“People have a fine-tuned radar for detecting bullsh*t,” said Mihai Botărel during his talk at the inaugural opening of the 21st edition of TheAlternativeSchool cMBA, in front of an enthusiastic audience from academia, consultancy, diplomacy, advertising, NGOs, research, and business.

In the era where copycats are doing just fine being celebrated - on the same wavelength with Mihai - we kept alive the call for originality while dissecting the anatomy of a “good deeds” campaign - too often a superficial engineered exercise to cleanse corporate guilt and collect PR metrics. CSR, ESG, or “turning up the volume of good” can easily mask the inability to truly understand - and genuinely integrate - ”the mechanics of care” into a brand’s DNA, where the magic of win-win-win actually resides.

Intention, mindset, heartset

The first lesson in high-class advertising for the new generation of Alternatives, attending the #FutureProofCreativity module, is learning how to set the right coordinates from the very moment they build or read a brief. How do they learn to start a high-quality campaign? What’s their reference system ? Do they place people at the center - as much as the business and the brand? Do they realize that when they design media plans built on people’s time, they’re operating on borrowed - not owned - sacred seconds? What’s their intention, their mindset, their heartset? As Fernando Vega Olmos once famously said, “A monkey wearing lipstick is still a monkey.” Advertising as a trick, a gimmick, or a lovely wrap for crap belongs to the past.

 “Just as mindfulness alone is no longer enough in modern spirituality - kindness being the new prerequisite for an awakened individual, as Buddhist monk Ajahn Brahm beautifully puts it - brands, too, must escape the trap of doing good as a nice-to-have cherry-on-top. Instead, they should embrace it as a state of awareness that makes possible the ikigai of business prosperity, social elevation and brand lovability, from inside-out.”, said Teodora Migdalovici, TheAlternativeSchool’s founder.

Caring as multiplying factor

Going beyond Edward Bernays’ ideology of using propaganda tools to manipulate people’s psyche in times of peace - all in the name of amplifying consumption - she emphasized the need to embrace the Kindful Brands philosophy: building solar, highly collaborative relationships with the people brands speak to - for the sake of healthy real growth included, to satisfy even the most cerebrally driven minds interested in business results only. And that’s because not every growth is a good one. After all, cancer cells do nothing but grow.

Examples such as “Help, I Want to Save a Life” or “6 Pack Rings” - where business performance skyrocketed while setting new category standards - prove that awareness and the art of caring are not acts of servilism, but of service. Not charity, not manipulation through pity, nor decorative add-ons. They are part of a brand’s humanity-literate genetic code - a built-in set of chromosomes every brand steward should carry in both mindset and heartset.

As creators and educators, we share the mission to call out toxic behaviors disguised as “responsibility” and to guide new generations off autopilot by teaching them the genuine anatomy of goodvertising.

Fundamentals of Caring: very old, very simple

After all, Migdalovici concluded, civilization - as an old anthropological anecdote reminds us - began with the first healed femur: the moment someone stayed behind the horde to care for the wounded-other. And Zoroastrianism, one of the world’s earliest monotheistic faiths, preached millennia ago a set of guiding principles so simple even a three-year-old could grasp them: good thoughts, good words, good deeds.

If we truly aim to embed the SDG goals into business practice and turn them into reality, if we genuinely want to make magic happen for brands, people, and the world, then we must step outside our self-referential industry bubble and reconnect with life itself - with the collective wisdom preserved in those ancient, simple truths. The secret of acting like magicians tending the eternal Zoroastrian fire lies within Intention, mindset and heartset.

Tom Theys: Sleeping with the enemy

A master of wordplay and a visionary strategist, Tom Theys, Chief Strategy Officer at Happiness Brussels, shared several confessions with the consistent audience:

Tom Thyes. Photo: MEALCHEMY\ Iulian Ratescu

1. Start by falling in love with the problem

Great brands don’t march in waving ready-made solutions. They listen first. They question. They ask “why?” until they dig past assumptions and hit the truth. That’s how revolutions like Tesla, Google, and Tinder happened - not from guessing, but from truly understanding what hurts.

2. No story without a villain

Every hero needs a nemesis - and so does every brand. It might be cultural bias, emotional baggage, bad habits or toxic beauty standards. Name the enemy, and suddenly your audience stands beside you. Because nothing bonds faster than a shared fight.

3. Strategy is a love affair

The brand–consumer relationship closely mirrors a romantic, deeply intimate relationship with the other’s universe. The lessons are the same: authenticity wins long-term, small gestures matter, consistency builds trust, and attraction is emotional rather than rational. Nespresso, what else ? -)

4. Tension fuels creativity 

Strategy is born from tension: between what is and what could be, between fear and desire, between problem and solution. Without tension, everything falls flat - “like a bus without wings.”

5. Creativity is the money-maker

The numbers agree: creativity is the top driver of commercial success.
In a sea of lookalikes, difference is a superpower - and creativity is how brands grow capes.

Key Takeaway

Strategic creativity isn’t about avoiding problems - it’s about loving them, understanding them, and transforming them into energy for the brand. The combination of problem, enemy, love, and tension generates relevance and, ultimately, sales.

Mihai Botarel: The KPI’s of Kindness

Mihai Botărel - Co-founder and Executive Creative Director at RXM Creative - unpacked the delicate dance between kindness and profitability, showing how brands can do good and do well, backed by sharp, real-world case studies.

In an era where everyone is chasing the perfect “win-win,” he reminded us that genuine kindness isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it means leaving money on the table, redesigning how a business truly works, or choosing principles over PR polish.

