Go Luck Yourself - Andy Nairn, Lucky Generals

Andy Nairn is one of the 3 founders of Lucky Generals, a creative company for people on a mission. It's been shortlisted for Campaign's Agency of the Year for 5 years in a row. In 2021, Campaign named him the top brand strategist in the UK, for the 3rd time in a row. Business Insider has also named him one of the top 5 creative people in world advertising. He's won 24 IPA Effectiveness Awards (including the 2005, 2007 and 2010 Grands Prix) as well as the top 2 planning prizes in the USA (Gold Effie and Gold APGUS). And he's just launched his first book GO LUCK YOURSELF, with all the royalties going to help working class kids get a lucky break into the creative industry.

What we covered in this episode:

• How lockdown led to Andy writing a book
• Why he went from law to advertising
• Jon’s ‘lucky’ break creating a new business
• Why successful companies use their luck better
• Good luck is more how you handle bad luck
• How being clear on your purpose helps prepare for bad luck
• How Napolean inspired Lucky Generals
• The importance of a popular idea rather than PowerPoint slides
• Why strategists should make things simple rather than being super intellectuals
• Lucky Lockdown and a socially distanced Teapot from Yorkshire
• How Lucky General took Yorkshire Tea from No.3 to No.1
• Lucky timing and how the Coop strategy would have been much cooler in Swedish
• Trolling Tesco with the Coop’s recycling message
• Premier league footballers lacing up in support of the LGBTQ community
• Lucky dog story and the role of jeopardy in creating a good ad
• Making the best Super Bowl ad for Amazon
• Why the more boring the category the more interesting you become
• How we lost our history and forgot the power of nostalgia
• Why lucky mascots are unloved marketing gold
• How Lucky Generals got everyone to complete their tax returns
• How the navy beat enemy u-boats by using a new paint scheme
• What took Taylors so long to put coffee in bags and how they turned this into an advantage
• Going commando for a good cause and the power of a beautiful constraint
• Lucky legacy and the battle of the bread brands
• How they updated the legendary Hovis boy on a bike campaign a won ad of the decade