starbucks brand, which has drifted from its roots. With high prices, a transactional corporate feel, and long wait times, Starbucks has lost its inviting ‘third place’ appeal. And positioning-wise, it’s unclear where Starbucks fits among competitors: trendy Blank Street, affordable Dunkin’, and high-end local cafés etc.
With CBO Lieberman and WPP on board, Starbucks needs to remind customers why they choose Starbucks. I’d expect a campaign - maybe with new products or experiences - that lean into Starbucks’ core strength of delivering high-quality coffee, at scale.
👔 EY’s Attempt at a United Front
The story: After spending $100M on a failed attempt to split its auditing and consulting arms last year, Big 4 player EY is regrouping under new CEO Janet Tuncale and an ‘all-in’ internal strategy. Externally, the company is aiming to restore confidence with a brand refresh, launching a new tagline—“shape the future with confidence”—and expanding its classic yellow and black palette. The update is accompanied by a major ad push across airports, business publications, and TV.
The Brandsider take:
EY’s rebrands have been hit or miss—like in 2014, when its name change to “EY” awkwardly overlapped with a Spanish queer soft-porn magazine. A decade later, this one also seems to fall a bit flat. It’s about as corporate as it gets, feels like a creative step back on their 2014 slogan “building a better working world”. And most concerning, doesn’t actually ring true for EY given its recent discord.
Still, with a substantial ad budget, EY hopes this future-focused rebrand will shift attention from its internal struggles back to its client.
🍏 From ‘Think Different’ to Don’t Think at All…
The story: When Apple teased its iPhone 16 Pro campaign with the tagline “Hello, Apple Intelligence,” there was a lot of excitement. Apple is known for clever, distinctly on-brand advertising, dating back to its iconic ‘Think Different’ campaign of the early 2000s. But the new spot feels off-brand, featuring use cases where lazy, forgetful, or even disrespectful people rely on the tech to avoid accountability.
The Brandsider take:
This campaign is so jarring because it’s the opposite of what Apple represents: excellence, innovation, and precision. It’s easy to imagine Steve Jobs rolling in his grave.
Good branding (and advertising) is aspirational. That’s what made ‘Think Different’ brilliant—you want to be part of Apple’s in-group, showing the world that you, too, think differently. But with this campaign’s message, are they implying iPhone 16 users reply on tech to do the bare minimum? It certainly seems that way.
🍽️ Does GLP-1 Need a Better Brand?
The story: LAThe Brandsider take:
Seeing ‘formulated for GLP-1 users’ on packaging and advertising sounds, well, a bit medical. It feels like there’s an opportunity for a brand to coin a catchy phrase that implies GLP-1 supported weight-loss, without saying it so explicitly.
As more players enter this space, a genericized trademark (think Kleenex or Frigidaire) seems unlikely. Yet, a clever campaign from a major player could introduce a new term into our vocabulary, and reinforce market leadership. I’ll be keeping an eye out.
❷ QUICK HEADLINES
Other brand-related news you probably want to know about.
🎬 ‘So good’ brand advertising: Netflix’s new multilingual advertising spot perfectly captures the brand’s core idea of bringing people together through entertainment. The new ‘Moments’ feature allows viewers to share their favorite show & movie scenes with loved ones - echoing experiences we’ve all shared.
🍔 Keeping McDonald’s ‘cheap and cheerful’: With rising food prices impacting sales, McDonald’s is launching initiatives to regain its reputation as a value leader. Think €4 Happy Meals in France and C$1 coffee in Canada. This was overshadowed by a recent E.coli outbreak, prompting the brand to address safety issues amid its attempt to attract budget-conscious customers
💎 Crystal clear way forward: Swarovski continues to build sales momentum, reinforcing the ‘pop luxury’ positioning it launched in 2021 with a new celebrity partnership. Ariana Grande, the new face of Swarovski, aligns with the brand in style and accessibility.
🧻 Grab a tissue: last week, Kleenex unveiled a refreshed logo by Turner Duckworth. It features a bold blue, a crown device for brand recognition, a custom font, new illustrations, and campaign materials supporting its purpose: ‘strength in everyday moments.’
🐠 Goldfish isn’t just for kids: In a reminder that Goldfish is for everyone, Goldfish launched a limited packaging run with a cheeky new name: “Chilean Sea Bass”. The stunt got Campbell some press, but fell short on the emotive front. It feels like there’s an opportunity play into nostalgia to attract older snackers.
🎃 Back from the dead: A few years ago, the Nerds brand was fading into oblivion - with top line sales of 40M. But out of the R&D lab emerged something freakishly wonderful: America’s new favourite Halloween candy. Nerds gummy clusters have generated $500M in sales this year alone, bringing Nerds back to center stage in a very big way.
❸TIDBITS
Things I consumed this week that were notable, interesting, or just smile-worthy.
I don’t particularly like either of these people, but 43M views in a week (on a 3h video!) has to speak to the transformative power of a platform.
Talk about doing company culture well. I’d never heard of Valve before, but their employee handbook lists perhaps the ballsiest approach to running a company. And apparently it works: their per employee profitability is higher than Google, Amazon or Microsoft.
This crazy, 90 min deep dive on the mid-2000s One Direction craze. I’m both proud and ashamed to say I watched the whole thing (in multiple instalments too).
Who knew Margaritaville was such a genius brand? This deep dive by Michelle Wiles unpacks how this unexpected player became one of the most profitable and beloved brands in the competitive hospitality space. And they did it through the power of brand.
If you’re obsessed with the nostalgic sun care brand Vacation, you’ll be happy to know there’s more where that came from. Discover Poolsuite, their parent company’s brilliantly designed 90s website, where you’ll find mixtapes, merch, and even a newsletter.
Thanks for reading! If you liked reading this issue of The Brandsider, don’t hesitate to subscribe down below:
Looking forward to your future posts! Hadn't seen the Apple ad, indeed somewhat shocking from a company pushing "a different way of doing things". Their products are innovative, they are leaders on that front, but that ad? What happened to offering powerful tools to the often "artistically inclined" users who value the simplicity to get the work done. This ad portrays a new way of doing things, by incompetent cheaters. Well, that's my take on it, anyway!
...Written on my Mac - all by myself ;-)