Tim Brown of Allbirds; and Lewis Hamilton and Angela Cullen. Photos / Dean Purcell/Getty
Union email claims ‘extreme’ stress for some Stuff workers facing redundancy; other Stuff staff face losing their expense PCards; my TVNZ mea culpa and it’s awards season
Tim Brown has faced adulation and adversity on the football field and in the boardroom. As a former All Whites football player and founder of Allbirds, he’s never been far from headlines – a handful taking a potshot, many others lauding his business as The Next Big Thing.
He remembers his father sending him a negative newspaper story when he was playing football for the Phoenix in Wellington. “I was like, ‘Why are you doing this? I don’t need that in my mind.’ He said, ‘Actually you do.’ If you can find a way to navigate through that and not think that you’re too good or you’re too bad, you’ll be completely fine. I came to learn that he was arming me with a sense of balance.”
This week, Brown’s wife sent him a Business Insider article. The headline: “The rise and fall of Allbirds: How Silicon Valley’s favourite sneaker lost its edge — and how its plans to save itself includes removing a key part of your shoe.”
Rather than hit a PR panic button, as many executives might be tempted to do, Brown posted the story on his LinkedIn page – with some self-reflection.
“I wanted to mix things up and share something that is less good to read,” he wrote. “My intention here is NOT to attack the piece as much as it is to remind myself and others that, in the words of Rafa Nadal, you need to be prepared to feel all the emotions in pursuit of your goals. In short, not only is it necessary, it is also just better that way. “It’s a reminder too that you are never as good or as bad as they say you are (this helped me a lot during my football career), and that all of my best work has come when I’ve been written off.
“Mostly, this is a challenge to keep in mind that rising and falling is just a part of the journey. To the Allbirds team: so many good things ahead.”
The reaction was immediate and extensive – more than 1400 reactions and 100 comments. Adjectives such as inspirational and resilient.
There is no denying Allbirds - famous for its New Zealand merino wool shoes - is going through a rougher patch, with a languishing share price, job cuts and a recently posted US$35.2 million ($57.7m) loss. Its travails have been well covered in the business media including, in a story with another cutting headline late last year from the Wall Street Journal: “Allbirds were the Tech Bro ‘It’ shoe. Then the Tech Bros moved on.”
All this, just a few years after the likes of the New York Times announced in its own headline: “To Fit Into Silicon Valley, Wear These Wool Shoes” and Time proclaiming Allbirds “The Most Comfortable Shoes in the World”. Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Leonardo DiCaprio have all been huge fans and consumers.
On a Zoom call with Media Insider from his adopted home of San Francisco, Brown believes media have generally treated him fairly over the years.
“There are some times when, quite frankly, people are wrong and I’ll be honest, I did a media interview recently with a New Zealand publication that I highly respect. And the opening comment was: ‘How does it feel now that the dream is over?’
“And I’m like, what are you talking about? That’s wrong. I disagree with that wholeheartedly.
“You don’t get to tell me when the dream is over, when I was in a Cuba St apartment in Wellington, you know, trying to make a shoe out of wool and putting it on Kickstarter. I’ll tell you when the dream’s over.”
As part of top-level changes at Allbirds, Brown has a new role: moving from co-chief executive to chief innovation officer. In his new role, and as co-founder, he is part of a small, senior leadership team and focusing on specific areas of the business to help get it to where they want it to be: culture; partnerships to enhance its sustainability purpose; innovation and driving awareness of the brand through storytelling.
He points out his Allbirds work has been his first job outside of professional football.
“My resume didn’t scream public company CEO, let’s be super clear, and nor did it have anything to do with footwear. Where I’ve got to is to be really honest with yourself about your strengths and your weaknesses and along the way I found a co-founder [Joey Zwillinger] who complemented a lot of those.”
Having a singular voice as CEO was something the company had prepared for, for a long time. “We always thought about this in three-year chapters.”
Brown says he has a lot to contribute to the “team piece”.
“I’m fundamentally a creative and for me to best position myself and support the team, it’s to be doing things connected to that. And so it’s really stepping back to do that and along the way, lo and behold, without the constraints of executive management. I think I’m contributing and poised to contribute more than I ever have to where we are.”
Before our interview, I asked Brown to reflect on the past seven years, and think of perhaps five of the biggest things he’s learned about himself or the business. He obliged superbly:
1. Patience. “We tend to massively overestimate what we can get done in the short-term and underestimate what can be done in the long-term. If you have the courage to commit to something over the long run and there’s a bunch of parameters that need to be in place for that to happen, then you can do more than you think.” He likens it to a footballer practising penalty kicks day after day, gradually improving, until they are an expert.
2. Don’t confuse hard work with high performance. “Everyone’s working hard – you need to be doing the right work.” He raises the theory of whether someone operating at 80 per cent capacity has a better chance of longer-term high performance. “You need to create space for reflection and for rest and for quite frankly capacity to drive things forward. What I found as an organisation is we just got busier, busier and busier.” It was ill-conceived to think that working 100 per cent the whole time was a prerequisite for success. “I am stepping back to make sure we’re doing and working on exactly the right things.”
