With over two decades of experience connecting brands with people, Naysla Edwards has built a career defined by innovation, strategic thinking, and a relentless focus on customer experience. As a leader in the marketing space, she has worked across continents and industries—from luxury and lifestyle to financial services—delivering memorable, insight-driven campaigns that spark loyalty and drive business growth.
At American Express, Naysla and her team have masterminded some of the brand’s most beloved experiential campaigns in Australia, including American Express delicious. Month Out, Vogue Fashion Night In/Out, Open Air Cinema, and the Vivid Lounge. These initiatives reflect her passion for creating rich, emotive experiences that not only delight Card Members but also champion the broader community and partner industries.
Under her leadership, American Express has received numerous customer satisfaction accolades and been recognised as a top-tier premium brand.
CMOs to Watch, presented by Zenith, spotlights the visionaries leading the charge. This series delves into the strategies and perspectives of CMOs who are setting new standards, pushing boundaries, and driving impact in ways that redefine what it means to be a leader in marketing today.
Chatting with B&T, Naysla shares her views on the future of marketing, her passion for music and fashion, and what it takes to create standout campaigns in a fast-changing world.
B&T: What three things would you take to a desert island?
Edwards: My phone (survival guide access), water (maybe a purifier) and a tent that pops up and is ready to go. 😊
B&T: Favourite album, movie and book?
Edwards: Movie: Hidden Figures, Book: Atomic Habits, Song: Every Breath You Take by The Police.
B&T: What is your passion outside of work?
Edwards: My biggest passion is music & dancing along!
B&T: If you weren’t a CMO, what would you be doing?
Edwards: Working in fashion – my other passion. However, I am very lucky that in my role I get to collaborate on fashion industry events and support the sector and its talented designers. For instance, just last week, we celebrated the Vogue Vanguard show presented by American Express as part of the official Australian Fashion Week 2025 schedule.
B&T: What was your favourite campaign of all time?
Edwards: It would have to be one of our most recent campaigns, the F1 Australian Grand Prix which was truly amazing. American Express is the Official Payments Partner globally and Melbourne’s Australian Grand Prix was the first race of the season. This was the first time American Express, Formula 1 and Australian Grand Prix came together to create incredible experiences for both Amex Card Members and fans onsite at the Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit. We went big. We had five interactive Amex Experiences available on-site providing fans with an ultimate race day experience including: The American Express Grandstand, The American Express Fan Experience, MoVida Presented by American Express, The American Express Lounge and The Amex Lakeside Rooftop. To promote our partnership and access for Card Members, we went big on our advertising presence – from when visitors got off the plane, to when they caught the tram to Albert Park and then again on site at the Grand Prix. We also took our creative executions from online to offline with Uber and Wrappr – including outdoor advertising with rideshare car wraps.
B&T: … Now let’s talk shop. What is your brand’s top priority for the next 12 months?
Edwards: To drive brand consideration and have more people sign up to get an Amex Card, as well as continuing to surprise and delight our current customers whilst delivering the incredible service, trust and security we are known for. In partnership with our media agency, we have enhanced our full funnel model, which has allowed us to optimize our advertising and marketing investment to help us reach our goals. Ultimately my team’s role is to contribute to business growth by acquiring new Card Members, ensuring we are positively engaging with our customers and driving their satisfaction and use of their Amex Card.
B&T: What channel is exciting you the most and how do you split your marketing budgets between long/short and channels mix?
Edwards: I don’t get excited about just one channel, but the sum of the parts. What excites me most is innovation. I enjoy trying new features across channels, keeping an open mind and setting plans based on proven results while also testing new opportunities. One channel I have been spending more time on to understand its potential better is Radio and I have been amazed about how effective it is.
B&T: What is the biggest challenge you currently face in the marketplace?
Edwards: We have continued to work hard on increasing our merchant coverage across key locations and places that are important for our Card Members to be able to use their Amex Card. In the last 12 months alone, we have added over 600,000 new locations to our network. This has played a pivotal role in attracting new customers, activating greater engagement from our current customers and supporting businesses.
B&T: Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
Edwards: In five years’ time, I see myself at American Express. My current role is so dynamic and there are incredible growth opportunities locally and abroad.
B&T: Zenith is the presenting partner of B&T’s CMOs to Watch list. The agency takes a predictive view when it comes to industry perspectives. They’d like to know your prediction for marketing in the next 12 months.
Edwards: Over the next 12 months, I think we’re going to see incredible progress in CMOs utilising AI to drive productivity improvements whilst maintaining a human touch approach. We need to remain authentic, human, factual, compliant, but there’s never been a greater emphasis for marketers to understand the potential of AI tools to improve the way we do marketing today. It’s going to be fascinating to see how this space will evolve in next 12 months.
Check out the other instalments in the CMOs To Watch series here:
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Meet The Bonds Marketing Boss Breaking The Mould (And The Internet)
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: How Intrepid Travel’s Louise Laing Is Using AI & Adventure To Reimagine Travel Marketing
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: From Ski Slopes To C-Suite, Superloop’s Ben Colman Is Picking Up Speed
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: ING’s Danielle Hamilton’s Lion-Hearted Marketing Approach
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: From Backpackers To Brand Builders – How Welcome To Travel’s Darryl Newby Is Redefining Youth Tourism
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Asahi’s Jemma Downey On Brewing Creativity & Crafting Brand Growth
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: How Tourism Tasmania’s Lindene Cleary Keeps The Bottom Of Australia Top Of Mind
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Lisa Little-Cain On Bushwalks, Big Ideas & Brand Brilliance At Aldi
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: How Shad Haehae Is Raising The Marketing Bar & Raising His Daughter Along The Way
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Super Mum & Coles Super Marketer, Alex Piercy
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Telstra’s Alita McMenamin On Brand, Balance & The Power Of Family
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: 28 Group’s Tim White On Storytelling, Social Media & Sport
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Meet Zach Kitschke, Full Time Canva CMO, Part Time Snowboarding Superstar
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Meet Peita Golden, Telco Marketing Boss, Footy Fanatic & Future Pub Owner
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Peter Chapman On Driving Reflections Holidays’ Brand Transformation & Reimagining Camping
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Gardening & Dinner Parties, How Vinyl Group’s Alli Galloway Finds Peace Outside Of The Roaring Live Music Scene
- CMO’s To Watch, Presented By Zenith: The Little Joys Behind Michelle Rowling’s Thrilling Life At Luna Park
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Hawthorn FC’s Dan Hamer’s Next Big Partnership
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: DrinkWise’s Part Time Builder, Part Time Marketer, Nathan Kent
- CMOs To Watch, Presented By Zenith: Mountain Culture’s Out Of This World Bradley Firth
