On Brand with Nick Westergaard

Ulli Appelbaum has held senior strategy and account planning roles at some of the largest advertising agencies in the world, working with brands like Wrigley, Hallmark, Nestle, and Chrysler along the way. His latest book is The Brand Positioning Workbook, which we discussed this week on the On Brand podcast.About Ulli AppelbaumBorn in Germany, raised in Africa and Belgium, and now living in the US, Ulli Appelbaum has held senior strategy and account planning roles at some of the largest advertising agencies in the world including BBDO Germany and Chicago, Leo Burnett Budapest, Frankfurt & Chicago, Fallon Worldwide in Minneapolis, and SapientNitro in Chicago, L.A., and Minneapolis. His insights and strategies have helped brands such as Wrigley, Nestle Purina, Harley Davidson, Hallmark, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Chrysler, and many more.In 2014, he launched First The Trousers Then The Shoes Inc. a brand research and strategy consultancy based here in Minneapolis working for clients including Siemens, Outlaw Energy Drinks, Post Consumer Brands, Angel’s Envy/Bacardi, Flexera, Anchore, Double Good, Verve Credit Union and a few more.Ulli is the author of The Brand Positioning Workbook: A Simple How-To Guide To More Compelling Brand Positionings, Faster, the best-selling Positioning Development Method Cards, Aha!, The Ultimate Insight Generation Toolkit, and 26 Popular Children Games from Around The World, a set of game cards created to help promote cultural understanding and tolerance among children through play.Episode HighlightsThe strategy on the shelf. After a quick laugh up front, Ulli and I opened the show with a conversation about strategy. Often, when digging deeper with clients, Ulli found an old strategy “on the shelf” that no one was really using.How can you make strategy more actionable? This, like many things, comes to better understanding your customer. Ulli shared a recent client experience that reinforced the need for better insights and research.A workbook for the work of brand positioning. When Ulli embarked on his latest book, he found no shortage of existing books on positioning. However, as a seasoned brand builder, Ulli knows that positioning is a lot of work. That’s why he set out to create not an encyclopedia of brand positioning but rather a simple workbook for setting this critical process in motion—The Brand Positioning Workbook.What brand has made Ulli smile recently? Ulli shared the latest work from McDonald's UK, where the brand has made the bold move of not showing the restaurants or food but rather their iconic (golden) arches as eyebrows.To learn more, connect with him on LinkedIn or check out his website for First The Trousers Then The Shoes. As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rebecca Coleman is the President of The Narrative Group and leads US operations for We Are Social. Her work is defined by the innovative approach of earned-led thinking, which has been used by brands including Mcdonald's, Harmless Harvest, and Universal Pictures. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast.About Rebecca ColemanRebecca Coleman holds over 20 years of experience in building great relationships with clients and even better campaigns for their brands. Currently, she is President at The Narrative Group, an award-winning creative agency that specializes in earned-led brand experiences for some of today’s biggest brands including McDonald’s, Harmless Harvest, and Universal Pictures. Previously, Rebecca founded Something Massive, a strategy-led advertising agency and production company with clients like Plum Organics, Oikos, and KIND.Episode HighlightsNews about The Narrative Group. As we began the interview, Rebecca shared that her company, The Narrative Group, just merged with We Are Social—the world’s largest social media agency. “A bit part of what got their attention was our work on Minions …”Making Minions cool again. When client Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures came up with the strategy to make minions cool again, they worked with The Narrative Group to help take on the challenge.“Culture has decentralized today,” Rebecca explained, noting the importance for brands of focusing on sub-cultures of their audiences and customers. “You not only have to show up in the right places—you have to be connected with their interests in places like TikTok.”What brand has made Rebecca smile recently? “Liquid Death! They made water from cans—which is better for the environment than bottles—look badass.” This was a very on-brand smile as it’s all about knowing their subcultures.To learn more, check out the websites for The Narrative Group and We Are Social and connect with Rebecca on LinkedIn.