Category Archives: 1 – Mission Incomparable – The first rule is to make your own

The first point is quite simple and yet probably hardest to achieve: Super Premium brands are, to a large degree, about aspiration and identity construction. Allowing customers to elevate or at least advance themselves into something better, bigger, newer … To do this they don’t just need to have personal relevance, they need to offer cultural resonance. Because only if a Super Premium brand resonates in your social environment can it help you craft or focus your identity – towards yourself, and towards others. Super Premium brands achieve this usually in two ways: Either by re-defining a category and setting new standards that take them beyond the status quo (think Nespresso). Or by following a higher calling that lifts them out of the ordinary and gives them true meaning and purpose (think Patagonia). Or they artfully combine both (think Apple). And, speaking of Apple: Of course, being incomparable requires staying on your feet to move ahead. Surprising yourself and all followers by constantly reinventing yourself, thus remaining true to your core.

Recap
– About the need for a true and daring purpose that resonates
– Re-defining the category by not just setting new but unique standards
– And how to constantly change while staying true to yourself

Here are Posts and Podcasts on this principle:

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Crises – An Opportunity For Brand Elevation

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“A crisis is a terrible thing to waste,” might have been the mantra for some brands in 2020. They have shown strength and taken steps to further elevate their brand in the mind of their key constituents as this talk/article seeks to illustrate. Continue reading

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ThankYou. – Admirable Activism or Brand-Based Bullying?

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Australian social enterprise ‘ThankYou.’ leverages a mix of mythology, passionate appeal and social shaming to get consumers, their customers and competitors to buy, sell and – maybe – license the brand.
Is that brilliant activist brand- and business building? Or is the concept of a ‘brand with a higher purpose’ being abused to bully your way to growth? Continue reading

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The joy and challenge of purveying better products and better lives – Interview with Dilhan Fernando, CEO Dilmah Tea

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Dilmah Tea is the pioneer you might not have heard about when it comes to fairer trade practices, implementing sustainable operating processes, educating consumers and to being founded on the belief that purveying a superior product needs to go hand-in-hand with helping to create a better socio-economical and natural environment. Listen to our interview with its CEO. Continue reading

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S’well – From empty bottle to meaningful fashion accessory – Interview with Sarah Kauss, Founder and Chairwoman

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S’well brand founder Sarah Kauss explains how she transformed water bottles into becoming meaningful and must-have fashion accessories and her vision for the brand’s future. In this interview, you will hear many of the principles of Ueber-Branding and how they are being applied. Continue reading

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How ‘Slightly Fu**ed-Up’ motivates people to buy into- and work at Freitag – interview with Oliver Brunschwiler, ‘Lead Link’

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In the land of bags, ‘Freitag’ stands for ‘messenger’, ‘made in Switzerland from recycled truck tarp’, ‘designed by the bros’, and … “slightly fucked up,” as ‘Lead Link’ tells us .  And he is not only talking about the bags, but also about the brand and company culture, as you will hear in our interview with Oliver Brunschwiler. Continue reading

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How an Ueber-Brand responds in times of crisis – Alison Cayne, Haven’s Kitchen

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Alison Cayne, founder of havens Kitchen, shares how she navigates through this crisis, setting her organization, business and brand up to not only survive but thrive, where possible. And she does so in her own humble, ethical but efficient and entrepreneurial way. Continue reading

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Haven’s Kitchen: About Sharing Life Skills and Sauces – Alison Cayne, Founder

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Alison Cayne, Founder of Haven’s Kitchen, a cooking school and packaged food purveyor in New York tells us how her brand is made for ‘hustlers’ like her. This story is about a purpose-led and disciplined approach to brand- and business building, sans the ‘unicorn’ glazing. Continue reading

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FRoSTA: Putting your Money Where Your Mission Is – Felix Ahlers, CEO

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Felix Ahlers, CEO of European frozen foods company FRoSTA tells us how he evolved and elevated the mission of the industrial food processor to: “Preparing meals the way grandma would” – using only natural ingredients and no synthetic additives. He shares lessons learned along the way that traditional manufacturers struggling to adjust to peoples’ desires for a wholesome lifestyle and a healthy environment should learn from. Continue reading

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TerraCycle: How To Brand Waste – Tom Szaky, CEO and Co-Founder explains

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TerraCycle founder and CEO Tom Szaky tells us about how he is pushing “Eliminating the Idea of Waste” and his brand to the top of mind of consumers and packaged goods manufacturers alike. Without spending a dollar on advertising but by expending lots of energy and creativity against a vision he wants us to share. Continue reading

