Advice Line with Kenneth Cole
with Kenneth Cole
Executive Summary
A lasting brand needs a reason for customers to return, a clear emotional identity and a direct understanding of what buyers want. Wholesale can produce distribution without transferring customer loyalty to the supplier. A novel product needs a simple demonstration, a credible buying occasion and tests of what people actually value, not only the founder’s preferred interpretation.
Key Takeaways
The real objective is a returning customer, not one sale
Cole says he moved from finding people to sell things to toward creating a fulfilling experience that makes them return. Social platforms widen access to customers but also increase noise and competition. A recognizable voice and an understanding of what the buyer wants matter more than copying a platform tactic. Repeat purchase is an outcome to measure, not something a strong origin story guarantees.
Purpose must be more than a campaign
Cole presents social impact as part of how he runs the business and its related nonprofit, rather than a marketing tool added afterward. The episode uses his public-health advocacy as an example of this position. It does not establish the impact of particular programs or require every brand to adopt the same cause. A business should be specific about what it does and avoid claiming a social outcome it cannot support.
A small brand may need conversion before broad category education
Matt asks whether to win share in existing foot-care demand or invest in a wider wellness behavior change. Cole stresses an emotional connection and a demonstrable product story. Raz leans toward selling through current searches and retail channels first, then adding content and partnerships as traction grows. The proposed sequence is commercial advice, not support for health claims in advertising.
Wholesale reach does not automatically create your own audience
Emefa’s label sells well through Nordstrom, yet the expected flow into direct sales has not followed. Raz distinguishes a distribution channel from a marketing channel that builds the label’s own identity. Cole adds that retailers have their own customer relationship to protect. A supplier needs an explicit, useful and permitted way for shoppers to learn the brand rather than assuming store traffic becomes a mailing list.
Inventory, margins and timing shape the channel decision
Cole asks where the clothes are made, what margins support wholesale, and who carries inventory risk. Emefa says local production and small minimums give her flexibility. Direct selling may allow closer-to-season decisions, but that is not proof it will be cheaper or easier for every label. Compare actual costs, lead times, demand uncertainty and partner terms before choosing a channel mix.
Reduce friction by showing the product and its buying occasion
Levi’s sculpture needs a customer video and an explanation of how a swing becomes metal art. Raz asks for a clearer side-by-side demonstration, real customer videos and emotional occasions such as gifts or shared golf memories. Cole proposes golf professionals as possible partners. Each is a test of clarity, trust or access, not evidence that celebrity endorsements or retail partnerships are already available.
Listen when customers challenge the founder’s favorite story
Cole questions why a golfer wants to preserve a bad swing; Levi responds that memory and uniqueness are the value. The exchange exposes competing buyer motivations worth testing. The hosts also propose youth sports, figurative options and licensed professional swings. The answer is not to launch every variation immediately, but to learn which offer people understand, want and can support economically.
The Conversation Breakdown
Brand voice, repeat purchase and social purpose
Cole reflects on moving from a department-store and print-ad era to an open, noisy social marketplace. He argues for a distinct narrative, fulfilling experiences and listening to customers. His advocacy and nonprofit work illustrate his own view of cause and commerce, with no clinical advice or independent impact audit supplied.
Pedestrian Project: share of demand or a new category story?
Matt describes a bootstrapped foot-care line with e-commerce and retail distribution. The hosts discuss stigma, emotional appeal, visible product outcomes and complementary footwear partnerships. Raz favors current conversion opportunities before a large category-education effort. The product’s wellness and ingredient claims remain attributed, not endorsed.
ISRAELLA KOBLA: selling through stores without losing the brand
Emefa explains the label’s engineering-influenced design, Toronto production, wholesale dependence and hoped-for direct sales growth. Cole examines economics, inventory and production flexibility; Raz identifies the gap between distribution and brand building. The caller’s retailer-specific figures and current-market comments are historical accounts.
A useful bridge from wholesale to a direct relationship
Storytelling cards, care or repair registration and exclusive-drop invitations are proposed ways to connect shoppers with the label. Cole warns that sophisticated retailers will not simply hand over their audience. Partner permission, clear consent and customer value are necessary. The discussion also asks for a succinct point of difference rather than broad, competing design claims.
Retail space as a brand experience, not an automatic growth fix
Raz asks whether an emerging designer should open a shop. Cole explains that his early stores let him tell his own story and suggests viewing the expense partly as marketing. An immersive, distinctive experience might matter, but the episode does not show a lease, budget, traffic model or proof that a store is right for this caller.
Swing Sculpt: personal art, buyer objections and product demonstrations
Levi describes sculptures derived from a golfer’s swing path. The hosts weigh education and submission friction, costs, golf-shop partnerships, customer videos and gifting occasions. Cole questions preserving an imperfect swing, while Levi values authenticity and memory. They consider other sports, figurative designs and licensing as possible tests, subject to rights and economics.
A dialogue with customers and the department-store lesson
Cole closes by saying a designer should listen and give people what they want in an unexpected way. A short excerpt from his2020interview recalls the risk of department-store consolidation and the need for the brand to exist in customers’ minds. The ending includes the newsletter, call-for-submissions and production credits.
Core Frameworks & Ideas
Repeat-customer brand test
Define the feeling and useful experience the brand promises. Ask what made buyers return, compare that evidence with the story being told, and change the offer or communication where the two diverge. A sale is evidence of one transaction, not yet durable loyalty.
Distribution versus relationship
Separate the revenue a retail partner produces from the direct customer knowledge and brand recognition it creates. Add a useful, partner-approved bridge such as care registration or storytelling, collect information with consent, and measure whether shoppers actually choose to reconnect.
Channel economics and inventory fit
Map production lead times, minimums, stock ownership, gross margin definitions and retailer terms before comparing wholesale with direct sales. Favor a mix the business can finance and fulfill, not a theoretical margin advantage that ignores customer acquisition or returns.
Novel-product clarity test
Show the input, process and finished result in a simple demonstration. Pair it with a specific buyer, occasion and genuine proof. Test the founder’s preferred meaning against customer objections before expanding into new products, sports or licensing arrangements.
Actionable Next Steps
- ✓Ask recent and returning buyers what they wanted, what surprised them and what would make them choose the brand again.
- ✓Write one clear point of difference for the product, keeping health, sustainability and social-impact claims within evidence you can support.
- ✓Compare actual wholesale and direct-channel costs, inventory exposure and payment timing rather than comparing nominal margin percentages alone.
- ✓Agree a useful, consent-based shopper connection with retail partners, such as care information or optional registration, and test whether people use it.
- ✓Film a simple input-to-result demonstration for a hard-to-explain product and test one real gifting or use occasion before broadening the range.
Notable Quotes
“you have to find a unique narrative”
“they have to want to come back.”
“Whatever you do has to be in their interest to the degree it's also in yours.”
“storytelling is hard especially if it's not succinct.”
“the point isn't that it's actually your swing that you're memorializing, it's the memories”
“it needs to be a dialogue, not a monologue.”
“the best salesmen are the best listeners.”
The One Thing to Remember
Name the customer relationship you want to own, then test one clear story and one useful experience that gives buyers a reason to choose you again.