Podcast Summary: The CMO Podcast

Episode: Joon Silverstein (Coach) | From Legacy to Cultural Icon: How Coach Won Gen Z

Date: December 22, 2025
Host: Jim Stengel
Guest: Joon Silverstein, CMO of Coach

Episode Overview

In this episode, Jim Stengel sits down with Joon Silverstein, Chief Marketing Officer at Coach, to discuss the brand’s remarkable journey from a traditional legacy business to a vibrant, Gen Z-loved cultural icon. Silverstein shares her personal and professional evolution, Coach’s “flip the script” mindset, and how placing authentic human insight at the brand’s core fueled business transformation. The conversation explores the principles shaping Coach’s modern success—purpose over performance, consumer immersion, courageous leadership, and innovative sustainability, especially through the Coachtopia initiative.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Joon Silverstein’s Personal & Leadership Journey

• Courage Before Confidence

  • Silverstein did not start with natural confidence, citing her upbringing as a second-generation Korean American who often felt unseen and different.
  • She credits her anthropology background for fostering curiosity and perspective, saying:

    “Courage comes before confidence. You act before you’re fully prepared. And each courageous step expands your sense of what you’re capable of.” (10:32)

  • She encourages teams to stretch into unfamiliar roles, drawing on her own lateral career moves, most notably running the Louis Vuitton flagship store—unexpected for someone at her executive level.
  • Quote:

    “Being an outsider isn’t a disadvantage to be overcome. It can be a real source of clarity and insight. Over the course of my career, it’s been my superpower.” (17:44)

• Evolving Leadership & Vulnerability

  • As CMO, Silverstein describes her shift: from being a “galvanizer” to focusing on clarity, coherence, and emotional openness with her team.
  • She works to democratize ownership, invite ideas from all levels of the organization, and celebrates “courage, not perfection.” (21:13)
  • On vulnerability:

    “Showing vulnerability does not come naturally to me... But I recognize it’s an important leadership tool.” (23:45)

2. Coach’s Brand Transformation & Gen Z Focus

• Seven Principles for Brand Reinvention
  Stengel recites Silverstein’s seven principles, summarized here:

  1. From a brand for everyone ➔ a brand for Gen Z
  2. Consumers as buyers ➔ consumers as humans
  3. Retention ➔ acquisition
  4. Performance-driven ➔ brand-driven
  5. Short-term focus ➔ long-term focus
  6. Product-led ➔ purpose-led
  7. More is more ➔ focus and scale
     (25:28)

• Human (Not Just Consumer) Insight

  • Coach’s transformation started by listening deeply to Gen Z—not just their purchase behaviors, but their identities, values, and emotional trade-offs.
  • Gen Z are seen as “defined by dualities”—craving sustainability and self-expression, being hyperconnected yet lonely, challenging brands but wanting a seat at the table.
    (31:50)

• Expressive Luxury & Cultural Relevance

  • Silverstein coined “expressive luxury” to reflect the shift away from status and exclusivity towards fluid self-expression.

    “They’re not asking, ‘What does this brand say about me?’ They’re asking, ‘Does this help me express who I am?’” (32:38)

• Acquisition-Led Growth

  • Coach pivoted from focusing on retention to striving to be “the first luxury bag” for each new wave of consumers, creating “almost unlimited consumer-driven opportunity.” (29:10)

• Co-Creation with Gen Z

  • Gen Z wants to participate, not be marketed to: “Gen Z doesn’t want to be spoken at, they want to participate... That’s how we build.” (33:37)

3. Building Internal Culture and Aligning the Organization

• Shared Consciousness & Alignment

  • Deep immersion in the lives of the core, everyday Coach consumer—across markets, not just trendsetters—was key to driving cultural buy-in.
  • Leadership alignment and CEO Todd Kahn’s support were instrumental in solidifying a focus on courageous, Gen Z-oriented growth.
    (36:28)

• Moving Past Loyalty Fears

  • Initially, there was concern that focusing on youth would alienate legacy consumers, but the opposite happened—all demographics grew stronger, led by Gen Z.
    (38:19)

4. Coachtopia: Internal Disruption & Sustainability Leadership

• The Birth of Coachtopia

  • Sparked by a sense during COVID that fashion’s linear model (take-make-waste) was no longer sustainable.
  • Created as a circular sub-brand and “internal startup.”
  • Co-designed with a global Gen Z beta community, shaping product, content, and even brand commitments.
    (39:59)

• Circularity and Challenging Perfection

  • Redefined the value and beauty of waste, e.g., bags made from leftover materials.
  • Fought luxury’s obsession with perfection, seeing constraints as a source of creativity.

• Scaling to Core Business

  • Example: The “Alter Ego” bag is made from waste generated during the production of another Coach icon.
  • Coachtopia’s innovations are being integrated into Coach’s main line. (42:58)

• Guiding Principle: Courage for Imperfect Steps

  • On breakthrough sustainability work:

    “The courage to take bold but imperfect steps... In the beginning, we were afraid that talking about progress would shed a light on all the things we were doing wrong. And that kind of fear can actually paralyze progress.” (44:09)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Coach’s New Approach to Black Friday

  “For the first time ever, we led Black Friday with brand first, promo second. When you build real brand desire, you don't need to compromise your principles to win during the holidays.” (07:17)

• On Career Risk-Taking

  “A lot of growth comes when you are in stretch roles. A lot of growth comes in moments of change...” (13:50)

• On Being an Outsider

  “If I can live with and understand the Berber tribes in the Middle Atlas Mountains of Morocco, I can probably figure out rich people.” (17:24)

• Humanizing Brand Experience

  “Brands don't have fixed meanings. People and culture give them meaning. Honestly, Spam taught me that before any brand strategy ever did.” (03:11, 47:46)

Important Segment Timestamps

• Joon’s Introduction & Career Background – 5:57–9:33
• Building Confidence & Leading With Courage – 9:56–16:09
• Transforming Coach’s Brand and Internal Culture – 20:32–25:28
• Seven Principles & Gen Z Focus – 25:28–34:50
• Gathering Organization-Wide Buy-In – 36:28–39:42
• Coachtopia Origin & Impact – 39:59–45:01
• Personal Reflections, Brand Impact of Spam – 46:05–49:31
• Mentorship (Lou Frankfurt), Inspirational Lessons – 50:46–52:53
• Closing Reflections on Transformation and Courage – 54:48–55:55

Tone and Style

Silverstein’s tone is thoughtful, sincere, occasionally vulnerable, and always rooted in human-centric, purpose-driven leadership. The discussion is candid, personal, and accessible—making Coach’s transformation feel like both a strategic masterclass and a story of personal growth.

Episode Highlights: For Those Who Haven’t Listened

• Brand reinvention at Coach centered on radical consumer empathy and courage, not just marketing tactics.
• Silverstein’s career journey reveals the power of lateral moves, outsider perspective, and anthropological curiosity in business leadership.
• Coach’s partnership with Gen Z is defined by participation and co-creation, not just selling to them.
• The launch of Coachtopia showcases courage for imperfect progress and the unexpected creative value in constraints.
• Internal culture change, leadership humility, and clarity of vision are fundamental to sustaining transformation.
• The impact of personal and cultural experiences—like Silverstein’s story of Spam—highlights how brands (and people) can redefine themselves over time.

Endnote

Both host and guest close the episode reflecting on the essential role of courage, boldness, and disruptive thinking in professional and brand transformation—a message Silverstein embodies in both her leadership and the Coach story.

For further inspiration, listen to the full episode or catch Silverstein’s TED Talk on Coachtopia for a deep dive into building the next generation of sustainable, culturally relevant brands.