Some brands are as American as apple pie—and they’ve been hyping as much ahead of America’s 250th anniversary this year.

Brands Anheuser-Busch, Mountain Dew, and John Deere have looked to connect their legacy to American history in campaigns leading up to July Fourth. Others, like Coca-Cola and Chevrolet, have opted for messages that showcase the wide-ranging landscape of the country. Some especially lucky brands, including Budweiser and Jeep Wrangler, have milestone anniversaries that line up with America’s 250th, making it something of a double-whammy celebratory effort.

The variety of America250 campaigns from brands isn’t surprising, but there’s much to consider before a brand shows up during a major cultural touchstone. America’s 250th anniversary comes amid a fraught, politically divisive landscape where brands can easily get into hot water for seemingly innocuous marketing. Beyond that, patriotic symbols that have a newer political affiliation with one party can color the current celebration—making it all the more important for marketers to delicately navigate a moment where campaigns touch on patriotism.

“It’s a delicate line to balance,” David Reibstein, William Stuart Woodside professor of marketing at Wharton, said. “What you want to do is come across being celebratory of America and being pro-America…the balance that firms need to do right now is come across being very pro-American without taking a political stance at all, unless they want to identify their brand with a particular horse in the race.”

Continue reading here.—KM

At Cannes Lions, there were plenty of billboards advertising AI—and at least one taking aim at it.

“You can’t AI IRL” was the message emblazoned in all-caps on an installation from the nationwide out-of-home media company Outfront Media. It marked the first time the brand has run a billboard to market itself at the festival, according to Chief Marketing and Experience Officer Stacy Minero.

“Our whole positioning is around leaning into IRL media, which is a way that you connect with people through shared experiences and real-world exposure and taps into the power of presence,” she said.

Minero sat down with Marketing Brew at Cannes Lions to tell us more about repositioning OOH and why Outfront Media is making big bets on experiential marketing. Here are a few highlights.

See more from our conversation here.—KS

When brands ink deals with spokespeople, what they surely don’t want to happen is what occurred after Chinese smartphone maker Huawei hired Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot in 2018. Gadot shared a Huawei commercial she starred in on Twitter (now X) that included a stamp revealing it was sent “via Twitter for iPhone.” Although Gadot subsequently deleted the tweet, explained it was sent from a publicity assistant’s iPhone, and subsequently sent more tweets from her Huawei device, the eggy-faced PR damage was done.

One brand that seems likely to avoid such a mishap is Duer, the Vancouver-based self-described “performance jeanswear” brand, which has hired Jesse Marsch, head coach of the Canadian men’s national soccer team, as a brand ambassador for the duration of the World Cup.

“I have very specific things that I like about clothes, and one of them is comfortability,” Marsch told Retail Brew. “The pants and the jeans for me are my favorite that I’ve ever worn.”

Marsch described himself as “not a big shopper,” but, “if I’m ever in any of the cities where [Duer has] stores, I’m like, ‘Hey, tell them I’m gonna stop by.’”

Marsch models Duer on the brand’s website, social media accounts, and in imagery in its stores.

“It’s about the freedom to move,” Marsch says on the Duer website where he’s photographed wearing the brand on and off the pitch. “Whatever the day throws at you, you are ready for it.”

Read more on Retail Brew.—AAN

Executive moves across the industry.

• Snap elevated Emma Wakely to head of sports and media partnerships, Americas; her predecessor, Anmol Malhotra, has been promoted to the role of global head of content and partnerships.
• Wendy’s tapped Potbelly alum Steve Cirulis as CFO and chief strategy officer.
• Nike hired Pfizer vet David Denton to serve as CFO. He starts on August 17.