Uncensored CMO How brand can become your company’s greatest asset - Jonny Bauer
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Aug 27, 2025 Jonny Bauer, founder of Fundamental Co. and former Chief Strategy Officer at Droga5, shares insights on leveraging brand as a powerful asset. He discusses his transformation of the Axe brand and the strategic lessons learned during his move from advertising to private equity. Jonny emphasizes the importance of aligning marketing with business strategy and offers tips for gaining CEO buy-in. He also shares compelling case studies showcasing brand-led growth and the necessity of embedding branding in the P&L for sustained success.
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Droga5's Air Force One Stunt
- Droga5's early Air Force One stunt blurred fiction and news to generate cultural attention.
- It established a new playbook for viral, behavior-focused marketing in a changing digital landscape.
Brand As A Foundational Company Idea
- Brand can be a company-organizing idea, not just a logo or ad campaign.
- Private equity offers a receptive context to put brand upstream in value-creation when companies are changing ownership.
Embed Brand In Value Creation
- Bring brand upstream in the investment sequence so it informs acquisitions, product and hiring.
- Use a 'value creation strategy' as a filter that aligns interventions across the business.