The Modern Retail Podcast

Instagram has long been touted as a haven for direct-to-consumer brands. The case has been the same for Rothy’s, a women’s shoe brand that recently surged in popularity after actress and royal family member Meghan Markle, wore the label on the day of her pregnancy announcement. But as the DTC market gets more and more saturated and that starts to reflect on Instagram, there's also potentially a tipping point where it ceases to make sense as a medium. Cooper discusses opening retail stores, finding new growth paths, investing in TV and more.

Cannabis has succeeded in going from being stigmatized by society to now capturing the imagination of retailers, investors and consumers. MedMen, a publicly traded company out of California, is at the forefront of the developing cannabis industry. Standing in the way of its retail strategy are big hurdles like hyperlocal compliance issues, inconsistent regulations that differ state by state and the stigmatization associated with cannabis itself. David Dancer, the newly appointed CMO at MedMen, talks about hyperlocal marketing, working with influencers and figuring out cannabis marketing.

The agency world is shrinking. Alex Leikikh, global CEO at MullenLowe Group, thinks there is an oversupply of agencies in the U.S. market. He believes that as more clients start to go in-house, there will be more mergers and more agencies will go out of business. MullenLowe Group is also a result of a merger that happened over three years ago. In our latest episode, Leikikh discusses management lessons he learned, the importance of bundling creative and media talent together and more.

Citi has doubled down on music as it tries to become a more emotional part of its customers' lives, Citi’s Global Consumer CMO Jennifer Breithaupt said in the latest episode of Making Marketing. Breithaupt discusses how experiential made Citi’s marketing more effective, doing market-mix modeling and more.

Independent agencies are having a moment in the competitive advertising agency landscape, but it's not all rosy. On this episode of Making Marketing, Neil Heymann, Droga5's new chief creative officer, discussed how tough it is to be an indie creative agency these days, with client demands that keep changing in a market where it feels like nobody cares about creativity anymore.

Last week, Midwest digital shop VML was merged with old-school legacy agency Y&R, one of the first moves under WPP's new CEO, Mark Read. It's part of a larger plan to create a slimmer, less siloed holding company that's better suited to face the challenges of the industry. The global CEO of now named VMLY&R, Jon Cook, says a consolidation in the industry was long overdue -- and this is just the beginning.

When it comes to lifestyle brands, Equinox makes a pretty good case for itself. What started out as a luxury gym has evolved into a hospitality brand, talent agency, digital magazine, and more. Leading the lifestyle charge is CMO Vimla Black Gupta, who believes that her role is all about understanding her customer as a whole. On this week's episode of Making Marketing, Black Gupta sat down to talk with us about the Equinox lifestyle, the art of mastering your own data, and how they expanded into a talent agency and hospitality brand.

In 1977, Robert Greenberg, also known as Bob, and his brother, Richard, decided to combine both their creative powers and initials to create R/GA. Since its creation over 40 years ago, R/GA has evolved many times, and that, according to Bob, played a major part in keeping it successful. On this episode of Making Marketing, Bob sat down to talk with us about the origins of R/GA, its near-constant evolution, and why people are so scared of change in the industry.

In the Spring of 2017, Verizon brought on Andrew McKechnie to run its new, in-house creative agency after a long career at Apple and a handful of other agencies. In this episode, McKechnie talks about why creatives actually do want to work with brands, the in-house difference, and why staying true to the brand is especially important when working with outside agencies.

Jonnie Cahill, the new CMO for Heineken USA, is charged with marketing one of the world's largest beer brands in one of the largest beer markets. In this episode, Cahill discusses Heineken's global focus, the specific challenges of the U.S. beer market, and the importance of knowing your customer.

Since joining Publicis Groupe as global chief creative earlier this year, Nick Law, a longtime agency veteran, has been on a mission to help reinvent the agency holding company. On this episode, Law discusses how the internet has changed the way that ad agencies operate, how Publicis plans to stay relevant and why he steers clear of "big ideas."

Susan Schiekofer, Chief Digital Investment Officer at Group M, runs digital investments at the world's largest media agency where her focus is purely on the brands. On this episode Schiekofer discusses the ins and outs of the pitch process, helping the clients to understand that good brand safety costs money,finding success on social media and the importance of keeping content away from fraud and fake news.

Adapt or die. It’s something most business say they practice but rarely do. An exception is Tracy Wong, the founder of Wongdoody, a 25-year-old creative agency whose acquisition by Indian IT and consulting giant Infosys was announced in April. On this episode, he discusses changing models, being irrelevant, democratic cultures and more. This episode of Making Marketing was originally published on June 7, 2018

Eric Hippeau, managing partner at Lerer Hippeau Ventures, has invested in many entrepreneurial projects over the years. When looking for his next investment, one of the first things Hippeau considers is the passion and life experience of its founders. He joins us for a conversation on the Making Marketing podcast by Digiday.

Nick Brien, CEO of the Dentsu Aegis Network, talks about holding the agencies to a higher standard on accountability, the impending consultancy competition and procurement.

