Fast Company Summer 2022

The fashion retailer Express, a mall-culture staple, is on a mission to transform itself for the digital era. It manages a flock of social-selling influencers and is using data to personalize the experience of browsing its hot-pink crop tops and sequined statement blazers. The finishing touch on this brand makeover? A partnership with buy now, pay later (BNPL) company Klarna to co-brand digital ads and offer Klarna’s “Pay in 4” product—which splits shopping-spree expenditures into four interest-free biweekly payments—at checkout. “We want to give customers with a certain perception of us an opportunity to change that perception, ” says Brian Seewald, Express’s SVP of e-commerce. “We’re taking the risk out of a purchase with BNPL, ” adding that Express customers who opt to use Klarna have a higher average order…

Most Innovative Companies In 1984, fast-food chain Wendy’s debuted its “Where’s the Beef?” advertising campaign, with TV spots featuring the inimitable Clara Peller posing the titular question to two gray-haired companions as they surveyed a competitor’s burger. The campaign elevated the catchphrase into the pop culture pantheon, and fueled record sales at Wendy’s. For Kurt Kane, Wendy’s president, U.S., and chief commercial officer, the ad is a perfect illustration of the burger chain’s brand. It’s light, memorable, and fun, offering subtle—but not mean-spirited—jabs at Wendy’s competition. “Our brand tone and our tone of voice comes down to one word: sassy”, Kane says. Wendy’s previous advertising successes-including hundreds of ads featuring folksy company founder Dave Thomas—provided a road map for Kane and his team as they searched for new ways to connect with fast-food…

PUBERTY, IN NICK KROLL’S HIT Netflix series Big Mouth, is a bawdy animated universe where feelings and hormones have minds of their own, guiding characters through complex social situations with hilarious and often revelatory results. Kroll’s recent spin-off, Human Resources, demonstrates that the workplace is remarkably similar. The comedian—who voices more than 30 characters across the two shows—knows that we bring our full selves to the office, for better or worse, because he oversees one of his own, a year-and-a-half-old production company called Good at Business. Here, Kroll talks about writing comedy over Zoom, translating Slack to the screen, and teaming up with Mel Brooks for the upcoming Hulu series History of the World, Part II. When did you realize that Big Mouth could yield a spin-off, which focuses on the…

CEO Liz from PubLizity KROLL SHOW “Let’s make her the CEO. You think she’d be doing publicity, but really, she’s a strong woman who knows how to run a business.” CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Bobby Bottleservice KROLL SHOW “He’s the one who coined ‘Good at Business.’ He’s probably very into crypto right now, in a very dangerous way.” CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Coach Steve BIG MOUTH “He barely understands anything. He can really boil something down to its essence. He knows how to communicate with the public in that way.” HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCES Rick the Hormone Monster BIG MOUTH “I don’t think Rick would be good at the job, but I think he’d be very zen in it.” INTERN 1 C-Czar KROLL SHOW “He’s young. He’s wild. But he’s also excited to get involved and get in the mix.” INTERN 2 Gil Faizon OH, HELLO ON BROADWAY “Interns are there to learn, and Gil’s…

Most Innovative Companies When the pandemic swept through the U.S. in 2020, it decimated many businesses owned by Black, Hispanic, and Native American entrepreneurs. Lockdown measures kept customers, clients, and diners home, putting many businesses in dire situations. In fact, 41% of Black-owned companies closed their doors—permanently in many cases—between February and April 2020 alone, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. These businesses were disproportionally affected in part due to difficulties accessing loans and other capital. As a result, DreamSpring, a nonprofit lender in New Mexico, took action: In 2021, the organization provided $225 million in loans to this vulnerable group, helping to preserve more than 44,000 jobs. The nonprofit’s innovative approach to funding is a big part of why DreamSpring landed a spot on Fast Company’s list of the…

The Presidio Tunnel Tops, opening to the public on July 17, caps more than 25 years of transformation at the Presidio, a 1,500-acre national park set on a former military base. Since the mid-’90s, the land (which includes the Crissy Field recreation area) has been transformed, with barracks and airstrips giving way to restored wetlands and a trail network. But the Presidio and the waterfront at Crissy Field were still separated by a Depression-era elevated highway. When that thoroughfare was replaced with a new one featuring a set of ground-level tunnels, the area’s stewards sought to turn the space atop the tunnels into a 14-acre park. James Corner Field Operations, the firm behind New York’s High Line, used input from 10,000 area residents to design a place that celebrates the…