Culture Isn’t a Channel: Jägermeister’s Kea Kleihauer on Earning Relevance

Culture Isn’t a Channel: Jägermeister’s Kea Kleihauer on Earning Relevance

Brands can’t buy their way into culture. Jägermeister’s global head of culture and experiential, Kea Kleihauer, argues the case for usefulness and long‑term community investment over KPIs and quick wins.


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“If a brand says they are culturally relevant, they probably aren’t.” Kea Kleihauer laughs when she says it, but it is an accurate statement. Culture, she argues, is not something a brand can simply declare itself part of or can buy its way into. It has to be earned over time by a willingness to listen, not lead and be “useful”. 

“You have to have an actual purpose of working with culture. It's not something that you can just buy, like your media budget,” Kea says. “It’s not a marketing channel.” 

Brandmakers with Ruth Henriquez, head of partnerships and licensing at Mattel

Brandmakers with Ruth Henriquez, head of partnerships and licensing at Mattel

Listen on Spotify Listen on Apple Music Watch on YouTube Welcome back to the Brandmakers podcast, where Hannah is joined by Ruth Henriquez who is head of licensing and partnerships at Mattel overseeing the IP for brands like Barbie, Hot Wheels, Uno and Masters of the Universe.  In Mattel’s post-Barbie movie era, the company is shifting from a product-led business model to an IP-led one. At a time when advertisers are all finding ways to be ‘entertaining’ Mattel’s strategy is worth paying


Hannah Bowler

Hannah Bowler