Culturally Relevant Brands More Valuable, Says CultureLab

Is cultural relevance the key to commercial growth?

New research from CultureLab, in partnership with The Mediator author Doug Shapiro, finds that brands that are culturally relevant are worth nearly three times more than brands that aren’t. 

The research looked at public market valuation and cultural performance data across 75 brands in eight different categories – such as apparel and footwear, quick service restaurants (QSRs) and restaurants – and found a consistent positive trend between cultural relevance and valuation. 

CultureLab measured cultural relevance through the breadth and depth of mentions, a brand’s presence on the most culturally influential platforms, its share of voice and the wider cultural sentiment around a brand. 

“Forget media spend,” says Jed Hallam, Founder of CultureLab. “The brands worth nearly three times more than their competitors have one thing in common: Cultural Equity. 

“The industry has spent years debating cultural relevance as a concept. What it has lacked is proof. This research changes that conversation. Culture is a demonstrable driver of value, and we now have the data to show exactly how and why.”

Reduced marketing spend 

According to Gartner’s 2025 CMO Spend Survey, Chief Marketing Officers are getting less for every dollar spent due to media price inflation. This can make it challenging for marketers to test out new ideas, with other members of the C-suite often looking for clear commercial links from campaigns. 

In fact, research from Gartner has found that 84% of brands are trapped in what it refers to as a “brand doom loop” – where companies underinvest in brand measurement, which means they lack confidence in their results and attract less funding in the future. 

Despite this, Gartner’s research suggests that when a company has a strong brand strategy, it is two times more likely to exceed its growth goals. 

By linking cultural relevance directly to valuation CMOs may be able to better support evolving media plans and improve a brand’s cultural positioning.

“Marketers are torn,” says Doug. “On the one hand, intuitively they know that the fragmentation of media is increasing the urgency to own attention, not just rent it. On the other, there is a very strong gravitational pull of marketing budgets down funnel, to the most measurable – but most transient and transactional – media.”

Building cultural relevance 

CultureLab’s research recommends that, in order for brands to become more culturally relevant, they focus on mirroring, collaborating and owning: integrating culture’s language, iconography and references, working with influence from the relevant area of culture and investing in building owned properties or infrastructure. 

Coach, for instance, has been shifting its marketing strategy as part of efforts to better target a Gen Z audience. The brand has partnered with people such as Charli xcx, Malala Yousafzai and PinkPanthress through the launch of its &Coach marketing platform – co-created with Gen Z creators to build what it describes as a “new model for luxury storytelling”. 

“With &Coach, we're exploring a new model for how brands build relevance and participate in culture,” says Joon Silverstein, Chief Marketing Officer at Coach. “This generation doesn't want to inherit a prescribed version of aspiration – they want to shape identity for themselves, and they want to be part of the process.

“&Coach was built by bringing Gen Z creatives, cultural voices and hundreds of consumers into the work from day one. It's a fundamentally different brief, and it changes everything: the stories we tell, the voices we centre and how the platform evolves over time.”