The Identity Layer: Why Consumers Aren't Obsessed with Your Brand (And What to Do About It)

Recorded live at the Retail Collective Summit, this panel of elite industry leaders and marketing executives dismantles a massive industry fallacy: consumers aren't obsessed with your brand, they are obsessed with themselves. To drive real loyalty, speakers explain why companies must tap into the "identity layer," ritualizing products so that using them says something bold about the consumer's own lifestyle. The discussion delivers an honest reality check on the current oversaturated creator landscape, outlining why transactional brand deals fail and why true marketing conversion requires co-creating authentic content alongside target communities.
The panelists also tackle the operational friction of investment strategy, mapping out how to balance short-term performance metrics with long-term brand equity campaigns that require patience to mature. By breaking down the essential connection between product design timelines and upstream marketing teams, this session offers an integrated playbook on how to build a unified brand engine that successfully captures consumer attention and drives sustainable growth.
Moderators: Matt Behrend & Daniel Lemaire - Agility Ads
Panelists: Kristin Harrer (FMR. VANS, Samsung, T-Mobile, Nike) - Jacob Zuppke (Whisker) - Larry D. Hall Jr. (LHSC Inc) - Nathan Wigglesworth (Wigz)