The
Brand
School

W holds
a monthly
masterclass.

An understanding of all the challenges of a brand is forged by comparing strategy and creation, digital and physical, design and content, and advertising and transformation. A whole programme!

The W Brand School hybrids disciplines and breaks moulds. The result is something entirely new, bringing to mind the duck-billed platypus, a hard-to-classify creature that we believe resembles us, at once hybrid, strategic and creative.

Review of previous editions

#13

#13
Brands, the day after - CONTRIBUTING® SURVEY
#13

Brands, the day after - CONTRIBUTING® SURVEY
The French want a more equitable, responsible, green and effective France. And brands have a role to play in this ideal country. These are the main findings from the first Contributing® survey administered by the W agency with the CSA Institute. The aim is to understand new consumer expectations of brands, clarify trust factors and identify the sectors and brands where these expectations are the greatest and those seen as making the strongest contribution in this respect.

Contributing® is a new strategic approach that helps companies to meet the new expectations of consumers and stakeholders. Drawing on the expanded definition of the company under France’s PACTE Act, and on ESG criteria and CSR standards, Contributing® builds a bridge between meaning and business by advocating responsible growth and driving changes in business models.

To present the results, the W agency together with the CSA Institute held a digital conference on 25 June 2020 focused on “brands, the day after”. Participating in the event were Dominique Wood, Executive Communications Director, Carrefour Group; Mathias Vicherat, General Secretary, Danone Group; Erwan Soquet, Head of Communications, Decathlon France; Thierry Blandinière, CEO, InVivo; Johanne Casagrande, Chief Executive Officer, Branding Strategy Innovation, W; Yves Del Frate, CEO, CSA Institute; and Denis Gancel, Chairman and Founder, W.
Dominique Wood
Directrice Exécutive Communication - Groupe Carrefour

Mathias Vicherat
Secrétaire Général - Groupe Danone

Erwan Soquet
Leader Communication - Decathlon France

Thierry Blandinière
CEO - InVivo

Johanne Casagrande
Directrice Générale Branding Stratégie Innovation – Agence W

Yves Del Frate
CEO - Institut CSA

Denis Gancel
Président Fondateur – Agence W
#12

#12
Local brands take their revenge
#12

Local brands take their revenge
The Taylorist paradigm of large brands is under threat, with majors obliged to reinvent to compete with new players once perceived as harmless: local brands.

Stronger on affinity, proximity, patriotism and relevance, local brands meet new consumer requirements and are forcing large groups to change the way they manage their brand portfolios and international roll-out.

Held at the Mama Shelter Paris Ouest venue, the conference was led by Fabrice Lundy, an economics journalist at Radio Classique.
Brigitte Cachon
Directrice Communication, Innovation & RSE du Groupe Orpea

Antoine Dubois
Senior Vice-Président Global Marketing du Groupe Accor

Anaïs Guillemané
Responsable du Planning Stratégique W

Elise Hermant
Directrice de la Communication et membre du Comité Exécutif du Groupe ADP

Martin Piot
Vice-Président de W et Président de la Maison W
#11

#11
Purpose
#11

Purpose
Is the concept of “company purpose” a superficial trend or a means to lasting competitiveness?
All brands, from the most ethical to the most questionable, are communicating on their purpose. But words need to be backed by commitment.

The conference was led by Fabrice Lundy, an economics journalist at Radio Classique.

Cette conférence a été animée par Fabrice Lundy, chroniqueur économique sur Radio Classique.
Méka Brunel
Directrice Générale de Gecina

Johanne Casagrande
Directrice Générale Branding, Stratégie & Innovation chez W

Gilles Deléris
Co-fondateur & Directeur de la Création chez W

Pascal Demurger
Directeur Général du Groupe MAIF

Denis Gancel
Co-Fondateur et Président de W

Olivia Grégoire
Députée de Paris - Vice-Présidente de la Communication des Finances - Présidente de la Commission spéciale PACTE

Jean-Paul Mazoyer
Directeur Générale du Crédit Agricole Pyrénées-Gascogne
#10

#10
Future of Sport and Entertainment
#10

Future of Sport and Entertainment
With the boom in e-sport and niche sports, the new expectations of supporters and growing responsibility, the sports market is changing and brands need to adapt. A future-looking and multidisciplinary review of a huge yet volatile market.
Anaïs Guillemané
Responsable du Planning Stratégique W

Estelle Mège
Directrice Générale W Architecture
#9

#9
Hands off the loot!
#9

Hands off the loot!
Having a brand is good. But promoting it is better. In a fiercely competitive environment with a record number of registered brands in France and worldwide, promoting a brand has become a highly strategic issue.
Do brands have a financial value?
Denis Gancel
Co-Fondateur et Président W

Alexis Karklins-Marchay
Directeur Général Délégué chez Eight Advisory
#8

#8
Brands in motion
#8

Brands in motion
Scalable, connected and local logos. From building façades to everyday products, brands have made their mark on screens.

How do screens influence brand cues?
Martin Piot
Vice-Président de W et Président de la Maison W

Paul Groves
Directeur de Création Branding
#7

#7
Brand me if you can
#7

Brand me if you can
Has blanding killed branding?
With talk of launching logos into space and advertising often making more noise than impact, what kind of changes do brands need to consider?
Johanne Casagrande
Directrice Générale Branding, Stratégie & Innovation chez W

Valentin Baumont
Directeur de Création Branding
#6

#6
The rebirth of print
#6

The rebirth of print
Digital media gives new value to paper. But the Gutenberg technology still needs to reinvent and it is up to brands to seize this “new deal”.
Rather than considering print as dead, maybe it needs to be renewed and reinvented to form a complementary fit with digital media?
Laurent Barbarand
Directeur de Création éditorial & brand content

François Lamotte
Directeur Général W
#5

#5
Brands and events
#5

Brands and events
With companies such as L’Oréal, Apple and Alibaba, how do events fit into the lives of brands?
Denis Gancel
Co-fondateur et Président de W

Antoine L’Huillier
Directeur Général Havas Events
#4

#4
Work n' roll

Par Gabriel Lippis DC Digital & Content Grégoire Weil - DGA Head of content
#4

Work n' roll
Efficiency through creativity.

The lives of all companies are marked by relocations, renovations and the advent of the flexible office, with a direct impact on teams.
Pascal Leturcq
Directeur des opérations chez Walter

Martin Piot
Vice-Président de W et Président de la Maison W
#3

#3
Mediums mutandis
#3

Mediums mutandis
With audience fragmentation, fake news, virtual reality, smartphone TV, VOD and web TV, is television becoming another social media?
Christophe Moiroud
Directeur des marques du Groupe TF1

François Lamotte
Ancien Directeur Général W
#2

#2
Point de vue / point de vente
#2

Point de vue / point de vente
With e-commerce booming, physical points of sale need to reinvent to survive. Is hybridisation the cure to the supposed terminal illness of physical retail?
Sonja König
Directrice de Création Retail

Estelle Mège
Directrice Générale W Architecture
#1

#1
I love you, me neither
#1

I love you, me neither
8,000 brands are created every day. Large brands are setting value records year after year. And yet they are experiencing a crisis of confidence and a loss of legitimacy.
What explains this loss of appeal and how to rekindle the flame?
Gilles Deléris
Co-fondateur & Directeur de la Création

Denis Gancel
Co-Fondateur et Président W