Marketing Vanguard

Wine was a gatekept category, suffering from the dreaded perception of being "boring." That is, until Archer Roose, the canned wine company, redefined the category and made it fun for Gen Z. In this episode of Marketing Vanguard, CMO of the brand, Conley Downing, unpacks how they leveraged “fun” marketing (instead of educational marketing) to make wine accessible and interesting again.

What You'll Learn:
How to reposition a legacy category by identifying and eliminating barriers to entry
Why product format innovation creates distribution and occasion expansion beyond traditional compete sets
The strategic value of celebrity partnerships rooted in authentic brand alignment and commercial acumen
How to build sustainable growth through data ownership and omnichannel funnel strategy
Why founder-led startups must balance rapid scaling with long-term positioning and acquisition readiness
How transparency and ingredient clarity are becoming table stakes in beverage marketing

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Staying authentic and mission-driven while scaling aggressively may be the toughest problem in marketing to solve. But Sarah Leinberger, VP and Head of Marketing, Yoobi, has a pretty solid take on how to do it. In this episode of Marketing Vanguard, recorded during Brandweek in Atlanta, Sarah reveals how CMOs can build authentic brand equity through strategic collaborations, why agility trumps budget in today's market, and the key strategies to balance rapid iteration with meaningful purpose.

What You'll Learn:
How to leverage borrowed equity without diluting brand identity
Why speed and flexibility are competitive advantages for challenger brands
The foundational framework for retail media success
How to build meaningful retailer partnerships that go beyond “exclusive.”
The key strategies to optimize high-impact small teams
Why authentic leadership accelerates team performance and trust

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Marketing Vanguard, live from the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, Nic Brandenberger, CMO of Mammut, the 164-year-old Swiss mountaineering gear company, unpacks why Davos represents a unique opportunity for C-suite marketers and how the experiences brands create matter far more than the products they sell.

What You'll Learn:
How to shift the definition of “brand” from product provider to experience giver
Why breaking out of the marketing silo is a critical competitive advantage
The strategic advantage of being a part of Davos
How to balance wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels
How consumer-centric foundation separates great marketing from mediocre execution
Ways to identify and penetrate niche communities in fragmented markets like US mountaineering

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Podcasting live from the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, Karin Timpone, CEO and Founder of ClearPrompt, unpacks how to implement AI with focused, phased approaches rather than sweeping transformations and staying in the center of business strategy.

What You'll Learn:
Why CMOs are perfectly positioned to lead AI strategy across organizations
How to break down AI implementation into focused, phased pilots instead of betting the entire farm
The difference between technology adoption and strategic impact
How to build cross-functional alignment in the C-suite around technology and strategy
Pick one lane and go deep rather than trying to master all of AI
Why it’s important to lean into industry moments that connect you with peers facing similar challenges

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From $0 confidence to CEO of one of the most well-known brands in the world, Sharon Price John’s story is nothing short of inspiring and we’re unpacking it on the latest episode of Marketing Vanguard. In this conversation, straight from the Brandweek 2025 stage in Atlanta, Sharon, CEO of Build-A-Bear, reveals her unconventional career journey and how that evolution directly shaped the turnaround and reimagining of an iconic experiential brand.

What You'll Learn:
How to transition from functional expertise to CEO-level thinking
Why CMOs must adopt a "business-first" mindset to advance
The confidence gap that holds high-potential women back from applying for stretch roles
How to unlock brand equity by understanding feeling over function
The critical role of authentic leadership in driving organizational transformation
How to pivot a single-location retail concept into an IP-driven, multi-vertical business

In an era where the marketing playbook is being rewritten daily, how can brands stay ahead? Joshua Spanier, Google’s VP of AI and Marketing Strategy, pulls back the curtain in “Frontier CMO,” his new podcast and weekly insights letter featuring the marketers, thought leaders, and industry pioneers who are reinventing marketing.

Josh previews the tough questions and unfiltered conversations featured on Frontier CMO, including:
AI as a leadership test: exploring the "human" side of the AI revolution. As technology and tools advance the challenge becomes equipping marketing teams to leverage these technologies
Brand relevance and connection: writing the next playbook for brand relevance by showing up as a main character in the places and spaces that connect with your audience
Agentic Commerce: understanding the transition from "speed vs. certainty" to a world where shopping is fast and smart
The new marketing organization: knowing where AI makes work faster and smarter and restructuring teams to keep up. Redefining agency partnerships to elevate insights and creativity in real time

Each episode of Frontier CMO features tactical, practical steps all leaders can take to navigate the future of marketing. Find it wherever you get your podcasts: YouTube | Apple | Spotify
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.