Let me tell you something I’ve learned after 30 years of branding, advertising, and watching humans like it’s my full-time job. People don’t buy with logic. They buy with their gut. Their heart. That weird little twitch of emotion that flares up when something feels right, even if they can’t explain it.

We’ve been trained to think that branding is just a polished logo, a slogan, and some brand colours that don’t make your eyes bleed. It’s not. A brand is the story people tell themselves about you. It’s the reason they’ll choose your overpriced yoga pants, your beat-up work jacket, or that five-dollar roll of duct tape from the store they’ve been going to since they were kids.

So how do brands like Lululemon, Canadian Tire, and Carhartt end up in people’s heads and hearts like that?

Here’s what I think.

Lululemon: It Was Never About Just Yoga Pants

Lulu figured it out early. It wasn’t just about activewear—it was about identity. You weren’t buying pants, you were buying a better version of yourself. A version that drinks green juice, goes to 6am spin class, and radiates calm even when life’s a dumpster fire.

But here’s the kicker: it didn’t feel fake. They didn’t try to be all things to all people. They built community, they leaned into wellness and growth, and the people who resonated with that? They showed up. They stayed. And they told their friends.

That’s branding. That’s connection.

Canadian Tire: A Religion for the Emotionally Canadian

Listen, if you’ve never gotten emotional in a Canadian Tire, you might not be from around here.

It’s the smell. The aisles. The Canadian Tire money. It’s your dad buying snow tires in November and a BBQ in May. It’s your mom picking up Christmas lights and hockey tape in the same trip. It’s a weird fever dream of suburban nostalgia that somehow still makes sense.

They didn’t get big by shouting the loudest. They got big by being a part of the fabric. You don’t just shop at Canadian Tire, you remember it. It’s practically imprinted on your DNA.

Carhartt: The Tough Guy Who Accidentally Became Cool

Carhartt never tried to be cool. And that’s exactly why it is.

It started with gear built for people who get shit done. No fluff. No frills. Just gear that doesn’t quit when you do. And somewhere along the line, streetwear picked it up. And it still didn’t sell out.

That kind of authenticity doesn’t happen by accident. They knew who they were and never faked it. People can smell fake a mile away. But real? Real gets worn, ripped, patched, and worn again.

So What Does This All Mean?

You can’t fake brand. You can’t slap a mission statement on your website and hope it sticks. If it doesn’t come from a real place, it’ll fall flat. And if it does come from a real place, people will feel it. They’ll wear it, live in it, swear by it.

People don’t want perfect. They want honest. They want to belong to something that feels like them.

Give them that, and they’ll tattoo your brand on their soul. Or at least on their travel mug.

Want to build a brand people feel something about? Start by knowing who the hell you are and being brave enough to say it out loud.

That’s how you build loyalty. That’s how you become a Canadian Tire, a Carhartt, or a Lululemon.

Or maybe… something even better.