YouTube Creative Session with Burlington: From Childhood Memories to Strategic Partnership
Life has a funny way of circling back.
When I was a kid, my mom worked part-time at Burlington Coat Factory. I remember waiting for her after school, wandering through racks of oversized coats and shiny store mirrors, completely unaware that decades later I’d be back in Burlington’s orbit, albeit in a completely different way. Fast forward 20 years, and now I’m working with Burlington to help shape their creative strategy on YouTube. Talk about full circle.
The Setup
The concept was straightforward: invite Burlington’s creative team to our NYC Google office in SJT, get lunch, and spend two hours diving into their current YouTube creatives, talking about what’s working, what’s not, and how they stack up against competitors. But when the day arrived, the session turned into so much more than a brainstorm.
Lunch With a Side of Energy
We kicked things off in our buzzing café. Imagine a food court turned up a notch: five different cuisines, lines of Googlers grabbing poke bowls, curry, salads, sandwiches, and matcha lattes. It was crowded, but our DV Lead Kim worked her magic and secured a long table that fit our guests perfectly. Over plates of food and easy conversation, we started breaking down walls before even stepping into a meeting room.
The Real Conversation
After lunch, we headed to our space where Burlington’s team met Griffin, our Global Product Lead for Creative, aka the undeniable star of the show. We started with intros and the usual “What do you want to get out of today?” question. But what could’ve been surface-level turned into something much deeper.
Burlington’s team opened up about their creative process: what’s working, where they feel stuck, and their vision of an “ideal state.” That honesty flipped the switch. Griffin ditched the cookie-cutter presentation and tailored the conversation in real time, zero pitching, all collaboration. Suddenly, it wasn’t us telling Burlington what they should do, it was a true back-and-forth on what was possible.
Breaking Creative Myths
We covered a lot of ground. For the creatives in the room, we talked about the essentials:
• The power of clear, visible call-to-actions
• Why close-up framing of products matters more than you think
• And the fact that what you think your customers care about may not always match reality
I shared an example from my time launching YouTube campaigns for SKIMS. Everyone assumed Kim Kardashian would drive the most clicks. Makes sense, right? But when the data came in, Chloe actually outperformed her sister, generating more traffic and conversions. That single insight shattered a myth and opened the brand up to a new way of thinking about creative testing. For Burlington’s team, it was the same lightbulb moment… seeing how creative strategy is less about assumptions and more about experimentation.
The Three Rules We Forget
When it comes to video ads, most brands (rightfully) focus on looking polished—brand logos, catchy taglines, sleek visuals. That’s all good. But time and time again, we see brands miss three fundamentals:
1. Call-to-action must be clear and present. Both visual and audible.
2. Branding has to stay consistent. Don’t just add it at the end. Thread it through the story.
3. Show your products up close. Tight framing wins.
Simple rules. Often overlooked. Always game-changing.
Full Circle
Walking out of the room, I couldn’t help but think back to my younger self, wandering around Burlington while my mom worked a shift. Back then, the store was just aisles and hangers to me. Today, it’s a brand I excitedly get to collaborate with - helping them find their voice in the ever-evolving world of YouTube.
Sometimes life doesn’t just bring you back to your roots, it gives you a chance to reimagine them.