Salt & Pepper Consultancy | Fresh Thinking

What

Fresh thinking for clients and agencies. We do what’s needed to turn brand challenges into brand successes. We inject energy into brands and the teams that work on them. Projects include strategic workshops, advertising development, brand architecture, NPD opportunities and consumer research journeys in the quest for genuine insights that can really make a difference to a brand.

STRATEGY

We think. We keep thinking. And we keep thinking until the solution becomes clear. Strategy for brands, brand portfolios or businesses. One off projects or away days and workshops.

INSIGHTS & RESEARCH

We enjoy getting close to our clients business and even closer to the consumer. We use depth interviews, consumer safaris, qualitative and co-creative groups to really understand what drives consumers to products.

INNOVATION

We work with you and your consumers to generate new ideas and new products that will make consumers love your brand. Ideas and products that are on strategy and build brands.

How

We listen.

We interrogate categories, capture insights and give birth to great ideas.

We listen to you. We listen to your consumer. We understand your competitors and draw on our experience across many different sectors to create strategies and recommendations that form the foundation for accessible, relevant and compelling brands. We believe the best strategies are easy to understand, practical to implement and delightfully simple.

SIMPLICITY
We hate marketing puff. We have a shared a passion for keeping things simple. We don’t like smoke and mirrors or unnecessarily complex models, processes or solutions. When we get it right it feels simple.
CURIOSITY
We are insanely nosy. We uncover great insights by asking great questions. We keep asking until we really understand what makes consumers get who you are, love what you do and want what you have.
IDEAS
We believe great ideas come from creative, lateral thinking around powerful, unique insights. These are developed, honed and made compelling from the collaboration of lively intellects.
RESULTS
We are driven by ideas that grow brands. We don’t just give you ideas – We give you clear, practical executable strategies that work in the real world.

Who

We started small. And we’ve kept it that way because it works. You get us every step of the way. We don't have fancy offices, secretaries or account handlers. We attend the briefing. We think hard. We uncover genuine insights. We liaise and work enthusiastically with our clients. We use our experience, tenacity and creative thinking to form powerful, effective strategies. We love working as a team and thrive on the knowledge that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. We bring different things to the party but contribute equally to the end result. We enjoy what we do!

PAUL DAVIES

25+ yrs of marketing strategy experience working across agency and client roles in the UK and NZ. Paul offers a rare mix of conceptual and hands on practical experience.

SARAH CARRUTHERS

15+ yrs in brand planning, research and coaching in the UK and NZ. Sarah brings her knowledge of human behaviour, facilitation skills and insights to every brief.

You

The Sarah + Paul combo is something special. As individuals they are smart, experienced and focused. As a team, they are outstanding. We’ve had the pleasure of working with the Sarah + Paul combo in pitches and with existing clients. While a planning duo is not the norm, there is nothing normal about what together they create. I would wholeheartedly recommend them as a pairing to Agency’s and Clients in the future. You’re guaranteed a robust and enjoyable experience.

Simon Curran

MD, Shine

Sarah + Paul combine the ability to elicit and interpret consumer drivers and needs with strategic flair and brilliant communication skills. Sarah always seems to be able to get to the heart of the matter while optimising the collaborative power of any team she is working with. Paul deeply understand the business drivers – how things work from both a manufacturing as well as profit perspective. Together they posses a unique set of capabilities, as well as high energy and enormous productivity. They make very special and valuable marketers and strategists that have the power to help clients transform brands.

Sandra Geange

Marketing Director, The Comfort Group

I have used Paul and Sarah’s services on two occasions to date. The first time was working on a strategic team building session and the other time was territory development and research with the goal of breathing new life into a tired brand. On both occasions I have been hugely impressed with both how they managed the process but also with the recommendations that followed as a result of the work. Paul and Sarah have the rare ability to really unlock the issues with brands,leaving no stone unturned. The work they produce has clear strategic recommendations with practical solutions that really work. They truly are the dynamic duo and I wouldn’t hesitate in both recommending their services but also using them again.

Kate Goodwin

Brand Manager, Goodman Fielder

FRESH THINKING