Future of Consumer Marketing

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Pulkit Gupta, Head of Marketing at Cloaked. Cloaked is tackling one of the most pervasive problems in modern digital life: data exposure and its consequences - spam, identity theft, and financial fraud. Operating in a space where consumers are increasingly aware of privacy issues but often lack practical solutions, Cloaked has built an all-in-one privacy platform that combines data removal, unlimited email and phone aliases, and AI-powered call screening. Through problem-first messaging, creative experiential marketing, and a lean team structure that leverages agencies strategically, Pulkit and his team have evolved from serving privacy enthusiasts to reaching mainstream Americans who are tired of spam and fearful of fraud. Topics Discussed: Transitioning from feature-based to problem-based messaging in a new category Building experiential marketing campaigns that validate the problem (hotline experience) Structuring a lean two-person marketing team supported by specialized agencies Using AI for creative testing, editing workflows, and insight generation Scaling micro-influencer programs with authentic product usage Evolving audience targeting from privacy enthusiasts to mainstream consumers Launching and establishing product-market fit in an emerging category

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Tom Bell, Co-Founder of SkinnyBrands and Founder of DrinkWell UK. Tom has built a data-driven alcohol marketplace that reverses traditional product development—instead of creating brands and hoping consumers follow, DrinkWell tracks millions of purchase decisions to algorithmically design products that perfectly match consumer behavior. Starting from his garage selling Canadian beer to rugby clubs, Tom has scaled DrinkWell into a 28-country distribution network while launching proprietary brands like Skinny Lager and Tracers wine that achieve 75% higher lifetime value than third-party products. His approach demonstrates how consumer feedback loops, rigorous A/B testing, and AI-driven analytics can create functional alcohol brands in a heavily regulated category where traditional health marketing is prohibited. Topics Discussed: Building a functional alcohol category in markets where it didn't exist Developing a data-driven marketplace that informs proprietary product creation Using algorithmic analysis of 3.5 million bottle sales to design perfect products Navigating advertising restrictions for functional alcohol brands Competing against legacy brands that fail at international market adaptation Leveraging AI across product development, customer acquisition, and inventory optimization Creating 75% higher lifetime value through algorithmically-optimized brand attributes

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres speaks with Mesh Gelman, Founder and CEO of Cumulus Coffee Company. Cumulus is pioneering the premium at-home cold coffee category with the world's first on-demand nitro cold brew system. While the coffee industry saw cold beverages explode from 35% to 75% of Starbucks orders in just six years, no premium at-home solution existed until Cumulus spent five years developing a patented system that extracts nitrogen from ambient air and delivers café-quality cold brew in under a minute. Through relentless customer dialogue and disciplined product development, Mesh built a closed-loop ecosystem that challenges consumers to rethink their entire relationship with cold coffee. Topics Discussed: Creating and validating entirely new product categories in established markets Building a closed-loop hardware and consumables ecosystem Navigating the tension between perfection and speed to market in consumer hardware Pricing strategy when no competitive benchmarks exist Educating consumers about products they don't know they need Leveraging patents and proprietary technology as competitive moats Measuring product-market fit through return rates and repeat purchase behavior Staying curious and learning from younger generations

In this episode, Andres Figueira interviews Mark Lin, Founder and CEO of Sliimeyhoney, who scaled a pandemic hobby into $2.7 million in revenue and 1 million followers without frameworks, paid acquisition, or prior business experience. Starting at 15, Mark built a manufacturing operation from his parents' garage while maintaining UCLA academics, navigating the operational chaos of Shark Tank-driven demand spikes, and defending premium positioning in a category dominated by $5 mass-market alternatives. His approach to organic platform growth, category creation through language, and founder-led content at scale offers tactical insights for consumer brands navigating post-CAC-inflation growth strategies. Topics Discussed: Weaponizing organic TikTok distribution without paid media budgets Converting social proof into traditional media access (Shark Tank pitch process) Category creation through positioning language in commoditized markets Operational planning for 100x demand spikes from media moments Scaling D2C manufacturing from founder-made to team operations Maintaining founder voice as primary content engine at $2.7M revenue Managing founder motivation cycles across five-year startup lifecycle Strategic AI deployment for customer service automation vs. brand preservation Drop model mechanics for creating recurring urgency in non-essential categories Business model adaptation as viral product trends mature

