Philosophy
I love brands that understand good design. It’s that magical quality of aesthetics + understanding me (personal relevancy), the influences in the world around me (cultural relevancy), the recommendations I respond to (social relevancy) and how it will benefit my life (functional relevancy).
When good design works, it creates both obvious and not so obvious connections and experiences. It is the inextricable combination of beauty and emotion that stimulates desire. That “how it makes us feel” can be instant—its worth may be immediately recognizable and becomes part of our story. Or it seeps into our value system over time.
It’s the human-ness. And your perception of a brand and how it makes you feel will determine how you will engage. The more generous in attitude, the more you will vote with your values and wallet.
Experience
20 years as a cultural creative with agency management + branding, consumer insights and campaign development experience across food, beverage, better-for-you and wellness/nutrition, spirits, beauty and fashion brands. I started my career working in advertising and have been managing director of three creative agencies: Hatch Design, Redscout and Cahan & Associates.
I helped these agencies, as well as others I’ve consulted for, find their voice and growth opportunities, and create potent dialogues between brands and their consumers.
Today, I consult creative agencies and brands and am the co-founder and curator of Poet and/the Bench, my #sidehustle in collaboration with my jewelry designer husband and our retail brand of independent designers curated by design.
In my work at Poet and/the Bench, I get to both explore my own personal connection to and witness the resonance of brands through firsthand experience with consumers. We purposefully curate designers that have a narrative and we also embody the narrative in the intimacy of the physical space—this is an essential part of good design for me: storytelling connects us to the human experience.
Co-Founder, Curator
Managing Director
Managing Director
Managing Director
Brands
I work at the intersection of business management and creativity. My passion lies in the power of design to shift experience and culture. I’ve been fortunate to work across a variety of disciplines with iconic and emerging brands.
Services
I specialize in building brands and agencies. I am known for my ability to connect companies, brands, people and opportunities and bring stories to life.
Brands
I dig in with you to understand the challenges you’re facing, asking the right questions of the business and grounding our work in an understanding of human behavior with all of its personal nuances and cultural influences. We assess the stories already in the marketplace and find your brand’s ownable whitespace. It’s not linear or static. And it takes brave thinking to fuel imagination. The goal is to uncover that just right brand strategy and brand idea and with a team of creatives, craft a personality that helps it transcend and have ripple effects in its category. I’m also a connector and can help with agency search, reviews and stewarding the process of aligning with new creative agencies.
I work on a project-by-project fee or retainer basis. For large branding and creative projects, I work with a network of thoughtfully vetted strategists, creatives, marketers, developers and other innovative talent. We provide seamless agency services and capabilities.
Agencies
I evaluate where you are today and what you’re saying, where you want to go and how to get there. I facilitate the development of positioning and brand voice, identify and assess business development opportunities + execute related strategies, help you create infrastructure, lend insights to proposals and promotional materials, serve as an executive level partner, coach and director, as well as leading and galvanizing teams, providing a sense of place and inspiration.
I work on a project-by-project fee or retainer basis as a consulting managing director.
Management
- Executive Leadership
- Executive Coaching
- Agency Operations
- Agency New Business
- Agency Search
Strategy
- Agency Business Diagnosis
- Agency Positioning and Growth Strategy
- Agency Content Strategy
- Brand Story Assessment
- Consumer Insights Consulting
- Brand Strategy
- Brand Positioning
- Profile Raising
Creative
- Design Inspiration
- Messaging and Content Editing
- Oversee Creative Concepts and Implementation
- Sustainable Practices
- Retail Curation
- Executive Produce Events
Get in touch
Let’s make something awesome together. I love a human connection but the best way to get in touch initially is to send an email with the nature of your inquiry. I read every message and will do my best to respond within 48 business hours.