In this conversation, Adeela Johnson, CEO and co-founder of travel gear brand Béis, shares her journey from being a mom of three to leading the successful D2C brand she co-founded with actress and entrepreneur Shay Mitchell. Johnson discusses the importance of consumer-centric design, the importance of relatability in influencer marketing and what the Béis team learned from its early beginnings that helped the brand come out on top in a post-pandemic economy. Johnson also emphasizes the significance of community engagement and experiential marketing in building brand loyalty, such as the "Béis Wash" pop up event and teases future Béis plans and innovation.

Noteworthy quotes

This has been edited and condensed for clarity.

1. On authenticity and brand personality: "[Béis] is authentic to who [founder Shay Mitchell] is and obviously we leveraged her following, but it was much more than that. Her personality became the brand's personality. And that is really hard to do... it's hard to develop a sense of community and a sense of loyalty to a brand when people can't relate to it as much."
2. On founder vision and humility: "[Mitchell] was very clear early on in the brand [stating] 'I don't want this to be Béis by Shay Mitchell.' Very intentionally, which again is very humble for a celebrity of her caliber to say, 'I want this brand to be innovative, to be meaningful, to have purpose that lives beyond me.'"
3. On community-driven innovation: "We had this great vision — it was this huge bag and we gave it to moms in our community and they gave us such tremendous feedback. We changed it before we launched it. And we do that frequently, where we get feedback from our community on color [and needs]."
4. On team passion and grit: "You can't replicate and you can't teach [passion]. You either have it or you don't. And when we recruit, [we] want you to have a million different perspectives. I don't want you to agree with me, but I want you to have grit and passion."
5. On consumer-centric product development: "The goal for us is always to have consumers say, 'that is a function that I didn't know I needed and now I can't live without.' If [we] get that from a consumer, we're doing our job."
6. On community as the next influencer: "Community [is the] next influencer and growing as a trend. We've been seeing that for years and we were founded in that."
7. On transparency and creating behind-the-scenes content: "People want to see behind-the-scenes, relatable content. People want to see art [and they] want to know who the people are behind these brands that [they] want to build a relationship with. It's no longer about transactions."
8. On building brand relationships beyond transactions: "People don't buy a product. They buy into a brand and they buy into a vision. They buy into a community. We leveraged Shay early in the brand to give the brand personality and make it relatable, not just a brand that existed with a bunch of products."

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If you’ve never been to the basement of the Palais, let us set the scene for you. There are dozens of displays of campaigns for each category that show key details and visuals of some of the top work. Attendees can also visit computer labs to watch films and case studies for the campaigns.

While walking the work, visitors can spot many of the industry’s top creative thinkers and CMOs. During the time Campaign recorded this podcast, we spotted Kory Marchisotto, CMO of e.l.f Beauty, Chad Broude and Megan Lally, CCO and CEO of Highdive, respectively, and Tabata Gomez, CMO of McCormick & Company wandering the floor and looking for inspiration.

In the Palais basement, Campaign was joined by new 4A’s CEO Justin Thomas-Copeland, Brynna Aylward, CCO for adam&eveDDB North America, Christine Olivas, CEO and chief strategy officer for No Single Individual, and Ciro Sarmiento, CCO for Colle McVoy.

They each walked the work, breaking down several campaigns that they loved, why they worked and in some cases, how they made them.

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What does it take to secure, plan and execute a main stage presentation at Cannes? Christopher Charles, executive creative director at 21Grams, and Fiona Cauley, a comedian with Friedreich’s Ataxia, who recently opened for Nikki Glaser, are fresh from their presentation on the main stage at Cannes. Hear the behind-the-scenes story of their presentation, how it went and what they believe the impact will be for healthcare marketing.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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Caroline Winterton is steering a new era of integration and creativity at North America uniting distinct agency brands while preserving their unique strengths. Her empathetic, future-focused leadership has driven deeper collaboration, emotionally resonant work, and business growth, with recent client wins like IKEA and Bimbo global and top industry honors such as 2x Grand Effies at the Global Best of the Best underscoring the agency’s momentum. Through it all, she continues to champion creativity as a strategic advantage and compassion as a leadership superpower.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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The founder and CEO of Lupine Creative and LumiCup sits down for a special Pride episode of Campaign Chemistry to share her remarkable (and remarkably bumpy) journey as a proudly queer business founder, and her commitment to empowering the LGBTQ+ community through her agency work and Do The WeRQ — the initiative she cofounded with Graham Nolan.

Wolff also discusses the current state of LGBTQ+ representation in the industry; the impact of societal changes on brand support and brand engagement with the LGBTQ+ community; the importance of brands understanding backlash and having a solid plan when supporting marginalized communities; and the necessity of integrating DEI into business models.

This episode contains lessons in perseverance, self-acceptance and finding balance between work and passion in creative industries, sprinkled with calls to action for brands, the industry and all of us as we navigate a climate rife with uncertainty and division.

The theme may be Pride, but the takeaways are so evergreen, you'll want to listen and share year round.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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In this episode of Campaign Chemistry, Luz Corona sits down with Christi Geary, GM and head of marketing agency at Advantage Solutions (AUC + Amp), to explore how brands can bridge the perceived divide between technology and humanity in brand building. They unpack why AI alone can’t win hearts, how behavioral science and emotional insight reshape conversion strategies and why the future belongs to brands that blur the line between connection and commerce. Geary shares how unified operating models are helping brands build meaningful, measurable relationships in a tech-fueled world.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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Campaign’s editors from around the world come together ahead of the Lions festival for the first episode of the Campaign Cannes global podcast in partnership with Ocean Outdoor.

We preview the festival and talk about the work we want to win, the mood in the ad industry and Campaign House – our exciting new venue at Cannes.

Gideon Spanier (centre in picture), the UK editor-in-chief of Campaign, hosts the podcast and is joined by Maisie McCabe, editor of Campaign UK, Nikita Mishra, editor of Campaign Asia, David Brown, co-editor of Campaign Canada, and Luz Corona, editor of Campaign US.

We also discuss why Arthur Sadoun, the chief executive of Publicis Groupe and a speaker at Campaign House on day one of the festival, has called for the industry to take a “different” approach at Cannes this year and the introduction of new “safe zones” at the festival.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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In today's world, every good marketer needs an "escape hatch" plan in case social platforms go awry. But Saylor co-founder and CEO Will Trowbridge knew this years ago.

In this episode of Campaign Chemistry, Trowbridge joins Campaign editor Luz Corona to discuss how the Netflix alum built one of the fastest-growing agencies by redefining social-first creative. Trowbridge shares how his time at Disney and Netflix shaped Saylor’s DNA, why “everything is social” and how agencies must adapt in real time to keep up with cultural and platform shifts.

The conversation also dives into Saylor’s newest venture, Elevado, an AI-powered content studio built for future-proof creative production. Trowbridge breaks down how AI should be a tool — not a threat — and how agencies can maintain a human touch while embracing innovation. Plus, he shares advice for aspiring indie founders, the secret sauce to great client service (hint: don’t be a jerk) and why Rhode and Liquid Death are the brands to watch.

AI Deciphered is back—live in New York City this November 13th.Join leaders from brands, agencies, and platforms for a future-focused conversation on how AI is transforming media, marketing, and the retail experience. Ready to future-proof your strategy? Secure your spot now at aidecipheredsummit.com. Use code POD at check out for $100 your ticket!

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