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Deniz Kural, Director of Product Marketing at Candywriter, the Miami-based studio behind BitLife. BitLife is a text-based life simulator that has captured millions of players with its unprecedented depth, cultural relevance, and ability to let players role-play literally any life path imaginable. Seven years after launch, the game continues to dominate its category through hyper-culturalization, consistent community engagement, and innovative marketing approaches that bridge traditional entertainment marketing with mobile gaming's unique demands. Kural shares hard-won insights from his journey through consumer goods giants like Coca-Cola and Durex, to mobile gaming powerhouses like Supercell and Rovio, revealing how entertainment marketing must balance immediate ROI pressures with long-term brand building. Topics Discussed: Structural differences between traditional consumer marketing and mobile gaming marketing The tension between tactical ROI-driven marketing and strategic brand building in gaming Building and scaling influencer-first content strategies for text-based games Hyper-culturalization as a competitive moat in mobile gaming Community management as a cost-effective growth driver vs. paid user acquisition The role of product marketing in entertainment companies Adapting live-action video creative for games without traditional graphics Creating revenue-share creator programs to drive sustainable content generation

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Alicia Moore, VP of Marketing at Halfdays. Halfdays is disrupting the ski and snowboard apparel industry by creating performance fashion specifically designed for women at the intersection of outdoor functionality and contemporary fashion. Founded by Olympic skier Kylie Tinsley, fashion strategist Ariana Ferwerda, and Karel Vredenburg five years ago, the brand addresses a fundamental gap in the market: ski apparel that actually fits women's bodies and makes them feel confident on the mountain. Operating with a lean team of 30 people in Denver, Halfdays has built a thriving community of nearly 10,000 members and is expanding beyond winter sports into year-round adventure apparel while maintaining their commitment to authentic, human-centered marketing. Topics Discussed: Disrupting the "shrink it and pink it" mentality in women's outdoor apparel Building authentic community through monthly meetups and brand ambassadors Leveraging Slack as an unexpected community platform for 10,000 members Scaling a small marketing team (9 people) to compete against legacy brands with massive budgets Developing insight-driven creative campaigns around emotional themes like "girls trips" Balancing paid media experimentation with community-first brand building Strategic use of AI tools while maintaining human authenticity in customer experience and creative Expanding from seasonal ski wear into year-round adventure apparel

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Curtis Schlaufman, VP of Marketing and Communications at DeFi Technologies. Curtis shares his journey from crypto skeptic to marketing leader at a publicly traded digital asset company that nearly went bankrupt during the 2022 bear market. DeFi Technologies survived by maintaining an aligned management team willing to make extreme personal sacrifices—including going without pay for six months, selling homes, and taking out second mortgages. Today, the company manages the most diverse array of regulated crypto products globally, marketing to both traditional investors seeking regulated crypto exposure and equity investors looking for broad industry exposure. Curtis reveals how to build trust and credibility in a highly volatile, fast-moving industry while managing multiple business lines, subsidiaries, and constant evolution. Topics Discussed: Surviving a near-bankruptcy during the crypto bear market through management alignment and personal sacrifice Marketing a dual mandate: products to consumers and equity to investors simultaneously Building trust and credibility as the foundation of all marketing in financial services Evolving brand narrative while rapidly scaling from one to six+ business lines Coordinating marketing across multiple subsidiaries with different names and identities Navigating the unique challenges of public company marketing in crypto Executing integrated news releases across multiple channels and stakeholder groups Identifying and avoiding scammers in the crypto marketing vendor ecosystem

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Joshua Cabrera, Marketing Director at Hakuro.io, a new game publisher building a proprietary AI-powered engine that analyzes gaming sentiment across Reddit, Discord, TikTok, Twitch, YouTube, and other platforms. By scraping and correlating community data, Hakuro provides developers with actionable insights directly from gamers—informing both game design decisions and go-to-market strategies. Currently emerging from stealth mode and seeking their first published title, Hakuro is taking a contrarian position in a post-COVID gaming market still facing widespread layoffs and reduced investment, actively funding indie developers while larger studios pull back. Topics Discussed: Building a B2B platform go-to-market strategy during industry contraction Using AI for sentiment analysis and data correlation across gaming communities The failure modes of marketing automation in creative B2B markets Conference-led distribution strategy for early-stage technical products Structuring qualifiers and KPIs to filter partnership opportunities Navigating global developer outreach with a seven-person remote team Maintaining capital-efficient growth with aggressive ROAS targets

