Podcast Summary: "Hungry for Data at Kellanova & Bath and Bodyworks Circles the Drain"

Podcast: Brew Markets
Host: Ann Berry
Date: November 21, 2025

Overview

This episode of Brew Markets delves into two major stories shaking up the consumer sector:

• How food giant Kellanova leverages advanced analytics and AI for creative decision-making, supply chain, and retail partnership strategies, as revealed by Chief Growth Officer Charisse Hughes.
• Bath and Body Works’ struggles under a new CEO, grappling with slumping sales and a frank admission of the brand’s pain points.

Ann Berry, with guest Charisse Hughes, offers an insider's look at how “old economy” companies are tackling digital transformation and changing consumer preferences—especially as new technologies and health trends disrupt established brands.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

AI & Analytics in Consumer Food at Kellanova

Guest: Charisse Hughes (SVP & Chief Growth Officer, Kellanova; former Global CMO, Kellogg)

Using Data for Creativity and Business Transformation

• Charisse came from Pandora Jewelry to Kellogg’s (now Kellanova) with a focus on leveraging rich data to drive a business and consumer transformation.
  • "The crux of the matter...is just that the company had so much data and insights and I really wanted to mine that data to help drive a business transformation, a consumer transformation because they had lost some relevance." (04:45)

Bringing AI into Creative Decisions

• Kellanova partnered with VidMob to score and optimize ad creative using AI:
  • Automated assessment of 20,000 creative decisions (e.g., video length, showing people, product placement, calls to action)
  • AI scored creative with 83% accuracy
  • Improved profit ROI by 11%
  • Reduced creative review time from 100 hours to 10
  • Human judgment crucial to avoid a "sea of sameness"
• Quote:
  "Our AI can score creative within an 83% accuracy. Number two, it's boosting our profit ROI by 11%. Number three...what used to take 100 hours and many, many marketers is now taking 10." – Charisse Hughes (07:54)

Advanced Data Collaboration with Retailers

• Kellanova uses first-party data, “clean rooms,” and purchasing data (e.g., from Circana) to drive retail strategy.
• Clean rooms: Privacy-safe environments that combine data sources for sharper consumer pictures without sacrificing privacy.
• Case Study:
  • In the UK, Special K audience was segmented into price-sensitive and "trade up" consumers.
  • Tailored messaging led to 9% lift among price-sensitive and 36% lift in trade-up segment.
• Quote:
  "We've seen some pretty impressive results there as well. 9% lifts with our price sensitive consumers and a 36% lift with those who are less price sensitive and willing to trade up." – Charisse Hughes (10:43)

Evolving E-Commerce and Data Ownership Challenges

• Shift to “agentic commerce” (e.g., purchases through AI like ChatGPT) could fragment data, making it costly and harder for brands to understand purchasing patterns.
• Increasing challenge to maintain consumer insight as data flows through intermediaries instead of directly to brands.
• "It does mean that data becomes a lot more expensive and understanding our consumers becomes even more challenging and fragmented." (13:58)

Brand Loyalty in the AI Era

• Despite new tech intermediaries, consumers trust brands over tech platforms and media (referencing Edelman Trust Barometer, CNBC poll).
• "Consumers will be loyal to brands...brands because that's who they trust today. And I think that will only be strengthened and enriched." (15:03)

Role of Influencers as Cultural Connectors

• “Creators are...cultural translators,” not just amplifiers.
• Example: Celeste Barber collaboration for humor-driven “myth busting” on cereal nutrition.
• "It's not just leaning on any influencer, it's someone who is all about keeping it real. And that's what Celeste Barber brings to the table." (16:53)

GLP-1s, Health Trends & “Holistic Wellbeing”

• With GLP-1 weight loss drugs upending eating habits, food companies must cater to both indulgence and wellness.
• Shift from “free from” formulas (gluten-free, sugar-free) to products “full of” desired nutrients (protein, fiber, etc.).
• Clean labels and “better for you” credentials are increasingly important.
• "Now consumers...are looking for foods that are coming to the table with a wealth of nutrients, protein, et cetera, et cetera." (17:52)

When Data Gets It Wrong: The Cracker Barrel Logo Flop

• Too-radical brand changes (e.g., Cracker Barrel’s rapid logo shift) can alienate loyal customers, especially in a highly polarized online environment.
• "I felt like that was a revolution and I think it happened too quickly..." (19:27)

Bath and Body Works Circles the Drain

[20:48]

• Bath and Body Works saw sales and earnings fall, slashing forecasts; stock dropped 25%, more than 50% YTD.
• New CEO Daniel Heath blamed inefficiency, lack of appeal to younger customers, and was blunt about a poor start to the holiday season.
  • Quote: "Our organization has become slow and inefficient, that the brand has not attracted a younger consumer. And...we have had a very tough start to the holiday." – Daniel Heath (20:48)
• The brand will soon officially launch on Amazon to address significant gray market sales—CEO sees this as “an incredible sales opportunity.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On AI's transformative power:
  "What used to take 100 hours and many, many marketers is now taking 10." – Charisse Hughes (07:43)
• On consumer trust:
  "Consumers have 60% greater faith in brands than government and media." – Charisse Hughes (15:00)
• On rapid brand changes:
  "There's an evolution and a revolution. I felt like [Cracker Barrel's logo change] was a revolution and I think it happened too quickly." – Charisse Hughes (19:27)
• On Bath and Body Works’ woes:
  "Our organization has become slow and inefficient... we have had a very tough start to the holiday." – Daniel Heath, CEO (20:48)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:35: Ann Berry introduces Charisse Hughes and their shared history
• 04:45: How and why Charisse brought analytics into branded marketing
• 06:29: Real-life examples of AI driving creative and business ROI at Kellanova
• 09:09: Data partnerships and “clean room” strategy for better retail outcomes
• 12:29: E-commerce, direct-to-consumer evolution, and AI intermediaries
• 14:47: Impact of AI on brand loyalty and consumer trust
• 15:57: Influencer marketing as “cultural translation” (Celeste Barber campaign)
• 17:13: How GLP-1s and health trends are transforming food innovation
• 18:38: Lessons from brand missteps: Cracker Barrel’s logo controversy
• 20:48: Bath and Body Works: CEO’s blunt turnaround diagnosis and upcoming Amazon launch

Tone & Language

The episode strikes an engaging, direct, and occasionally lighthearted tone. Both Ann Berry and Charisse Hughes blend candid insights with warmth and humor (particularly in discussing influencers and brand storytelling). Charisse relies on specific business results and anecdotes, while Ann guides the conversation to make technical concepts relatable for retail, food, and market-watch audiences.

Conclusion

This Brew Markets episode presents a playbook for how legacy consumer brands can use data and AI—not just to catch up with digital disruptors but to drive measurable, creative, and financial results. It also doesn’t shy away from the pitfalls of misreading data or losing brand essence in the quest for innovation, using both Kellanova’s and Bath and Body Works’ experiences as cautionary tales and inspiration for adaptation.