Beyond the Boxx

Casey Barks is the Corporate Director of Marketing at Staypineapple Hotels, based out of the company's corporate HQ office located in Bellevue, WA.The product of a journalist mother, he is no stranger to storytelling and the power of the written word. Casey's college years were spent taking communications and marketing courses by day while serving tables in fine dining restaurants by night, all in hopes of one day combining these two passions into a career. 15 years, six cities (San Francisco to Seattle to Austin to Vancouver to Salem to Bellevue) and various in-house and agency roles later, Casey is now the Corporate Director of Marketing at Staypineapple Hotels, where he has the opportunity to share Staypineapple's fun and playful brand with the world.Casey's love of hospitality combined with his deep connection to the communications industry continue to drive his need to find new and exciting ways to share experiences through visual and written storytelling.

Arielle Madilian is a brand marketing manager with extensive experience in the CPG & Fine Jewelry industries. She believes in leading with authenticity first and creating mindful & purposeful content. Outside of work, you can find her visiting the local farmers market, finding hidden gems around the city, and exploring everything Northern California has to offer.

Jolie Jankowitz is an influencer marketing consultant for DTC companies and has worked with performance-driven brands across wellness, food, and beauty. Her clients have included Athletic Greens, Fly By Jing, OSEA, Bulletproof, Poppi, Liquid I.V., Harper Wilde, Cometeer, and more. Prior to consulting, she spent 8 years building and leading FabFitFun's ROI-driven influencer marketing program. Jolie is originally from Boston and received a bachelor's degree in Entertainment Marketing from Emerson College. She currently resides in Los Angeles.

Andrew Ciccolini is a Medical Director at the National Mill Dog Rescue, a large non-profit located in Peyton Colorado, and the Director of Non-Profit Initiatives at Galaxy Vets. His background includes serving in the U.S. Army, where he worked his way up from Associate Veterinarian to VP of Operations. In addition to his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine, he has a Master's degree in Organizational Leadership.Donate or volunteer at https://galaxyvets.foundation/Help the Ukrainian Armed Forces: https://bank.gov.ua/en/news/all/natsionalniy-bank-vidkriv-spetsrahunok-dlya-zboru-koshtiv-na-potrebi-armiyiAndrew's social media:https://www.linkedin.com/in/ac-dvm/Instagram: @okay_vethttps://www.facebook.com/DrAndrewDVM The Foundation's social media:Here you can find some of our recent news: https://galaxyvets.foundation/news/. But we publish more on our social media:https://www.linkedin.com/company/galaxyvetsfoundation/ https://www.instagram.com/galaxyvetsfoundation/https://www.facebook.com/galaxyvetsfoundation

Joe Miragliotta is the founder of the men's lifestyle and travel blog, http://joesdaily.com/ (JoesDaily.com). He recently moved from Los Angeles to the midwest with his wife (Sarah) and dog (Holly), where they reside just outside of St. Louis. Outside of writing, Joe enjoys creating content for his social media and YouTube channels."

Deepa Prasad is the Director of Brand & Content Marketing at Feeding America, the largest-hunger relief organization in the United States, whose mission is to advance change in America by ensuring equitable access to nutritious food for people who struggle to put food on the table. Prior to Feeding America, Deepa has worked at many national advertising agencies on food brands such as Kool Aid, Capri Sun, Velveeta Cheese & McDonalds. In her role at Feeding America she works with partners to create and distribute public service announcements to generate awareness for the issue of hunger. Many people are not aware of the scale of hunger in this country and that it affects people in every county in every state. It can be difficult to create a sense of empathy with the issue overall as there is still stigma around hunger in America. Deepa brings her experience in advertising and brand building to bring awareness of food insecurity and for people to take action.

Kristen Thomas is a former Foster Youth and Foster/Adoptive mom. Currently residing in Raleigh North Carolina, working towards her License in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She is working as the Social Media Manager for One Simple Wish, whom has many programs to support those affected by foster care and also part-time for a program called Hope and Vine that employs and mentors young women who have aged out of foster care. Kristen really loves adventuring with her teen adoptive daughter Elise, always being outside, and snuggling with her sweet mini Labradoodle, Honor. Recent media appearances include being a guest on several foster care-related podcasts like "Fearless Fostering" and "A Longer Table" and having her story featured on a PBS Special with Lidia Bastianich. Kristen appreciates opportunities to advocate for foster youth in and out of the system, along with the amazing programs that are making real differences for those affected by foster care.  Dylan Katz is a volunteer for One Simple Wish

Bari Baron is a Sales Specialist at Multipet International, Inc, a company that designs and supplies unique pet products throughout the world. Being part of a family run business means the creativity and innovation of pet toys has always been in her DNA. She focuses her sales on dog toys, cat toys, and reptile accessories to major retailers. While working primarily on sales, Bari has also made it her goal to support Multipet in its social media presence. Additionally, she has prioritized the company's environmental sustainability goals by helping to further promote eco-friendly practices.

Stephanie Harris is the owner & CEO of PartnerCentric, the largest woman-owned performance marketing agency in the US. A veteran of the space, Stephanie got her start as an award-winning affiliate program manager, personally managing at one time some of the largest programs in the PartnerCentric portfolio today. Her tenure in the industry, and philosophy that in order to lead you have to know how to do every role, has given her a comprehensive view of the industry as well as the ability to propel it forward with vision, innovation and drive. She has been named a PerformanceIN Top 50 Industry Player three times and has held multiple speaking and moderating engagements at industry conferences such as Affiliate Summit (East and West), CardCon and Capital One's Women in Business Panel.  Her writing has been featured in FeedFront magazine, PerformanceIN and numerous other publications, and you may hear her speak on trends in leadership, culture-building, and the future of affiliate marketing through social networks such as Forbes Agency Council and LinkedIn. Stephanie Harris lives in New York with her husband and four children.

Michael “Mike” Arons started working at Carriage House Imports, Ltd. straight out of college in the fall of 2006 (University of Indiana, Kelley School of Business). He began as a Marketing Assistant learning all aspects about sales, marketing and the regulatory complexities associated with the alcohol industry where he then progressed to become a Marketing Manager and now I'm the Director of Marketing for the company. Mike works directly with Carriage House Imports' regional sales team to develop and implement marketing strategies that benefit both B2B and B2C objectives. Carriage House imports, markets and sells products from Europe, including their flagship brands of Verdi & Sparkletini and Figenza Mediterranean Fig Vodka. Mike was a part of the original team (2010) that helped conceptually develop and market Figenza which has now become the Fig Vodka market leader in the U.S. distributed in 24 states, with double digit growth year-over-year.

