Interview with: Richard Bates, VP, Head of Global Brand Design, PepsiCo, Inc.

1. Interview with: Richard Bates, VP,
Head of Global Brand Design,
PepsiCo, Inc.
“Taking internal control of the creative
development of our brands rather than
relying solely on agencies and working
closely with Marketing across all
categories and functions, has helped us
develop more meaningful brand stories
that are connected at every point of the
consumer journey,” says Richard Bates,
VP, Head of Global Brand Design,
PepsiCo, Inc. “It is about integrating
product with experience. If you tell
consumers a fractured story, they won’t
understand why a brand is for them and
what personal meaning it could have in
their lives,” he explains.
Bates is a keynote speaker at the
marcus evans AmericaPack Summit
2017, taking place in Los Angeles,
February 16-17. Here, he shares the
PepsiCo story and his experiences in the
hotel hospitality and food service facet
of the business.
What elevates the customer
experience? How is PepsiCo
creating new brand experiences?
PepsiCo does not sell directly to the
consumer. Partnering with Roberto Rios,
PepsiCo’s SVP and Chief Marketing
Officer for the hotel hospitality and food
service group, we have worked closely
with our customers to transform these
channels into an exciting way to build
meaningful brand experiences for
consumers while integrating our
products seamlessly into our customer’s
brand.
We know that most millennials would
rather spend money on an experience
rather than a product or object, but
when we bring experiences and
products together, we create real value,
both for our customers and our brands.
How does PepsiCo connect
products, packaging and brand
experience in a seamless and
meaningful way?
A few years ago, we changed our
approach to design, and more recently,
to all brand communication. The
company hired Chief Design Officer,
Mauro Porcini, who created an internal
design and innovation capability.
This was a bold decision, considering
the size of the company, but it had
support all the way up to PepsiCo’s
Chairman and CEO, Indra Nooyi.
With the design function now inside the
company, it was important from the
beginning to decide what role design
would play, the business reason and
expected return on investment.
We partnered with Marketing, Sales and
R&D on brand development, new
eq u ip me nt and p r o d u ct /b r a nd
innovation from day one, which closely
tied design to strategic priorities and
building value. We have basically taken
back ownership of creative knowledge
and development around our brands.
Speaking the same language internally
and finding synergies across business
units has led to more seamless brand
stories and better solutions.
PepsiCo recently created a new content
studio, called the Creator’s League,
under the leadership of Brad Jakeman,
that is essentially a fully-functioning
internal production arm for all-
encompassing branded content,
including scripted series and films,
reality and competition, music
recordings and digital content.
Partnering with our internal design
function means our stories are now
more coherent across brand communi-
cation, packaging and experience.
What consumer experience will the
newly opened Kola House in New
York City offer?
Kola House draws its inspiration from
one of Pepsi’s original key ingredients,
the kola nut. As a premium mixology
and restaurant experience, Kola House
is anchored by a copper pipe Kola Bar
inspired by Pepsi Cola’s drugstore
fountain heritage. A stage allows the
restaurant to transform into a
downtown event space for pop culture
moments in music, art, style, film,
sports and more.
We also have a new portfolio brand
called BBLz, a celebration of non-
alcoholic mixology that transforms
carbonated soft drinks by infusing them
with unexpected ingredients, flavors and
toppings. There’s also Hello Goodness,
which is transforming the vending
machine channel by offering consumers
an elevated experience and better-for-
you solutions.
Speaking the
same language
internally and
finding synergies
across business
units has led to
more seamless
brand stories
and better
solutions
How PepsiCo Creates
Meaningful Brand Experiences

2. The marcus evans Summits
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Please note that the Summit is a
closed business event and the
number of participants strictly
limited.
About the AmericaPack Summit 2017
The AmericaPack Summit is the premium forum bringing elite buyers and sellers
together. The Summit offers FMCG packaging executives and suppliers and solution
providers an intimate environment for a focused discussion on how to win the battle
for market and mind share through packaging. Taking place at the Four Seasons,
Westlake, Los Angeles, February 16-17, the Summit includes presentations on
consumer driven packaging innovation, design within the boardroom, sustainable
packaging best practices, and delivering cost effective packaging across the supply
chain.
http://americapacksummit.marcusevans-summits.com
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