Yogiraj Graham is the global director of the creative content labs at Intel. Through its in-house shop, Agency Inside, Intel has for years exercised comparatively firm control over its marketing. Yogi leads Intel’s team of 111 people globally, that serves the Intel brand. On this week’s episode, he discusses the road to going in-house, including the hard parts and the easier ones.

Aditi Javeri Gokhale, the CMO of Northwestern Mutual, crafted her own job description as the first-ever CMO of the company and overhaul Northwestern Mutual’s brand awareness and practices. On this episode, she discusses her plan of action and where the “quiet brand” is switching into action.

Tham Khai Meng is Ogilvy's worldwide chief creative officer. He thinks 'Westworld' is right. What is the difference between fake and real anymore? AI is blurring out all the definitions. On this episode, he discusses how the tech world has aggressively changed the playbook for agencies and the lessons that he has learned.

Companies have to be more than buildings -- they have to stand for something. It’s a tall order, especially if you sell products like toothpaste or deodorant. On this week’s episode of Starting Out, Anheuser-Busch U.S. CMO Marcel Marcondes discusses his mission to make it happen.

Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman, inherited the family business from his father 40 years ago. Since then, he has expanded the company to 29 different countries, while remaining independent and family-held. Edelman discusses growth, challenges and marketing challenges in this episode of Starting Out: Cannes Edition.

Adapt or die. It’s something most business say they practice but rarely do. An exception is Tracy Wong, the founder of Wongdoody, a 25-year-old creative agency whose acquisition by Indian IT and consulting giant Infosys was announced in April. On this episode, he discusses changing models, being irrelevant, democratic cultures and more.

In the year of the pivot to reality, marketers are rethinking their reliance on agencies and relationships with platforms. The General Data Protection Regulation has forced companies to reconsider business approaches, but good businesses are resilient. Antonio Lucio, HP's chief marketing officer, prizes resilience. On this episode of Starting Out, Lucio discusses championing diversity, the role of marketing in driving the business and more.

As managing director of Wieden+Kennedy, Neal Arthur is an independent spirit who grew up as the only black kid in his California neighborhood. At Wieden and Kennedy, his independence found a home. On today’s episode, Arthur talks about stumbling into advertising, and how the independence at Wieden+Kennedy fuels tough creative decisions.

Andrew McKechnie is the chief creative officer at Verizon, where he’s building the company’s in-house agency, 140. McKechnie, who last served as global group creative director at Apple, spent years on the agency side, which he says left him frustrated and more convinced than ever that the agency model as it stands is careening toward irrelevance. On this episode of Starting Out, McKechnie discusses his path to the industry, the problem with ego in advertising and the future of agencies.

PJ Pereira is the founder and creative chairman of Pereira & O'Dell. He also wrote a trilogy of West African myths. On this episode of Starting Out, Pereira discusses how writing helps maintain his business and creative acumen, and he talks about the pressure he felt to assimilate into America.

Nancy Reyes is the managing director of TBWA\Chiat\Day in New York. Reyes grew up in Long Island City in New York amid rundown houses and warehouses. Her mother was a housekeeper, and her father drove taxis. On this episode of Starting Out, Reyes discusses her path to becoming a leader who values working for everything in life.

Mark Tutssel is the executive chairman at Leo Burnett. Early on, he learned to watch people to understand them and the value of their attention. On this episode of Starting Out, Tutssel talks about the cruel yet kind decision of an agency executive in Bristol, England, that led him to London and a lesson he learned in a cab.

Christian Juhl is the global CEO at Essence. Juhl, who majored in political science in college, sees modern work as being inherently political -- from running a company to building consensus and avoiding factions. On this episode of Starting Out, he discusses how he went from beginning his career during the dot-com bust to landing at a scrappy office at Essence.

GE CMO Linda Boff has been in business for years. As a manager, she has developed what she calls a "spidey sense" about hiring. On this episode of Starting Out, Boff discusses how this sense has helped her decide which candidates to take chances on.

John Osborn recently made a major leap when he moved to media agency OMD after 25 years at creative shop BBDO. But the seemingly sharp turn in his career was the result of an organized mind. On this episode of Starting Out, Osborn discusses being an over-programmer, obsessively charting out his career path, which began -- like many kids -- with mowing lawns.

From college dropout to the worldwide CEO of Ogilvy & Mather, John Seifert’s career seems like the plot of a movie. Seifert joined the agency for a summer job during his sophomore year at the University of Southern California 38 years ago -- and never left. On this episode of Starting Out, Seifert discusses his path to one of the largest agencies in the world.

Michael Lebowitz is the founder and CEO of creative agency Big Spaceship, which has grown to over 100 employees since he started it in 2000. In this episode of Starting Out, Lebowitz talks about the importance of creating a framework for creativity and his path to founding a company.

Jeff Dachis is the founder of diabetes management app One Drop and co-founder of Razorfish. On this episode of Starting Out, Dachis discusses his career path, from his days of being a self-described provocateur in downtown New York to starting a new venture after being diagnosed with diabetes.