In this episode, host Andrés Figueira interviews Ian Wishingrad, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Three Wishes Cereal, a high-protein, low-sugar, grain-free breakfast cereal brand. Unlike typical CPG startups that burn venture capital pursuing rapid market share, Three Wishes has built a profitable, growing brand now in 15,000 stores across North America through disciplined expansion and creative marketing. Ian shares how his background running a creative agency informed his approach to brand building, why he treats AI as a "creative sidekick," and how the brand capitalizes on cultural moments—like being the first to put a college athlete on a cereal box when NIL rules changed. The conversation reveals a methodical approach to growth that prioritizes profitability over vanity metrics while still executing disruptive marketing tactics. Topics Discussed: Building a CPG brand while maintaining profitability and avoiding the typical VC-funded burn model Threading the needle between novel ingredients and familiar formats in legacy categories Leveraging cultural and regulatory shifts for marketing opportunities (NIL rules, MAHA movement) Using AI as a creative collaboration tool rather than replacement Managing influencer marketing with algorithmic evaluation and creative freedom Scaling from zero to 15,000 retail doors while staying operationally lean Balancing in-house creative capabilities with strategic external partnerships Testing marketing ideas through internal team validation rather than expensive external research

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Genefa Murphy, Chief Marketing & Content Officer at Udemy. Murphy leads a 140-person team managing both B2B and consumer marketing while overseeing a community of 85,000 instructors who create content for the platform. She shares how Udemy is navigating the shift from paid channel dependency to organic growth, adapting to the AI-driven search landscape, and building authentic experiences in an increasingly noisy market. With a background in product management before moving into marketing leadership, Murphy brings a business-first perspective to marketing strategy, emphasizing execution speed, customer impact, and the critical balance between brand and performance marketing. Topics Discussed: Transitioning from paid marketing dependency to organic channel dominance Navigating the shift from traditional SEO to GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) and AI-powered search Building and managing a global marketing team of 140 across B2B and consumer functions Leveraging third-party agencies strategically to elevate internal team capabilities Managing a creator community of 85,000 instructors as a marketing asset Structuring marketing around method, message, and execution Implementing hyper-localized marketing strategies across global markets Balancing AI adoption with human expertise in marketing operations

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Llibert Argerich, Chief Marketing Officer at Thumbtack. Thumbtack is a two-sided marketplace connecting homeowners with home service professionals, competing primarily against word-of-mouth referrals in an extremely fragmented market. Over the past two years, Llibert has transformed Thumbtack's marketing from a concentrated SEM strategy into a sophisticated 11-channel growth engine that balances national profit maximization with aggressive local market penetration. His approach treats marketing as a P&L driver rather than a cost center, combining performance marketing rigor with brand building to create sustainable, scalable growth in a category where frequency is low but intent and trust are everything. Topics Discussed: Evolving from SEM-dependent marketing to an 11-channel diversified media mix Building local market penetration strategies that operate at calculated losses for long-term market share gains Creating profit maximization frameworks that determine exact incrementality points for media spend Positioning against word-of-mouth as the primary competitor in home services Leveraging AI and LLMs for content strategy, personalization, and agentic marketing systems Managing marketing team productivity and efficiency without headcount expansion Balancing performance marketing with brand building in low-frequency, high-stakes categories Optimizing for emerging search behaviors including AI Overviews and LLM-based queries

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Michelle Nadeau, Head of Marketing & Communications at Martie. Martie is transforming the surplus grocery market by connecting brands with excess inventory directly to consumers through a deal discovery platform that delivers savings of up to 70-80% off retail prices. Operating as a digital-first marketplace with over 4,000 brand partnerships and 1,500 active SKUs at any given time, Martie has solved a critical problem for CPG brands while preventing food waste and making premium products accessible to price-conscious consumers. Through AI-powered logistics, personalized customer experiences, and a no-subscription business model, Martie is carving out a distinct position in the grocery e-commerce landscape—not as a 15-minute delivery service, but as a deal discovery platform that makes shopping fun while saving customers money. Topics Discussed: Building a surplus grocery marketplace that prevents food waste before it happens Repositioning overstock from liquidation to brand opportunity Creating trust in a discounted product marketplace through customer service excellence Leveraging AI for logistics management and operational speed Developing personalized shopping experiences through data-driven customer insights Operating a lean, distributed team across multiple time zones Differentiating from instant grocery delivery services Implementing free sampling programs for brand discovery

