Marketing Shed

McLaren’s New Logo and the Case for Daydreaming

Paul Duxbury — Fri, 02 Oct 2026 12:48:33 GMT

Warren Fiveash and Paul Duxbury explore what McLaren’s new logo might signal about the brand’s ambitions and why a visual identity change should be judged in the context of business strategy.

They also discuss how daydreaming and unstructured thinking can help marketers process information, spot patterns, and make better decisions in a world full of meetings and distractions. Along the way, they share thoughts on more practical formats for professional events, brand expansion, and the value of making time to think.

In this episode:

What McLaren’s rebrand could mean for expanding beyond cars and motorsport
How brand positioning and visual identity need to work together
Why a problem-solving forum can offer more than another expert panel
How time away from constant input can support clearer thinking
The balance between data, experience, and intuition in marketing

Is AI being adopted at a rapid rate?

Paul Duxbury — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 08:18:46 GMT

AI is moving fast, but the real question is not whether it can do more. It’s whether it is actually making businesses smarter, stronger, and more profitable.

Warren Fiveash and Paul Duxbury unpack the gap between hype and reality, from enterprise-wide AI adoption to the hidden costs, missed opportunities, and human skills that still matter most.

Paul shares a sharp perspective from his work on strategic presence, executive influencing, and storytelling with data, including the mistake people make when they forget the actual decision they are trying to drive.

Warren brings the latest on AI adoption trends, including McKinsey’s finding that 44% of large organizations are now scaling AI across the enterprise, while smaller businesses risk being left behind.

You’ll discover:

Why AI can feel more productive without always producing better work
How AI users may feel faster without necessarily producing more effective output
Why marketers need stronger commercial skills to influence across the business
Is Denby's downfall due to a lack of focus on consumer needs? And are pubs guilty of the same?
How data visualization and storytelling turn information into action
What AI means for the future of human-made creative work

The conversation explores the Denby pottery story in Derbyshire as a cautionary tale about brand survival, consumer needs, and whether better adaptation could have changed the outcome. That leads into a wider discussion about what happens when legacy businesses fail to evolve and why some categories, such as pubs, may need to rethink their model entirely.

This episode is essential listening if you care about marketing strategy, executive influence, brand resilience, or the future of AI in business. For practical insight without the hype, and a clear-eyed look at what is changing and what still is not - this conversation delivers it.

#AI in business #artificial intelligence #marketing strategy #business strategy #executive influence #storytelling with data #data visualization #brand resilience #business transformation #AI adoption #productivity #commercial skills #creative work #legacy businesses #consumer behaviour #brand adaptation #marketing leadership

Was Dolly Parton the best at personal branding?

Paul Duxbury — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 12:14:08 GMT

In this episode, we discus the innovative introduction of pizza crumpets, and the change in size of Mars bars (more shrinkflation!).

Key takeaways:

* The clever marketing strategy behind pizza crumpets.
* The surprising discovery of a 35-year-old Mars bar and its implications on consumer products.
* The legacy of Dolly Parton as a master of personal branding.
* The rise of BBC Radio Three Unwind and its unique approach to audience engagement.

Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:30 Summer Nostalgia
02:00 Pizza Crumpets Innovation
04:00 Mars Bar Discovery
06:00 Dolly Parton's Branding Genius
09:00 BBC Radio Three Unwind

What's your biggest takeaway from today's discussion? Drop your thoughts in the comments!

Subscribe for more marketing insights and personal branding tips!

#MarketingInsights #PersonalBranding #FoodInnovation

The Hidden Cost of Fake Discounts and Auto-Renewal Tricks

Paul Duxbury — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 20:55:54 GMT

Marketing is failing in the places where trust matters most. In this episode, Warren Fiveash and Paul Duxbury unpack why fake discounts, confusing subscriptions, and awkward cancellation flows are damaging long-term brand value.

They also explore what marketing really is in practice: helping businesses make better, more intentional decisions around pricing, positioning, and customer needs.

From small business examples to ethical marketing and audience profiling, this conversation gets into the real-world impact of trust, transparency, and consistency. Key topics:

Why misleading discounts backfire
How subscription tactics damage trust
What “real” marketing looks like in small businesses
The role of ethics and transparency
Turning audience insight into action

If you care about pricing strategy, consumer trust, and building a stronger brand, this one is for you.

#Marketing #BrandTrust #PricingStrategy #ConsumerTrust #EthicalMarketing #BusinessStrategy #SmallBusinessMarketing #CustomerExperience #SubscriptionModel #MarketingPodcast

The reason why globalised marketing could be over

Paul Duxbury — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 20:48:58 GMT

For years, marketing has been built around big nationwide or global events - from live music at the world's biggest stadiums to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

But with mixed reviews of the World Cup and controversy and cynicism around the approach to commercialising it further, are people beginning to lose faith in large events and products?

In this week's show, Warren and Paul discuss why things are beginning to change and whether we reached peak consumerism.

early release MS 11 Aug

Paul Duxbury — Fri, 14 Aug 2026 05:11:21 GMT

Quick review of the next episode

Behind the Scenes: Which surprising brands do you find at Silverstone?

