Behind the Brand with Kenvue

Organization context & change

• Kenvue (formerly J&J Consumer Health) became an independent company after being spun off last year. Portfolio brands include Band-Aid, Listerine, Neutrogena, Tylenol, Motrin, etc.
• The team is operating as a “startup in year one” while still leveraging legacy brand equity—requiring fast pivoting and stopping what doesn’t work.

Operating model: breaking silos into an end-to-end system

Key operational shift: marketing and shopper efforts are no longer linear; execution must match a consumer journey across touchpoints and partners.

• Reconfigured teams to break functional silos so that marketing, targeting, digital, and e-commerce acceleration operate as one end-to-end effort.
• Aligned incentives and decision ownership across formerly decentralized structures:
  • Historically “wildly decentralized” with different incentive structures and multiple “end-of-day bosses.”
  • New approach: align to the shared end goal (e.g., retail sell-through and product availability via retailers).
• Built new roles/positions (some reportedly did not exist ~1.5 years ago) to meet new operating needs.
• Internal “journey replication” concept:
  • If they map consumer journey steps externally, they must replicate that logic internally—coordinating touchpoints for outcomes A → B.

Leadership/management playbook elements implied

• End-to-end integration (journey-aligned execution instead of channel-by-channel silos)
• Cross-functional alignment via shared outcomes/incentives
• Autonomy / owner mindset for pilots (teams can test within risk boundaries and are accountable for results)

Brand equity → “always-on” relevance beyond brand awareness

Core message: Brand equity alone isn’t enough in a fragmented media environment; consumers are inherently unloyal, and decisions vary by default vs exploration.

• Approach: meet consumers where they are with the right channels + the right steps in the journey.
• Experimentation with learning loops:
  • Try, learn, and adjust.
  • “Make some errors,” but not so deep they prevent course-correction.

Zarbee’s specific strategy (connected commerce / supplements)

• Goal: stay top of mind for parents beyond only “need state” moments.
• Mechanism:
  • Always-on strategy plus maintaining visibility/relevance.
  • “Simplify” execution on the right platforms—teach parents where they are at all times.
• Growth logic: shift framing from “mom when she needs us” to “mom everywhere.”

General brand guidance (applies across portfolio)

• Use the right channels/partners to ensure:
  • Brand claims and storytelling can actually be remembered (participants noted most claims aren’t top-of-mind for consumers).
  • The objective is not just message creation, but visibility + relevance + purchase journey impact.

Shopper marketing / Walmart as an omnichannel conversion engine

T’s role: Director of Omni Performance supporting Walmart (shopper marketing + e-commerce linkage).

Shopper marketing at Walmart: why it’s “mandatory” for winning

Walmart retail media and shopper marketing are treated as a required capability to win.

• Retailer-driven placements and activation, including:
  • Out-of-home inside Walmart, such as TV walls and digital billboards
  • Custom seasonal executions (e.g., “paint the store red for Tylenol” before cold season)
• Walmart Connect collaboration:
  • Integrate national media strategies with Walmart’s first-party shopper data to reach real consumers (not just “random bots”).
• Innovation through retailer collaboration:
  • Custom solutions curated exclusively for Walmart (example: Band-Aid innovation only at Walmart).

Omnichannel measurement: proving omni impact

Bigger thesis: update internal measurement/decision criteria so investments reflect real goals (ROI, distribution, etc.), with more realism about how to measure.

• Walmart.com example (Joselyn):
  • Pre-pandemic: digital growth from necessity/new shoppers.
  • Post-pandemic: Walmart returned to “normal” earlier; consumers shifted back to stores.
  • ~1 year of complacency/no growth/no digital penetration led to a re-think:
    • Identify what prevents shoppers from becoming multi-channel
    • Redesign incentives around:
      • Pickup
      • Online purchase incentives
      • Subscribe & Save opportunities alongside in-store options

Concrete KPI / metric claim

• Cross-channel value impact: a Walmart shopper is described as ~5x more valuable (higher consumer lifetime value) when shopping across three channels vs singularly.
• Framing: described as incremental value, not just simple switching between channels.

Culture, execution tempo, and risk-taking

• Marketing “optimization” is continuous externally and internally—ways of working must evolve, not only media plans.
• As an independent company, they must:
  • Pivot quickly when something doesn’t work
  • Be comfortable saying “no”
• Risk-taking + autonomy:
  • Walmart teams can pilot/test with known boundaries without escalating decisions through multiple ranks.
  • Teams are accountable for outcomes (“owners mindset”).

Practical “how they work” guidance

• External/internal alignment: communicate transparently both inside and outside the office; don’t behave differently outside.
• Client communication competency: partners must understand how Kenvue teams “speak” (e.g., when requesting more data, it’s critical for success).
• Team energy: emphasis on collaboration, fun/energy, and consumer empathy (“we’re customers like our consumers are”).

Frameworks / playbooks referenced (explicitly or implicitly)

• End-to-end journey operating model (replicate consumer journey internally)
• Experimentation + learning loop (test → learn → pivot; allow manageable failure)
• Owner mindset with pilot autonomy (risk boundaries + accountability)
• Goal-aligned measurement (e.g., ROI vs distribution—ensure measurement matches intent)

Metrics & targets mentioned (only what was provided)

• 5x: Consumer lifetime value for shoppers shopping across three channels vs one channel (described as incremental).
• No explicit numeric targets for revenue, CAC, churn, or growth rates were stated.

Presenters / sources

• Sarah Denby — host; East Coast Partnerships at Zingga
• T. (Theresa/Ther) — Director of Omni Performance, Kenvue (near 15 years at J&J/Kenvue)
• Brianna Chamberlain — Integrated Media Lead for Zarbee’s; Connected Commerce (a little over 5 years at J&J/Kenvue)
• Joselyn Schultz — Media Operations and Innovation Lead (about 8 years at Kenvue/J&J)
• Matt Fantasia — Head of Media, Kenvue (referenced)