Barclaycard Payments | Hustle Culture

Shana Marie
Multi Disciplinary Creative, Art Director and Consultant

Curious by nature, culture-obsessed by design
I tell stories that make people feel something. Through social-first content, creative campaigns and art direction, I bring together strategic thinking and meaningful storytelling to create work that cuts through and stands the test of time.

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Instagram, Substack, TikTok, LinkedIn, CV

Select Clients Include:
MARS Inc.
FERERRO Inc.
ASDA
Netflix
Barclays
Google
YouTube
Elizabeth Arden
Levi’s
Nando’s
Slug and Lettuce
VEVO
Paul Smith Foundation
& More

Currently working at Born Social, Midweight Creative

For all enquires and press related queries including headshots please contact via email.

Creative Cirle Awards Judge 2025
Brixton Finishing School Mentor

Client: Barclaycard Payments

Agency: Born Social

Role: Creative Strategy, Art Director

Year: 2024

For the Sustain phase of Barclaycard Payments’ Hustle Culture campaign, we were tasked with developing a creative direction that deepens the conversation around the cost of toxic hustle culture on SMEs. The campaign needed to move beyond awareness, using social to educate, advise and engage small business owners through real stories and actionable content, all while continuing to break the stigma around asking for support.

SME owners are proud to work hard. It’s part of what drives their passion and growth. But over time, hustle culture has normalised unsustainable behaviours that quietly impact both their wellbeing and their bottom line. To address this, we used social as a platform to spark honest and authentic dialogue around the true cost of hustle culture, both emotionally and financially. Through real stories and shared experiences, we opened up space for conversation while connecting business owners to tools, advice and support through the Barclays and Mastercard Strive partnership.

Hustle culture promotes an unhealthy relationship with work, glorifying long hours, blurred boundaries, and burnout. In contrast, our creative direction championed sustainable growth, encouraging business owners to rethink what "success" really looks like.

We designed a social ecosystem that promotes balance, well-being and real conversations - redefining hustle culture in collaboration with SME owners and Barclaycard Payment staff.

Because when businesses are supported, they don’t just survive, they bloom.

Stories of Success

For our hero content, Stories of Success, we followed real SME owners through their business spaces in an honest, intimate interview format inspired by Vogue’s 73 Questions.

Rather than deliver polished motivational speeches, our business owners shared their own experiences with hustle culture (from navigating burnout to setting boundaries) offering relatable advice to help others find healthier rhythms.

How To Hustle

To bring engagement and reflection into the conversation, we reimagined the Barclaycard "Right Side of the Hustle" quiz into a social-first format.

The Set-Up: At a table marked with an "agree–disagree" scale, SME owners were presented with statements about hustle culture. Using a branded mug, they physically placed themselves along the scale and unpacked their reasoning in candid, conversational moments.

At the end, they received a personalised "result card" revealing where they landed, sparking reflection and shareability.

To sustain and deepen the campaign, we built out a series of educational content and lightweight visual assets. This layered approach allowed us to deliver both empathy and expertise, meeting SME owners wherever they were in their journey.

Collaborators

Production Company
Thin Reel Media

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All Credit Belongs To YHWH, I’m Just A Vessel