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Ankit Patel, Co-Founder and Chief Brand Officer at Obvi. Obvi is disrupting the supplement industry by transforming collagen from a clinical product into a consumer lifestyle brand. Starting six years ago in a market dominated by medicinal-looking white and gray packaging, Obvi created a colorful, cereal-aisle-inspired brand that appealed to consumers who wanted premium supplements without the clinical feel. Through a combination of superior formulation (multi-source collagen with added ingredients), competitive pricing, bold branding, and community-driven marketing, Obvi has grown from a direct-to-consumer startup to a brand available in 20,000 retail doors nationwide, including Walmart, Sprouts, and Vitamin Shoppe. Topics Discussed: Transforming supplement branding from clinical to consumer-friendly Building and scaling a 150,000-member Facebook community as a product development tool Transitioning from direct-to-consumer to omnichannel retail strategy Using data-driven design testing to optimize retail packaging Leveraging emerging ad platforms like mobile gaming for customer acquisition Implementing AI for product development and competitive analysis Managing brand positioning when target demographics shift unexpectedly

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Ryan Reese, Marketing Director at Mechanical One, a home repair and maintenance company serving Central Florida. Mechanical One launched their residential division in 2021 after establishing themselves in new construction, and Ryan was brought on to build their consumer-facing marketing from the ground up. In a hyper-competitive local services market where customer trust is paramount and competition is fierce, Ryan shares how they've differentiated through celebrity partnerships, hyper-local targeting, AI-powered customer data analysis, and an obsessive focus on customer experience that has generated over 2,500 five-star Google reviews. Topics Discussed: Building trust in a category where strangers enter customers' homes Leveraging celebrity endorsements (NFL's Scott Hansen, Lily Estefan) for local brand credibility Using AI to analyze customer data and predict seasonal demand patterns Creating authentic Spanish-language campaigns for Hispanic markets Transforming technicians into brand ambassadors through review-focused performance metrics Avoiding vanity metrics on social platforms in favor of high-intent marketing channels Competing in a commoditized market through elevated customer experience

In this episode, host Andres Figueira interviews Taras Rybak, Partner at Fusion Asset Management. Fusion operates in the UK wealth management sector with three complementary businesses: acquiring independent financial advisory firms, managing investment portfolios for private clients, and operating Justify Technology—a unified platform that consolidates the fragmented tech stack financial advisors use daily. Managing £2 billion in assets across 13 UK offices, Fusion is navigating the intersection of traditional relationship-driven financial services and emerging technology capabilities, including strategic implementations of AI and automation in a heavily regulated industry. Topics Discussed: Marketing B2B services in niche, relationship-driven professional communities Solving capacity constraints through technology rather than acquisition-focused growth Building distribution channels before product completion Navigating marketing constraints in heavily regulated industries Implementing AI and automation in compliance-heavy environments The hybrid model: augmenting human expertise with technology rather than replacement

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Lisa Tan, Chief Marketing Officer at Reverie. Reverie is transforming the sleep technology market by repositioning adjustable bases and customizable mattresses from medical devices for the elderly into personalized wellness tools for health-conscious consumers. Over her 12-year journey from a "three-to-six month project" to CMO, Lisa has pioneered a direct-to-consumer strategy that emphasizes education over aspiration, turning sleep from a commodity purchase into a considered investment in longevity and performance. Topics Discussed: Shifting premium sleep products from aspirational lifestyle marketing to personal, gritty storytelling Building personalized customer experiences through quiz-based product discovery Leveraging existing customers as authentic influencers versus traditional influencer seeding Integrating customer experience, service, and sales data to inform marketing strategy Implementing AI agents for customer service and moving from SEO to AEO content strategy Operating lean marketing teams through in-house technical expertise and strategic partnerships