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Kilens is Chief Marketing Officer of Airmeet, a virtual and hybrid event platform. While it’s been a challenging couple of years, events of all kinds—virtual, hybrid, and live—are critical components of the content marketing landscape. Mark and I discussed all of this and more, this week on the On Brand podcast.About Mark KilensAs Chief Marketing Officer of virtual and hybrid event platform, Airmeet, Mark Kilens leads a global team of marketing professionals who are working to advance the event-led growth movement across the B2B events category. Kilens has 15 years of marketing leadership experience. His main goal is to help global businesses engage and grow their customer base through event-led growth practices. This consists of using immersive and integrated events across the entire customer journey to create a highly personalized digital experience.Prior to joining Airmeet, he served as VP of Content and Community at Drift, and oversaw Drift Insider, a community of 50,000+ members. He also previously held the title of VP of Marketing at HubSpot and went on to build HubSpot Academy from the ground up, which led the company to surpass $600 Million USD in revenue.Episode Highlights“We need to expand our definition of events,” Mark began. “Events include webinars and online events as well.” Mark went on to talk about how podcasts are events as well.Chicken or egg? In talking about the interrelationship between content and events, Mark posed a classic chicken-and-egg question: what should come first—the content or the event? Mark made a case for both. “It really depends on what you’re doing with your event.”“If there’s one thing to do differently in your events …” I love this type of statement from a guest. Mark suggests that we need to spend as much time planning the event as we do producing and promoting it. This adds up to time well spent as you dig deeper on what your event is and who it’s for.What brand has made Mark smile recently? “Patagonia—I just love the brand and the product,” Mark noted. “Plus they’re picking a side and that’s important in branding today.”To learn more, you can connect with Mark on LinkedIn and Twitter.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Linda Fanaras is CEO/Strategist of Millenium Agency, where she helps B2B brands develop integrated campaigns that get results with her innovative approach of transforming market research into powerful campaigns. This isn’t always easy—especially when it comes to B2B. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast.About Linda FanarasLinda A. Fanaras, CEO/Strategist of Millennium Agency, is an award-winning executive marketer with exceptional leadership and communication skills, relationship-building expertise, and a proven track record in executing strategic marketing campaigns that improve marketing ROI and CLV.Linda is highly experienced in brand analysis and structure, positioning and messaging that engages, the development of integrated digital marketing campaigns, and the formulation of creative concepts for B2B manufacturing and software technology. Focused on motivational and positive inclusive leadership skills, she drives marketing teams to achieve exceptional results.Episode HighlightsWhat do B2B brands need to do differently in branding and marketing today? I thought I’d start with a softball! However, Linda knocked it out of the park. “B2B brands need to remember to focus on the end user. And that’s often a business rather than a specific consumer demographic.”“From there, focus on getting your language and story down.” Linda stresses that marketers need to continue to test this through ongoing surveys and focus groups.How can marketers stay sane in the new year? Marketers have to be organized and strategic.” And creative to boot! That’s not always an easy combo. That’s why Linda notes that it’s important for marketing leaders to understand their team and what motivates them.What brand has made Linda smile recently? “Lazy One—creators of stylish PJs, robes, and slippers.” I love learning about new brands. Especially ones that can help me get comfortable as I think about all of the challenges marketers face today!To learn more, go to mill.agency and connect with Linda on LinkedIn.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John O’Melia serves as Chief Customer Officer at Contentsquare. His Customer Success team works to ensure that brands of all shapes and sizes are able to understand what’s happening with their brands online and, more importantly, why. We discussed all of this during our conversation on the On Brand podcast.About John O'MeliaJohn O'Melia was previously the CEO of Seal Software, which was acquired by DocuSign in 2020. He has also held senior leadership positions in Customer Success and Sales at EMC. Earlier in his career, he was a partner at Coopers & Lybrand/PwC where he oversaw global projects in multiple industries. Over the course of his career, he has always sought to truly understand customers’ needs and aspirations associated with their investment in technology and to ensure they realize the maximum