MARKETING NEWS 10TH SEPTEMBER 2025
The Pulse of Modern Marketing
Marketing today is in a period of reinvention. From retail media to B2B storytelling and brand revival, the landscape is shifting fast, demanding creativity and resilience. The arrival of Metarouter’s new CEO reflects a bold attempt to crack one of retail media’s toughest challenges making fragmented customer data actionable. Transmission’s founder meanwhile champions the case for B2B brand storytelling, showing that even in highly technical industries, emotion and narrative are powerful levers for trust and growth. And as John Lewis celebrates its centenary, the brand’s journey from near self-sabotage to renewal proves that heritage can be both a burden and a blessing when handled with clarity. Together, these stories reveal a marketing world that is increasingly less about gimmicks and more about strategy, vision, and authenticity. In retail, in B2B, and in consumer legacy brands, the common thread is clear: relevance is no longer optional, it’s survival. These examples set the tone for what marketing must embrace in the years ahead: not just chasing attention but earning it, keeping it, and turning it into meaningful relationships that last.
Metarouter’s New CEO Bets Big on Solving Retail Media’s Hardest Problem
BY BLAKSOLVENT
Retail media has been hailed as the “third wave” of digital advertising, following search and social. Giants like Amazon, Walmart, and Target have already turned their retail ecosystems into goldmines by monetizing shopper data for brands. Yet behind the hype lies a stubborn reality: fragmented data. Shoppers move across apps, websites, and in-store touchpoints, leaving behind partial identities that don’t stitch together cleanly. Brands pour millions into campaigns but often don’t know if the right message reached the right person.
Metarouter, a startup specializing in data infrastructure, has just appointed its new CEO, Jonathan Miles, with one mission: to crack the hardest problem in retail media integrating customer data across channels in real-time without relying on third-party cookies. For Miles, this isn’t just a technical problem, but the very foundation of whether retail media can scale beyond its current hype.
In an interview with AdWeek, Miles argued that the “retail media moment” will fizzle unless retailers can prove ROI beyond brand lift metrics. “Marketers don’t just want impressions, they want conversions, loyalty, and lifetime value,” he said. The company’s new roadmap focuses on first-party data onboarding, identity resolution, and compliance-friendly personalization at scale.
Why does this matter? Retail media is forecast to grow into a $140 billion market by 2026, according to GroupM. But only a fraction of retailers have the infrastructure of an Amazon. Smaller chains and direct-to-consumer brands risk being locked out of this boom unless companies like Metarouter democratize the technology.
Analysts believe the CEO’s task won’t be easy. Competing firms like The Trade Desk and LiveRamp are pushing their own solutions. Privacy regulations in the EU and U.S. are tightening. And retailers are notorious for guarding their data. Still, the appointment signals a recognition that retail media’s golden promise hinges on getting data right. If Metarouter succeeds, it could transform the ecosystem from an elite club into an open arena where even mid-market retailers can punch above their weight.
Transmission Founder Makes the Case for B2B Brand Storytelling
BY BLAKSOLVENT
B2B marketing has long carried the stereotype of being boring charts, jargon, whitepapers, and endless decks. But in an age where every decision-maker is also a consumer scrolling Instagram at night, the rules are changing. Transmission, a UK-based agency, is challenging the old playbook by pushing for emotional, human-centered brand storytelling in B2B.
In a keynote at the B2B Ignite conference, Transmission founder Chris Lawson made a provocative claim: “There is no such thing as B2B buyers. There are only people. And people don’t fall in love with features, they fall in love with stories.”
Transmission’s work with clients like HP and Oracle has leaned heavily into storytelling campaigns that build trust rather than just push products. One campaign for a cloud provider, for instance, spotlighted the engineers behind the technology, framing them as unsung heroes enabling innovation across industries. The result wasn’t just clicks but long-term relationship growth, according to Lawson.
This shift reflects a broader trend. LinkedIn’s B2B Institute has found that emotionally resonant B2B campaigns are 7x more effective in generating long-term profits than purely rational campaigns. Storytelling doesn’t replace data-driven marketing, but it complements it by creating memory structures that decision-makers recall when contracts are on the line.
Yet storytelling isn’t easy in industries filled with regulations, acronyms, and skepticism. It requires creativity, risk-taking, and, as Lawson puts it, “the courage to sound human.” He warns against lazy storytelling that becomes little more than polished fluff. “The worst thing a B2B brand can do is tell a story nobody cares about,” he said.
The rise of AI tools for content creation has only sharpened this need for originality. In a world where machines can generate endless reports, the truly human story becomes the differentiator. Transmission’s stance resonates as B2B marketing undergoes its own renaissance, one where storytelling may soon be the difference between being remembered and being ignored.
John Lewis at 100: From Slogan Self-Sabotage to Brand Revival
BY BLAKSOLVENT
When a brand reaches its centenary, it usually basks in nostalgia. But for John Lewis, the UK retail giant, the past decade has been more about survival than celebration. Once synonymous with trust and quality, the brand stumbled badly after ditching its iconic slogan, “Never Knowingly Undersold,” in 2020, a move many saw as abandoning its soul.
The shift left the brand adrift. Campaigns struggled to resonate. Competitors like Marks & Spencer and online disruptors gained ground. At its lowest point, John Lewis faced declining profits and even questions about its relevance in a digital-first retail world.
But as the company marks its 100th anniversary, it’s clear the story isn’t over. Under new leadership, John Lewis has returned to emphasizing its core values: customer trust, community, and service. The revival campaign has leaned into emotional advertising that connects with family values, modernized loyalty programs, and sustainability-driven initiatives. Its Christmas adverts, once cultural landmarks have regained their sparkle with narratives that blend tradition and modernity.
Marketing experts argue the brand’s journey is a textbook case in both the perils of losing identity and the resilience of regaining it. By scrapping its slogan, John Lewis briefly forgot that slogans aren’t just words, they’re promises. The company’s resurgence suggests that even after missteps, heritage brands can find their way back by re-anchoring themselves in authenticity.
As John Lewis looks to the next century, its message is less about nostalgia and more about continuity. “Our challenge is to stay timeless by staying true,” said the company’s marketing director. It’s a lesson not just for retailers but for all brands navigating change: reinvention is vital, but never at the cost of your soul.
