Brittany Shaw is Senior Brand Director at Liquid I.V., where she leads Brand and Integrated Marketing across brand strategy, social and influencer, partnerships, experiential, and retail marketing. Her mandate is clear: to build a brand — and a community — with real staying power. Every initiative ladders back to driving awareness and creating meaningful engagement that translates into long-term growth.
Before joining Liquid I.V., Shaw spent the majority of her career at L’Oréal, helping shape global brands and discovering her passion for building culturally relevant businesses at scale. She joined both NYX and Liquid I.V. shortly after their acquisitions, developing specialized skills in scaling brands from scrappy startup energy into major-stage growth engines. Her approach blends bold, consumer-first storytelling with robust 360-degree campaigns and deep community building.
Raised in South Africa and as a first-generation American, Shaw credits her multicultural perspective with shaping how she listens to consumers, builds teams, and creates brands that connect emotionally. A self-described culture enthusiast, she tracks macro trends across fashion, tech, music, and entertainment — and studies the psychology behind consumer behavior — always searching for the deeper “why” that fuels meaningful growth.
Named to our Marketers to Watch list in partnership with The Wall Street Journal, Shaw shared her perspectives on human-centered brand building, AI’s role in creativity, and the leadership mindset required to scale culture-driven growth.
What book or podcast do you recommend to marketing leaders?
I have a few that I think every modern marketer should keep in rotation.
- Aspire by Emma Grede is probably my favorite. Emma’s story and leadership style are masterclasses in grit, clarity, and building brands that truly meet culture where it is.
- Start With Why by Simon Sinek is foundational. It’s a reminder that purpose isn’t a tagline; it’s the unlock that drives teams and brands forward.
- Purple Cow by Seth Godin is the reset button when you need to think bolder. It’s permission to push past category norms and build something remarkable.
- How I Built This. Hearing the messy, human stories behind iconic brands is grounding and endlessly inspiring. It reinforces that great brands aren’t built in perfect conditions; they’re built through conviction and resilience.
Each of these expands how you think about leadership, creativity, and what it actually takes to build something meaningful.
How are you and your team currently using AI?
We’re still in the early stages of experimenting with AI, but we’re approaching it with a very clear philosophy: AI is a tool, not a replacement.
The goal isn’t to use AI for the sake of it. It’s to unlock unexpected opportunities by elevating what humans do best — intuition, empathy, creative taste, and craft. When AI can take on more administrative or time-intensive tasks, it creates space for higher-value thinking that truly moves the brand forward.
For us, the human texture has to stay at the center. If you lose the human element in pursuit of perfectly optimized output, you lose the meaning behind the work. Efficiency matters, but emotional resonance matters more.
What’s a prediction you have for marketing over the next few years?
We’re heading into a fascinating shift. As technology and AI accelerate, people will crave feeling human more than ever. AI will absolutely help us move faster and scale smarter. But the brands that win will be the ones that tell stories rooted in authentic, human insight — not just data.
We’ve moved beyond disruption as the defining buzzword. What matters now is contextual relevance: showing up in ways that feel natural and meaningful in the lives consumers are actually living. That requires going deeper than surface-level trends. It’s about understanding not just what people want, but why they want it — and then digging into that “why” again until you uncover the macro motivations that truly drive behavior.
The marketers who lead the next era will build with foresight. They won’t just react to what consumers want today; they’ll anticipate what’s coming and create toward it. That’s how you stay on the cutting edge.
What’s the most innovative or exciting project you’ve worked on recently?
Two projects stand out for very different reasons.
From an innovation standpoint, Energy Multiplier Sugar-Free has been one of the boldest initiatives I’ve worked on. It represents true category disruption, bringing meaningful product innovation to a space that had remained largely unchanged for years.
On the other end of the spectrum, our first-ever Big Game campaign was transformative. It was the most robust 360-degree marketing effort we’ve undertaken, requiring deep cross-functional collaboration and alignment at every stage.
Together, those projects stretched us creatively, strategically, and operationally. They reflect what’s possible when you stay consumer-obsessed and unafraid to think bigger.
What’s the most pressing business challenge you’ve faced in the last year and what have you done to solve it?
One of the biggest challenges has been balancing rapid growth with preserving our entrepreneurial DNA.
We’ve been intentional about protecting our proximity to the consumer and empowering teams to think like owners. That means simplifying decision-making so ideas move faster, sharpening priorities so teams know what truly matters, and carving out space for strategic thinking — not just nonstop execution.
Growth doesn’t have to dilute what made you successful in the first place. It requires clarity, trust, and discipline.
What leadership muscle is most important for marketers to exercise?
Compassionate leadership. Marketing is about understanding human motivation — and that same principle applies to leading teams. People do their best work when they feel seen, supported, and safe enough to take ownership.
What’s the most game-changing piece of career advice you’ve ever received?
Your difference is your edge. When you stop trying to conform and start leaning into who you are, your impact accelerates. I also believe future leaders need to look up. Data tells you what has happened. Foresight tells you what’s coming next.
What gives you energy and inspiration outside of work?
Travel is my reset button. Immersing myself in new cultures — the food, music, people, and perspectives — always sparks fresh inspiration and keeps me creatively charged.
Marketers to Watch is a recognition series that spotlights highly innovative and forward-thinking marketing leaders in the community. If you have someone you’d like to nominate for the series, apply here.