possible return.John joined Contentsquare in early 2021 as Chief Customer Officer. His Customer Success team works to ensure all customers harness the full power of Contentsquare’s technology to drive significant business value.Episode HighlightsMaking the digital world more human. When I asked John for Contentsquare’s elevator pitch that’s how he answered—helping customers make the digital world more human by understanding “what’s happening and why it’s happening.”What can companies do today to make their brand recession-proof? “There are two things,” John notes. First, you have to be truly data-driven.” He went on to cite a stat that only 7% of companies are data-driven.The second thing is a little harder. “You have to fit on customer experience,” John explained. “You have to look beyond just checking the box. Is your brand really known for this?”What brand has made John smile recently? John shared a story that made him (and me!) smile with a brand in a … “unique” industry: Lovehoney.To learn more, check out the Contentsquare website and connect with John on LinkedIn.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Höglund is one of the founding team members at Epidemic Sound, which helps connect brands with the music they need to tell their stories. But when it comes to music rights, complexity lurks around every corner. He shared this story and more this week on the On Brand podcast.About Tom HöglundTom Höglund is one of the founding team members at Epidemic Sound and has been responsible for several different functions at the company as it has scaled, reaching a $1.4B valuation in 2021. Tom developed Epidemic Sound’s innovative digital rights model, which paves the way for creators — everyone from YouTubers to small businesses to the world’s largest brands—to use restriction-free music to take their content to the next level. Tom is also an early-stage investor in companies primarily geared towards creator monetization and B2C and B2B SaaS solutions.Episode Highlights“The future of content creation will be fragmented,” Tom said of video’s prevalence in both branded content and creator content. “We want to provide world-class music to anyone brave enough to tell their story.”“Complexity ensued …” I had to point out this moment in Tom’s story, as music rights and usage is a complex topic for anyone who’s not a trademark attorney. Epidemic Sound wanted to develop something as simple to use as an ATM.“Video without sound is like food without taste.” Tom shared this powerful quote from one of his co-founders, which drives home just how important sound is to the content we create.What brand has made Tom smile recently? “It’s an obvious brand for a non-obvious reason—Twitter!” Tom went on to talk about the story playing out at Twitter under Elon Musk. From sinks to firings, neither of us was sure what the genre of this smile-worthy moment is.To learn more, check out the Epidemic Sound website and connect with Tom on LinkedIn.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ellen Marie Bennett is the founder and chief brand officer of Hedley & Bennett. If you’re a foodie, you’ve seen Hedley & Bennett aprons on some of the world’s best chefs. I saw one on Stanley Tucci and knew if I was going to be a serious home cook, I had to have one. Ellen shares how she created this brand 10 years ago—at the age of 24—this week on the On Brand podcast.About Ellen Marie BennettAs a 24-year-old line cook, Ellen Marie Bennett couldn't stand the kitchen staff’s poorly designed, cheaply made aprons. So when her head chef announced he was ordering a new batch, she blurted out, “Chef, I have an apron company”—even though she had no company, no business plan—just a glimmer of a design idea and a business license. Through hustle and a willingness to leap into the unknown, time and time again, she built that first order into a multi-million-dollar company called Hedley & Bennett, making aprons and kitchen gear worn by many of the world’s best chefs and home cooks everywhere. Episode Highlights“Your listeners have to be thinking, ‘A whole interview about aprons?!’” Ellen jokingly suggested. “This has nothing to do with aprons. This could be aprons or protein powder or whatever your product is.”