Michael Kahn went from multiple entrepreneurial stints to a long-term leadership role at Performics before arriving at DigitasLBi as its global brand president. In this episode of Starting Out, Kahn discusses the challenges of switching gears from short-term to long-term leadership.

Gerry Graf is the chief creative officer and a founder at creative agency Barton F. Graf, who’s worked at major creative shops like Goodby Silverstein & Partners, BBDO and Saatchi & Saatchi. On this episode of Starting Out, Graf discusses how rejection — a fact of life in advertising — has marked his career and more.

Jonathan Nelson is the CEO at Omnicom Digital, a global marketing and communications holding company that employs about 84,000 people around the world. Nelson is a true veteran of digital. He founded Organic in 1983 and has seen some serious highs and serious lows in the business of advertising -- including having his staff quit after delivering on their first big assignment. What happened after, and more, on this episode of Starting Out.

McCann Worldgroup CEO Harris Diamond has taken the IPG network to new heights since he came on board in 2012. In this episode of Starting Out, Diamond talks about work-life balance and an important lesson he learned in management.

Jason Stein, founder and CEO of marketing service agency Laundry Service and media company Cycle, pushed himself to the extreme while founding two companies and learned to step back and lead once they were established. On this week’s Starting Out, Stein talks about what it takes to succeed in the early days of a business and continuing to reinforce its culture and values.

Longtime agency veteran Ian Schafer recently announced his exit from the agency business following a midlife crisis that motivated him to try something new. On this week’s Starting Out, Schafer talks about learning to manage a business and pivoting to a new chapter.

Marc Pritchard, chief brand officer at Procter & Gamble, made waves in the marketing industry by starting a conversation about unconscious racial bias, a step aligned with the principles that define his leadership -- humility and transparency. On this week’s Starting Out, Pritchard talks about having a role model in his father, his career path from a cafe busboy to an executive position at P&G and why it's important to discuss unconscious bias.

This year, Digiday launched a new podcast called “Starting Out." We invited some of the biggest names in marketing to share the secrets of their leadership and success. Here are the five best pieces of advice that our guests swear by.

Tina Sharkey, co-founder and CEO of Brandless, thought she would follow in her mother's footsteps and run a fashion company. But after graduation, her plans changed -- thanks to her mother. On this week’s Starting Out, Sharkey talks about growing up in a business setting around her mother and an informational interview that changed her career path.

Eric Hippeau, managing partner at Lerer Hippeau Ventures, has invested in many entrepreneurial projects. For him, an important part of deciding whether to say yes to a team is to look for educational or experiential diversity in the founders' backgrounds. On this week’s Starting Out, Hippeau talks about adapting to different cultures while growing up in different countries and how that informs his business decisions today. Below are excerpts in Hippeau's own words, edited for clarity.

Wendy Clark, CEO of DDB North America, has won many awards during her years of leadership in the agency world. For her, it boils down to being a doer -- something that her upbringing and her love for volunteering at nonprofits have fostered. On this week’s Starting Out, Clark talks about growing up as a British-born American working hard and a plan for her second act.

David Sable, Y&R global CEO and chairman of the board, is a pillar of the Madison Avenue set. The former Wunderman executive is known for his love of magic tricks and showmanship -- something that's been ingrained in him from the start. On this week's Starting Out, Sable talks about growing up as a rabbi's son, paleontology as a career choice and how he's climbed the ladder.

On this week's Starting Out, Rei Inamoto details his childhood in Japan, his experience as a twin and his five-year plan.

360i Chairman Bryan Wiener has a pretty simple formula for success: old-fashioned hard work. Wiener, who has had a long career in the ad business and watched the digital ad industry quite literally grow up, joined this week's Starting Out to talk about his first job, his "shitty mentors" and what it's like to put everything on the line for a company you love.

Jaime Robinson is one of the industry's best-known creatives. The former Wieden+Kennedy executive now runs her own shop, Joan, which she co-founded last year with former Refinery29 exec Lisa Clunie. But she sees her job -- and that of anyone in advertising -- pretty simply: It's about entertaining people. On this week's Starting Out, Robinson talks about her first job, her first advertising job and the importance of finding the right business partner.

Shelina Janmohamed is the vp at ad agency Ogilvy Noor, Ogilvy's Islamic consultancy, where she teaches brands how to sell to the Muslim customer. This aligns seamlessly with her personal brand as the author of "Love in a Headscarf," a book that began as a passion project in the form of a blog. In this week’s episode of Starting Out, Janmohamed discusses starting her blog after the 2005 London bombings and how coming from a diverse background often means explaining what it’s like being in her shoes.

Katrina Craigwell, GE Digital head of marketing innovation, has become a force in the marketing industry for her championship of women and women of color in the field. In this week’s edition of Starting Out, Craigwell, a Canada native, tells us how she’s risen to the top by following in the footsteps of her mother, Jacqueline, and why sometimes being good at what you do is simply about being present.