My Best Campaign

Can protest be a form of marketing? Patagonia has been an industry outlier since its inception, pushing the bounds of what traditional "marketing" can look like. From their iconic "Don't Buy This Jacket" campaign to their $11 million giveback initiative launching this September, the outdoor brand was built on defying convention. On today's episode, we sit down with Aileen Ottenweller, Director of...

Arc'teryx VP of Brand Marketing, Jurgen Watts, on goal setting, trusting the process, and building a career in the marketing big leagues. Jurgen shares how his early days at Lululemon during its heyday shaped his approach, and how a community initiative now entering its 19th year keeps one of outdoor's biggest brands rooted in its heritage—all while staying a dominant force in the industry...

Vivobarefoot is the brand behind footwear's biggest phenomenon: the barefoot shoe. As General Manager, Nicholas Charlier has helped the brand break out of its niche—winning over outdoor enthusiasts and health-conscious consumers while breaking through with Gen Z trendsetters. In this episode, Nicholas unpacks how to balance brand purity with aspirational growth, and why a rock-solid brand foun...

This outdoor brand introduced a new product category that turned a profit within the first 6 months. Later, they hosted a giveaway that grew their email list by 90,000. This is an interview with the man who made it happen. Chris King is the VP of Brand at Outdoor Research, a legacy technical brand known for their high-performance gear. In this episode, Chris dishes his expertise on the importance...

This episode is a masterclass for marketers ready to fast-track brand growth. Amanda distills the sharpest lessons from the world's best marketers featured on this very podcast—covering how to build a shared vocabulary with your audience, when to push and pull your creative budget, why traditional marketing deserves a second look, and when to stop listening to the algorithm. Each lesson comes...

How do you keep a heritage brand feeling fresh without losing what made it iconic in the first place? On this episode of My Best Campaign, Kristin Vekteris, Chief Brand Officer of Earls, breaks down the difference between rebranding and revitalizing, and how a gradual refresh has kept Earls a go-to restaurant. Kristin also weighs in on agency vs. in-house career moves, and why Aritzia is thriving...

What makes for a successful product launch? The kind that generates a lineup through New York City and sells out within 48 hours? Alicia Moore, ex-VP of Marketing at Halfdays, has answers. In this episode, the full-spectrum marketer shares lessons from her 360 experience—from tiny brands that became behemoths to the agency world. Alicia breaks down the secrets to solid activations and great partne...

The modern media relations landscape is all about influencers, which means instead of putting millions of dollars into one major media buy, brands now put thousands of dollars into hundreds of small creator campaigns. What are the secrets to getting the most impact out of these creators and the most bang for your buck. Allegra Contatore is the head of PR and Communications, EMEA, at clean beauty b...

Running and experiential marketing both exploded after 2020. So what does it look like when those two things come together at the world's most important marathons—London and Boston? Lee Glandorf, marketer and author of The Sweat Lookbook on Substack took us through the best marathon pop-ups of the season and helps us understand how brands can avoid fading into the hundred other activations com...

Avery Hairston thinks it's time for brands to think like content creators. In this episode he talks about how CPG brands can take the playbook from internet personalities to fuel growth—we explore the impact of set-piece marketing campaigns, the role of the founder personality in marketing, and at what point brands should reach "escape velocity" to stand on their own beyond a founder. LINKS Avery...

When it seems like every single brand is popping up at major events, how can small up-and-comers stand out and make a mark with a tiny budget? In this episode, Sidney Baptista—founder of PYNRS Performance Streetwear—walks us through what he learned by activating his brand at Paris Fashion Week. He talks about innovative event formats and how to break out of industry patterns. He also talks about h...

Huckberry has long been the benchmark for branded documentary content—iconic series like Dirt, Shop Class, and Huckberry Homes have racked up millions of views for the brand. Danny Segal is the creative director who kicked this content engine into gear. We talked about the key ingredients of brand content collaborations, how to hit the right balance of content and commerce, and he spilled his best...

Heading to SXSW? This is the guide I wish I'd had on my first trip. After eight years attending South by Southwest, I've figured out exactly how marketers can get the most out of the week—from scheduling strategy and what sessions to prioritize, to what to wear, what to eat, and how to navigate Austin without any FOMO. In this video we cover: - Where to stay & how to get around - What to pack...

