Channels
Notes and perspectives from the Value Proposition Studio.
Notes from the studio.
01 / Channels
Positioning · Sep 21, 2026
Lululemon: a premise written by yoga teachers, and what happens when it gets wider
Lululemon grew by recruiting local instructors as the face of each store and selling to people who practised. Between 2024 and 2026 its home market stalled, rivals took share and the founder fought the board. A case on premise and the cost of widening it.
Read articlePortfolio and rhyming · Sep 16, 2026
Google gives away platforms to protect the business that pays for them
Android and Chrome cost their users nothing and carry Google's services to billions of screens. In 2026 Gemini is being pushed through the same channels. A case on the Platform Turn, and on the launches that never repeated into a beat.
Positioning · Aug 18, 2026
Bud Light in 2023: one sponsored post, two audiences and an undeclared premise
In April 2023 a single Instagram partnership set off a boycott of Bud Light, which lost its place as America's best-selling beer within weeks. A case on premise, channel spillover and why a response that tries to please every audience can lose all of them.
Channels · Aug 17, 2026
The Michelin Guide: a tyre company that gave people a reason to drive
In 1900 André and Édouard Michelin handed out a free guide for motorists. A case on building the channel that creates demand for your product, and the credibility that channel needs to survive.
Lululemon: a premise written by yoga teachers, and what happens when it gets wider
Lululemon grew by recruiting local instructors as the face of each store and selling to people who practised. Between 2024 and 2026 its home market stalled, rivals took share and the founder fought the board. A case on premise and the cost of widening it.
Positioning · Channels · Premise, promise, proof · In the news
Read articleGoogle gives away platforms to protect the business that pays for them
Android and Chrome cost their users nothing and carry Google's services to billions of screens. In 2026 Gemini is being pushed through the same channels. A case on the Platform Turn, and on the launches that never repeated into a beat.
Portfolio and rhyming · Moat · Channels · In the news
Read articleBud Light in 2023: one sponsored post, two audiences and an undeclared premise
In April 2023 a single Instagram partnership set off a boycott of Bud Light, which lost its place as America's best-selling beer within weeks. A case on premise, channel spillover and why a response that tries to please every audience can lose all of them.
Positioning · Channels · Autopsy · In the news
Read articleThe Michelin Guide: a tyre company that gave people a reason to drive
In 1900 André and Édouard Michelin handed out a free guide for motorists. A case on building the channel that creates demand for your product, and the credibility that channel needs to survive.
Channels · Category design · Brand history
Read articleNike went back to sport, and back to the shops it had left
Nike's push to sell direct cut back its wholesale partners, and by 2024 growth had stalled. A case on channels as part of the value proposition, and on the premise a brand returns to when it loses its footing.
Channels · Positioning · In the news
Read articleTupperware: the party built the brand, and the brand never found another room
Tupperware left the shops in the 1950s and sold through home parties for decades. When the parties faded the company tried the shelf twice, and in September 2024 it filed for bankruptcy. A case on a channel that carried the whole proposition.
Channels · Autopsy · Core values · In the news
Read articleAperol Spritz: Campari sold a time of day, and the bottle came with it
Aperol was a regional bitter from Padua until Campari bought it in 2003 and put all its weight behind one drink. A case on designing a category around a ritual, and on owning a recipe you cannot patent.
Category design · Channels · Brand history
Read articleAstronomer: the whole world learned the name, and nobody knew what it sold
A Coldplay kiss cam made a data software company famous overnight in July 2025. A case on awareness without a proposition, and on how Astronomer pointed the attention back to its product.
Channels · Premise, promise, proof · In the news
Read articleAmerican Eagle: a promise about jeans, and the noise that came with it
In summer 2025 American Eagle built a campaign on a pun, 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans', and found itself in the middle of a culture fight. A case on what the promise was, and what the channel noise added and cost.
Channels · Premise, promise, proof · In the news
Read articleBarilla: the brand that promised home, at home and abroad
In Italy Barilla sells the family table; in the United States it sells Italy. A case on a fourth-rung promise, the narrow room it leaves, and what happens when a promise built for one market is read in another.
Premise, promise, proof · Channels · Core values · Brand history
Read articleDuolingo: the owl is the channel, and in 2025 it carried two messages
In February 2025 Duolingo staged the death of its mascot and won the internet for two weeks. In the spring an internal memo about becoming AI-first reached the same audience. A case on channels and the values a mascot carries.