Paul Duxbury — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 12:28:49 GMT

Paul and Warren discuss the value of developing communication skills in marketing, particularly when getting across the value to Chief Finance Officers, and Chief Executives. Warren describes how you can win at communications and advice and tips on what you need to do.

Paul takes us behind the scenes at the British F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone. He gives his perspective on the brand associations at the event, and why some brands might surprise you. Who do you think was present at the F1? And what have pigeons got to do with brand and perspective?

#brandstrategy #f1 #silverstone #marketing #marketingshed #sportmarketing #retailmarketing

Why Covering a Logo Made Levi's Stronger

Paul Duxbury — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 13:08:16 GMT

Warren and Paul break down three marketing stories from the week, starting with FIFA's not-so-subtle "hydration breaks" that are really advertising breaks, and the brilliant way Levi's turned having their stadium logo covered up into a masterclass in distinctive brand assets.

Then Warren's got a bone to pick with Butlin's new "swap boring for fun" campaign — is it smart positioning, or does it insult the very families it's trying to convert? And Warren pitches an invention every sleep-deprived parent would queue up for.

Warren Fiveash: / warrenfiveash
Paul Duxbury: / paulduxbury

#MarketingPodcast #BrandStrategy #DistinctiveAssets #SportsMarketing #FIFA #Levis #Butlins #MarketingNews

Ferrari Luce: Why Everyone Is Wrong About It

Paul Duxbury — Mon, 08 Jun 2026 19:33:01 GMT

Ferrari Luce launches — and the internet loses its mind. Warren and Paul think they're all wrong. Here's why.

Plus: Are websites about to become obsolete? With AI glasses arriving and generative search reshaping how people find brands, this may be Web 3.0 — and it's already started.

This week on the Marketing Shed:

🚗 Ferrari Luce — a design disaster or a future classic? Paul draws the line from the Citroën DS and the Sydney Opera House to the original Apple iMac. The critics are entitled to their opinion. They're still wrong.

👓 Google's AI glasses are back — and they raise a serious question for every marketer: when people start walking around asking AI what to buy, do we still need websites the way we used to? Warren makes the case for a quiet tipping point.

🤖 The gap nobody's talking about in L&D — Paul's big takeaway from the Econsultancy Capability Leaders Forum: capability builders are designing interventions for a world that has already moved on. Learners are learning in the flow of work, right now, using AI. Is your organisation ready?

🎂 Paul turns 60 — and is heading to Wimbledon for the first time to mark the occasion.

📣 Speaking event — Warren and Paul are taking their act on the road. They'll be speaking at the Play AI London Marketing Summit on 2nd July at the Bankside Hotel, London. Tickets: search 'PLAI London Marketing Summit'.

Warren Fiveash and Paul Duxbury are marketers who break down what actually matters — from brand strategy and consumer behaviour to AI, culture, and the future of the industry. No buzzwords. No waffle. Just the marketing conversation you actually want to have.

🎙️ New episodes every week — subscribe so you never miss one.

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00:00 Paul turns 60 — and why your 60s might be your best decade
03:00 UK staycations: why this country undersells itself
06:00 AI and the death of the learning intervention
10:30 Google AI glasses and the end of website browsing as we know it
14:30 Ferrari Luce — why the critics are wrong (and the share price will recover)
19:30 Week ahead: speaking at Play AI London Marketing Summit

Danone Just Bought Huel — Will Its Loyal Customers Walk Away?

Paul Duxbury — Thu, 21 May 2026 13:28:07 GMT

Huel’s £1billion acquisition by Danone is a real success story for a brand that’s been built over 10 years. However, will a brand built organically and through a loyal customer base, find it struggles to maintain that as part of a corporate brand? Super fan Paul’s discusses the relationship.

We also discuss Warren’s experience of Specsavers and has football nostalgia gone too far with La Liga’s retro shirt weekend?

#laliga #nostalgiamarketing #strategy #retroshirts #huel #danone #customerloyalty

Is Amazon Prime Actually a Loyalty Scheme?

Paul Duxbury — Thu, 21 May 2026 12:56:27 GMT

Warren logged into Amazon Prime and found a product at one price.
He signed out. The same product was cheaper.

Amazon knew his purchase history. It knew he'd probably buy it anyway.
So it charged him more.

Is that a loyalty scheme — or the opposite of one?

In this week's episode, Warren and Paul dig into what Amazon Prime
actually is — and whether the loyalty label still holds up when the
platform knows your behaviour better than you do.

Also this week:
→ Two ads banned by the ASA for misleading pricing claims (Premier Inn isn't the only one)
→ The quiet power of the Post-it note — and why in-person meetings
still do something Zoom can't replicate
→ What the Amazon pricing story means for every brand that calls
itself "customer-first"

🎙️ The Marketing Shed — Warren Fiveash and Paul Duxbury break down
what's actually happening in the marketing world. No fluff.
No buzzwords. Just what matters.

📩 Get in touch: marketingshed1@gmail.com

#AmazonPrime #BrandLoyalty #MisleadingAdvertising

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Personal Updates
08:28 Marketing and Consumer Trust
15:21 Consumer Behavior and Perception in Marketing