During the Comunidad24, the bi-annual summit of Worldwide Partners, we had the privilege of meeting Duke Stump, a leader with more than three decades of experience in building brands, including giants such as Nike and Lululemon. Recognized by Forbes as one of the 50 CMOs who are redefining the marketing landscape, Stump filled us with ideas and perspectives that challenge established conventions in the business and marketing world.
Beyond the titles and accolades, we at Roastbrief set out to go deeper and engage in an intimate conversation with Stump to get to know his life vision in a more personal way. One of Duke’s most exciting facets is his innovative approach, embodied in Bonfire with Soul, a proposal that seeks to unlearn traditional business practices and adopt a new approach based on human principles and observing and learning from nature.
Bonfire Teaser from duke stump on Vimeo.
The conversation with Stump led us to explore the importance of culture in the relationship between agencies and brands, as well as the need to rethink the concept of business success. Inspired by the natural world, Stump advocates a constant learning approach, where leadership is characterized by vulnerability and adaptability. In short, meeting Duke Stump is not only about learning about business but also about life and nature itself.
In his participation during the event, Duke emphasized that competition is an obsolete idea today. After speaking with him, we understood that his approach seeks to opt for more natural, friendly and authentic methods of interacting with industry colleagues, as the collaborative dynamics of the WPI network operates. In this environment, working together seeks to optimize agency processes through collaboration to drive innovation and collective growth.
His innovative thinking invites us to reflect on the creation of ecosystems around products and the importance of transparency in the era of the new consumers, for example, Gen Z. During his lecture he exemplified this thinking with the case of Jasberry Rice, a perfect example of how a business model can benefit all parties involved, showing that success goes beyond simply creating a great product and in his words “it is not enough to create a great product, you have to create a great ecosystem around it”.
The experience shared with Duke Stump at Comunidad24 leads us to reflect on the importance of occupying any space in which you operate to contribute to the improvement of this world. His innovative approach, based on the observation of nature and the unlearning of traditional business practices, shows us that business success goes beyond the creation and marketing of products. Stump teaches us that transparency, adaptability and the creation of ecosystems around products are key elements in the current era, where consumers demand more than ever an authentic and honest connection with brands. His inspiring vision invites us to question established conventions and embrace innovation as a driver of change in the business and marketing world.