Thank you to Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and Black At, Peter Ukhurebor, Thembisile Sehloho, for the insightful discussion on how culture drives brands last week at the Forum in the Palais. We explored the impact of black culture on fashion and music, along with the diverse cultural influences from Xosa to Zulu in South Africa. I spoke about the value of UGG being at the center of culture. Sharing our learnings, we emphasized the importance of bravery, presence, and consistency for brand success.
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5 Key Takeaways:
1. **Authenticity is Key**: Connect with communities genuinely tied to your brand and show up in a real way. Example - Cardi B had been a huge fan of the brand and championing #Uggseason since 2017 when we decided to make it official last year.
2. **Partnership is like a Marriage**: Emphasize mutual benefits and nurture relationships beyond transactions. Thembe emphasized the power of 1 1 = 3, and always looking to create magic in the relationship.
3. **Allow Your Partners to Drive**: Empower the talent to lead the creative vision to have the most authentic cultural connections. It may be uncomfortable to give up control, but it’s worth it to respect and value the creativity of your talent partners. Our collaborations at UGG lean into the creativity of our partners from product to marketing.
4. **Build a Community**: Lead with unique experiences, memorable moments and leverage technology to engage a broader audience. Thembe shared her use of technology to bring the beauty of South Africa to the masses through an AI generated Dome, and I shared how important it was for us to bring so many diverse creators from around the world to Iceland to view the beauty of the Northern lights for our UGGExtreme launch. They were inspired and they inspired their communities. #unforgettablemoments #inspiration
5. **Support Emerging Voices**: Provide a platform for emerging creatives, designers, and artists to expand their distribution and gain even more international visibility. Our collaboration with Telfar has been particularly rewarding. Telfar, cherished in New York for his #brooklynbirken that sells out in minutes, has now showcased his story from Selfridges in London to pop-ups in Tokyo, Japan leveraging our reach and scale. That's so powerful.
I am really excited for all that we are doing at UGG to show up with our partners and communities in the most relevant ways. Brands should continue to be brave, bold and consistent to show up in culture and with communities that truly makes sense for their brands. Thank you to my powerhouse of a team who always stays ‘in the know’ and champions our partners, and thank you to Deckers Brands for the internal support and leadership alignment! #CultureDrivenBrands #BrandSuccess #PartnershipMatters #CannesLions2024