3. Focus. “You’re defined as much by what you say no to, just as much as what you say yes to. Defining ways to give really confident, humble and polite ‘no’s’ to things is something you learn. The great businesses, the great brands get more focused over time, and clearer on who they are.”
4. Breaking things up in three-year chapters. “Breaking the journey up into chunks and making sure you’re asking yourself ‘Are you in exactly the right spot?’ is important. Generally, in life, we hold the pen a lot more than we maybe think.”
5. Telling your story. “The talking points are super important. The bit that always surprises me is that people want to learn about the Cuba St apartment far more than they want to learn about ringing the bell at the Stock Exchange in New York. I’m constantly reminded of the power of stories in driving change and connecting people to high performance and success.”
Back to that LinkedIn post, Brown says it was as much a message for the Allbirds staff as it was for his followers.
Allbirds, he says, is still a young organisation – just seven years old. “We have gone from one person in a Cuba St apartment to two men and a dog in San Francisco to now north of 1000 people.”
The company has a new challenge on its hands, trying things differently and perhaps proving some of those recent headline writers wrong. “It’s quite exciting, to be honest with you.”
He recalls his footballing days and that story his father sent him.
“Remember that just because you won or lost the game of football didn’t mean that you were a good or a bad person. There’s a certain amount that you can control and you should be really focused on that. You can control how hard you try and how well you prepare but then there’s a bunch [of things] that are out of your control. Once you’re at peace with that, the whole thing becomes a little more serene.
“And nothing about professional sport was serene and nothing about building a business – which is possibly even a tougher mental journey – has been serene.”
For seven years, Kiwi Angela Cullen was as close to seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton as anyone – as his performance coach, physiotherapist and confidante. The pair had one of the closest professional relationships in the sport, and it shocked many when Cullen left the team in March.
Hamilton once described Cullen, a former Kiwi Black Sticks hockey player, as “one of the greatest things that’s ever happened to me”.
“For the last seven years @cullen_angela has been by my side, pushing me to be the best version of myself,” Hamilton wrote on Instagram in March. “I am a stronger athlete and a better person because of her. So today I hope you’ll join me in wishing her the very best as she takes her next steps to pursue her dreams. Thank you for everything Ang, I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for you.”
Since then, European-based Cullen has been taking time out. Her Instagram account is a one-stop adventure, wellness and happiness guide, featuring her skiing, skydiving, running and more recently conducting yoga classes.
Cullen’s final five years in Formula 1 coincided with a massive rise in popularity for the sport, driven by the behind-the-scenes Netflix series Drive to Survive.
The show – a warts-and-all showcase - has dramatically lifted the profile of the F1 team drivers, principals and owners, and has led to many fly-on-the-wall-style spin-off documentaries for other sports (golf, cricket and even rugby). Cullen was seen regularly on camera in Drive to Survive, alongside Hamilton as he prepared for races, and in the aftermath.
“Classic,” Cullen told Media Insider this week. “[I] haven’t seen Drive to Survive and really have no plans to watch it. I live a TV-free lifestyle - I like to remove noise out of my life and connect with nature and real people.”
In a Q&A with fans on social media last week, Cullen also revealed she was writing a book – called Seasons, it will detail her “life’s journey”.
“During my runs, I come up with all my ideas,” she said. “Then I come back and I write, and some days I don’t write. But I find my inspiration and process while running.”
This week, Hamilton and the rest of the Formula 1 circus are at the highest-profile race of the season: the Monaco Grand Prix. While the cars can hardly pass each other on the tight Monte Carlo circuit, the crowds and atmosphere are something to behold.
The incredible rise in interest in Formula 1 has been laid bare in viewership numbers released to Media Insider by Sky TV.
“Thirteen per cent of all New Zealanders (aged 5+) have watched F1 across Prime and Sky Sport – that’s a 77 per cent increase in linear reach since 2018 when Sky last had the F1, and doesn’t include streaming on Sky Sport Now and Sky Go,” says Sky’s Chris Major.
“Drive to Survive has played a pivotal role in opening F1 up to a new and younger audience, beyond the traditional motorsport/petrolhead fan, and we’re excited about growing that audience in New Zealand as well. It’s great seeing F1 being truly part of the broader/cultural conversation.
“It’s also awesome to see F1′s bold approach to taking races to new cities like Las Vegas as part of their effort to grow the appeal of the sport beyond traditional markets, and we can’t wait to bring that race to Kiwis in November this year.”
· Watch: Monaco Grand Prix – Live on Sky, Monday 1am
As Media Insider revealed three weeks ago, Stuff is proposing to lay off up to 16 print producer roles in its news operation. An email written by a union representative to members says the union has had further discussions with the company over the redundancy proposals.
“Part of the pressing issue is that many print producers are reporting having to work excessive hours while they juggle their job, new computer systems and training,” says the email, obtained by Media Insider.