Hashtag Influencer is back! Brought to you by BabbleBoxx. CEO, Founder and host, Sherri Langburt, connects with brands, experts and content creators alike to discuss hot topics, advertising and industry trends, best practices, and more. 

Meg Harrell is an entrepreneur, influencer and creator of http://megforit.com/ (megforit.com). She is a mother of two and runs her MEGFORIT digital brand from home in Central Florida. In addition, Meg provide tips to the medical community through TikTok from her experience as a Registered Nurse (RN). Meg loves to practice minimalism in every way, including travel, fashion, home design, and parenting. Her blog and social media presence inspires mothers to pursue their dreams and find joy in simplifying life. She will encourage you to take your ordinary life and make it extraordinary! Where you're based out of and what got you started in the influencer marketing space? So right now I am in central Florida. We just moved here a couple of months ago. Awesome.  Yeah, I'm loving it.  Where did you move from?  Well, we were living in a tiny house RV, so we were kind of moving around constantly before COVID and everything. But we had like a little main base in North Carolina. So we would always like go back to North Carolina.  What inspired you to start out as an influencer? What are your two channels?I would say it all started in 2015. It was just a really, really rough year for me and my therapist suggested I start a journal or a blog just cause I express myself so much better writing. And so I did, and I wrote about everything I was passionate about and what stage of life I was in all of that. I literally just dumped it and That was the Meg for it brand. I don't know where that name came from. It just like came to me one day. I thought it was funny and kind of cheeky. And that was the first blog that I started, the first brand that I started. And then I just started to learn SEO and best practices in the industry and started following other big bloggers and saw what they were doing. And it, it grew and exploded. And then about two years ago is when I really did start the nurse Meg. Brand. I just wanted to reach more nurses. I was working as a night nurse for the last 13 years. Oh my God. We just wanted to reach more nurses. I had so much knowledge and so many successful little resources that I saw my little baby nurses use and I just wanted to reach more people. So I just decided to copy paste, start a blog and do all the same things that I did with the first brand. And now I'm here doing two different brands. So I have so many questions. I don't even know where to start. Let's start with the fact that you actually started with a blog because so many people now don't. Do you think having blog content has helped you? It is a lot more to maintain, but it is yours and. In a second, an entire platform can disappear. Like we saw, I think it was in 2018 where Facebook and Instagram were down for a whole 12 hours platforms will come and go. But your blog is your blog. And I think even if you just want to be an Instagram influencer, I really think you need to own a space and have a blog and maintain it. If you really want to be a true influencer and transition from a hobby to a business. So how did you kind of start learning about SEO and all this stuff? I'm a big believer in YouTube university. There's some, I mean, I even learned how to drive, stick shift on YouTube. Like there's so many free resources and if you want to support, you know, a creator and buy their course and, you know, kind of get their story along with it. That's super valuable, but if you're just starting out and you don't have a budget to like invest in, in big courses, watch as much YouTube as you can, like replace any like entertainment, Netflix, Hulu, whatever, with learning on YouTube. It's so, so great. There's so many great resources of people that are ready to share their knowledge. It's so funny. Cause you forget, like I'll be in the midst of something. And then I forget, I could just go to YouTube and I'm like, how do I do this? And then it's like, oh. Let me just go to cute. Even if it's like...

Dylan Kim is the Head of Marketing at Brevite, a direct-to-consumer backpack company that makes fun, functional and innovative backpacks designed for everyday life. Dylan co-founded Brevite in 2015 with his brothers Elliot and Brandon after searching for a bag that could support their everyday needs, function as a camera bag for travel, and still look good. Over the last six years, the brothers have bootstrapped Brevite from a prototype they designed in college, to an Instagram famous brand with six products and over 2,000 five-star reviews. Today, Brevite is one of the top camera bags on the market, focused on creating sustainable bags that support their larger mission of giving back to the greater good. What's it like being an entrepreneur these past six years?I think a lot has changed, right? Like the, world moves very quickly now and I think because we've been around for so long kind of identifying those changes you know, even some of these platforms, like Tik Tok and we're seeing a lot of success there. Tik Tok wasn't even a part of the conversation 18 months ago, I don't even think I really, necessarily knew what it was. I kind of seen some white advertising. So the fact that it's, you know a bigger part of our mix today is, is really interesting. So I, I would say that's the biggest thing I've noticed over the past six years is that there's just, you know, the plans change the emphasis just where people spend their time. All of that has just shifted so dramatically.  What channels are you focused on? Whether its Intagram or Tok Tok, and are you on Amazon or no because you're direct to consumer?So we are actually available on Amazon, but that's part of this. There’s just like meeting the consumer where they are something that we really, really focus on is is really kind of cultivating a community. So that's, you know, Instagram has been amazing for that and just cultivating a community of, you know, very avid, you know, photographers, filmmakers, and just really passionate people, I would say. And really just having like a place for them to kind of showcase that and then of course, you know, like our email lists, our SMS lists. Once people are kind of like in our community, making sure that we're really communicating with them and making them feel included as well. Tell us a little bit more about the product line. What inspired you to launch it? What's unique about it and tell us more about how you got started in this space.So the, the very startup-y story was about six years ago, I was traveling abroad. I was looking for an affordable bag that could hold my camera and other things that looked nice. And so taking those kinds of. Three simple aspects, you know, affordable you know, could fit things besides your camera and then it looks nice and I couldn't find anything. So my older brother was trying to get into design school at the time, and he's also a phenomenal problem solver. So I went to him and I was like, Brandon, can you help me find this bag? He couldn't find it anything either. And he was like, why don't we just, you know, why don't we just make one? And so like that day, or very soon after we went to a thrift store, got a sewing machine, went to Joann's fabric and we're off to the races. So he actually taught himself how to sew, made a bag. And then we kind of just were off to the races from there launched a Kickstarter that became organically kind of fully funded. And then before we knew it, we were shipping out 300 bags all over the world and then it just kind of never stopped. And so even today we no longer sell that bag, but kind of the the core of what we do on the product front is very much the same. So designing these kinds of, you know, fun, functional bags, they can hold your camera, they can hold other things. And they come in a bunch of different colors. So really kind of never losing those core tenants, even though the product has evolved pretty drastically over time.  How do you

