Leading Conversations

Barry sat down with WACL President Claire Sadler and Juliet Simpson fresh from the Festival of Talent in Edinburgh — and it's one not to miss. WACL - Women in Advertising and Communications Leadership - are on a mission to accelerate gender equality across marketing, media and advertising. From inspiring the next generation of talent, to redefining what great leadership actually looks like to push...

The latest episode of the Leading Conversations podcast was recorded live at the recent Marketing Society Scotland's Navigate (formerly known as Digital Day) in front of a packed auditorium at the Glasgow Science Centre.   It was a day of actionable inspiration and practical conversations, bringing together Change Leaders, industry experts, and the people shaping marketing’s digital and technologi...

In this episode, Barry talks to Vicki Miller, CEO of Visit Scotland and Marie Owen, Founder & CEO of LS Productions about Scotland championing Scotland .  Despite their varied roles and career journeys to date, their inspiring stories intertwine and illustrate their passion for our small but mighty, beautiful country.

The latest episode of Leading Conversations is out now. In Episode 39, Barry is joined by Kate Bremner and Julie McConnell for a deep dive into the world of B2B marketing - breaking down the complexity of long sales cycles, the principles behind great marketing, and why adaptability is more important than ever. The conversation spans analytics, evolving buyer behaviour and the role of AI - with a...

The latest episode of our Leading Conversations podcast is out now and it's a good one....  Barry has a candid conversation with George Shepherd about his varied career in advertising, spanning 35 years working all over the world on behalf of blue chip brands including Heinz, Kelloggs, KFC, Lego, Star Wars, Nike and the BBC.  George tells stories from the creation of his company Red Spider, to loc...

This special episode was recorded live at the Marketing Society Scotland's Changemaker conference in Edinburgh. Barry was joined by Ian Duncan and Kathryn Strachan, as they explored how marketers can embrace AI innovation responsibly and what it means for ethics, trust and creativity.

In this special episode of Leading Conversations, recorded live at Lane’s 'AI in the Third Sector' event at Edinburgh’s Everyman Cinema, Barry takes to the stage with a panel of sector leaders to unpack the reality of AI beyond the hype. Josiah Lockhart (Changeworks), Judith Turbyne (Children in Scotland), John Fitzgerald (SCVO), Lora Vernon(VOCAL) and Declan Mair (Worldwide Cancer Research) share...

In the latest episode of Leading Conversations, Barry meets Ian McAteer, until recently the Chairman of The Union agency - a man of many stories, industry anecdotes, nicknames and wise words. Ian candidly shares his story from his early days as a barrister, to landing a role at Saatchi and Saatchi, co-founding The Union in a park and subsequently buying a Church, infamous agency parties, why his w...

In the latest episode of Leading Conversations, Barry meets the copywriting legend that is Gerry Farrell.  Their conversation meanders from Gerry’s unconventional start in advertising to making some of the most famous adverts in Scotland over the last few decades. Amongst many other things, Gerry reminisces on the perfect three-word Irn-Bru brief (“Out Christmas Coke”), how Caledonia was note-perf...

The latest episode of the Leading Conversations was recorded live at the recent Marketing Society Scotland Digital Day. We were joined by some inspirational speakers from leading brands, platforms and agencies, who shared their learnings, insights and exciting new technologies to a packed auditorium at the Glasgow Science centre. Barry Fearn was joined on stage by some Rising Stars of the Marketin...

Barry meets Craig Black, the artist renowned for his innovative 'Acrylic Fusion' technique.  They talk about Craig's initial career in professional football, his chance meeting with his school art teacher that led to his career as a typographer, share stories of London and coming back to Scotland where Craig had his eureka moment, which ultimately led to the launch of his unique Acrylic Fusion tec...

Barry is joined by the Marketing Society Scotland Star Awards Chair, Kirsteen Beeston and Andrew Dobbie from MadeBrave. They discuss their experiences, learnings and tips for success in creating and curating award-winning entries for this years Star Awards, being held in Glasgow on June 12th 2025.

