Xanthe Wells is VP of Global Creative at Pinterest, where she leads the House of Creative, recently named In-House Agency of the Year at the Gerety Awards.

Before Pinterest, she led global creative for Google’s Pixel and Nest brands, earning a Cannes Grand Prix, a D&AD Black Pencil, and multiple Agency of the Year honors.

Earlier in her career, she worked on Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, and Monsters, Inc., and spent formative years at TBWA\Chiat\Day with Lee Clow.

In this episode of Second Wind, Xanthe shares a philosophy of creative leadership that runs counter to most playbooks. Pressure feels productive, but it narrows thinking. Relaxation isn’t a luxury. It’s a creative requirement.

We talk about building psychologically safe teams, why lowering the stakes leads to better work, and how to protect creativity inside high-pressure organizations. Xanthe also shares lessons from Pixar, Google, and Pinterest, her perspective on AI as a creative tool, and why human taste, humor, and empathy still matter more than ever.

This is a conversation about leading creatives with generosity, clarity, and trust, even when millions of dollars are on the line.

Cindy Gallop built BBH US from a room with a phone. She became one of the most influential voices in advertising and then walked away with no job to go to. It was the best decision she ever made.

In this episode, Cindy talks about why a job is not the safe option and why placing your future in the hands of a corporation is more dangerous than betting on yourself. She explains the daily drip of microaggressions that kill confidence, why most women never get the support they deserve, and why her advice is simple: get the f*ck out and build something that gives you agency.

We also talk about BBH, MakeLoveNotPorn, pitch culture, leadership, sex education, and why the future is female and founder-led.

This is Cindy at her most direct and most generous.

Billy Bohan Chinique, VP of Marketing and Digital Innovation at Virgin Voyages, joins us to talk about the future of travel, fashion, AI, and brand storytelling.

He shares how he went from call-center sales to designing digital experiences, how he ended up styling Sir Richard Branson, and why showing up as your real self became an accelerant for his career.

We get into Jen.AI, the Jennifer Lopez campaign that pushed AI before it was cool, the making of Virgin’s AI-powered mermaids, the shift toward creators, and why “brand as operating system” is the only approach that still makes sense.

If you care about creativity, travel, leadership, or the next frontier of marketing, this is a conversation worth hearing.

Chapters:

00:00 Styling Richard Branson

02:10 Fashion and authenticity

03:55 Breaking into travel

06:50 Building Virgin Voyages’ digital platform

11:05 The origin of Jen.AI with J.Lo

16:00 AI-powered mermaids

19:50 Brand as operating system

26:20 The new creator economy

32:00 Talent, hiring, and AI literacy

36:20 Becoming an AI-native company

39:40 Billy’s legacy

John Schoolcraft helped turn Oatly from a quiet Swedish oat drink into one of the most talked-about brands on the planet. No marketing department. No traditional briefs. No safety nets. Just creativity, rebellion, and a CEO who let the work lead.

In this conversation, John breaks down how he:

• Killed the CMO role and replaced it with makers

• Turned lawsuits into creative fuel

• Used packaging as media when there was no budget

• Made baristas the launch strategy that cracked the US market

• Built a fearless culture that treated creativity as a business engine

It’s a masterclass in brand building from one of the most influential creative leaders alive.

Listen for the story behind the Super Bowl ad, the behind-the-scenes battles with the dairy industry, and why trust inside a company beats process every time.

Nick Law explains the split that defines modern creativity. Inventive thinking and expressive thinking. How they collide, how they fail, and how the best teams make them work together. We cover his path from Australia to Pentagram to RGA to Accenture Song, the collapse of the old agency model, how platform culture reshapes craft, and what AI means for the next generation. A grounded conversation about what it takes to make work that matters now.

Emmy-winning creative leader Danielle Hawley, Global Head of Creative and Brand at Uber, joins hosts Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch to talk about leadership, trust, and creative evolution.

From redefining Uber’s global voice to mentoring women in a male-dominated industry, Danielle shares how earning respect starts with generosity, not ego. She reflects on lessons from Microsoft’s Iron Man prosthetic project, how collaboration built her confidence, and why the best creative relationships begin with trust.

In this episode:

• How great clients make great work

• What “sharp elbows” teach you early in your career

• When to lead with empathy instead of ego

• The creative culture shift inside Uber

• What it takes to build respect in tech and advertising

What if every great idea started with a song?

Before writing a word or pitching a concept, Emmy-winning creative Jaime Robinson (Co-Founder and CCO of JOAN) finds a song that makes her feel exactly what she wants others to feel.

In this episode, Jaime joins Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch to talk about:

• Building JOAN into one of the most admired independent agencies in the world

• How emotion (not strategy decks) powers the best creative work

• The story behind the Womanikin — a life-saving design that changed CPR training forever

• The future of creativity in the age of AI, and what it really means to “win for humanity”

• Why the next generation of creatives deserves new ways in

A conversation about feeling first, leading boldly, and building work that actually matters.

🎙️ Second Wind — candid conversations with the most creative minds in business.

He’s the mind behind Taste the Rainbow.

The man who convinced Mars, Unilever, and half of Madison Avenue to take creative risks — and made the weirdest, funniest, most unforgettable ads in history.

In this episode of Second Wind, Gully Flowers and Jake Neske sit down with Gerry Graf - founder of Barton F. Graf and SLAP Global, and the creative force behind Skittles Pinata, Starburst Little Lad, You’re Not You When You’re Hungry, and Ragu: Long Day of Childhood.

They unpack how Gerry made it all happen:

– How Skittles went from safe to surreal

– How “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” was launched

– What it takes to sell bold work inside giant corporations

– The secret to making brands funny and effective

– How one brief, one risk, and one rule changed advertising forever

A 39-minute masterclass in creative conviction — and a reminder that great ads aren’t written, they’re fought for.

🎙️ Second Wind is known for candid conversations with the biggest names in the business.

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