PODCAST · business
Brandistry Buzz
by Nate Challen
The marketing landscape is shifting faster than anyone predicted. The old maps don't work. And the brands that are winning aren't following a better playbook — they're pioneering without one. This is Brandistry Buzz — the podcast for marketers who want to be READY for whatever comes next. I'm Nate Challen. Brand strategist. Marketing executive. And someone who has spent three decades helping brands navigate uncertain territory. Each week, I'll take one idea — in marketing, leadership, or innovation — and follow it until it's actually useful. Real examples. Honest takes. Clear recommendations. So get READY and let's Buzzzzzz!
Episodes
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Silence Can Speak Louder Than Words
DESCRIPTIONNeutrogena answered one crisis in two days. It took three months to answer the other one.----------------------------------------KEY TAKEAWAYSSilence is a decision, not a default. Strategic silence has criteria behind it - you know what you're waiting for, what would change your mind,...
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P&G Picked Up Thorne - It Needs to Handle With Care
Brandistry Buzz - Show Notes Episode: P&G Picked Up Thorne - It Needs to Handle With Care Full Description Friday morning, David Keegan texted me about the Thorne acquisition. At that exact moment I was on a call with Kaitlin O'Brien, who was telling me the same thing. She had no idea Dave was...
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I Cancelled the Subscription. I Kept the Habit.
Full DescriptionI started taking Grüns last month after hearing about the superfood gummies on a few podcasts. The first order was forty-four dollars for twenty-eight packs, which felt like a reasonable dollar a day. What surprised me wasn't the product - it was everything around it. Reminders,...
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Pickles may be Hot, but Grillo's are the Coolest
BRANDISTRY BUZZ - SHOW NOTESPICKLES MAY BE HOT, BUT GRILLO'S ARE THE COOLESTA fifteen-year overnight success - and the discipline behind it.----------------------------------------FULL DESCRIPTIONOn the 4th of July, driving home from San Diego, I stopped at a Circle K and found a bag of...
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Dutch Bros: Selling Belonging, Not Coffee
Brandistry Buzz - Show Notes Episode: Selling Belonging, Not Coffee Summary In this episode, Nate Challen digs into Dutch Bros - starting with a realization that began at home, when his nineteen-year-old daughter, who doesn't drink coffee, turned the chain into a weekly ritual. He unpacks how…
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What Happens With Speed and No Center
How Relaunching Rolaids Taught Me What Agility Really Means Summary In this episode, Nate Challen unpacks the relaunch of Rolaids and the hard-won difference between being fast and being agile. He walks through a nine-month sprint to put a dormant, once-iconic brand back on the shelf - seventeen...
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Whose Work Is It? / AI and Us - Part 3
Summary In this episode, Nate Challen explores the evolving role of AI in creative work, emphasizing that AI is a new 'who' rather than a replacement. He discusses how creators can own their work, leverage AI as a tool, and maintain authenticity in a rapidly changing landscape. Keywords AI,...
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Show the Work / AI and US - Part 2
When I was learning arithmetic, using a calculator was cheating. By the time I reached calculus, it was required. Same tool, opposite rules - and through all of it, one expectation never moved: show your work. That's the lens I've come to trust for AI, in classrooms and in first jobs alike. In…
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AI Wills and Will-nots / AI and Us - Part 1
EPISODE: "AI WILLS AND WILL-NOTS" One of three articles on judgment, learning, and ownership in the age of AI. DESCRIPTION The AI conversation has quietly changed. Two years ago the question was whether you could use these tools. A year ago it was whether you had the time to. Now the barrier…
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Acquisitions: Are you Sharpening the Edge or Dulling It Down?
Full Description In 2010, I spent the better part of a year hunting for new places for J&J's beauty business to grow - and ended up watching us slowly dismantle the very brand we'd acquired to get there. It's a mistake I've seen play out again and again, at every scale. In this episode, I trace…
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How Levi's Outplayed FIFA
Levi's name is covered. But the batwing shape - unchanged since 1967 - is so familiar that the FIFA policy has provided more attention to the brand, not less. Levi's didn't fight the mandate. They leveraged an asset they'd spent decades building, and outmaneuvered most of the official sponsors in...
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Pride 2026: What I Didn't Say About my Hardest Day as a Parent
There are two kinds of pride.The kind we celebrate in June. And the kind that got in my way twelve years ago when my son came out.I've written about my rainbow family each of the last three years in recognition of Pride Month.This year I wanted to share honestly what made that summer so hard. And...
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e.l.f. Speed: How e.l.f. Built a Culture That Runs Faster Than the Cosmetics Market
e.l.f. has a rule: no post-mortems. Not because they don't evaluate what went wrong. Because the word implies something died — and at e.l.f., every failure is just the input for the next attempt. They call them After Action Reviews. They run them in real time. And they're a big part of why a…
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Everyone. On Purpose: How e.l.f. Is Rewriting the Rules of Consumer Closeness
Every CMO Kory Marchisotto consulted gave her the same advice: build a persona. Name it. Decide what handbag it carries. She read every customer letter in the company's files instead. What she found wasn't a persona. It was everyone. So she leaned into that reality — and ignored the advice. The...
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The Most Powerful Letter in Branding
A good friend just got back from South Korea. Her first text to me wasn't about the temples or the food. It was: "Have any other countries done what Korea has done with a single letter?" And thanks to Ruth Jouanne, I've been turning that question over all week. No other country has built what…
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The Claim Game: Win, Lose, or Cross the Line
Marketers rank among the least trusted professionals in America. Just above lobbyists and members of Congress. Then again, we've all driven past a diner advertising the "World's Best Chicken." Maybe we earned it. But here's what I actually believe: most marketers aren't trying to deceive anyone....
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17,000 Miles, Three Leadership Lessons, and One Unforgettable Truck Stop
I just returned from my fifth cross-country drive in nine months. My wife Eva and I have now covered 17,000 miles together driving back and forth from New England to SoCal in our Kia Telluride. We've seen the Heinze Museum, the Hoover Dam, and a hand-painted sign in North Dakota that kept us...
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Welcome to Brandistry Buzz
The marketing landscape is shifting faster than anyone predicted. The old maps don't work. And the brands that are winning aren't following a better playbook — they're pioneering without one. This is Brandistry Buzz — the podcast version of my weekly newsletter for marketers who want to be READY...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The marketing landscape is shifting faster than anyone predicted. The old maps don't work. And the brands that are winning aren't following a better playbook — they're pioneering without one.
This is Brandistry Buzz — the podcast for marketers who want to be READY for whatever comes next.
I'm Nate Challen. Brand strategist. Marketing executive. And someone who has spent three decades helping brands navigate uncertain territory.
Each week, I'll take one idea — in marketing, leadership, or innovation — and follow it until it's actually useful. Real examples. Honest takes. Clear recommendations.
So get READY and let's Buzzzzzz!
HOSTED BY
Nate Challen
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Brandistry Buzz have?
Brandistry Buzz currently has 18 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Brandistry Buzz about?
The marketing landscape is shifting faster than anyone predicted. The old maps don't work. And the brands that are winning aren't following a better playbook — they're pioneering without one. This is Brandistry Buzz — the podcast for marketers who want to be READY for whatever comes next. I'm Nate...
How often does Brandistry Buzz release new episodes?
Brandistry Buzz has 18 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Brandistry Buzz?
You can listen to Brandistry Buzz on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Brandistry Buzz?
Brandistry Buzz is created and hosted by Nate Challen.
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