We think we choose brands. But brands choose us first.
With carefully crafted stories, messages, and offers.
They imprint on us. They shape how we see ourselves. They influence how we behave. They leave an emotional and psychological footprint — sometimes without us even knowing.
But in today's marketing world, brand has been stripped to its bones. More CAC spreadsheets than customer insights. More noise, less meaning. More emails, fewer breakthroughs. More reach, less resonance.
It's a tragedy, really.
Brandlust is my rebellion against this tragedy.
The Brandlust story started long before Substack. Way back in the early 2000s, I fell head over heels for brands like Virgin — brands that didn't just sell products but rewrote the rules of customer experience. It was thrilling.
Later, I found my tribe of mentors in the ideas of Marty Neumeier, Kevin Roberts, Frank Kern, Donald Miller, and more recently the existentially sharp minds behind
.Their work lights a fire in me: To tell the truth about what branding really is. To remind businesses that they're not just building pipelines — they're shaping people's lives.
And to use writing as a way to hold up the mirror to brands that get it right, and brands that still don't.
So what exactly is Brandlust?
It's not just a publication. It's a lens. A voice. A provocation.
It's where I explore how brands show up in the world — intentionally or not — and how that shapes our sense of identity, value, trust, and belonging.
Through Brandlust, you'll get:
A Brand Story that zooms in on a moment, message or campaign worth thinking about, worth talking about, worth dissecting
A Strategic Insight that decodes the deeper human truth behind it
A Template or Framework to help you apply it to your own work
And every Sunday, a Quickie: a rapid-fire take on a brand moment that hit — or totally missed
Here's what makes Brandlust different:
While others talk tactics, I talk strategy, creativity, clarity & humanity.
No hacks, no trending tactics, just timeless principles.
Soulful strategy. Frameworks that honour the craft. And a fresh lens on the brands that are shaping our lives — for better or worse.
Whether you're deep in the trenches of GTM, building brand from scratch, or just trying to make your work more meaningful again, you'll find ideas here that help you zoom out, see clearly, and create more bravely again.
Because brand isn't just about getting attention. It's about what you do with it.
Stephanie x
