We recently welcomed Jean-Luc Bragard as our second spring term Mitre Lecture guest speaker. Jean-Luc is currently Head of Brand and Marketing at Arsenal Football Club after spending over 10 years at sports brand Nike.
Jean-Luc spoke to the students about his career journey, which has seen him work on campaigns with athletes including Cristiano Ronaldo and Emma Raducanu, reflecting on the changing marketing mediums over the past decade, which has seen a shift from brand-centred advertising content to athlete-centred social media content.
Despite the fast pace of change in his industry, Jean-Luc argued that the core ingredients of strong marketing – originality, emotion, story, and disruption – remain constant. Drawing on his work with the Lionesses and on Nike’s ‘Nothing Beats a Londoner’ campaign, he encouraged students to think boldly and embrace the power of human stories in whichever fields they choose to work in.
Lower Sixth student Morgane facilitated the lively student Q&A and reflected on the lecture. She said, “I really enjoyed listening to Jean-Luc Bragard’s lecture as it was very relatable. As a student who studies both business and economics, it was amazing to see how the concept we learn in our lessons can be applied to the real world.
“The main thing I took away from the lecture is that marketing is a very broad subject. You really have to consider creative ways to attract the attention of your customers and constantly think outside the box.
“It was enjoyable hosting the Q&A. The students were not only interested in the broader side of marketing but also how the discipline was applied to the more specific part of his role within Arsenal and sport. My favourite question from the audience was ‘How does your strategy change depending on whether the team/athlete are performing well/ badly?’
“Being in the Sixth Form, I find the Mitre Lectures really useful in giving students ideas of potential career paths with regards to what they are interested in and what they are currently studying. It definitely gives us a lot to think about.”
Trinity’s Mitre Lectures were launched in 2024 to give students access to high-profile external speakers, and engage them in big ideas every half term. So far topics have ranged from counter-terrorism law and sexism to wildlife conservation and saving the NHS.
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