From the broad portfolio of international case studies selected for analysis, Mihai presented several highlights from recent work at RxM Laboratories - the most notable being the identity for Noukk, a conscious luxury fashion brand born from a simple insight: camel hair can be collected and transformed into refined garments simply by petting the animal. What was once waste now becomes the essence of a luxurious fabric through innovative processing of otherwise discarded material.

Right after the Kindful Brands event, Mihai flew to Red Dot to collect the latest award for Noukk’s identity - already celebrated earlier this year at Dubai Lynx. In that context, he gave well-deserved kudos to another remarkable professor, Mădălin Dragnea from All Mad, who brought the brand’s identity to life and refined the case study through his signature - the unmissable animation style.

Mihai also sounded a necessary alarm about the hypocrisy surrounding the CSR & ESG universe, where “good washing” too often becomes a shortcut to big award stages. His takeaway was sharp: authenticity and integrity are the new benchmarks of success - the real KPIs of kindness. And if you can’t be kind, at least be real. Just like Ryanair is.

Robert Pelin: Be Seen

Robert Pelin, CSR Coordinator at Invizibilii.ro - a platform dedicated to supporting underprivileged people and giving them the opportunity to turn their potential into reality by breaking the glass ceiling - and a supporter of the local Roger Hatchuel Academy & ERA competitions for the second year in a row, showed us what it feels like to be invisible in society and shared the projects they’ve built to lift people from the shadows into the spotlight.

The talk of the town

"The Kindful Brands event was like a draft of fresh air, delivering tangible information of how creativity and future of brands can still be deeply rooted in human values and not overtaken by AI and fast moving trends. Highly appreciated the chosen speakers of the event, especially Tom Theys", said Laura Dragan, Senior Brand Manager Unilever

“Attending Kindful Brands was inspiring - the way emotional intelligence and strategic creativity combined made the discussion fresh, relevant and actionable. The insights from Tom Theys delivered an unquestionable demo: doing good really is good business. It fueled reasoning with powerful insights, helping probably everyone present to bring purpose into daily work, because, well, it works. Thank you to TheAlternativeSchool for curating such an intensive kickoff for #FutureProofCreativity. Can’t wait to see what’s next in store from the cMBA’s current edition,” said Belchiz Mauchi, Digital Account, Digital Distrikt

“Kindful Brands was fantastic, exactly the kind of experience I’ve come to expect from #TheAlternativeSchool. It’s always juicy to see anthropology, design feeling, strategy, humor and creative performances click in a coherent, hands-on and engaging way. Events like this remind me why I love being part of this community - full of fresh ideas, meaningful discussions, and connections that truly motivate you to push your own work further.”, said Alexandra Moisescu - Marketing & Brand Manager 5 to go

“Kindful Brands was about opportunity, learning, sharpening perspectives and a new way of thinking about the cultural imaginarium surrounding us,” said Iuna Șerban, MARe’s curator.

"In a world of ego-driven conferences, where talks tend to orbit around the glorious irrelevant, Kindful Brands was a breath of fresh air," said Olga Abramescu, Country Manager, Shutterstock.

“Tom’s talk set a new standard for insight, humour, meaning, and down-to-earth-ness. The best are always humble - always. Teodora’s opening was something else - I don’t know how she manages to make a point with only a few slides. It takes real maturity to do that. And Mihai’s call for ‘the real deal,’ delivered in his unmissable style, tied everything together impeccably,” said Mădălin Dragnea, founder of All Mad.

“Blending spirituality, anthropology, and business performance powered by EQ and her favourite concept - Design Feeling - Teodora’s presentation brought an unexpected perspective, illustrated with impact stories that were new to the local audience. Greatness. The vibe was wonderful too! Equally compelling insights came from her guests, two internationally acclaimed professionals - strategic creative Mihai Botărel and creative strategist Tom Theys - who electrified the audience, each on his own frequency. By gathering an effervescent community and offering a fresh take on an overused theme - ‘CSR, ESG via Brands & Business’ - #TheAlternativeSchool did it again. Lovely!”, said Adi Pasarica, Orkla Food Marketing’s Director.

"From my very first contact with The Alternative School, I loved the way the team and partners bring this idea of "design feeling" to life. As a researcher and a strong advocate of design thinking - where empathy comes first - I truly appreciated seeing the emphasis placed on the client's emotional journey and on how businesses shape people's experiences as human beings. Congratulations!", said Lăcrămioara Loghin, Founder and Managing Director, Exact Business Solutions

"Beyond the case studies, something more important than anything else stayed with me: a feeling. Or maybe more like a mix of feelings. A bit of hope, because I was reminded that there are still people in advertising who do things right. A bit of inspiration, because I felt that I, too, can contribute to doing good. And a bit more genuine desire to do good, because, in the end, that’s what it’s all about when we talk about Kindful Brands.", said Julieta Calotă, Brand Designer & Creative Strategist

Context

The  first Kindful Brands conference was launched in 2017,  with the highly awarded strategist and creative Tahaab Rais as keynote speaker, at the same Seneca Anticafe, the same host as this year's event. To offer a good taste of what contemporary Bucharest has to offer and be attentive hosts for for Tom Theys, coming from Belgium and Mihai Botarel, straight outta New York, MARe - The Museum of Recent Art leaders were exceptionally kind, offering a private visit to the highly celebrated Dumitru Gorzo’s exhibition, in the key of Ioana Iuna Serban, as curator and inspired guide. A mealchemy personal branding photo session was in order. 

Tom Theys & Mihai Botarel @MARe. Photo: MEALCHEMY\ Iulian Ratescu.

At the cMBA current edition, over 80 scholarships for young talents coming from Bucharest, Cluj, Iasi, Oradea, Timisoara were offered with the Invizibilii.ro, Ursus and RSM Romania’s relevant support. Over 30 trainers from 15 different creative cultures are updating their knowledge.