Barry Fearn Leads the Conversation with the incomparable genius of David Eustace. David is a Scottish photographer and director, known for his fashion, celebrity and art photography. Over his vast and eclectic career to date, David has lived and travelled all over the world on shoots and exhibited his art in both private galleries and public museums. His fascinating story traverses from his early...

Barry talks to Nicki and John Denholm from Denholm Associates about their experience over the last two decades in shaping careers over these years. They discuss the entrepreneurial spark which led Nicki to start the business, how they separate (or indeed don't separate!) the professional from the personal when it comes to work and family, their challenges along the way on both their independent an...

In this episode, Lane Chief Exec, Ali Findlay caught up with Laura Brady of Worldwide Cancer Research and Kirsteen Campbell of Scottish SPCA to chat about the importance of brand salience in the charity sector.  Charities have traditionally used vision, mission, and values in their brand strategies, but future brand leaders now talk purpose, proposition, and personality. We chat about how brand pu...

Barry talks to Julie Keough from Scottish Power and Petra Cameron from Natwest about "The Power of Partnerships". With the Olympics at the forefront of the topical agenda and Natwest (tag) a proud partner of Team GB, collectively they discuss what best practice look like when it comes to developing successful partnerships - including but not limited to: brand alignment, budget, adding value, recip...

In this 'special' episode of Leading Conversations, Barry talks to Stuart Mackenzie and Hazel Alexander from C&C Group about all things Tennent's. They cover a varied range of topics from the history of Hugh, the wit, warmth and humour behind the Tennent's brand, the challenges and opportunities in attracting the next generation of consumers and their latest campaign: 'Get to Germany'.

In this special episode of Leading Conversations, Barry sits down with Glen Gribbon to discuss his varied portfolio career in marketing which has spanned many sectors and experiences including promotions, property, pets and even pomegranate juice. We also chat about his experience in helping non-profits grow and his wealth of knowledge about the world of whisky, which has led to his current role a...

In this episode, Barry talks to Nathalie Agnew and Pete Martin, founders of award-winning agencies Muckle Media and Always be Content. They discuss their journeys to recently becoming B-Corp certified companies and what this means to them and their teams.  Tune in to hear their points of view on balancing profit with purpose, greenwashing, whether agencies who work with fossil fuel companies shoul...

A shared experience and exploration of how best to support marketers returning to work after a maternity leave. How having conversations, rather than making assumptions, could lead to the best outcome returns.

In this special episode of Leading Conversations, Barry speaks to Benny Higgins, a recent recipient of an Honorary Fellowship from the Marketing Society Scotland, about a wide range of subjects including his long and illustrious career in banking, his love of football, his passion for the arts, poetry and topically, what commonality is shared by Robert Burns and Marketing.

In the latest episode, Barry reminisces with Lane's Ian 'Fletch' Fletcher and Dentsu Creative's Mark Gorman on the significant transformations witnessed in the Advertising industry since they started out their careers in the 80s and 90s. Tune in to hear their stories from crafting briefs on typewriters to unforgettable TV shoots, while exploring agency tribes and staying ahead of the latest trends...

Host Barry Fearn talks to Gavin Bell, owner of performance agency Yatter and Liam Hall, Performance Director at Lane Media, about the current trends in Performance Media channels. They discuss how this years changes in both Google & Meta are unprecedented, whether Black Friday has ‘eaten itself’ and what changes they see on the horizon as they look ahead to 2024 and beyond.

In this episode of Leading Conversations, I talk to Jenny Emslie Owner & CEO of Sunshine: The Social Agency, and Barrington Reeves Creative Director & Founder of Too Gallus. Chatting about what inspired them as young agency founders. As well as some of the challenges faced as they've grown their businesses and the exciting opportunities they see for the future.

We've all heard the phrase "Having it all" but what does it really mean, where does it come from, and does it still have a place in today's world? Guest host Sallie Bale, Strategist at Lane, along with guests tech industry expert Melinda Matthews and Head of Marketing, Brand Homes Scotland at Diageo Alan McGarrie, discuss what the phrase means to them, and whether they think it still has mileage t...