Jaguar boss defends rebrand, Apple's new father-daughter tale and why Charli XCX campaigns work
Issue #34
Weekly Exhale
Jaguar's rebrand was announced just over a week ago—a moment that might go down in history as one of the most PR-efficient campaigns ever. With 2.5 million YouTube views so far and a fourfold increase in search intent, the reach is undeniable. Whilst this surge thrills brand practitioners more than Joe Public, debating whether Jaguar made the "right move" is ultimately uninteresting. What is worth noting is how the algorithm became an infinity loop, sparking a frenzy of people chasing attention for themselves and generating endless clickbait for media outlets. Good or bad doesn't matter. If it gets eyeballs, it plays. What begins as Jaguar chasing a slice of Tesla’s sky-high valuation ultimately lands like a Mr. Beast duct tape versus Lamborghini stunt.
My mum—known as Nonna to my son—drove a two-seater Jaguar F-Type, an engine big enough to fly a small plane. Her love for Jaguar was a barometer of her success throughout her life. As an entrepreneur, a Jaguar sat proudly in the driveway when business was good. When business was bad, she took the bus. There was no in-between.
In the later stages of her life, my young son loved sitting up front with her. How safe was it? Let’s not dwell on that. But I’ll tell you this: one of the saddest moments came when her last months arrived, and she could no longer drive.
I can say with certainty that she would have hated the Jaguar rebrand. And yet, even she would admit—building a business on customers whose future sales are zero because they’re lying six feet under isn’t a strategy for survival.
Let’s rise together with every issue. ♡
Market Movements
UK retailers hope for Black Friday boost as mortgages hit two-year high | The Guardian
Multiyear UK spending review pushed back until June 2025 | Financial Times
Stocks slip the day before Thanksgiving | CNBC
Brand Beat
Black Friday doesn't have to be an environmental disaster | Fast Company
Jaguar boss defends rebrand ahead of Miami car launch | New York Post
Coca-Cola's AI Ad Gets Turkey of The Week, is ad-land worried? | Campaign
Typhoo Tea falls into administration after 121 years | The Guardian
Starbucks launches stop-motion Christmas ad and holiday menu | The Grocer
The 2025 guide to can't miss cultural moments for brands | Vogue
The logic behind all those Charli XCX campaigns | Business of Fashion
Why the Sephora advent calendar went viral for all the wrong reasons | Fast Company
Food creator Molly Baz launches mayonnaise brand Ayoh | Adweek
Unilever slims food unit selling off The Vegetarian Butcher | Sky News
Wingstop appoints its first CMO | Campaign
The distressed brand, coping with brand apathy | 2PM
Why Diageo has created its Luxury Group | Marketing Week
As luxury brands look to a US (not Chinese) future | Financial Times
Very's Flamingos Take ad of the week | System1
Apple's new father-daughter tale touts new hearing aid feature | The Drum
Frequent flyers are rethinking loyalty programmes | New York Times
Bluesky's user numbers surge spurs brand scrutiny in case it becomes ad-ready | Digiday
Trending: The cool brand's gift guide | Thingtesting
Starting Up
Allplants' collapse is a sign of investment hype, not plant-based fatigue | The Grocer
A simple guide to branding for startups | Maddyness
Smart ring maker Oura raises £75m | Sifted
Startups can rescue NHS with personalised digital care | Verdict
How startups raise money in times of low liquidity | Crunchbase News
Tech Tidbits
Australia bans social media for under-16s | Reuters
Yes, that viral post you read on LinkedIn was generated by AI | Wired
The domination of French AI, does Mistral have what it takes to win? | Sifted
Google's AI chat bot tells user to 'please die' | Sky News
How Google's break up could upend Big Tech | Yahoo! Finance
Venture Vibes
Marc Andreessen talks to Joe Rogan about a divided Silicon Valley | Fortune
Another star athlete is making his way into venture capital | TechCrunch
Czech billionaire closes in on deal to buy Royal Mail | BBC
VCs discover billions wasted on inefficient tech teams | Forbes
Design Driven
How Minecraft is inspiring a new wave of art and Design | It's Nice That
Ignore the hype; the best brands do | Design Week
Ebay's new design courts Gen Z | Fast Company
Grenfell's new athletic kit is created from fabrics that survived | Hypebeast
Hello, Happiness
Embrace the shift to pro-social media | Wired
Disney releases film to celebrate 60th anniversary of "It's a Small World" | Marketing Beat
How the happiest people spend their weekends | CNBC
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