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Trust and a shared Truth are key to Airbnb’s Success – Douglas Atkin, ex-Global Head of Community explains

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Airbnb’s former Global Head of Community – Douglas Atkin – tells us about how he helped the platform find a purpose and the central role it- and engineering social Trust have played in making Airbnb an Ueber-Brand. Among many other insights. Enjoy! Continue reading

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Purpose and Promotion Don’t Mix Well – Ben & Jerry’s Global Social Mission Officer Dave Rapaport explains

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Ben & Jerry’s Global Social Social Mission Officer Dave Rapaport tells us what it takes to be an authentic, purpose-led but profitable brand. Hints: Do not mix purpose and promotion – in a marketing kind of way – and stand up to be counted… when it really counts. Continue reading

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Ueber-Branding Social Enterprise? – JP interviewed by Impact Boom

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UEBER-BRANDING SOCIAL ENTERPRISES? – Absolutely! If people are not aware of social enterprises and their causes, then their possible impact remains limited. Using the ‘Ueber-Branding’ approach makes particular sense, since social enterprise comes with a desirable element in their DNA which other companies often lack: A higher purpose. Hear more on the subject in this interview. Continue reading

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Are Social Issues a ‘Proven Marketing Tool’ now?

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After promoting ‘Like-A-Girl,’ ‘MeanStinks,’ ‘Boss-vs-Bossy,’ ‘SorryNotSorry,’ ‘ShareTheLoad,’… social messages on its Always, Secret, Pantene, Ariel… brands, respectively, P&G is at ‘social issue advertising’ again as it “bravely ignites this dialogue [about ‘toxic masculinity’ as the WSJ put it] with its … Continue reading

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Make ‘Brand Purpose’ Real – or it risks to back-fire

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Advertising a higher brand purpose can create appeal and elevate a brand. But done wrong it can backfire, create disillusionment with the brand and damage engagement on the purpose. The key lies in the doing vs the saying, as we will see. Continue reading

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Master Myth Maker – Ramdane Touhami, mind behind Buly and other exquisite Brands

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An interview with Prestige brand creator extraordinaire Ramdane Touhami. He is the mind and myth-maker behind brands like Cire Trudon and L’Officine Universelle Buly. You will also find plenty of background materials in this podcast note. Continue reading

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Does Product Top Purpose? – Halo Top’s ‘full pint’ vs Ben & Jerry’s ‘double dip’

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If you live in the US and have any interest in ice cream – or consume social media with any regularity (and the two seem to correlate) – then you will have heard about ‘Halo Top’.  The premium ice cream’s … Continue reading

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B2B Beyond The Material – Interview with Mohawk Fine Papers’ Creative Director Christopher Harrold

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Can the Ueber-Brand principles be applied to B2B brands to elevate them in the minds of professional buyers and make them ‘priceless’ – or at least less dependent on pricing?  The short answer is “Absolutely, Yes!”  But, we know, people are hungry for examples, so we talked with Christopher Harrold, Creative Director at Mohawk how this fine paper maker is not only surviving but thriving in an increasingly digital world. Continue reading

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Ueber-Brand Activation: Chobani Tops Treats with Tolerance

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Few brands are born Ueber-Brands.  Like most humans, most brands start out wanting to do a good job and establish themselves. It’s only later that some of them feel the need to ‘dig deeper,’ find a higher calling and sharing … Continue reading

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Taking Brands and People Üeber – JP interviewed by getAbstract co-founder Patrick Brigger

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Can Ueber-Branding be applied to any industry and brand… and people? How do Ueber-Brands elevate themselves above the rest? How do they attract people? – Not only as buyers but as employees? … These are just some of the questions Patrick Brigger asked me in this interview. Continue reading

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Rethinking Prestige Branding – A 10 Minute Q&A

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The expert Book review site ‘getabstract’ gave us a pretty rare 8 of 10 rating and felt compelled to interview us about modern Prestige branding afterwards.  We (humbly) thought our answers are well worth sharing with our readers, too… and … Continue reading

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A Brand Built On ‘Less’? – Interview with Brandless co-founder Tina Sharkey

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‘Brandless’ is the only ‘brand’ you can buy at the eponymous e-grocer that carries the same name.  As co-founder Tina Sharkey explains, young ‘Brandless’ is not about the absence of identity or meaning and being a brand in that sense. … Continue reading

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Making Slow Fashion Grow – Interview with Raleigh Denim Workshop co-founder Victor Lytvinenko

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Victor and his wife Sarah are in love with making jeans the old, slow way in their Raleigh Denim Workshop. They sewed them themselves and proudly signed every pair when they started out in 2007.  But in the meantime, they … Continue reading

