Red Bull and the iPod: Two Trailblazers
Red Bull and the iPod: Two Trailblazers
Alex MacGregor
November 24, 2022
Red Bull Co-founder Dies
This weekend saw the death of one of the Red Bull co-founders Dietrich Mateschitz. He gained fame as the public face of Red Bull and latterly, F1 racing.
The Red Bull story though is one of the best Marketing stories of all time. What started out as chance meeting between the pair of co-founders has now turned into one of the coolest brands of all-time. The brand has been remarkable; a world changing marketing revolution that has been imitated the world over by countless others.
It literally changed the game with its extreme sports and lifestyle campaigns. But let’s not forget, it’s worth remembering that it also ‘just so happens’ to be an energy drink i.e in other words, a commodity!.Definitely check out this Forbes piece with the full story on Mateschitz.
Happy Birthday iPod
iPod co-inventor Tony Fadell tweeted this week a reminder it’s been over 20 years since the launch of the Apple iPod. Fadell joined Apple to work on the iPod after being a part of the famed ‘General Magic’ startup.
It’s quaint now to look back at the battle between Sony (inventors of the Walkman) & Apple, on the future of music players. The battle didn't last long, but it teaches us a valuable lesson in disruption.
Apple have used the iPod playbook famously in subsequent products, notably the iPhone, but also the Apple Watch. They take established categories and apply their own design and engineering principles to create breakthrough products, years after first mover advantage. Fadell explains more about the iPod origins and Apple product philosophies in his book, ‘Build’.
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