Channels · Core values · In the news
Read articleIntel Inside: how a part nobody sees became a reason to buy
In 1991 Intel began paying PC makers to put its name on their ads and their machines. A case on proving an invisible component, borrowing the shelf of your customers, and what visibility costs when something goes wrong.
Premise, promise, proof · Channels · Brand history
Read articleStanley Quencher: same factory, new channel, a brand people wear
Stanley went from roughly 70 to 750 million without changing the product. A case on Cultural Resonance, the fourth rung of the Promise Ladder, and on what the channel does to a promise.
Premise, promise, proof · Channels · In the news
Read articleSpotify Wrapped: the campaign customers publish for free every December
Since 2016 Spotify has handed each listener a summary of their year, and since 2017 it has called it Wrapped. A case on channels and proof built from the customer's own data.
Channels · Moat · Brand history
Read articleRed Bull: a Thai tonic, a new category, and the stories that sell the can
Red Bull brought a Thai energy tonic to Austria in 1987, built the energy drink category in the West and then began producing the stories that sell it. A case on category design and channels.
Category design · Channels · Brand history
Read articleZara: speed is the promise, and the factory next door is the proof
Zara built its value proposition on newness, then made the supply chain carry the evidence: design near the stores, production close to Spain, deliveries twice a week. A case on proof that lives in operations.
Premise, promise, proof · Moat · Channels · Brand history
Read articleBottega Veneta left social media in 2021, and the conversation stayed
In January 2021 Bottega Veneta deleted its Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts without explanation. A case on a channel decision read as a value, and on letting other people carry your brand.
Channels · Core values · Brand history
Read articleOatly: a carton that argued with the dairy aisle, and a café that proved it
From 2012 Oatly rewrote itself as a voice against dairy, entered the US through coffee shops and went public in 2021, then struggled to turn the category it opened into profit. A case on category design and channels.
Category design · Channels · Positioning · Brand history
Read articleNespresso: the same capsule failed in offices and won at home
Nestlé launched Nespresso in 1986 and struggled for years, until the business stopped selling an office machine and started building a category: espresso at home, sold through a club and later through boutiques. A case on category design and the moat after the patents.
Category design · Channels · Moat · Brand history
Read articleDollar Shave Club changed how razors are sold, and the category followed
A 2012 video, a monthly subscription and a one-dollar price took on Gillette's hold on the razor market. Unilever bought the company in 2016 and sold a majority stake in 2023. A case on a channel and a price that became the category's premise.
Channels · Pricing and scarcity · Category design · Brand history
Read articleCrocs owned the ugly clog, and the punchline became a business
Crocs went from a 2008 loss and years of jokes to record sales by leaning into the shoe everyone mocked. A case on a rejected value turned into a premise, on identity, and on the channels that carried both.
Core values · Channels · Positioning · Brand history
Read article- 01Lululemon: a premise written by yoga teachers, and what happens when it gets widerPositioning
- 02Google gives away platforms to protect the business that pays for themPortfolio and rhyming
- 03Bud Light in 2023: one sponsored post, two audiences and an undeclared premisePositioning
- 04The Michelin Guide: a tyre company that gave people a reason to driveChannels
- 05Nike went back to sport, and back to the shops it had leftChannels
- 06Tupperware: the party built the brand, and the brand never found another roomChannels
- 07Aperol Spritz: Campari sold a time of day, and the bottle came with itCategory design
- 08Astronomer: the whole world learned the name, and nobody knew what it soldChannels
- 09American Eagle: a promise about jeans, and the noise that came with itChannels
- 10Barilla: the brand that promised home, at home and abroadPremise, promise, proof
- 11Duolingo: the owl is the channel, and in 2025 it carried two messagesChannels
- 12Intel Inside: how a part nobody sees became a reason to buyPremise, promise, proof
- 13Stanley Quencher: same factory, new channel, a brand people wearPremise, promise, proof
- 14Spotify Wrapped: the campaign customers publish for free every DecemberChannels
- 15Red Bull: a Thai tonic, a new category, and the stories that sell the canCategory design
- 16Zara: speed is the promise, and the factory next door is the proofPremise, promise, proof
- 17Bottega Veneta left social media in 2021, and the conversation stayedChannels
- 18Oatly: a carton that argued with the dairy aisle, and a café that proved itCategory design
- 19Nespresso: the same capsule failed in offices and won at homeCategory design
- 20Dollar Shave Club changed how razors are sold, and the category followedChannels
- 21Crocs owned the ugly clog, and the punchline became a businessCore values