15+ Years CPG & D2C Marketing Strategy

Big-brand discipline.
Start-up speed.

15+ years building and growing CPG brands, from a $700M portfolio at Coca-Cola to getting MUD\WTR to profitability, then growing it 29% through omnichannel expansion and a new innovation pipeline combined. I bring big-brand marketing rigor to companies that need to move fast: brand strategy, innovation, and omnichannel growth.

Here specifically for a retail launch?
See the full Target case study below.

Jump to the retail case study →
Background

Big CPG discipline. D2C hustle.

I spent 12 years in brand and innovation roles at Coca-Cola, Land O'Lakes, and ConAgra. At Coca-Cola, I owned the $700M Minute Maid Nutritionals P&L and authored a multi-year youth portfolio strategy projected to grow Net Revenue 126%. At Land O'Lakes, I owned the $150M Kozy Shack P&L and grew the brand 15%. I started my career in ConAgra's Leadership Development Program on Swiss Miss and Marie Callender's.

As VP of Marketing at MUD\WTR, I took that same discipline into a D2C startup, getting it to profitability, then growing topline 29% from there through a combination of omnichannel expansion (from zero to 15% of revenue) and a new innovation pipeline (5+ new products a year, 10% of revenue). High-level strategy and hands-on execution.

Now I bring that playbook to brands and operators who need big-brand thinking without the big-brand timeline.

MBA, UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
B.S. COMMERCE, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
NCAA DIVISION I ATHLETE
FEATURED MENTOR, MENTORPASS
Profitable
reached by setting clear CAC & sign-up guardrails
29%
topline growth once profitable, from omnichannel & innovation
0% → 15%
from D2C-only to retail & Amazon revenue
10%
of revenue from new products (5+ launches/yr)
How I Can Help

Marketing strategy to unlock the next level of growth.

Built across the full set of levers: product, price, place, and promotion, because a holistic strategy gets you further than any one lever alone.

01 · PRODUCT
Product

Category strategy, portfolio planning, and the innovation pipeline that feeds new launches.

02 · PRICE
Price

Price architecture and price slope across every channel, grounded in competitive analysis.

03 · PLACE
Place

Omnichannel strategy across D2C, retail, and Amazon, plus the buyer story that gets you on shelf.

04 · PROMOTION
Promotion

Brand positioning, messaging, and the launch activation that gets a product noticed.

Why 1+1=3 is real, not a slogan: D2C awareness earns the retail buyer's yes, and shelf presence feeds credibility back into D2C. It also de-risks the bet: you can commit to inventory knowing there's a sell-through path either way. That's the complexity I like getting into.

The Retail Case Study

Zero to Target shelves in 10 months.

MUD\WTR: no sales team, no retail infrastructure, walking into that first buyer meeting. Built from scratch.

WHAT I DID
1
CHANNEL READINESS
Confirmed margin, velocity, and pack fit for retail.
2
PRODUCT & PACK STRATEGY
Package, pricing architecture, and packaging research.
3
BUYER SELL-IN STORY
Category definition, data, and consumer research built into the pitch.
4
PITCHED THE BUYER
Presented a category vision, not just a brand, directly to the buyer.
5
ON SHELF · DEC 2024
No slotting fees. 14 weeks of display at launch.

"I walked in with a category vision, not just a brand pitch. Two years later, Target built the planogram I described: a new 4ft Better-For-You set in the coffee & tea aisle."

The Results: MUD\WTR, 2023–2026

Omni-channel went from nothing to a compounding share of the business.

YEAR 1 · DEC '24
400
stores · 2 SKUs at launch
YEAR 2
15%
of total company revenue from omni
YEAR 2
omni revenue growth vs. Year 1
YEAR 3 · MAY '26
1,579
stores · 6 SKUs, category reset lands
YEAR 3 · PROJECTED
23%
of total company revenue from omni
YEAR 3 · PROJECTED
1.8×
omni revenue growth vs. Year 2

This is just the start: 5% ACV, the stores we're in today. 95% of the market is still untapped.

Services

Strategy and execution: thoughtful growth, built for success.

Retail & Omnichannel Launch
01
Channel Architecture
Mapping how D2C, retail, and Amazon build on each other instead of cannibalizing, with sequencing and goals tailored to each channel's strengths.
02
Product & Pricing Strategy
Price slope across channels, competitive price analysis, pack format, and SKU selection.
03
Consumer Research
Brand awareness, D2C consumer data, packaging research, and SPINS analysis, built into a strong story for the buyer.
04
Buyer Sell-In Story
A category and brand sell story, plus the support plan built to win placement.
05
Packaging Strategy
Retail-specific packaging guidance: shelf standout, claims hierarchy, and format decisions.
06
Launch Planning & Support
Shopper marketing, in-store activation, launch timeline, and reorder setup for year-one success.
07
Innovation
Pipeline strategy, market analysis, concept development and testing, market-ready execution, and launch support.
Brand & Portfolio Strategy
08
Category & Portfolio Strategy
Category strategy, portfolio planning, and SKU rationalization across a multi-brand or multi-product line.
09
Brand Building
Brand purpose and values, brand building strategy, and positioning/messaging architecture.
10
Pricing Architecture
Price architecture across products and channels, grounded in competitive analysis.
11
Competitive & Consumer Insights
Competitive landscape analysis and consumer insights that sharpen a strategy brief agencies can build from.
Investment

Every brand's readiness looks different, so every engagement is scoped individually.

Rather than a fixed package, I price around the level of access and outcome your team needs, from a light monthly retainer to a fully embedded Fractional CMO engagement. The first step is always a conversation about where you are and what's actually in the way.

PROJECT-BASED
FRACTIONAL CMO
MONTHLY ADVISORY RETAINER
SCOPED AFTER AN INITIAL CALL
Who This Is For

You're a good fit if...

GREAT FIT
  • You're a D2C brand ready to capture the retail and Amazon demand your marketing has already built.
  • You're a CPG or consumer brand that needs a marketing strategy reset: positioning, pricing, or a stalled innovation pipeline.
  • You're building or running a brand portfolio and need corporate marketing rigor applied to a smaller team.
WHAT TO EXPECT
  • Research before recommendations: every strategy is grounded in data.
  • You'll be challenged on assumptions. That's part of the work.
  • I move fast and know which steps protect your shot.
  • I get to know your business as well as you do.

Whether it's a retail launch or a brand reset, let's talk about where you're stuck.