On this episode of #Influencer, Sherry is joined by the dynamic, senior brand marketing leader in the healthcare industry and one of our brand partners, Dave Goodman, who’s known for his work with Bayer Consumer Care managing brands such as Aleve, Alka-Seltzer, Miralax and Bayer Aspirin. Currently, Dave is managing Kerasal’s brand portfolio on behalf of Advantice Health.  Kerasal is an emerging, fast-growing foot care brand that has a variety of solutions to hydrate, repair, and protect your feet and help tackle common foot problems like dry and cracked heels, calluses, and nail fungus.  Through his vast healthcare experience, Dave’s success stems from his ability to develop high-impact strategies and innovations for brands as well as securing transformative mergers and acquisitions. You have spent your career as a Brand Manager focused on healthcare products. What drew you to this space?Yeah. You know, that’s it, it’s a great question. About 20 years ago, I was at a little bit of a inflection in my career and I had actually popped out of brand management for a couple of years and I was about to get back in and I actually was down in Atlanta and I had a unique opportunity where I was choosing between two different roles. One was in the healthcare space with Novartis consumer care, and the other one was for a company down in Atlanta that makes some really sweet bubbling drinks. And I thought to myself, why would I rather work on brands that help people and facilitate healthy lifestyles? Or would I rather not work in perhaps what might seem like a sexier waiting area of carbonated beverages and more recognized brands, but I said, you know what, let me, let me go in the healthcare space because that’s clearly going to be around for a long time and just, you know, not to sound corny or cheesy, but the, the idea of helping people improve their lives was, was it, you know, It’s amazing.  You’ve been with Kerasal for close to 3 years. What did the brand look like when you first joined compared to where it is at today? Yes. So it’s a really interesting brand. So carousel is in the foot care space and it, at the time it had two primary areas where it offered consumer products. One was for a post-op ring from nail fungus, and the other one was more for dry cracked feet. And they were nice little businesses, but one of the things that inspired me was the opportunity to try and take them to the next level. And they seemed a little bit under marketed as me. And I felt like if we got more marketing muscle and investment behind them, as well as innovated, I thought we could take it to the next level. And, and now we close to doubled over the past two and a half years. Through increasing our efforts, both in TV and traditional marketing vehicles like TV, but then also working with, with folks like yourself, the digital and social space. And then on top of that, we’ve also launched a really exciting new products that are extending the carousel brand name into other areas of foot care, such as what washes, what soaps. But masks. So really catering to consumers, desire for care. And it’s been really exciting because just over the past year or so, as much as the pandemic has been such a tremendous drain on a lot of businesses and vibes from a category perspective. But care has really and self care has really taken off as people have had more time to engage in, in taking care of themselves, but also because a lot of traditional means salons and pedicures and things like that. Haven’t been quite as, quite as accessible. So it’s been kind of an interesting intersection of. Of opportunity and growth to make the brain into an even higher level.  So you’re saying that a lot of this growth in the past year at least is just because people are at home because they’re not going to the nail salon. So they’re doing all their, as you call it, or as we came up with on one of our calls, “Sole” care at home. Yeah, I...

JJ Yosh is a multifaceted entrepeneur who is not only an influencer and content creator, but a TV-host, adventure filmmaker, producer, and owner of Higher Earth Media, an entertainment and film production company based out of Boulder, Colorado which strives to educate, empower, and inspire people around the world to help build a more sustainable path for our current and future generations.

Jennifer Tegan is the National Director of Marketing and Communications for Reach Out and Read. In this role, she is responsible for the strategy and efforts to promote and advance the organization’s mission of incorporating books into pediatric care and encouraging families to read aloud together every day.

Jessy Grossman is a long time entrepreneur in the entertainment and digital media space who was awarded a spot in the “Influencer Top 50” by https://talkinginfluence.com/influencer50-2020/ (Talking Influence) in 2020. In less than two years she created one of the fastest growing new talent agencies in the country. Amidst unprecedented growth, the agency was sold in early 2020 and she pivoted to focus on her long-time passion project: Women in Influencer Marketing. WIIM is a non-profit networking organization that was founded in 2017 and provides numerous resources to its members. Due to popular demand, WIIM recently launched a membership collective that offers even more resources than ever before including casting services, job recruitment services, virtual events, an exclusive Facebook community, even more networking opportunities and much more.

In this episode of Hashtag Influencer, Sherri confronts stigma head on to talk periods with Leesa Raab of Thinx, Inc. Leesa is a New York-based PR and communications professional with over 15 years of experience. She spent the majority of her career in boutique PR agencies focused on wellness, beauty, fashion, and lifestyle brands. In 2018, Leesa moved to an in-house PR position with Thinx, where she dedicates her time to helping continue to break the taboos associated with menstruation, and bladder leaks.  Leesa shares valuable insights from her PR career as well as the value of working for a company with a mission you can get behind. Thinx has capitalized on the influencer space to push a game changing product but more importantly to educate a new generation all while promoting sustainability.    Key Takeaways Leesa’s journey into PR. College at Ball State – after a trip to NYC, felt the need to live there and find a career that would lead her there. Honed her skills through internships His latest venture: Thinx Advice to someone venturing into PR Go to everything, meet as many people as you can. “Hone in on people that you are interested, either in the company they're working for or familiar with their work and don't be afraid to go introduce yourself. Write a LinkedIn message or find their email and introduce yourself.” (3:19) What is Thinx all about Thinx is a brand that sells washable period proof underwear as well as Speaks by Thinx, which is underwear for light to moderate bladder leaks. Discovered Thinx from a Subway campaign but also from personal experience following and loving the brand from afar.  Having worked with period cup and vibrator brands, Leesa had carved a niche for herself. I love being part of a conversation that you know helps break taboos.” (8:40) What makes Thinx different: “we take a lot of pride in being a solutions company for periods and bladder leaks and making sure that we offered the best product that it's well made.(11:10) Sustainable manufacturing space, large variety of styles colors and prints, giving consumers confidence to wear and talk about them. Sustainability in period products “7 billion tampons that are thrown out in the US every year, and most of them 88% are sold with applicators. So it takes 500 years for a single use plastic applicator to decompose.” (12:15)  So much waste coming from something that happens every single month for about 38 years. One Thinx pair can last up to two years or 24 wash cycles “it makes you feel good to have that thought.” Know your flow tool on the Thinx website - tells you not only what product suits you but it also tells you how much waste you're personally able to eliminate by switching. Give back initiatives Boys and Girls Club – Thinx between 15,000 pairs of Thinx Between donated across  19 of their chapters (14:22). Consistently partnering with organizations and non-profits Challenges Good news is it’s gotten better – Taboo is there but it’s more widely accepted to talk and advertise in this space. “Interesting to see where you know there has been some improvement, some progress, but there are other spaces where it's so continues to come up.” (17:20) Different for men – In some ways Thinx has paved the way for the expansion of this conversation and in many ways it continues to be easier to advertise for products related to men. “We definitely want to keep working to break that mold and make people realize it's OK to talk about it and you know we're all here because someone had a period.” (18:51) Social media & its impact Using...

