Stop targeting demographics. Start building for tribes.

The brands winning attention aren't necessarily targeting women aged 25–44 with household incomes of $100K+. They're giving a group of people something to believe in and belong to.

For years, brand strategy has loved a demographic.

Women, 25–44. Urban professionals. Affluent empty nesters. Gen Z. Millennial parents. Household income: $150K+.

We analyze and categorize, crafting a persona named “Sarah”. She’s 34, urban, owns a dog, practices yoga, drinks oat milk, likely uses an iPhone. This description fits half the internet. Demographics have value, but they don't define a brand. People see themselves through passions, communities, and personal experiences. Brands now need to ask: “What communities do our customers belong to?”

From target market to cultural territory

The role of discovery, connection, and belonging in physical retail—which is increasingly motivating people to venture out—is getting a lot of attention right now, especially following the WSJ article staking the claim that “The Mall Comeback is Here”. This trend mirrors a change online, but with an intriguing twist.

Physical locations aim to offer what digital can't: serendipity, human connection, community, and feeling.

Meanwhile, savvy digital brands are crafting a more human experience through technology: identity.

Rent the Runway exemplifies this. Initially, it offered an alternative to buying a costly, single-use dress. The true concept was freedom—freedom to experiment and access designer fashion without ownership. Freedom to express different aspects of oneself and feel confident without financial constraints. Rent the Runway's mission is to empower women to feel their best daily. By January 2026, it had 3.5 million lifetime customers and 143,796 active subscribers, with 90% of FY2025 revenue from subscriptions. The focus, however, is on the community—millions of reviews guide members, and creator and ambassador programs, along with community-led content, drive growth.

This is about shared participation, not traditional targeting.

Then there's The Volte

The Volte takes a similar route from a different starting point. The Australian fashion rental marketplace isn't just about dresses. Their bold belief: “Access is the new ownership.”

They challenge fashion exclusivity, offering designer pieces affordably and letting women profit from their wardrobes. This isn't just about demographics; it's a cultural shift. Age, location, or income don't matter. It's about valuing accessibility, rethinking ownership, and embracing sharing over accumulation.

Customers become participants, transforming brand conversations.

The difference between targeting and understanding people

Demographics define identity, but culture explains behavior.

A 32-year-old woman might be into vintage fashion, running marathons, engaged in a queer creative community, or all of the above. Despite sharing demographics, their worldviews differ, making them intriguing for brands. Deloitte's fashion research highlights that culture, driven by Gen Z and tech, is reshaping markets. Culture is becoming more specific, while demographics lose relevance in defining identity.

People now find products through communities and cultural cues, not just demographic data.

The tribe is the territory

Brand strategy becomes compelling by being meaningful to specific individuals, not everyone. It addresses tensions brands can resolve, presenting opportunities.

Rent the Runway addresses the need for self-expression without excess consumption, while The Volte offers beauty without exclusivity or waste.

These cultural tensions define a brand's territory. With territory, clarity comes: product, experience, tone, partnerships, community, content, technology, and business model align. At this point, a brand transcends marketing, embodying identity.

Don't ask what your audience looks like.

Ask what they believe.

Many brands have it backwards. We focus too much on defining audiences. Less on the cultural forces influencing them.

The real questions should be:

What do they believe?

What are they rejecting?

What are they aspiring to?

What contradictions are they navigating?

What communities are they part of?

What behaviors show belonging?

What cultural shift changes their expectations?

The key is: How can the brand help them believe in themselves?

The physical world has something to learn from digital.

And digital has something to learn from physical.

We’ve made the case that the future of physical retail isn't about efficiency; it's about enriching life. Discovery, serendipity, connection, and belonging are key.

Brands like Rent the Runway and The Volte teach us that digital commerce isn't just about easier transactions. It's about making people feel understood, seen, included, and inspired.

If Shopping centers invite you to explore possibilities, digital communities welcome you to connect. Top brands excel at both.

So, what should a brand own?

This is where I think brand strategy needs to get more uncomfortable.

What space in people's lives can this brand legitimately own?

A territory—not just a tagline, campaign, or color palette. It's meaningful, commercial, distinctive, credible, and defensible. Rent the Runway and The Volte have built brands that offer a reason for identification, simplifying marketing. Instead of interrupting lives, they integrate into them.

The Cut Above test

This is the test I increasingly apply to brands:

READ THE LANDSCAPE.

What is happening with people, culture, category, market and competition?

FIND THE SPACE.

Where do those truths intersect to create an ownable territory?

OWN THE IDEA.

What should the brand become known for—and what is it willing not to own?

DISTIL THE BRAND.

What does it mean? How does it behave? How should it feel?

PROVE THE DIFFERENCE.

Where does the idea show up in the product, experience, people, place, technology, partnerships and business?

A a brand isn't what it says. It's what it’s customers say it consistently does.

Brands that matter (to their customers, owners, shareholder, etc.) are those that find their people, understood their culture, and gave them something worth belonging to.

Don't target the crowd. Find the tribe. Then give them a reason to stay.