Every year we make a series of predictions that sit at the crossover of marketing and active / outdoor / wellness brands. We call it our Crystal Baller. This is the 6th edition—the second to make it on My Best Campaign. From cortisol to vintage gymwear, it's a non-so-comprehensive list of what we'll all be talking about in 2026. LINKS Read the original Crystal Baller post Good Thinking Podcast T h...

Brogan Graham built a global fitness revolution with 250,000 committed members across the globe. We sat down, literally on the floor at The Running Event, to talk about how he did it and what brands can learn about growing organic communities and foster die hard fans. We cover: how to turn fans into evangelists. What is the right amount of friction for a branded event? And what is the biggest barr...

Baby food sensation, Little Spoon spent a decade as a DTC brand, building a massive following through customer-first thinking and killer—unconventional—brand partnerships... think Graza, Rachel Antonoff and Dusen Dusen. But this year, it did the biggest single brand food launch Target has ever seen: 23 products across six different aisles. Caryn Wasser has led marketing for all of it and has thoug...

When it comes to advertising, what is the far edge of edgy? How much risk is too risky? Niclas Bornling thinks maybe we're playing it too safe, and letting the algorithms dumb down creativity. In this episode, he talks about his days at Salomon and the campaign that almost cost the brand its biggest retailer. We look back at the heyday of print advertising in ski and snowboarding and consider what...

Austin Hodges was running NBA partnerships at adidas when he got tapped to make what might sound like a surprising leap: lead global marketing at a baby brand. Since then he brought the adidas sports partnership playbook to life at Nuna—and Nuna's sub brands, Tavo and Hedgren—totally changing the game in marketing to parents. This episode is a masterclass in sports partnerships. It's also...

Remember that shiver of excitement that comes with opening a fresh box of 64-count crayons? That's what Crayola CMO Victoria Lozano has been capturing for more than 15 years. In this episode we dive deep into the world of location-based brand experiences, creating original brand IP and how to keep a campaign fresh when it runs over multiple years. She even gives the secret to getting a competi...

When you get a Nike VP on the show, you make the most of it. Julie Igarashi joined us to give the MBC treatment to 3 iconic Nike campaigns: the Air Max Day campaign that took over Shinjuku and garnered millions of views on Youtube; the Jordan sneaker revival in Japan that pushed the brand from #9 to #1 in youth consideration; and the global 2024 Paris Olympic campaign that marked a major reset for...

Charlie Grinnell was one of the creative brains behind the viral Red Bull Raw 100 video series. In this episode he talks about the birth of Raw 100 and why it worked. He also goes deep into how to build a social calendar and budget that give you flexibility to jump on cultural moments, his process for inventing a viral content category, strategies for how to allocate your social ad spend, and his...

Katie Wilson believes in trial and error, but she had no idea that her days of consumer research in the vitamin aisle at Walmart would unlock a viral TikTok strategy and 2,000% growth. In this episode she talks about how she cracked the code, how she evolves her TikTok strategy to keep up with algorithm, and why she's newly a believer in brand building that doesn't show an immediate ROI. LINKS Bel...

Jen Gurecki is downright famous (infamous?) in the outdoor industry. She's outspoken, unabashed and not afraid to center women/their businesses/their pleasure. But more importantly, she runs the only women-owned and operated ski and snowboard manufacturer in the world—a business she grew by sharing her personal journey and using her incredible voice. It makes her brand a perfect fit for Substa...

Meet the fixer who will build your perfect marketing team. Brianna Showell spent 20 years at Nike—starting with the mysterious coveted role as an EKIN, moving on to product line management before roles as Global Brand Director for Innovation and for Nike Kids, then finally as VP of Marketing for Nike Swim. It set her up for VP Marketing roles at two timeless California brands, Prana and Reef. In t...

How do you get massive results on a tiny budget? Gillian Damborg cracked the code with a viral social campaign for period care brand Aisle. She had one shot and to save the business and sell 20,000 pairs of underwear. With a budget of CAD $30,000 the brand had a return of nearly CAD $1.1 million. In this episode, she spells out the formula for the video series that made it happen. Watch this episo...