Intro In today’s episode of Hashtag Influencer, Sherri gets the global perspective from Barak Orenstein of Else Nutrition, the new plant-based company winning high marks from parents looking for a healthy alternative to traditional baby formula. Despite launching midway through a year of global pandemic, the company has shot out of the gate. Barak, who is Else’s global director of marketing, shares his insights from years as a marketing and content leader in both Canada and Israel, including a breakdown on how Else’s marketing strategy shifted and adapted to a marketplace upturned by Covid19. The short answer: Micro- and macro-influencers have been a secret sauce, driving double-digit market growth and setting the stage for retail and geographic expansion heading into 2021. It doesn’t hurt that – beyond parents thrilled to have a healthy, co-friendly option -- Else’s “satisfied customers” are adorable babies whose telegewnic media snippets are crowd-pleasers no matter the social platform! Key Takeaways Barak’s journey as a marketer. Started out in Canada on behalf of products like L’Oreal and Evian.  Shifted gears and relocated to Israel to direct marketing and communications for SodaStream and AHAVA. His latest venture: Else Nutrition. What is Else Nutrition all about? Reshaping early childhood nutrition with plant-based food options specifically for babies and toddlers. “There are many plant-based categories for adults but what about babies and toddlers? What about our most vulnerable?” (2:53) Product grew out of seven years of R&D dedicated to delivering the full array of nutrients essential to developing infants and children. “It’s the first real alternative to dairy and soy in terms of formula … a next-gen alternative reimagining things.” (4:04) Why parents choose the plant-based lifestyle for their children. Two core markets: Families already committed to a healthy, earth-friendly lifestyle. Families with children who have food allergies. “It’s being perceived as the Netflix or Airbnb of the baby nutrition industry.” (5:33) Great reception from parents who welcome a clean, plant-based alternative to traditional formulas. The plant-based market is booming.  Plant-based market is disrupting food choices across all sectors “Food is values and we believe that food is values and what people choose to give their children says a lot.” (7:00) Else launched in the United States & Canada in August 2020. Launching a new-to-market product in the midst of pandemic. Trust is a huge factor with an online-only presence. Moved into the marketplace with Amazon. Expanding into the wider storefront retail marketplace in 2021. “We’ve had an outpouring of requests from parents around the world. It’s a universal need.” (8:50) Adapted marketing strategy to Covid19 limitations, including: Digital platforms and a variety of micro-and macro-social media influencers. Public relations through traditional channels such as trade and consumer/lifestyle/parenting publications.  Establishing trust with pediatricians and experts. Stories: What kinds of content performs best? Video was a hands-down winner because of the lovable, photogenic nature of babies themselves. Allowing influencers to be natural and try the product without too much interference or staging. “Those authentic moments are what have been best for us: Influencer parents talking about how (Else) has impacted their lives.” (15:34) Instagram Live has also been highly effective (i.e. a brief chat between Hilaria Baldwin and an early childhood nutrition expert). Repurposed snippets used in emails and other platforms further boosts views into the tens of thousands. “We want to be at the forefront of the conversation about what’s happening in this space and … starting conversations between parents and influencers in terms of what matters to them.” (17:48) Other forums: Facebook and YouTube. Influencer marketing has accounted for...

Beyond the Boxx is now Hashtag Influencer! Join BabbleBoxx CEO Sherri Langburt as she interviews the biggest Brands, Agencies & Influencers to uncover their Influencer Marketing Secrets to Success!

Child Psychiatrist Dr. Zabina “Zee” Bhasin, MD, is a diversity and inclusion expert and entrepreneur and the founder of In Kidz, a lifestyle brand dedicated to creating connections through culture and championing unity amongst diversity. Kidz creates kid-focused products that help children learn about cultures while inspiring them to create a world that embraces diversity of all kinds.

Brittany Hennessy is the best-selling author of “INFLUENCER: Building Your Personal Brand In The Age Of Social Media” and a Co-Founder of CARBON AUGUST, a digital platform providing resources for influencers.She is the co-founder of Carbon August, an influencer education company that produces the Influencer Business Plan, the Influencer Launch Plan, and The Miner: Your weekly dose of OMG, LOL and WTF in influencer marketing. Brittany is a pioneer in the influencer industry and has booked influencers for Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Esquire, Town & Country, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, Travel Channel, Food Network, Lifetime and more.She has judged the Influencer Marketing Awards and is a member of the Real-Time Academy of Short Form Arts and Sciences where she judges the annual Shorty Awards and the Shorty Social Good Awards.

Take it from me, running a digital marketing agency is not easy. Today, we're going to hear all about what it takes from Tom Cunha, CEO of Brigade Marketing, a super creative and highly energetic firm, which specializes in the entertainment industry. About Tom Cunha, CEO of Brigade Marketing Tom Cunha is CEO of Brigade, a digital-first, award-winning marketing, publicity and advertising firm specializing in entertainment industry clientele. Brigade has executed hundreds of successful theatrical, digital, television and festival campaigns over its ten year history with clients that include Amazon, CBS, Focus Features, Hulu, IFC Films, Lionsgate, Netflix, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. Tom has been working in Film & Television PR and Marketing for nearly two decades and has led his teams on a wide variety of campaigns for films including 1917, BlackKklansman, Call Me By Your Name, Creed, Downton Abbey, Get Out, MA, Phantom Thread, The Shape of Water, and Soul. Prior to founding Brigade, Tom had worked in digital marketing capacities on both agency and client sides, including MGM Studios and 20th Century Fox; He also serves on the Board of Directors of Seriesfest, a non-profit organization dedicated to championing artists at the forefront of episodic storytelling.

What started out as a passion has turned into one of the leading jewelry companies now celebrating its 10th anniversary. I'm pleased to welcome to our show today Holly Daniels Christensen, founder and CEO of Dune Jewelry. About Holly Daniels Christensen The founder of Dune Jewelry left home at 15 years old, and never looked back taking a variety of jobs with stints as a zookeeper, pharmacy technician, promotional model, bartender, cellphone, car and cruise salesperson. She also successfully spent 14 years as a top agent in Boston’s highly competitive real estate market. This unique “bootstrap” entrepreneur who proved she was unafraid of hard work, was voted the 2016 Woman-Owned Business of the Year for Massachusetts and New England, by the Small Business Association (SBA). In 2018, Inc. magazine honored Dune Jewelry as No. 2590 on its 37th annual Inc. 5000 List, the most prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The list represents a unique look at the most successful companies within the American economy’s most dynamic segment—its independent small businesses. Currently, Dune Jewelry is the one-and-only experiential jewelry brand in the world.

