“It’s not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” – Charles Darwin.
Oh how true this is… the theme from yet another empowering and inspiring Better By Design CEO Summit event that we were fortunate enough to attend – hearing case studies from NZ and abroad companies doing epic things. Some pretty awesome concepts, ideas and executions that we can be applying to our world at Sequal.
We believe it is important to not only do the things we do right, but also constantly be looking for ways we can be doing things better – this is what will define our future – and a little added inspiration is always appreciated.
A highlight of the summit was Doug Palladini’s presentation from Vans shoes. The company has grown tenfold in the past 15 years – and how did they do it?
- They rearticulated their purpose – From being a company that just sold skate shoes and t-shirts to having a clearly established purpose to “allow people to creatively express themselves”.
- They decided what they were, and what they were not – they applied 4 filters to their brand/business/offerings: Art, Action, Music, Street Culture – and applied this mindset… “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should”.
e.g. They stopped trying to do baseball/sports shoes and rollerblades because they don’t fit into any of these filters. - They adopted this philosophy: Open to anyone, not for everyone.
- And this one: Be hungry. But humble.
With Van’s purpose to allow people to creatively express themselves, they’ve encouraged a genuine emotional connection with the brand.
One of their recent campaigns is about encouraging women in India to be able to express themselves through skateboarding. Check out this epic video of them sending pro skaters to India to inspire young women/girls to skate. There’s a real clear message about giving women the ability to express themselves – not to mention the incredible talent of some of these youngsters.
NZTE have done a fantastic job yet again bringing an event and speakers of this calibre to share their journeys with us and provide us with some food for thought. Props to them for the endless time and effort that goes into putting on an event like this. Already looking forward to next year!