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Article: How modern prestige brands create meaning through mission

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In this article for the Journal of Brand Strategy (Henry Stewart Publications, Spring 2017), we examine how some modern prestige brands  go beyond traditional strategies of luxury marketing like exclusiveness, provenance or precious materials to make us want them.  They create “meaning beyond the material” by redefining their categories, setting new standards and – for the best among them – by embracing and living ideals people aspire to. – We call them Ueber-Brands, as you likely know by now Continue reading

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Vanguard Investments – From ‘Folly’ to Fiduciary Giant

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As we work with clients on elevating their brands two questions arise repeatedly:  Can ‘ueber-branding’ be applied to more ‘technical’ categories – beyond luxury or lifestyle?  And do Ueber-Brand products HAVE to be premium priced? The short answer is ‘yes’ and … Continue reading

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Burt’s Bees – Mission, Myth and a Buzzing Business – Interview with Jim Geikie, General Manager

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Yes, Burt really existed. The wild-bearded man on the brand’s logo was a documentary photographer turned beekeeper after moving from Manhattan to Maine. He left behind the trappings of a rather privileged upbringing to live in a converted turkey coop in the backwoods (where he … Continue reading

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The Tesla Tease: Exclusivity through Complicity

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Prestige brands don’t have it easy. We don’t want them to sell to us (in fact, they should ‘un-sell‘), but we love for them to seduce us. They must make us desire them, not just need them, for only then might we be willing to … Continue reading

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Growing with Gravitas – Shang Xia, Hermès’ Chinese Offspring

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Chinese artisan brand Shang Xia is a good example of a brand mastering two key ingredients to build a modern prestige brand: A strong sense of mission and the patience to grow with gravitas. The brand also showcases parent company Hermès’ genius … Continue reading

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Profit and/or Purpose? – Interview with Venture Capitalist and Social Activist David Batstone

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David Batstone is not one to be easily typecast.  As you learn more about David you might get a bit perplexed not only by the uncounted, very public projects in which he plays a leading role or the multitude of positions he holds but … Continue reading

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Patagonia – The Activist Company – Interview with Vincent Stanley, Director of Philosophy

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Patagonia is the quintessential Ueber-Brand. This brand is fascinating and we have written extensively about what we think drives and sustains its success in our latest book as well as on this blog.  But it is quite another thing to hear it … Continue reading

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A Freitag Visit – Manufacturing as Manifestation of Mission

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Freitag is a Swiss bag, accessory and – most recently – fashion brand. Its legend begins in 1993, when young brothers and design students Markus and Daniel Freitag looked out of their apartment window in the Zurich suburbs and into a … Continue reading

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Audemars Piguet – Adversity and Complications Make a Brand – Interview with Tim Sayler, CMO

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Audemars Piguet is up there, even in the already elevated world of ‘haute horlogerie’ and the Swiss Alps.  Le Brassus in the high valley of Joux is the birthplace and still the place of hand-crafting AP watches as Tim Sayler, … Continue reading

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Secrets of the Ueber-Brands

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Why do some pay a relative fortune for a MINI car, Renova toilet paper or a skin cream and detergent from Aesop when those seem to have none of the ‘functional superiority’ conventional marketers would seek to demonstrate? Why were … Continue reading

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Lakrids – A Liquorice Brand To Long For – Interview with Peter Husted Sylvest, Director of Sales

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If you are familiar with the ‘Hero’s Journey’ as described by Joseph Campbell, then the trials and tribulations Johan Buelow went through to concoct and share the perfect batch of liquorice – and create a thriving company on the way – will sound mighty familiar.  It … Continue reading

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Patagonia – A Meaningful Exploration of Nature

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Most of us associate Patagonia with the rugged, southernmost tip of America and/or with a brand of colorful, high-tech, high quality (and  somewhat high priced) outdoor clothes one would wear to explore that place.  And most of us have at least a feeling … Continue reading

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Seedlip: Beyond Making Teetotaling Totally Trendy – Interview with Ben Branson, Founder

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What do if you like cocktail parties or ‘having a drink with the mates’ but not the alcohol that usually goes with them? Ben Branson often felt silly, sometimes socially stigmatized with his glass of (sugary) water, juice or ‘mocktail’ in hand – who … Continue reading

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Shinola: From Shining Shoes to Lifestyle Star – Interview with Bridget Russo, CMO

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One of the founders commented ‘You don’t know shxx from Shinola!‘ during a meeting – This is how an American saying lead to the rebirth of the formerly popular shoe polish it is referring to … at least according to Bridget Russo, CMO Shinola who shared … Continue reading

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Truth in Beauty: The Body Shop 4.0?