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Tien Ho, Head of Marketing at MOUZ, one of esports' oldest and most successful organizations. MOUZ is pioneering a radical shift in esports marketing by bringing a digital-first industry back to physical reality. While other esports organizations chase global audiences online, MOUZ is building a 22-year legacy brand through hyper-local community engagement, treating their Hamburg headquarters as both a performance facility and a marketing platform. With their team consistently ranking in the top 3-4 globally in Counter-Strike, Tien shares how they're converting the product of winning into sustainable fan loyalty while solving esports' biggest challenge: making parents believe this is a legitimate career path for their children. Topics Discussed: Building physical headquarters as a marketing strategy in a digital industry Converting players into viewers in the esports funnel Creating hyper-local brand loyalty in a global competitive landscape Designing facilities to combat gaming stereotypes and prejudice Leveraging prime real estate for organic brand awareness Developing talent pipelines through youth camps and community programs Transitioning from franchise league systems to tournament circuits Executing guerrilla marketing tactics with limited resources

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Filip Strömsten, Co-founder and COO of Chapter Two. Chapter Two is solving one of the music industry's most foundational problems: royalty data is completely broken. While catalog acquisitions from artists like Justin Bieber and Bob Dylan make headlines, the underlying infrastructure for understanding music earnings remains opaque and fragmented. Chapter Two is building the data infrastructure that will enable proper valuation of music catalogs, starting with a transaction platform that has already facilitated sales for legendary producers like Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins (Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston) and Bankabooom (Blackpink's main producer). By cleaning and standardizing earnings data across hundreds of different royalty statement formats, they're creating transparency in an industry where creators literally don't know where their money comes from. Topics Discussed: Building AI-powered data infrastructure to clean fragmented music royalty data across hundreds of formats Facilitating music catalog transactions for creators seeking liquidity on their life's work Navigating the challenge of explaining complex B2B infrastructure problems to non-industry audiences Using AI to understand and standardize non-logical data structures before applying advanced analytics Managing the tension between financial valuation and cultural/emotional value in music assets Pivoting from a marketplace model to solving foundational data problems first The impossibility of predicting music virality and the randomness of TikTok-driven breakout hits Why blockchain doesn't work for music rights without fully decentralized consumption platforms

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Kimberly Kanary, a strategic marketing consultant at Kuno Creative with deep experience spanning CPG, retail, e-commerce, jewelry, and home improvement. Kimberly brings a unique perspective having navigated the full spectrum of marketing—from PR and crisis communications to advanced analytics and programmatic advertising. Her approach centers on the intersection of art and science in marketing, with an uncompromising focus on tying every marketing dollar to measurable business outcomes. Throughout the conversation, she shares specific tactical examples from her time at Signet Jewelers and reveals why she's betting heavily on programmatic advertising paired with CTV as the next frontier for performance marketing. Topics Discussed: Programmatic advertising paired with CTV (Connected TV) for full-funnel marketing The evolution from the "rule of seven" to 10-20 touches in today's saturated digital environment Building measurement frameworks that prove marketing drives revenue, not just vanity metrics Testing digitally-native influencer content vs. repurposed TV creative in digital channels Leveraging conversion lift studies to measure incrementality, not just attribution Context-specific content adaptation across different platforms and consumer mindsets Using AI as an enabler for efficiency while maintaining the human touch for brand storytelling Building diverse marketing teams with cross-industry experience to drive innovation Analytics maturity curves: from basic ROAS to media mix modeling and multi-touch attribution

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres interviews Greta Mayr, Head of Marketing and Communications at GridX. GridX provides an energy management system that connects distributed energy resources—solar systems, batteries, EV chargers, and heat pumps—to optimize energy flows and reduce costs for end users. Operating in 15 European countries with over 180,000 connected assets, GridX works through a B2B2C model, partnering with major energy retailers like E.ON who white-label their technology. As pioneers in a nascent category, GridX has navigated the challenge of educating an entire market while scaling from 35 to over 200 employees in just a few years. Topics Discussed: Marketing highly technical B2B products in emerging categories Shifting from education-focused to differentiation-focused marketing strategies Building multi-channel B2B marketing funnels with extended sales cycles Leveraging organic content and thought leadership for lead generation Creating relatable content in technical industries through memes and storytelling Using AI for content efficiency and product optimization Targeting different personas across multiple platforms (LinkedIn, WhatsApp, YouTube) Measuring marketing success through quality over quantity in B2B contexts