Inside the Mind of a Marketing Agency Founder: Lottie Unwin on Burnout, Growth & Real Talk - Episode 7
The Marketing Hustle: Brand of the MatchShow Notes
This week’s hot take: Most people don’t plan to become founders—and even fewer are ready for what it actually takes.
In this solo(ish) episode, we flip the mic and put Lottie in the hot seat. She’s joined by Brand Hackers’ own Social Media Executive, Dani, for a behind-the-scenes chat on everything from Shakespeare to startups.
Lottie shares how she accidentally fell into marketing, the culture shock of moving from P&G to startup life, and what it actually means to be a CEO when you never planned to be one. Expect stories involving fragrance hauls, rejection emails, retail hustle, and her slightly chaotic path to founding three businesses.
We talk about learning on the job (with zero formal training), how building community started with one dinner, and the painful but powerful moments that shaped her leadership style. Plus, the honest truth about what she’s still figuring out, and what’s next for Brand Hackers.
If you're early in your career, wrestling with imposter syndrome, or building something from scratch, this one’s for you. Let us know what you think, and if you're feeling bold - maybe send this to a fellow founder who needs to hear they’re not alone.
Your Host Lottie Unwin founded Up World, Brand Hackers, and Up Talent with a simple goal: helping startups grow. She's learned a thing or two about building brands that people genuinely care about, and now she puts that knowledge to work supporting ambitious startups who want to make their mark. She loves nothing more than seeing brands find their confidence and voice - and she's not afraid to share the real ups and downs of her own journey along the way. — The Marketing Hustle Hot Takes is sponsored by Sticky Beak - Get real consumer insights in 48 hours or less and make smarter marketing decisions. Book a free 30-minute strategy call and get free Stickybeak credits at stickybeak.co/marketinghustle
More from The Marketing Hustle: Brand of the Match
"A personal brand is not you posting cocktails on holiday." That's the opening jab in round five of Brand of the Match.
Virality is reach beyond the people who already follow you, whether that's a video hitting a million views or an idea landing at the school gates.
Brand of the Match is back for round three, and this one's a scrap. Lottie Unwin and Joel Bjarni Marlinarson take on social campaigns: the channel everyone thinks they understand and almost nobody gets right. A social campaign isn't a TV ad reposted on Instagram. It's built for social, from the ground up, with social as the destination. This week Lottie and Joel go head to head on Apple's unhinged new TikTok tone for the MacBook Neo launch, Hair Syrup's Dragon's Den underdog story turned comment-section cult following, Sult's founder-led rise on the back of co-founder Millie Goldsmith's own audience, All Things Butter and Bold Bean's recipe feeds that have become destinations in their own right, QuickBooks Studios' surprisingly brilliant YouTube series for creators, Duolingo's retreat from the unhinged tone it invented, Blank Street, Gap, OpenAI and more! Only one brand walks away crowned Brand of the Match. This episode is brought to you by Stickybeak, rapid consumer research built for FMCG marketers. Test packaging, concepts and campaigns with real people in under 48 hours. Find out more: stickybeak.co 0:00 — Intro: how the show works, red cards, yellow cards and the whistle
