Light Vision

Light VisionBrand strategy · Consulting

Clarity incomplex times.

Brand strategy for businesses that need to know what drives their value, and what to do next.

Brand × BusinessScroll Story and strategy in one practice

(01)  About David

David Chait

David Chait, founder of Light Vision
David Chait  Founder

It was never aboutthe product. It wasalways about thestory beneath it.

I spent the early years of my career in focus groups around the world, talking to strangers about everything from new ice-cream concepts to the pain points of pet-food packaging. Twenty years on, that lesson hasn’t changed.

Since then I’ve led strategy and research for Unilever, Nestlé, HSBC, Huawei and others across London, Shanghai, Vietnam, Australia and twenty-two markets in West Africa, where I led Nestlé’s sustainability strategy across 22 markets.

The work that mattered most happened off the slides: the rhythms of Ghana’s markets, long conversations with duck farmers in Vietnam. Strategy rooted in presence: in showing up, and learning the shape of real lives.

20+years in brand strategy and research
22West African markets led for Nestlé
4continents lived and worked across
55+countries travelled
  • Publicis GroupeSenior Regional Strategy Director, West Africa2019–2025
  • WundermanGroup Planning Director, Greater China2018–2019
  • MullenLoweHead of Strategic Planning, Vietnam2016–2017
  • NielsenHead of Consumer Insights, Vietnam2013–2015
  • IpsosResearch Director, Australia2010–2013
  • Lowe & PartnersStrategic Planner, London2002–2007

(02)  The gap

Most growing brands are caught between two broken options. Agencies that sell stories without proof. Consultancies that deliver proof without resonance. Light Vision closes the gap.

Approach

Creative agencies

Story without proof

  • Positioning
  • Storytelling
  • Cultural relevance

Light Vision

Where consumer understanding meets commercial decisions.

Agencies understand creative execution and consumer response, but often struggle to connect it back to commercial strategy. Consultancies understand business architecture and portfolio logic, but tend to treat brand as a line item. It’s the translation between the two that most organisations are missing.

Light Vision brings both together in one practice.

Management consultancies

Proof without resonance

  • Business architecture
  • Portfolio logic
  • Commercial rigour

The BrandLighthouse.

(03)  Method

The Brand Lighthouse is the bedrock of how we think and how we build long-lasting value. It draws on twenty years of on-the-ground experience across markets and industries to connect people, culture and brands in ways that drive growth.

Room 01

Discovery
How to listen.

The craft of gathering human understanding: qualitative listening, ethnography, discussion guides and research design.

Five throughlines in every room

  • Consumer Experience Framework
  • Qual + quant + data
  • Sustainability & purpose
  • Cultural context
  • AI as accelerator

The Brand Lighthouse™

The Light Prism™

The device we use on client work: one beam of truth, refracted into a strategy a business can act on.

A device within The Brand Lighthouse™

The LightPrism™

Light enters as one beam and leaves as a spectrum. Strategy works the same way, in three phases: one clear idea, refracted into everything a brand says and does.

In the field  —  Nestlé, Central & West Africa

Regional growth strategy for Nestlé across 22 markets and four categories in Central and West Africa, over six years.

22
markets
4
categories
6
years
01 ILLUMINATION02 VISION FORMATION03 ACTIVATIONONE BEAM OF TRUTH

Illumination

See clearly

Reveal the truth of the brand. Immersive audits and sharp insight surface the gaps, tensions and opportunities between what it says and what it does.

  • 4Cs audit: Culture, Company, Context, ConsumerDesk & data
  • Qualitative research: interviews, groups, immersionPrimary
  • Quantitative validationPrimary

Nestlé, West Africa

Region-wide qualitative listening showed a generation of West African consumers leapfrogging on mobile and asking brands to show genuine local commitment. The problem was reframed: not awareness, but credibility.

Vision Formation

Shape intelligently

Decode cultural context, audience truths and category dynamics to form one central strategic idea that everything radiates from.

  • Co-creation workshopAlignment
  • One central strategic ideaThe idea
  • Positioning & narrativeOutput

Nestlé, West Africa

For West African mothers, nutrition is an act of aspiration, not just sustenance, while global brands were felt to speak at the region rather than with it. The light source: nutrition with regional intent.

Activation

Move boldly

Turn vision into value: the messaging, the proposition and a clear plan for how the strategy moves into market.

  • Communication strategy & workshopMessage
  • Value propositionOffer
  • Go-to-market planPlan

Nestlé, West Africa

One regional architecture with locally relevant expressions across culinary, dairy, coffee and infant nutrition in 22 markets.

Overview
Illumination → Activation

Complexity,made clear.

(04)  Services

Brand

  • Finding the sharp edge: where your brand can win, and why it deserves to.

  • The founder story, the investor story and the customer story made consistent, with a real beginning, middle and end.

  • Context over technique. Reading the culture your brand lives in, so it feels relevant rather than imposed.

  • Through Meridian, our cultural practice: understanding the people and the place before a brand crosses into a new culture.

