CMO Roundtable with Abby Taylor, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer at Playa Bowls

Brand consistency

How do you ensure the brand promise communicated in marketing matches the in-store experience across all locations? Abby Taylor Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer Playa Bowls "As we’ve grown from our roots in Belmar, New Jersey, into a national franchise, one of my biggest priorities has been making sure the feeling people get in our marketing is the same feeling they experience in the store." When you build a brand from the ground up, the promise you make to guests has to be something you can deliver every single day.

At Playa Bowls, our marketing isn’t about creating an image that only exists online. It’s about reflecting what people will actually experience when they walk into one of our shops. From the beginning, Playa Bowls has been about more than just the product.

It’s about energy, community, creativity, and making healthier choices feel fun and accessible. We often talk about our brand as “Pineappleland,” which represents the positive, welcoming lifestyle people associate with Playa Bowls. As we’ve grown from our roots in Belmar, New Jersey, into a national franchise, one of my biggest priorities has been making sure the feeling people get in our marketing is the same feeling they experience in the store.

Marketing strategy

For me, that starts with brand clarity. If you don’t have a clearly defined identity, values, and standards, it becomes difficult to maintain consistency as you scale. Our marketing reflects who we are, but it also sets expectations.

That means every shop needs to deliver on the quality, atmosphere, and hospitality guests associate with the brand from fresh ingredients and vibrant bowls to the welcoming environment people expect when they walk through our doors. A big part of that comes down to alignment across the system. We invest heavily in clear brand standards, thoughtful shop design, product quality, and strong communication with our franchise owners.

Our marketing team works closely with operations to ensure that what we promote nationally can be executed consistently at the shop level. If a guest sees something in our marketing, they should be able to walk into a Playa Bowls and have that experience meet or exceed what they expected. Our franchise owners and their teams play a huge role in bringing that promise to life.

Community involvement

Playa Bowls has always been community driven, and our shop owners help create the energy and hospitality that define the brand in their local markets. While our corporate team helps shape the brand vision and marketing strategy, our owners and their teams deliver the experience guests remember. At the end of the day, brand trust is built through consistency.

Marketing may introduce someone to Playa Bowls, but the in-shop experience is what turns a first visit into a loyal guest.