“I wanted to be the Nike of the culinary world.” Mission accomplished. And that’s no small mission! Ellen talked about wanting to create a connection with her customers and community like Nike has with theirs. That feeling when someone puts something on feels that they can do anything.Chasing perfection vs. learning. Ellen notes that it's dangerous to wait for perfection to launch a new product, stressing the importance of “embracing the long and winding road.”Learning from customers. “Everything we added to our products we learned from chefs,” Ellen explained that focus groups aren’t everything. “There’s no one way to build a brand.”How do you know when to expand the brand? Recently, Hedley & Bennett has expanded into knives, thermometers, and towels. But how did they know when to expand? “We learned that we’re not just an apron brand. We’re a culinary brand,” Ellen explained. “And one of our brand pillars is that it needs to be pro-grade.” It has to be chef-quality.What brand has made Ellen smile recently? Ellen was moved to smiles and tears by a recent trip to Mexico to deliver holiday gifts to children through the foundation This Is About Humanity. Ellen shared more about the good work they do and how they get a majority of the money they raise into the hands of people who need it most.To learn more, go to the Hedley and Bennett website and follow the brand on TikTok. You can also follow Ellen and follow the adventures of her family and her pet pig (!) on Instagram.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy New Year from the On Brand podcast! To celebrate this fresh start to an exciting new year, we have one of our favorite guests joining us once again—the one, the only Tom Peters! Tom is the “one and only” of many things when it comes to management thinkers but he’s the only guest who’s appeared four times on the On Brand podcast. Tom shared how to kick off a year of excellence this week on the On Brand podcast.About Tom PetersCalled “the Red Bull of management consultants,” Tom Peters is a leading business management guru and founder of the Tom Peters Company. He continues to be in constant demand for lectures and seminars. In 2017, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Thinkers50 and the Jack Covert Award for Contribution to the Business Book Industry from 800-CEO-READ. Peters is the bestselling author of seventeen books, including In Search of Excellence (with Robert H. Waterman, Jr.), which is often cited as among the best business books ever written. His latest book is Tom Peters’ Compact Guide to Excellence.Episode Highlights“Same message 20 times. I refuse to give up.” Tom wrote this inscription to me on the inside cover of his 20th book—Tom Peters’ Compact Guide to Excellence. “With my very first book, I put excellence on the field. The message is still fundamentally the same.” However, in these challenging times, it's a message that’s as relevant as ever.80% of people don’t feel connected to their jobs. “The effective leader can instill engagement,” Tom explained, noting that the most important thing leaders do is hiring and promoting the right people. “It’s not easy but we can do things to make it easier.”Mayo Clinic has the right idea. Among the attributes they look for in new hires are the number of times someone says “we” vs. “me.” This isn’t new. As Tom said, “It started with Dr. Mayo in nineteen-effing-fourteen!” If you missed my recent interview with Dr. Richard Winters, head of leadership at the Mayo Clinic, be sure to check it out now.What brand has made Tom smile recently? Tom took a long pause before providing us with a great smile story. Granted, that smile came from the general direction of the bathroom. “Whenever you open a new roll of toilet paper … you can never get that first piece off. Well, Cottonelle has figured it out.” Tom and I both think they should join us on the On Brand podcast to unpack their toilet paper excellence!To learn more, go to tompeters.com.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jill Ong is Managing Director of ACE and has spent her career on the global advertising stage–working with iconic brands like Converse and Adidas. We talked about all of this and more—including brand building during a recession—this week on the On Brand podcast.About Jill OngJill has spent her whole career of 22 years in advertising working on iconic brands like Converse, Beats by Dre, and Sonos. She has deep expertise on global businesses and the APAC region, with work experience spanning China, New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore. She moved to New York in 2010 during the Big Recession and has been in the Anomaly/ACE family ever since. As Managing Director of ACE, she’s charged with inspiring and nurturing people and optimizing operations across ACE.On a sabbatical in Puerto Escondido 5 years ago, Jill decided to challenge her lack of sporting ability to learn surfing. Despite her poor swimming skills and getting a black eye after getting hit by a surfboard on her first day out, she has persevered and has since surfed the breaks of Bali, West Java, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Johannesburg, and Mexico.Episode HighlightsAn All-Star brand. “Converse is the best brand I’ve ever worked on,” Jill began, citing a global campaign all about reinforcing the meaning of this iconic brand. “Converse is all about being scrappy and creative.”Global brand building starts with the customer. “And customers are so different—down to where they’re at in terms of lifecycle with your brand in different parts of the globe.”How do you build a brand during the recession? “Budgets will be tight. You have to be strategic