Our guest today, Emerald-Jane Hunter is a four time Emmy award winning television producer turned entrepreneur. She is now the ringleader and founder of myWHY Agency, an integrated marketing firm based out of Chicago. About Emerald-Jane Hunter As the Ringleader of myWHY Agency, Emerald-Jane Hunter is a force to be reckoned with. A four-time Emmy Award-winning Producer and a master of all things media, storytelling and content creation, EJ has a background of 15 years working in TV and is now making a splash in the world of Integrated Marketing. Born in Ghana, West Africa, she relocated to the US at the age of 19 and received her B.A. in Communications at Luther College in Iowa. In 2003 she moved to Chicago where she discovered her “WHY” was storytelling via television. From reality TV to live events, showrunning to talent booking EJ has done it all. She is an Emmy-Award winning Producer who’s Hollywood connection runs deep. EJ has brought Hollywood to Chicago numerous times through her many high-quality bookings, including stars such as Jennifer Hudson; Common; Cindy Crawford; Tony Goldwyn; Ne-Yo; Mike Tyson; Jane Lynch; Martha Stewart; Larry King; Cody Simpson; Sting; Boys II Men; and Barry Manilow just to name just a few. Now as president of her own agency, EJ is finally living (and basking) in her WHY. She’s most fulfilled working with entrepreneurially minded brands and companies, managing strategic communications and crafting integrated marketing campaigns aimed at further elevating and amplifying brand voices--and of course, telling compelling, inspiring stories.

I remember my days in corporate America and can say with conviction that nothing compares to the tactical training you receive in a large enterprise. Our guests today, Ilene Rosenthal, is an industry veteran who took her experience working at Young & Rubicam to carve out a niche consulting practice. Ilene now offers fractional CMO services through her agency, White Space Marketing.About Ilene Rosenthal Ilene Rosenthal is the Owner and CEO of White Space Marketing Group, LLC—a career culmination of her experience in the marketing and advertising arena. Ilene’s extensive history as a hybrid marketing expert is the foundation for the proven, on-the-ground, in-market marketing strategy and planning for mid-market B2B and B2C companies. Ilene’s accomplishments span the healthcare, financial and tax services, building and manufacturing, human resources, and not-for-profit industries. Her brand resume includes Kraft Foods, AT&T, Merck, J&J, Pfizer/Warner-Lambert, SAP, American Home Products—among others. Ilene received a Bachelor of Arts in Government Studies from Clark University and an MBA in Marketing from New York University-Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

I first reached out to today's guests in 2011, when she was the brand manager working on the Skinnygirl Shapewear collection. I've been following her ever since. Ranu Coleman now spearheads marketing for Azazie, the leading bridal apparel retailer, and one of the fastest growing apparel merchants online.About Ranu ColemanRanu Coleman is a seasoned marketing and communications leader with deep experience in the retail/fashion space. She serves as the CMO of direct-to-consumer bridal and bridesmaid dress company Azazie and their sister company and new fast-fashion e-tail brand Blush Mark. These digitally native fashion brands focus on high-quality, size inclusive (0–30 & XS-3X) and affordable styles — marrying innovative technology with online shopping. She joined Azazie in February 2018, and since, has been leading the marketing team in implementing brand strategy, driving awareness of Azazie’s product offerings and engaging consumers with the brand to bring them into one of their most successful years yet.Prior to her work with Azazie, Coleman was a senior program manager consultant, store designer for Sephora, where she led the rollout of a new urban location prototype, Sephora Studio. She has held various marketing managerial positions at apparel brands, where she has negotiated and shepherded strategic partnerships with national brands including Nicole Miller, Skinnygirl by Bethany Frankel, Playboy, XOXO and Laura Ashley.Coleman began her career as a brand manager for Earthbound LLC and received her bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Irvine and professional designation program-visual communications degree from Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM). Ranu Coleman is married with two children and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

They say necessity is the mother of invention and today's guest is the perfect example. Shalini Shamtani is the founder of Open the Joy, which partners with Spread the Joy Foundation aims to brighten up the lives of kids who are hospitalized and fighting major pediatric illnesses. Although Shalini Samtani has a diverse background in law, real estate and interior design- her true passion lies in bringing joy to hospitalized children. Through her youngest child’s repeated hospitalization, she experienced first hand the toll that childhood diseases have on children and their caregivers. As CEO of Open the Joy and as the President of the Spread The Joy Foundation, her mission is to change the perception and dialogue about childhood diseases to a more positive, joyful and purposeful one.

Joining us today is Monica Klausner, co-founder of Veestro, the premier plant-based meal delivery services company. Born and raised in Costa Rica and now pioneer in both vegan and subscription-based spaces, we're thrilled to have Monica with us on the show today.In this episode learn about how this plant based business got its start as a brother and sister team and how growing up in Costa Rica shaped the business. Family dynamics are interesting in any business.Veestro has a number of different plan options with a variety of meals catering to different lifestyles. Monica talks about choosing a la carte options or their chefs choice. You'll also want to find out which of their meals is a customer favorite.Sherri asks the tough questions like, why are meal delivery service businesses so hard? Frozen foods pose a number of challenges for the food delivery business that Monica helps us understand.Coming up with food ideas means partnering with the right culinary expert and Monica explains how they found their chef.You won't want to miss Monica's advice to entrepreneurs or startups seeking to take their business to the next level. From customer acquisition to how they launched the business with influencers there is so much to learn from Monica at Veestro. Get the full transcript at https://babbleboxx.com/podcast/.   About VeestroMark and Monica had grown up in Costa Rica, where fresh, home-cooked meals with tons of vegetables and fruit were the daily normal. It’s also where that happy, healthy outlook called pura vida was a way of life.Now, Mark and Monica are bringing some of that pura vida to modern American life. Veestro is about what feeds us, body and soul—delicious, organic, healthy, sustainable, from plants. And it’s fully prepared for any time we need to eat it. Mark and Monica like to think of Veestro as pura vida, right to your doorstep. And feeding your happy makes them very happy.    

