Six things I know how to do.
Twenty-five years distilled into six interrelated practices. They work as lenses for reading a brand problem. Most projects touch three or four of them at once.
01 International development
Opening markets, building local offices, scaling brands from headquarters to the field.
- Aēsop Italy. Founded the Italian branch of an Australian luxury cosmetics brand. From zero to first stores in twelve months.
- Reflex Milan. Opened the Italian office of an international agency with hubs in NY, Paris, Shanghai, London.
- Diesel France and Germany. Local marketing and communication leadership during expansion years.
02 New categories
Bringing into a market a product type that wasn't there before. Part research, part design, part patience.
- Aēsop. Market entry of Australian apothecary cosmetics into Italy, a country with strong incumbent luxury beauty brands.
- Eastpak Apparel. Expansion of a backpack and luggage leader into a new clothing line.
- NOVA. The first Italian interactive art exhibition with integrated AI, opening 2025.
03 Licensing
Coordinating a brand's expression across licensed product partners. Keeping the voice consistent when many hands are at work.
- Diesel France. Communication alignment across L'Oréal (fragrance), Safilo (eyewear), Fossil (watches).
- Multi-line coordination at Diesel HQ across Diesel, 55DSL, Kid, Denim Gallery, Black Gold.
04 Retail strategy
Designing distribution, store networks, and the texture of physical retail experience.
- Aēsop store openings in Italy. From real estate to opening day, with attention to materials, light, and staff training.
- Aēsop Melbourne years. Global retail expansion strategy at headquarters across 18 countries.
- Diesel Germany. Distribution network repositioning to support a brand repositioning.
05 Marketing, end to end
From brand strategy to product to in-store communication. Holding the line of consistency from the headquarters table to the shelf.
- Aēsop Melbourne. General manager for marketing, creative and product. Sustainable growth strategy with the founder and CEO.
- Diesel France. Marketing director across all lines, with local adaptation of international strategy.
- Eastpak EMEA. Marketing direction during repositioning in a tightening competitive landscape.
06 Brand repositioning
Helping an established brand change how the market reads it. Often the slowest of these six practices, always the most political.
- Eastpak 2008. Repositioning the brand for a tightening competitive landscape, with an apparel line to broaden category presence.
- Diesel Germany. Distribution and communication repositioning for a stronger premium signal.
- Most current agency clients arrive with this need, in some form.