Strategy

  • Qualitative and quantitative research that shows what people really think, feel and do.

  • Where to play and how to win: the brands, categories and markets that will drive growth.

  • Every touchpoint mapped from the customer's side, so you know where value is won and lost.

  • Commitments a business can keep, prove and stand behind commercially.

Training and guest lectures through The Light School

Selectedwork.

(05)  Work

The LightSchool.

(06)  Training & lectures

The Light School teaches the Brand Lighthouse to agency teams, client-side marketers, graduates and founders. As marketing narrows to impressions and engagement, it restores the core of strategic planning: insight, discovery and integrated thinking.

Each session is taught through worked cases from real brands and markets. I’m available for in-house training, guest lectures and university teaching, in person or wherever the work is. Earlier lectures include Vietnam, Australia and Ghana.

  • 01

    Lectures & keynotes

    For universities, conferences and leadership teams.

  • 02

    Workshops

    Half or full day, built around a live brief from your business.

  • 03

    Programmes

    Multi-session capability building for strategy, insight, brand and media teams.

  • 04

    Capability assessment

    Where your team is strong, where it isn't, and which room to start in.

Example course outline  —  Iscte Business School

Three 90-minute lectures, each aligned to a course already in the programme.

Proposed for the Iscte Summer and Winter Schools 2027. Timing and content are agreed with each course leader, so every lecture supports the course’s assessed final project.

CourseSyllabus linkLectureAlso relevant to
Digital Marketing & Customer ExperienceJourney mapping, voice of the customer, CX metrics; acquisition, conversion, retentionACustomer Journey Mapping and the Consumer Experience FrameworkConsumer Behaviour & Marketing Research
Brand Creation & ManagementUnderstanding, brand idea and expression; cases across sectors and geographiesBConsumer Insight and Brand Idea DevelopmentInnovation & Creativity in Marketing
Cross Cultural Communication & NegotiationCommunicating effectively in different cultural settingsCHow Global Brands Adapt to CultureBrand Expression & Identity

From people David has trained and mentored

  • “David's impactful guidance and mentorship transformed my career and have been instrumental in my professional growth.”

    Vanessa SangariDigital Brand Growth Strategist, Publicis

  • “As my mentor, David was fully committed to my growth. Focus on knowing your stuff thoroughly; the personality you have will flow naturally, eventually.”

    Ibukun AdeleyeStrategy & Measurement, Publicis

  • “For six months, I was able to actively discuss my professional challenges and aspirations with him in a safe and productive space.”

    Cristian GarciaSenior Product Manager, Publicis Groupe

Enquire about training or lectures

Places that shaped the thinkingInsider access, outsider perspective

LondonShanghaiHong KongHo Chi Minh CityHanoiBeijingMelbourneSydneyGuangzhouWest AfricaThailand

In theirwords.

Voices

  • “His leadership is not just evolving the status quo, but leapfrogging the industry thinking to drive greater impact.”

    Tobias PuehseSVP Insights, Research & Planning, IMC Americas

  • “David pushes the boundaries, provides creative inspiration, and delivers beyond the brief as a true business partner. A calm presence and a strong asset to any culture.”

    Shannon CullumFormer CEO & CMO, Co-Founder, The Wild Ventures

  • “A seasoned brand strategist with a background in market research: a great collision of lateral and structured thinking.”

    Hans Lopez-VitoHead of Brand Experience & Strategy, Ayala Land

  • “David brought immense strategic insight and rigor to Unilever, constantly seeking solutions to complex challenges.”

    Nguyen Thai Hai VanCountry Manager, Apple Vietnam

  • “David delivers actionable insights that can be brought to life in media and communications strategy. He combines creative thinking with business acumen.”

    Lisa GiacosaGlobal Client Lead, Publicis Groupe

  • “His global experience across different continents, categories and brands is invaluable.”

    Nicky NieuwenhuizenSenior Brand & Marketing Lead Europe, Life360

  • “Brilliant insights and thoughtful strategies help bring out the best in each brief. A true all-rounder that's hard to find.”

    Chris JonesExecutive Creative Director, Pico EMEA

  • “David was able to take leaps which made briefs go bigger and into a more interesting space.”

    Lidya CortbergCreative Director, MullenLowe Vietnam

  • “His ability to apply attention to detail whilst maintaining a consistent vision for the bigger picture is quite unique.”

    Gareth ProcterCreative Director

  • “He transcended cultural borders to win trust from colleagues and clients alike.”

    Tu-Van TienSenior Client Solutions Manager, Facebook

All recommendations on LinkedIn

Notes fromthe field.

(07)  Writing

Free tool

Brand Readiness Scorecard

Rate your brand in two minutes and get a written brief on where the gaps between story and proof are widest.

(08)  Contact

Let’s bring itinto focus.

Tell me where you are and where you need to be, whether that’s a strategy engagement, a workshop or a lecture. The first call is an alignment call: we trade notes, not pitch decks.

Replies come from David directly
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