For the final episode of Season One of Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand, we're tackling a prickly one: What happens to the multi-million-dollar health and wellness industry when one class of drugs fundamentally changes a problem it has spent decades trying to solve?

GLP-1 medications aren't just changing conversations around weight loss. They're influencing the language of wellness, the businesses being built around it, the creators we're watching, the bodies we're seeing in campaigns and, potentially, our perception of what "healthy" looks like.

And what responsibility do marketers and brands have when there's money to be made from the shift?

For years, mainstream wellness messaging encouraged us to move our bodies, eat well, take our supplements, get our steps, improve our sleep and work on our gut health.

But somewhere along the way, wellness stopped being a category and became an identity.

Now GLP-1 medications are disrupting one of the largest commercial engines underneath the wellness industry: weight management.

We're not debating whether GLP-1 medications have an appropriate medical role — that's a conversation for patients and their healthcare professionals.

We're interested in the marketing and brand implications.

If consumer behaviour changes dramatically, what happens to the fitness programs, weight-loss businesses, supplements, food brands and influencers that built businesses around the old model?

And when a commercial opportunity emerges, where should brands draw the ethical line?

We unpack:

• GLP-1s and the changing wellness economy
• Sam Wood's Ollo for Women and the evolution of traditional fitness businesses, 28bySamWood
• SkinnyTok and the return of thinness online
• Body positivity, sizing and the responsibility of fashion brands
• Influencer transparency around weight loss
• Protein, creatine, NMN and wellness marketing
• Where brands should draw the ethical line
• Why LivEat offers a different model for health and wellness
• Gemma Diamond, Lisa DeSantis and Sophia Beg pushing back against shrinking body ideals
• Sydney Airport's response to Sophia Beg's gluten-free criticism in our final Well Played or No Played

🎧 Follow or subscribe to Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand wherever you listen so Season Two lands automatically.

⭐ Rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify — it makes a huge difference to an independent podcast.

📲 Follow and share Well Played on social and send your favourite episode to another marketer, founder or brand obsessive.

📩 Sign up to Well Played to stay connected with our independent podcast and be first to hear what's coming in Season Two.

And keep sending us what deserves a Well Played… or No Played.

Until Season Two, play on.

Much love,

Kate & Esther.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When a brand crisis unfolds online, silence is never neutral. What happens when your brand suddenly becomes the internet’s whipping boy?

In Episode 8 of Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand, Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware unpack the new rules of brand crisis management, where backlash moves faster than a traditional media statement and every customer, creator and former collaborator has a public platform.

Through two very different real-time case studies, we look at what happens when brands respond defensively, emotionally or too slowly, and why the goal in a crisis should not be to win the argument, but to win back trust.

Using the controversies surrounding New Zealand streetwear brand Huffer and Australian sunscreen brand Ultra Violette, they explore what happens when brands block criticism, respond emotionally or rely on traditional PR outlets while the real conversation is unfolding online.

It raises a fundamental question for modern brands: when a crisis is happening on social media, can you still manage it through traditional PR outlets and frameworks or do you meet the crisis where it is unfolding?

Ultra Violette’s recovery offers a fascinating lesson in the power of existing brand equity, community trust and continuing to show up, even when the public conversation becomes uncomfortable.

Plus, Kate recalls managing the social media tsunami surrounding Australia’s failed online Census launch, and The Natural Confectionery Company’s Giant Snakes ad receives the Well Played or No Played treatment.

• Huffer
• Ultra Violette
• CHOICE
• The Natural Confectionery Company
• Tesla
• Kmart
• Mecca
• Adore Beauty
• Chemist Warehouse
• Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Census
• Wilkinson Group
• Contemporary 100
• Elijah Major
• Ash London
• Crazy Auntie Anne
• Zoe Foster Blake
• Elon Musk
• Donald Trump
• Peter Wilkinson
• Robert Irwin

This is an essential listen for marketers, founders, communications leaders and anyone responsible for protecting a brand’s reputation online. New episodes every Thursday. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok: @wellplayedpod

We’d love you to leave us a review or share with your networks if you’ve enjoyed this episode. We are an independently run podcast and every share and follow gives us a great opportunity to get our message and content out to the right listeners.

Much love, Kate & Esther.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand, the Australian marketing podcast where Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware unpack the biggest ideas shaping marketing strategy, brand building, consumer behaviour and culture.

This week we're diving into one of our favourite topics yet: Brand Lore. Not law as in legislation...

Lore as in the rituals, stories, symbols, traditions and emotional connections that make brands unforgettable.

What is it that makes someone instantly recognise Aesop from the scent of a hand wash? Why do people refill the same bottle for years? Why does Taylor Swift have fans analysing every lyric and Easter egg? And why are brands like Dove, Country Road, RM Williams and Samantha Wills remembered long after a campaign has finished?

This episode explores why the world's most iconic brands don't simply sell products. They create worlds.

Lore isn't your logo. It isn't your colour palette. And it isn't your latest campaign. It's the stories your customers tell about you when you're not in the room.