about how you communicate that—think twice about that Super Bowl ad and what it says about your brand.” However, Jill also noted that recessions are times when brand loyalty can be built.What brand has made Jill smile recently? Jill brought not one but two brands. “I watch a lot of TV for work but it’s also a guilty pleasure. I love the Progressive ads on Hulu about not becoming your parents.” She also shared a smile for Belvedere vodka’s new ad showcasing a different side of Daniel Craig.To learn more, check out the ACE website and connect with Jill on LinkedIn.As We Wrap … Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon/Audible, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeart, YouTube, and RSS. Rate and review the show—If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to head over to Apple Podcasts and click the 5-star button to rate the show. And, if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review to help others find the show. Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. On Brand is a part of the Marketing Podcast Network. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we have a special holiday episode of the On Brand podcast with the “Naughty and Nice Brands of 2022.” This seasonally appropriate snapshot of brand behavior was developed by the smart folks at Brand Federation. The consultancy’s Chief Growth Officer Matt Williams joined me to discuss which brands have been naughty and nice this year.About Matt WilliamsMatt Williams is Chief Growth Officer for Brand Federation, a brand strategy consultancy in Richmond, Virginia. Prior to joining Brand Federation in 2019, Williams was CEO of the Martin Agency, one of the world’s most recognized advertising agencies, where he managed strategy development for world-class brands like GEICO, OREO, UPS, Discover Financial, Walmart, and more. Williams also is a Clinical Professor in the marketing department at the Mason School of Business at William & Mary. He teaches in the MBA program and is the developer and Faculty Director of the school’s Online Masters in Marketing.The Naughty List2022 was the year of billionaires behaving badly. Here are a few of the ones we talked about.Twitter, Elon Musk—The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, created a $44 billion cash bonfire by buying and systematically destroying Twitter. “The ‘Chief Twit,’” as Williams called Musk, “deserves a boulder size lump of coal.”FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried—Good virtual eye contact; work to bring your hands up and into gestures to reinforce key points. Brands built on false promises don’t stand long. Matt and I further discussed what this meant for “the brand of crypto.”Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes—Holmes, a self-made billionaire who served as CEO of Theranos, built the company into a promising brand—on a foundation of lies. It collapsed because of dishonesty, lack of transparency, and overall bad behavior at the top, and it earned Holmes an 11-year prison sentence this year.How about some nice brands and billionaires?The Nice List“The words ’nice’ and ‘billionaires’ aren’t typically heard together,” joked Matt as we began our discussion of the other half of the list. However, several billionaires and brands used their powers for good this year.Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard—Patagonia’s founder, Yvon Chouinard, built a worldwide brand known for sustainability. This year, Chouinard transferred his ownership in the outdoor apparel company, valued at $3 billion, to a trust designed to protect the company’s independence and donate its profits – often north of $100 million annually—to protecting our planet. Brands built on purposeful behavior endure.Dolly Parton, Doggy Parton—Country music icon and entrepreneur Dolly Parton launched her Doggy Parton collection of pet dog accessories, merging her love of animals with her can-do philanthropy. A portion of every sale supports animal rescue efforts. Jeff Bezos even recognized the power of Dolly Parton, writing her a check for $100 million to spend on charitable causes.Eileen Fisher, Eileen Fisher—“Fashion isn’t always nice,” Matt began. However, Fisher built a fashion empire that supported more realistic apparel for women of every age and body type. And instead of taking her company public, she began transferring ownership to employees in 2006. Today, as Fisher steps away from the brand’s leadership, employees own nearly half the company.What brand has made Matt smile recently? As always, with the list focus of this annual episode, I was worried that I’d taken all of Matt’s “smiles.” However, he assured me that he had one left. And a timely one at that with the World Cup—USA soccer. “They represent great brand behavior by seeking pay equity for their women’s team.”To learn more about Matt Williams, check out the Brand Federation website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices