Future of Consumer Marketing

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Sarah McNabb, Chief Marketing Officer at GigaStar. GigaStar is pioneering a new asset class in the creator economy by building the first SEC-registered crowdfunding platform that allows YouTube creators to raise capital by offering investors a share of their future AdSense revenue—without sacrificing creative control or IP rights. Operating with a lean team in a highly regulated fintech environment, Sarah shares how GigaStar is simplifying complex securities offerings, targeting the right creator profiles, and building what they call "the Wall Street of the creator economy" through both primary and secondary markets for creator-backed securities.
Topics Discussed:
Democratizing capital access for YouTube creators through revenue-sharing securities
Building trust in a regulated fintech environment with SEC compliance
Evaluating creator investment potential based on engagement, consistency, and revenue thresholds
Operating lean marketing teams in complex, regulated industries
Leveraging in-person events to build relationships in the creator ecosystem
Developing both primary and secondary markets for creator securities
Balancing AI efficiency with human relationship building in B2B creator marketing

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Melissa Snover, CEO and Founder of Get Nourished. After selling her vegetarian gummy candy company Goody Good Stuff to Cloetta in 2015, Melissa confronted a critical problem: traditional manufacturing's inability to innovate quickly. Minimum orders of 40-foot trucks per flavor and 2-3 year lead times for new products were killing innovation across the industry. Her solution? Teaching herself to build the world's first FDA/FSA compliant 3D food printer. What started as confectionery innovation for Universal Studios and Dubai Mall evolved into a health revolution when she realized the technology's true potential lay in personalization. Get Nourished now produces 60 billion possible nutrient combinations through proprietary 3D printing technology, powered by an AI recommendation engine analyzing over 100,000 clinical trials.
Topics Discussed:
Building proprietary manufacturing technology to eliminate traditional production constraints
Transitioning from confectionery innovation to health and wellness applications
Developing AI-powered personalization engines before mainstream AI adoption
Creating retention through dynamic product adaptation across customer lifecycles
Executing omnichannel expansion strategies in heavily regulated markets
Leveraging customer feedback to drive product innovation and category expansion
Strategic location decisions for accessing specialized talent pools in advanced manufacturing

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Michelle Spiro, Co-Founder of FURI Sport. After 30 years building billion-dollar businesses at Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, and Donna Karan, Michelle left corporate to create a tennis brand that challenges the sport's country club exclusivity. FURI Sport is democratizing racket sports by centering their brand around authentic city tennis culture—inspired by co-founder Eric Mathalier's story of learning tennis on painted asphalt courts in Brooklyn. Through grassroots marketing, authentic storytelling, and refusal to compromise on product quality, FURI has achieved a 45% repeat customer rate and sold in 15 countries without paid marketing or traditional distribution.
Topics Discussed:
Transitioning from corporate fashion executive to startup founder
Building authentic brand narratives rooted in founder stories
Creating inclusive exclusivity through streetwear marketing principles
Leveraging grassroots and word-of-mouth over paid advertising
Developing proprietary product technology to earn market credibility
Using coaches as primary distribution and ambassador network
Designing content-first marketing strategies for Gen Z and Gen Alpha
Structuring brand collaborations to create cultural worlds
Balancing profitability with social impact mission

In this episode of The Future of Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Maury Rogow, CEO of RIP Media Group. With 30 years spanning high-tech sales and Hollywood scriptwriting, Maury has developed a systematic approach to transforming complex products into compelling narratives that close deals. His work has helped companies secure funding rounds up to $10 million by completely restructuring how they tell their stories. Drawing from script analysis of blockbusters like The Dark Knight and studying how Apple revolutionized product launches, Maury has codified the emotional triggers and narrative structures that move customers from confusion to conversion.
Topics Discussed:
Translating Hollywood storytelling frameworks into sales and marketing narratives
The "STUFF" framework: Using Sexy, Touching, Unique, Funny, or Fear as emotional drivers
Building the "Unicorn Pitch" structure that secured a $10 million funding commitment
Moving from feature-focused messaging to transformation-focused storytelling
The 11 core stories every company needs across the funnel
Adapting storytelling for different funnel stages (awareness, consideration, conversion)
Leveraging AI agents to scale personalized narrative creation

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Harry Doull, Founder and Creative Director of Keap Candles. Keap Candles is building a luxury candle brand that combines master perfumer-level scent design with radical circular design and a regenerative vision. What makes this conversation particularly compelling is Harry's counterintuitive marketing playbook: in January 2021, Keap completely abandoned social media - a decision that has strengthened rather than weakened their business. Through subscription-based customer relationships, strategic retail partnerships, and exceptional storytelling via newsletter, they've built a loyal community of "keepers" who value presence and connection over scrolling and distraction.
Topics Discussed:
The decision to completely exit social media platforms in 2021
Building a subscription-first business model for consumable luxury goods
Using annual customer surveys as product development and marketing intelligence
Strategic retail placement as first-touch marketing rather than mass distribution
Creating alignment between company values and marketing channels
Vertical integration as a competitive advantage in sustainable manufacturing
Newsletter as primary customer relationship tool
Avoiding vanity metrics and email list inflation tactics

In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Andres Figueira interviews Christophe Schmidt, CEO of Gebana, a direct-to-consumer food company that's reimagining the online grocery model by prioritizing farmer livelihoods, product quality, and radical transparency over convenience. Operating across Europe with 900 employees (800 in Africa), Gebana has built a €60 million business that only sells fresh fruit when it's ripe—requiring customers to pre-order and wait until nature decides the product is ready. This counter-intuitive approach has created unexpected viral marketing loops, fierce customer loyalty, and double-digit growth year over year in a highly competitive market.
Topics Discussed:
Building a mission-driven consumer brand that prioritizes impact over instant gratification
Using bulk purchasing (13kg minimum orders) as an accidental viral marketing driver
Managing consumer education when your business model contradicts standard e-commerce expectations
Balancing online performance marketing with traditional direct mail for multi-generational audiences
Maintaining human touchpoints in customer service while exploring AI efficiency gains
Leveraging radical transparency and admitted mistakes as a competitive advantage against greenwashing
Scaling a vertically integrated supply chain from African farms to European doorsteps
Creating B2B channels as a farmer-first strategy rather than a pure business decision

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