The Marketing Hustle, Brand of the Match. Champion of OOH. Brand marketers have always argued about the best campaigns down the pub. Now Lottie Unwin and co-host Joel Bjarni Marlinarson are doing it properly, with red cards, yellow cards and a full-time whistle. Out of home covers billboards, installations and anything you see out and about. But in the age of social, OOH is now curated to travel well beyond its physical location. In the second episode of Brand of the Match, Lottie and Joel put out of home under the microscope. It's a channel as old as advertising itself, from Surreal's LinkedIn-native billboard mockups and Canva's genuine "make the logo bigger" takeover of Waterloo station, to TfL and Heineken Zero's confusing Bakerloo Line rebrand, to Rhode's headline-grabbing pimple patches at Coachella. Along the way they cover Pip & Nut's decade of the same squirrel, Lime Bike's reactive dig at London's tube strikes, Turo's shot at stealing Zipcar's audience, and Nike's provocative takeover of the London Marathon. By full time, there's only one winner. Do you agree with the result? Tell us in the comments. This episode is brought to you by Stickybeak, rapid consumer research built for FMCG marketers. Test packaging, concepts and campaigns with real people in under 48 hours. Find out more at stickybeak.co. Follow Brand of the Match: Joel Bjarni Marlinarson: Instagram & TikTok @coldestjoel, LinkedIn Joel Bjarni MarlinarsonLottie Unwin: Instagram @lottieunwinmarketing, TikTok @lottieupworld, LinkedIn Lottie Unwin Please subscribe wherever you're listening, it makes a huge difference to the show. Timestamps:00:00 - Coming up on Brand of the Match00:47 - Countdown into round two00:53 - Kick-off: Champion of Out of Home01:15 - Out of home as old as advertising itself02:31 - Joel's spectrum: from LinkedIn mockups to full-spend campaigns03:25 - Surreal's copywriting-led fake billboards04:05 - Canva's real Waterloo station takeover05:38 - TfL x Heineken Zero's Baloo line rebrand07:24 - Rhode x Coachella's pimple patch stickers10:34 - Half time: word from Stickybeak11:45 - Second half kicks off11:55 - Pip & Nut's squirrel and the case for consistency14:11 - Lime Bike's reactive tube strike ads15:11 - Turo's dig at the collapsing Zipcar18:03 - Nike's London Marathon takeover23:01 - Final whistle for this round23:17 - Pip & Nut crowned Brand of the Match23:54 - Looking ahead: the future of out of home26:45 - Outro and how to follow the show
Welcome to Brand of the Match, a new series from The Marketing Hustle. Lottie Unwin is joined by co-host Joel Bjarni Marlinarson (founder of Coldest Creative) to debate which brands are playing the partnership game best, red cards, yellow cards and all. This week's category: Partnerships. Lottie and Joel go head to head on Diet Coke x The Devil Wears Prada, Kit Kat's "stolen lorry" stunt, the London Marathon activations from Adidas, Nike and Hoka, Poppi's launch into Pret, Lucky Saint x Lime Bike, Unplugged x Damson Madder and Zendaya x Law Roach for On. One winner gets crowned Brand of the Match. Thank you to our sponsor Stickybeak — rapid consumer research built for FMCG marketers. Test packaging, concepts and campaigns with real people in under 48 hours.Find out more: stickybeak.co 0:00 — Intro: Lottie's background and the new co-host format 0:26 — Joel introduces Coldest Creative and the "brands as football teams" idea 0:47 — How the show works: red cards, yellow cards, the whistle and Brand of the Match 1:44 — Kick-off: Round one, Partnerships Diet Coke x The Devil Wears Prada, and why it works when partnerships are the core of the idea, not an afterthought Kit Kat's "stolen lorry" stunt and moving at social speed London Marathon 2026: Adidas, Nike, Hoka and Wild Deodorant's last-minute activation Why behind-the-scenes content is now outperforming the polished final asset 10:22 — Half-time: the Stickybeak ad break 11:35 — Second half: Poppi's launch into Pret, and whether it's a smart distribution play or a brand risk Lucky Saint x Lime Bike, and building partnerships around habits people already have Unplugged x Damson Madder's single-cabin collaboration M&S's compliments campaign and the power of employees posting before the brand does Zendaya x Law Roach for On, and the satirical "assistant" framing Jacquemus and his grandmother: legacy as a partnership hook Predictions: employee-led campaigns and the rise of "pay to access an audience" partnerships 23:05 — Final whistle and verdict 26:13 — On, with the Zendaya x Law Roach campaign, is crowned Brand of the Match 26:22 — Outro and how to follow the show