Publications & Sites 
Fenwick alum: Nurture and protect your own brand
V. James Marino, former president and CEO of Alberto-Culver and Fenwick alumni, gives the 2012 commencement address on May 25. | Joe Cyganowski~For Sun-Times Media
Related Stories
Updated: July 3, 2012 12:44PM
Commencement speaker V. James Marino, Fenwick Class of 1968 and CEO of Alberto Culver Inc., said he was confident that the Class of 2012 was leaving high school “with a solid foundation for what comes next.”
But he warned his audience of complacency and urged them to continue the level of focus and effort they exhibited at Fenwick into their college years and beyond.
Marino pointed out the difference between a product and a brand, and counseled his audience to be well aware of the brand they presented to the world.
Products, he noted, are made in a factory, but brands are created in the hearts and minds of consumers. The bottom line, he said, he said, is that people’s belief in a brand, like their belief in a person, stems from a trust in demonstrated quality and reliability.
“The key is consistency,” Marino said. “Deliver upon and communicate your brand’s promise.”