This week we discuss:

✨ Brand lore and emotional branding

✨ Aesop's extraordinary customer experience

✨ Samantha Wills' reflections on founder brands

✨ Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty

✨ Taylor Swift's Easter eggs

✨ RM Williams, Country Road and sensory branding

✨ ABC Australia's creator-led content strategy

New episodes every Friday. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok: @wellplayedpod

We’d love you to leave us a review or share with your networks if you’ve enjoyed this episode. We are an independently run podcast and every share and follow gives us a great opportunity to get our message and content out to the right listeners. Much love, Kate & Esther.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand, the Australian marketing podcast where Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware unpack the biggest shifts shaping marketing strategy, consumer behaviour, brand building and modern business.

This week, we're asking a provocative question:

As AI makes everything faster, is slowing down becoming the ultimate luxury?

In this episode, Esther and Kate explore the growing movement towards slow living, analogue experiences, human craftsmanship and intentional brand building, asking whether authenticity, originality and genuine human connection are becoming the new markers of luxury.

✨ The rise of slow living in an AI-powered world

✨ Claude AI, ChatGPT and Shopify AI

✨ Flamingo Estate's incredible brand story

✨ Lucy Folk's approach to luxury branding

✨ The origins of the Slow Movement

✨ Etsy's brilliant "Shop Other Jeffs" campaign

✨ Why great brands create rituals, not just products

The conversation begins with reflections from the opening of Nyaal Banyul Geelong Convention and Event Centre, where every detail, from Indigenous food suppliers and procurement to architecture, ceramics and storytelling, demonstrates what happens when a brand is built around values rather than trends. Esther and Kate also discuss the work of chef Amanda Garner, whose expertise in native ingredients and regional food culture helped shape the venue's culinary experience.

If you're interested in marketing strategy, consumer behaviour, branding, digital culture, nostalgia marketing, experiential marketing and customer experience, subscribe to Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand.

New episodes every Friday. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok: @wellplayedpod

We’d love you to leave us a review or share with your networks if you’ve enjoyed this episode. We are an independently run podcast and every share and follow gives us a great opportunity to get our message and content out to the right listeners. Much love, Kate & Esther.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're joined by Josh Henry-Hicks, Founder of Insightly Media, son of City Beach founder Brett Henry-Hicks, and brother of the CEO of Australian fashion label DISSH, Lucy Henry-Hicks

One of Australia’s leading retail and ecommerce growth strategists, now based in LA and Founder of Insightly Media, Josh Henry-Hicks has helped some of the world's fastest-growing consumer brands scale through performance marketing, organic social and consumer psychology.

Growing up inside one of Australia's most successful retail families before helping scale digital marketing agency MuteSix, later acquired by Dentsu, Josh has built a career at the intersection of retail, consumer psychology, performance marketing & ecommerce, and is now classified as one of Australia’s leading retail and ecommerce growth strategists, now based in LA.

After hearing Josh's keynote at The Social Summit in Melbourne, Esther and Kate knew they had to continue the conversation.

Together, they unpack why the traditional social media playbook no longer works, why brands need to move beyond demographics and embrace micro niches, how organic social has become one of the most powerful customer acquisition channels, and why understanding consumer psychology is now one of the biggest competitive advantages in modern marketing.

Topics include:

✨ Organic social strategy

✨ Consumer psychology

✨ Micro niches

✨ TikTok and Instagram algorithms

✨ Why likes don't matter anymore

✨ AI in marketing

✨ UGC creators

✨ LinkedIn strategy

This week's discussion looks at Alex Earle's skincare launch.

Instead of relying on influencer marketing, Alex built anticipation through:

• New York billboards
• Hidden clues
• Influencer puzzle pieces
• Organic storytelling
• Community participation

The result? A campaign driven by curiosity instead of advertising.

We also discuss what marketers can learn from Taylor Swift's famous "Easter egg" marketing strategy and why anticipation remains one of the most powerful marketing tools available.

Whether you're a marketer, founder, business owner or brand leader, this episode is packed with practical insights into organic social media, AI, UGC creators, consumer psychology, digital marketing, ecommerce growth and the future of brand building.

New episodes every Friday.

Follow us:

Instagram: @wellplayedpod

TikTok: @wellplayedpod

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Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand is an Australian marketing podcast where Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware unpack the cultural trends, consumer behaviour and brand strategies shaping modern business.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are we entering a new era of experiential marketing?

In Episode 3 of Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand, Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware explore why consumers are craving real-life connection, why community is becoming increasingly important and why brands are investing heavily in experiences again.

This week we discuss:

✨ The return of experiential marketing

✨ Community versus audience

✨ The Lip Liner Index and changing consumer behaviour

✨ Creator-led entertainment and niche communities

✨ Coachella's brand activations

✨ Mecca at the Australian Open

✨ Frank Green's personalised vending machine experience

✨ Mastercard's frictionless retail activation

✨ Dirty Darlene and AI-powered creator marketing

✨ Why belonging and emotional connection remain powerful drivers of brand growth

Whether you're a marketer, founder, business owner or brand leader, this episode is packed with insights on marketing strategy, consumer behaviour, community building, experiential marketing and customer experience.

Esther brings a much lighter moment to the conversation with Corporate Canine Noods, a creator account proving that even dogs can become brands.

Follow @wellplayedpod and subscribe wherever you listen.

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Well Played: Conversations on Marketing and Brand is an Australian marketing podcast where Esther Kelleher and Kate Ware unpack the cultural trends, consumer behaviour and brand strategies shaping modern business.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.