March, 2026.- In the 2026 advertising landscape, authenticity is not a trend but a competitive advantage that cannot be faked. Luis Miguel Messianu, Founder and Chief Creative Officer of MEL, understands this better than anyone. His relationship with BrandsMart USA didn’t begin in a boardroom but in the aisles of its stores as a young immigrant in Miami seeking the home he was building. Today, that visceral connection is the engine behind the brand’s new strategic phase. Messianu proposes an evolution that honors the legacy of low prices and trust but wraps it in a contemporary and human narrative. For MEL, a Latino-led agency, working with BrandsMart is not just a retail project; it is a strategic necessity to connect with an audience that doesn’t seek “segments” but real conversations rooted in culture, humor, and family dynamics.
In this exclusive interview with Roastbrief, Messianu breaks down how to transform a functional retailer into a destination of aspiration and progress. The challenge is clear: modernize the brand’s aesthetics and tone without hardworking families losing sight of themselves in it. From creating a flexible brand platform that adapts to today’s digital environments to redefining success beyond quarterly sales, Luis Miguel invites us to see the refrigerator or the TV not as appliances, but as the center of his customers’ life stories. Discover how a “brand guardian’s” vision is preparing BrandsMart for the future, ensuring it remains the same familiar place but with a renewed relevance that beats to the rhythm of today’s multicultural culture.
- From Shopper to Strategic Partner
I like to say that I didn’t meet BrandsMart USA in a briefing room—I met it in the aisles, as a young immigrant in Miami, buying the TVs and appliances that helped my family feel at home. That lived experience gives me a visceral understanding of who the BrandsMart shopper is, what value means to them, and how the brand fits into their everyday lives. Another agency can study the brand; we’ve actually lived with it. We grew up with it. That relationship creates a different kind of understanding and respect. It means when we sit down to make decisions, we’re not just thinking about a target segment, we’re thinking about our neighbors, our families, and our own stories. That’s a strategic advantage you can’t fast‑track or fake. - Elevate Without Losing DNA
“Elevate” is not code for “turn the brand into something it isn’t.” For a value‑driven retailer, elevating means honoring what people already love—great prices, reliability, accessibility—and expressing it in a way that feels more contemporary, more cohesive, and more emotionally engaging. The tightrope is simple: we never compromise on the promise that made BrandsMart successful; we simply tell that story with better craft and more relevance. We modernize the way the brand looks, sounds, and behaves, but we pressure‑test every change with a basic question: would the hardworking families who have trusted this brand for decades still recognize themselves here? If the answer is no, we don’t do it. - A Latino‑Led Agency for a Multicultural Brand
Having a culture‑first, Latino-led agency like MEL working on a brand immersed in multicultural neighborhoods is not a nice‑to‑have—it’s a strategic necessity. We understand the nuances of language, humor, family dynamics, and aspiration because they are part of our own daily lives. That means we can move beyond stereotypes and surface‑level insights to capture the real emotions and tensions that drive decisions. A general‑market approach might be tempted to translate; we prefer to originate from the root of culture. The work ends up feeling less like advertising aimed at a “target demographic” and more like a conversation with people we actually know. - From Functional Retailer to Emotional Destination
BrandsMart has always been strong on the rational side, anchored by competitive prices, assortment, and deals. Our job is to add an emotional layer without losing that strength. We start by asking: what are people really buying when they walk into a BrandsMart store? It’s not just a TV, it’s the screen where the family will watch the World Cup together; not just a fridge, but the center of the home where everyone gathers. When you tell those stories, you transform a functional purchase into a chapter of someone’s life. We’ll still talk about value, but in a way that connects to pride, progress, and possibility. The destination becomes less “where I get a good deal” and more “where I go when I’m ready for the next step in my life.” - The Flexible Brand Platform
To support growth, we need a platform that’s solid at the core and flexible at the edges. The non‑negotiables are clear: trust—people have to feel confident in what they’re buying; value—both in price and quality; and approachability—the sense that this is a brand for “shoppers like me.” Those pillars won’t move. Around them, we’re deliberately experimenting. We’re playing with tone—warmer, more human, sometimes more playful. We’re exploring new content formats that live where people actually spend time, from short‑form video to more experiential storytelling. And we’re thinking about experiences that connect physical stores and digital touchpoints so that the brand feels consistent, but never static. The idea is a system that can stretch as the business stretches. - Success Beyond Sales
Of course sales and traffic matter; ultimately, we’re in business. But if we only judge success by quarterly numbers, we risk making short‑term decisions that erode the brand long term. I’m interested in different kinds of signals: are more people naming BrandsMart as their first choice to shop? Are they recommending it to friends and family? Are we seeing the brand show up in broader culture, in conversation, in the way people talk about where they go for big purchases? We can measure that through brand health studies, social sentiment, search behavior, and repeat visits, among other tools. Personally, as a long‑term brand guardian, success will be when BrandsMart feels both familiar and new—when someone who’s shopped there for 20 years walks in and thinks, “This is still my BrandsMart, but it’s clearly ready for the future.” If we achieve that, then we’ve elevated the brand while keeping its soul.
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