If you're in need of a pick me up, today's guest will come to the rescue with his personality and product. Avi Markus is the president of BeOn Energy Gems. Dark chocolate energy supplements, packed with caffeine so you can skip those runs to Starbucks.Listen in to hear how Avi first got involved with the natural foods space and the other ventures he's been involved with. Avi shares his most challenging and rewarding parts of being an entrepreneur. From there we dive into the BeOn product line and how things have shifted in a post COVID world from retail to eCommerce. Avi then shares his thoughts on what its like being a food marketer that does work in the US but is based in Canada.It's interesting to hear his thoughts around influencer marketing and the natural foods industry from his experience and what others should consider.

The events business has been hit one of the hardest since the pandemic started. To shed some perspective on the industry and how it's changing, I invited Cheryl Gentry from Glow Global Events to join us. Cheryl Gentry is the Founder and CEO of Glow Global Events.  Named 2019 and 2018 Top People in Events by Bizbash, 2017 Top Influential Women in Meetings and 2017 Brava Award Winner Top Female CEO by SmartCEO Magazine.   In addition to being a leader in the $40-billion event industry , Cheryl is a strategic entrepreneur constantly seeking out innovative opportunities. Gentry has been a role model and prominent voice on entrepreneurship. Serving on the boards of Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) and the Kigali Reading Center in Rwanda.  Gentry was inducted into the YWCA/New York City Top Women Executives, received the Howard University Alumni Association Golden Bison Award, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund Outstanding Achievement Award to name a few. She's been featured in O, the Oprah Magazine, Black Enterprise, Huffington Post among others.Managing a global agency, Gentry travels extensively.  She journeyed to Cuba on a humanitarian mission, summited Mt. Kilimanjaro in 5 days, skydived from 10,000 feet, trekked alongside silverback gorillas in Rwanda, walked with lions in South Africa and swam with dolphins in Mexico.Glow Global Events, is a Certified Minority Business Enterprise (W/MBE).About Glow Global EventsGlow Global Events, recently ranked No.145 on Inc. 5000, Fastest Growing Companies in America list, is a New York-based, full-service agency specializing in dynamic, purpose-driven events.  Over the course of more than 20 years, the agency has successfully coordinated meetings, conferences, galas, outdoor events, and other special productions in the U.S., Asia, Africa, and Europe.  Glow Global serves a mix of brands, nonprofits, A-list celebrities and organization including Allianz, Shiseido,  FIFA, PGA and United Way of New York City.

So much has happened since I saw today's guest at Toy Fair 2020. I'm excited to have Rachel Griffin, founder of PlayWise Partners join us to share her industry insights and what it's like to start a business amidst a pandemic.We discuss here latest venture, Playwise Partners and her advice to people looking to branch out on their own. Rachel tells us she got into the toy industry as a fluke when she landed a job working for the creator of the Power Rangers.Most recently Rachel participated in Sweet Suite, tune in to find out what her experience is like and the benefits of virtual conferences.  We also discuss how to stay top of mind with influencers during these challenging times.  

I met today's guests back in 2013 at BlogHer and she is a pioneer in our space. I'm so pleased to welcome Issa Mas, award-winning writer, influencer, and homeschooling expert who will be sharing her insights on this topic, which I'm sure is top of mind for many parents right now. From her start as a single mom blogger in New York City to winning a Blogher award, Issa is accomplished writer with a lot of information to offer.  She leverages the power of social media, particularly Facebook groups where she founded a Keto group.   Issa doesn't necessarily consider herself an influencer but she definitely knows what she's good at. She tells us how it's important to be both honest and authentic.  If you're curious about what it's like to be a single mom in New York City during these challenging times you won't want to miss this episode of Beyond the Boxx. From her own experiences homeschooling her child, Homeschool Starter Set was born.  Visit https://babbleboxx.com for more influencer marketing insights.

In the world of online dating, Amy Canaday is a PR and marketing pioneer. I know from firsthand experience that Amy is a risk taker who always thinks outside the box. This episode of Beyond the Boxx explores the rich history of Match.com, its portfolio of companies and it's love for influencer marketing. You'll also hear how love wins even during a pandemic and how Match.com and its users have embraced video for virtual dating. 

 If you' haven't heard of Miss Megan, she stepped onto the scene at the onset of the COVID pandemic and is now delighting and comforting thousands of children and parents around the world. You can join Miss Megan's Kindergarten Camp by joining her Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/510772009639053/ Miss Megan is a former kindergarten teacher and current preschool assistant, who wanted to help add routine to In this time of uncertainty and little structure. She goes live on Facebook regularly with her morning meetings to get your 3-7 year old’s day started! We will do calendar, counting, days of the week, months of the year, weather, morning message, letter(s) of the day, some guitar playing, and it all ends with a book being read. 

Today's guest is a musical theater performer turned makeup artist, and now CEO of the clean and green cosmetic line, Erin's Faces. Erin is not only all hustle, she's all heart, and I'm delighted to have her join us. We discuss how Erin went from being a makeup artist to the CEO of the cult beauty brand. I learned it wasn't without flaws. From packaging her products to learning the best way to fill a bottle there was lots to do and she was on her own at the very beginning. There was even the time Erin had to call her Dad for advice to deal with an overstock issue after a deal went south.Don't know what clean green beauty is? Erin gives us all a primer on The challenge is there aren't any regulations on clean and green beauty so many brands can make claims. For Erin, it's about using plant based ingredients to avoid potentially toxic chemicals that may be harmful. In the early days it was difficult because even if clean beauty products existed they didn't hold up quite as well on the red carpet.Early on Erin recognized her strengths and rather than try to figure things out at home, her first products all went to the lab for forumulation and testing. When asked if Erin remembered her first sale she recounts a story of returning to her home in Texas to host a party for friends and family to sell $2000 in product to buy a new laptop.The beauty industry comes with it's own set of challenges that led Erin to question if she was "too heavy" to run a beauty company. Influencers also have their own set of standards when it comes the types of products they will use in the clean and green beauty products. From humble beginnings to a blowout during Black Friday Sale, you'll want to hear more about his incredible startup story in the beauty industry. It didn't happen over night and influencer marketing plays a part of their authentic social media strategy you can follow on their Instagram page https://instagram.com/erinsfaces.   

Today's guest, Brock McLaughlin hails from Toronto, Canada. In his spare time, Brock is a social media influencer, but for full-time, he's a digital marketing manager at Spin Master, one of the leading toy manufacturers.First we dig into Brock's later ego as Brockstar Gaming and what lured him into social media. Then we discuss his role at Spin Master Toys. Brock does a lot of different things with different brands that fall under his umbrella. From Batman to Bakugan, the Fugglers and more, we hear how much Brock really loves what he does.It was important to discuss how their marketing efforts shifted during the current health crisis. For many of us we know, it's not all about selling right now. Parents and children are interacting with brands differently now. We hear some great examples of what's working for Spin Master Toys.Listen in to the full episode to find out how Brock and Spin Master Toys are leveraging influencers to make an impact.Uncover more influencer marketing secrets and complete transcripts of the episode at https://podcast.babbleboxx.com. 

