Amanda Lee Smith talks to some of the world’s best marketers to hear their path into marketing, and the story behind one career-defining campaign—their first global spot, a major rebrand, a video that went viral, or maybe something that just changed the way people saw their brand.
EA Sports FC (formerly FIFA) has an audacious goal of reaching one billion soccer fans with their games and digital properties—and Nicholas Lammie is leading the charge for the brand. He also led the brand through a monumental relaunch when EA and FIFA dissolved their partnership after 30 years. He shares how they did it, launching around the world with 200 partners—including David Beckham, ManCity and Real Madrid—simultaneously. He also shares how he scored his first job at EA, and how he gathered 17 of football’s greatest in one studio for a single photoshoot.
Content was the secret to Rapha’s huge rise in the cycling world, and Luke O’Shea has the story of how a small global team made 21 films around the world in just a year. As the head of Marketing and Sales for Asia Pacific he oversaw many of them, and he shares how they built consistency across continents, while keeping the films locally relevant. We talk about secrets to working in founder-led companies, and the arc of Luke’s 20-year career that spans his early days at Asics to his current photography projects with Sydney FC and endurance sports.
Meow Wolf is a surrealist fever dream—a large-scale psychedelic wonderland with five locations. And Didi Bethurum is at the helm of the creative team that keeps selling out openings in cities like Las Vegas, Houston and Denver. Sometimes that means taking big creative risks, like a teaser billboard campaign that doesn’t even name the brand. Didi walks us through the steps that made Meow Wolf’s Denver launch a landmark success.
Amanda loves exploring and sharing new ideas. She designed and teaches a course at the University of British Columbia and regularly speaks on panels, podcasts, and stages—including SXSW and the Sustainable Fashion Forum. Beyond branding and marketing, she particularly likes to explore ideas in innovation, circularity and regenerative capitalism.
Amanda Lee Smith is the CEO and co-founder of Monday—a branding and creative agency in Vancouver. With clients including Adidas, Arc’teryx, lululemon, and Allbirds, Monday builds brands that enhance human potential and help us form deeper connections with each other and nature.