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It went through all trade magazines and most others in February that The Body Shop, the sometimes more infamous than famous poster girl of eco-beauty, is launching a new and quite ambitious CSR program titled ‘Enrich not Exploit’. Right in … Continue reading

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The Artisanal – Between Fads and Truth

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In our book ‘Rethinking Prestige Branding – Secrets of the Ueber-Brands’ (Schaefer / Kuehlwein, 2015) we discuss the omnipresent trend towards ‘Artisanalization’, reviewing quite a number of examples like Smith & Norbu, maker of bespoke optical frames, Yuan, hand-crafter of soaps, Lakrids, inventor of … Continue reading

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Chipotle – The Genius and Power of Naïveté – Interview with William Espey, Brand Voice Lead Chipotle Mexican Grill – Podcast Episode 05

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In this episode we talk to William Espey, Brand Voice Lead at Chipotle Mexican Grill, the booming ‘casual food’ restaurant chain sought out by most for offering hearty burritos at a relatively low price*, admired by many for being an advocate for … Continue reading

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A Beauty Insider’s Look at Ueber-Branding

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We had the honor to be invited to talk about ‘Ueber-Branding’ by the Fashion Institute of Technology and the Luxury Marketing Council in New York and also bring along a panel of friends from Moleskine, The Laundress, CO Bigelow and Dunnhumby. … Continue reading

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Building a Brand on Bricks and Beliefs – Brunello Cucinelli – Podcast Episode 02

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We are discussing Brunello Cucinelli, the ‘Cashmere King’ and his eponymous brand with David LaRocca author, film maker and scholar of philosophy. David, like us, has been fascinated by Brunello, who says he is guided by the great historic thinkers … Continue reading

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The Draw of Bespoke and Subtle Sophistication – Benoit Ams, Smith & Norbu

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In this inaugural episode we talk to Benoit Ams, founder, owner, designer …. Renaissance Man extraordinaire at Smith & Norbu, a brand that offers tailor-made, subtly branded eye-wear for sophisticated clients. The Smith & Norbu optical frames are made from yak horn, which Benoit … Continue reading

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Pride, Provocation, Perfection – Bravo ‘Magnum’

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There is an old saying in beauty and fashion: ‘With every millimeter the mouth opens, the price point goes down a notch’. Low priced mass brands can be all smile and approachable in their ads, they even have to be, … Continue reading

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How can Beauty Brand Hopes and Dreams hold up in front of the Digital Mirror?

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“Beauty is hope. It’s about our dreams and aspirations. Yet, as with everything, digital has made reality creep up on it big time. Where beauty brands, especially prestige ones, once fancied themselves as hovering above the fray in a realm … Continue reading

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Rethinking Prestige Branding – Secrets of the ‘Ueber-Brands’

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After some 4 years, 75+ interviews, 150 cases studied and uncounted conversations Wolf Schaefer and JP Kuehlwein are proud to present their latest book ‘Rethinking Prestige Branding – Secrets of the Ueber-Brands’ (Kogan Page Publishing).  You can order it online (links below) … Continue reading

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The Mini – Underdog makes Űberbrand

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The Mini is a runaway success by most measures – except size, maybe.  Who would have thought that this quirky, tiny car could carve out significant market share, again, when most other brands were talking size, comfort or power? And … Continue reading

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CSR 2.0: The Rise of a New Functionalism in Brand Building

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I’m always the first to argue the importance of emotion, execution and style when it comes to Super Premium brands (see my post “Fashion Forward“). But it’s the fusion and careful balance of both, appearance and essence, that does the … Continue reading

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Don’t ‘Talk It Up’ But ‘Talk Your Own’ To Create an ‘Ueber-Brand’

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We say in our premium branding model that “the first rule is to make your own” as one strives to develop brand myth and meaning. – It’s ‘Mission Incomparable’.   Many premium brands are about identity construction.  They help customers to … Continue reading

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Aesop – Fabled Brand, Fabulous Marketing

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 – the Australian boutique Beauty Care brand founded in 1987 – intuitively masters the art of “class branding”.  It is a perfect case to illustrate key principles that – when lived by – can lift  a brand above the masses.  Of course their … Continue reading

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Hoshinoya Resorts – Host to a Myth and to those on a Quest

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We met the Marketing Manager of Hoshino Resorts last week at a meeting in Tokyo. She gave us a vivid account of the marketing and business model behind the unique, Japanese luxury resort and spa brand – Hoshinoya.  But most … Continue reading

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