In a world that is increasingly digitized, data storage, backups, hard disk, cloud storage, devices have become terms and language of necessity. Our guest today, from Western Digital, is Heather Davis, who's going to share with us how influencer marketers not only need and use their products, but how Western Digital itself has embraced influencer marketing as part of their overall marketing process.About Heather Davis Leader of Corporate Communications at Western Digital A 20-plus year veteran of the Public Relations industry, Heather Davis is a seasoned professional who has been with tech storage giant Western Digital for the past 13 years. She leads the development and implementation of strategic and comprehensive PR plans that integrate traditional and social media tactics both globally and in the Americas. In her time at Western Digital, Heather has driven PR campaigns for several consumer tech products from enterprise to smart video, and also launched the company’s first-ever gaming brand, WD_Black. It was with WD_Black that she formally launched the Global Influencer program for Western Digital, an initiative that spans across multiple digital platforms including Twitch and YouTube, and which Heather continues to spearhead. Born and raised in Orange County, CA, Heather now lives in a sleepy beach town (Cardiff-by-the-Sea) in San Diego County, CA with her husband and their two dogs, Boomer and Emma.  She practices Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai, and in her spare time, runs Cardiff Sweets, a small-batch custom cookie business. Get the complete transcript at https://podcast.babbleboxx.com

We’re here today to talk about events and affiliate marketing, two topics where Shawn Collins, founder of Affiliate Summit is a pioneer and is here to share his insights.Shawn is Co-CEO of the Affiliate Summit, the leading industry conference for affiliate marketing, which regularly sells out and features the biggest names in performance marketing.He is also the Co-Editor-in-Chief of FeedFront Magazine and Founder of GeekCast.fm, a marketing podcast network where he hosts This is Affiliate Marketing.His book, ‘Successful Affiliate Marketing for Merchants‘ is the best selling book in the space, and it is considered to be required reading by affiliate managers. He wrote the Amazon best-selling book, Extra Money Answer, as well as Affiliate Manager Boot Camp: Recruiting, Educating, and Retaining Affiliates.Website: https://podcast.babbleboxx.comiTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-boxx/id1481895725Spotity: https://open.spotify.com/show/0UVIN4zEpMmU8XmXNyNFQ0Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/beyond-the-boxx

Shipt is a leading same-day delivery marketplace with personal shoppers who handpick and bring products you want right to your doorstep. We’re here today with Riley Cronin, Director of Influencer Marketing, who’s going to share some insights with us.Riley Cronin is a seasoned influencer marketing strategist who has built and managed Shipt’s aggressive influencer playbook to support rapid national expansion since 2015. Shipt was acquired by Target in Nov. of 2017 for $550M and continues to grow as a nationally recognized brand. Riley believes in a relationship-first approach and uses next-level connectors to create integrated campaigns with long-term value.Listen to Beyond the Boxx at https://podcast.babbleboxx.comAlso available on these podcast platforms:Spotity: https://open.spotify.com/show/0UVIN4zEpMmU8XmXNyNFQ0Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/beyond-the-boxx

In the world of publishing content is key, particularly when it is celebrity focused. Today we're going to get the inside scoop from Lindsey Benoit on what it's like to work as a deputy editor in entertainment and partnerships.Lindsey Benoit O'Connell is the Deputy Editor of Entertainment at Thrive Global and the creator of Happily Imperfect Mama — a lifestyle brand celebrating the amazingly-messy and breathtakingly-chaotic aspects of motherhood. At Thrive, O’Connell is responsible for all of the celebrity and thought leader content; as well as booking and producing Arianna Huffington’s Thrive Global Podcast and talent curation for WaitWhat's Meditative Story podcast.Prior to her role at Thrive, O'Connell was the Entertainment + Special Projects Director at Hearst booking covers, features, videos and online stories for Cosmopolitan, Women’s Health, Good Housekeeping, Redbook and Woman’s Day. She had worked on major initiatives like Vogue’s Fashion Rocks and Vanity Fair’s Movie’s Rock and launched a passion project while at Good Housekeeping — the GH Lab experiential store in the Mall of America with Amazon. She is an advocate for skin and cervical cancer —as a survivor of both — and speaks out about postpartum anxiety and depression awareness. She works in Soho and lives in Astoria, NY with her husband Brian and her adorable son, Hunter.

In the world of apparel and accessories, Sequential Brands is one of the largest scale licensing companies with an extensive portfolio of famous brands across multiple industries. And today's guest, Lauryn McLaughlin, seems to manage it all.On today's episode, your host Sherri Langburt goes on a deep dive going back to how Lauryn started as a digital assistant and what her journey was like in landing this role as the Senior Director of Marketing for Sequential Brands. Sherri also discusses her passion working for a brand and her time at Weight Watchers.Juggling a portfolio of brands like Lauryn does on a daily basis is no easy task. Sherri asks "How do you make sure you give every brand the love and attention they want? Or is it just defined by how big that brand is?"There are also the challenges of working with influencers in the beauty and fashion industries. From creating authenticity, clothes that fit and letting influencers choose their own clothes, things could get out of control! Listen in at https://podcast.babbleboxx.com as we uncover Sequential Brands secrets to marketing success in this weeks episode.About LaurynLauryn McLaughlin is the Director of Marketing at Sequential Brands Group, which manages and license a diversified portfolio of consumer brands. Some of these brands includes JOE's, Ellen Tracy, William Rast, Gaiam, And 1, Caribbean Joe, Heelys, Avia, DVS, SPRI, the Franklin Mint, and Jessica Simpson. She works within the fashion brands at Sequential, and communicates with a multitude of stakeholders, partners, media, and others, ensuring the brand guidelines and voice are aligned across all the different marketing initiatives. She strives to keep true to the brand and making it authentic, which is the Sequential value proposition. She is passionate about creatively forging emotional connections, which is why Lauryn feels she’s in her dream job. “Every day is different and I’m never bored."Lauryn earned her Bachelor of Arts and Political Science from Bucknell University, and resides in New York City.    