“Stress has been extreme for many while they are also facing possibly losing their jobs.
“The company has changed between ‘absolutely refuting’ people are working longer hours to saying they haven’t been told about it but if it is happening, they don’t want it to happen.
“We have asked for training to be slowed down, for all redundancies to be made on a voluntary basis first and that any redundancy decisions come one month after all new technology is in place. This has largely been refused.”
The union representative asked staff to work to rule from a set day. “If the company is right and there is not an issue with excessive workloads this work to rule will obviously have little effect. If the union and members are correct, it will.
“We have given the company a reasonable way out of this situation: adequate time to train and for new technology to bed in before rushing into decisions that will drastically affect people’s lives and the quality of Stuff products.”
Stuff did not wish to respond to questions.
Some Stuff staff may soon lose their PCards - essentially credit cards that help the likes of reporters and visual journalists while they’re on assignment, and need to pay for food and other expenses.
A number of Stuff staff received an email this week saying their PCard would be cancelled from this Monday following a company-wide review. It asked the staff to destroy their cards. They could still file expense claims, the email said.
That email was quickly followed by another from an executive, saying the earlier message was “sent before we had the opportunity to communicate the company-wide review of active PCards and work through all the issues. The cancellations will be delayed while we review this.”
That later email did reiterate that anyone travelling to the Voyager Awards in Auckland this weekend would not be impacted “but a reminder that PCards should not be used for alcohol before or after the event”.
That last point would be a common policy across the media industry, including here at NZME.
Stuff’s spokeswoman Candice Robertson, in response to questions about the PCard review, said: “On the P Cards, we just expected NZME would be shouting our staff to celebrate us smashing the Voyagers!”
My speculative article this week about Jane Wrightson being the frontrunner and “set” for the TVNZ chair role was off the mark – frankly, wrong. While she might have been in the sights of decision-makers for the chair of the merged TVNZ-RNZ organisation, the demise of that plan means her name is off the table.
My apologies for this; I failed to heed a lesson from one of my first editors, Sue Carty: “If your mother says she loves you, check it out”. The article was quickly updated but given I’m writing about media each week, it’s only right to correct and apologise for my own mistake.
While I’m loath to speculate any further about the new-look TVNZ board, two further names were passed on in terms of possible new chair (and this IS speculation): RNZ chair Jim Mather and John Quirk. Both were on the merger establishment board.
The new TVNZ appointments are expected to be announced very soon. From there, the board will be responsible for replacing CEO Simon Power, who departs on June 30. TVNZ general counsel Brent McAnulty is filling in, in the meantime.
A frontrunner for the full-time gig could well be someone like Pango Productions CEO and New Zealand Rugby deputy chair Bailey Mackey – speculation again but he undoubtedly has the background and experience.
Put the champagne on ice, break out the dancing shoes: it’s awards season in the media industry, kicking off with the PRINZ Awards tonight; the Voyager Media Awards and INMA global awards this weekend and the Radio Awards next Thursday night.
Aside from my own self-interest in how the NZ Herald and our other NZME titles perform across a range of categories at the Voyagers tomorrow night, I – like many others – will be keenly watching some of the big hotly contested individual categories, including Reporter of the Year, Photographer of the Year, and Political Journalist of the Year.
There are many other storylines to watch for: Tova O’Brien up for Broadcast Journalist of the Year – less than three months after the closure of Today FM where she was breakfast host – and five strong journalists and editors, Alanah Eriksen (NZME), Janine Fenwick (Stuff), Amanda Linnell (NZME), Rhonwyn Newson (RNZ) and Andrea Vance (Stuff), all vying for Editorial Leader of the Year.
Congratulations to all of the nominees and winners. Good luck to everyone.
Some big names and businesses feature prominently as finalists for the Beacon Awards, to be held on June 15.
Finalists in Media Agency of the Year are MBM, OMD, PHD and Together; Finalists for Media Business of the Year are Go Media, JCDecaux, NZME, Shout Media, TVNZ and Warner Bros Discovery. Finalists for Sales Team of the Year are NZME, Phantom Billstickers, Stuff, TVNZ, Val Morgan NZ and Warner Bros Discovery.
An update to last week’s Media Insider piece on the very big, very lucrative ASB media account, being fought over by at least five advertising agencies.
One name on the list was Dynamo. It’s part of the Omnicom Group which – when you unpick the various structures of ownership – has three other sub-brands already looking after banks in New Zealand, namely PHD (ANZ); OMD (KiwiBank and SBS); and Hearts and Science (BNZ).
While that has raised some eyebrows within the industry, Omnicom insists it has “robust conflict management protocols”.
Omnicom Group Australia and New Zealand CEO Peter Horgan told Media Insider that they were pitching Dynamo “and for ASB, see benefits of scale, deep digital, data and analytics capability, also transparency that is a core tenet of the group’s philosophy”.
“We are quite strong in category knowledge, but given overall market share, that figures across a lot of categories. Which is why we have built such strong individual brands, with robust conflict management protocols.”
* Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.
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