It seems no industry or business sector is immune from the growing impact of influencer marketing. Our guest today, Kevin Scholl of Red Roof Inn can share with us the how the hospitality industry has been influenced and how Red Roof has sought to incorporate influencer marketing into its current and future planning.Everyone has a story to tell, finding the right way to tell is the challenge. Dead set on engaging an audience as a storyteller from a young age, Kevin had every intention of being a writer and director of bad movies but instead has found himself the Director of Digital Marketing for an international hotel brand.Early on in his attempts to have a "real job", Kevin discovered a simple idea that at the time did not seem so simple, technology would lead the way for the ultimate in instant communication and connection around the world and become a platform for storytelling with an audience greater than any medium before it.As marketing has shifted from single sided lectures to immersed conversation, the storyteller has found a home in leading the conversation for brands large and small.Kevin has spent his career becoming a subject matter expert in marketing, technology, project management, consumer relations, partnerships, content management, training, corporate communications and everything that falls in between.As the world evolves at a rapid pace around him, he attempts to keep up, always focused on his core, his roots, he is at heart, a storyteller.

On today's episode of Beyond the Boxx, Sherri Langburt is joined by two influencers whose respective journeys she's followed from the beginning. Their creativity, ambition and moxie are awe inspiring. Listen in as Diana Elizabeth and Alyssa Amorsso share their insights from the influencer perspective as we head into a new decade of influencer marketing.Diana Elizabeth Steffen is a former journalist, a lifestyle blogger and small business owner. She holds a B.A. in journalism from The University of Arizona and has served as a red-carpet reporter and ghostwriter for E! and a reporter for The Arizona Republic. In 2006 she opened her graphic design boutique, Silver Spoon Studio, and went on to launch Diana Elizabeth Photography. She continues to exercise her journalism skills via her blog, www.dianaelizabethblog.com - where she covers lifestyle, photography, travel and other interests, including life as an entrepreneur, with camera in hand.Alyssa Amoroso is the force behind the influential brand, Publyssity, which spans across multiple digital verticals - Publyssity.com (blog), ShopPublyssity.com (merchandise), The Publyssity Podcast, and @Publyssity on Instagram. She is a standout voice in the multifaceted and ever-changing millennial space.Aside from being a NYC-based social influencer and public figure, Alyssa is a former public relations, marketing and communications professional. Her strong professional background shines through her work, whether it be content creation, verbal communications or ideating. 

This week on Beyond the Boxx Sherri Langburt interview Kris Hing. Kris Hing is a Senior Marketing Associate at BARK, the makers of BarkBox. She and her dog Grady have worked for BARK, the world’s most dog-centric company, for four years.Kris helps BARK on its mission of making dogs as happy as they make their humans by managing strategic partnerships, collaborations, and experiences. Kris founded BARK’s influencer program from the ground up, and has since grown it into a network of over 600 brand ambassadors. While her responsibilities have spanned many areas of the marketing function, she has always focused on creating 1-on-1 relationships with customers and fans of BARK. While not at work Kris enjoys blowing glass, home-brewing beer, and of course, snuggling with Grady.For more influencer marketing secrets visit https://podcast.babbleboxx.com

Today's guest is Mickey Katz from Campus Commandos. By pulling from his experiences as both an entrepreneur and a consultant Mickey Katz takes a very simplified approach to attacking problems and finding solutions that can be put into action. Startups looking for solutions on strategy, marketing tactics, or simply need a mentor to help them think through problems from a new perspective will find value in a discussion with Mickey. His career was built in the startup world with a focus in the mobile consumer B2C space targeting college students and universities. He currently acts as the Director of Operations at Campus Commandos and Co-Founder of a revolutionary mobile saas product connecting brands to college students on over 1,000 college campuses called Go Commando App.Visit https://podcast.babbleboxx.com for more episodes and transcripts.  

This week's guest on Beyond the Boxx is Emily Loss. Emily Loss is Manager of Influencer Relations and Social Media Strategy for CBDistillery, the company that is the driving force behind the #CBDMovement™.She strives to assimilate brand vision and goals with influencer’s voice by pushing boundaries in real-time ad development. Emily has a passion for experience architecture and immersive video, and tries to weave both through all marketing projects that she is a part of. She is passionate about creatively forging emotional connections and authentic relationships between brands and influencers while nurturing online communities and gaining an audience’s trust.Emily is extremely passionate about holistic healing, and progression of the CBD industry. Her mission is to empower others to heal themselves naturally through accurate information, education and the compelling voices and stories of real human beings.

Today's guests are Russell Barnett, CMO My/Mo Mochi Ice Cream and Angie Thomas, Director of Marketing My/Mo Mochi Ice Cream. Russell Barnett is a creative marketing executive with deep experience in category-creating food and beverage items. He specializes in providing vision, direction and leadership to entrepreneurially spirited brands.  After a stint in the advertising business, Barnett was asked to open the US Operation and run marketing for an unknown alcohol beverage, mike’s hard lemonade. During his tenure he took the brand from inception to +$150M in just 5 years. Barnett then headed marketing for gardein, where the brand grew from ~$30M to a run rate of ~$90M annually before being purchased by Pinnacle Foods PF (NYSE). Additionally, Mr. Barnett held CMO tenure at KeVita which was recently sold to PepsiCo PEP (NYSE). Other career highlights include launching the popular snack brand popchips in the US, Canada and the UK while creating the “popped chip” category. He was also just named one of Forbes’ CMO Next 2019: 50 Game-Changing Marketing Leaders and one of Adweek’s 2019 LA Brand Stars. Angie Thomas is a results-driven, passionate marketing professional with over ten years of experience in the food & beverage industry. She has driven growth of innovative brands such as 5-hour ENERGY, gardein (NYSE: PF), KeVita (NYSE: PEP), JUST water, and most recently, My/Mo Mochi Ice Cream! Prior to CPG, Angie worked for the New York Yankees. Angie graduated magna cum laude from Syracuse University, where she studied Sport Management at David B. Falk School of Sport & Human Dynamics and Public Communications at S.I Newhouse School of Public Communications. During her tenure at SU, she was a 4-year Division I scholarship student-athlete, 4x All-Academic, and 2x Time BIG EAST Softball Champion Pitcher.  Angie was born and raised in New York and currently resides in Los Angeles. See more episodes at https://podcast.babbleboxx.com

This week's guest on Beyond the Boxx is Jennifer Santiago, the Vice President of Strategy & Communications at Popchips.Prior to joining Popchips, she was at the Wonderful Company at Teleflora and POM wonderful. Jennifer has over 10 years of experience in marketing, influencers, events, social/digital and PR.

This week's episode features Deanna Dawson, Head of Content and Social Marketing at Zenni.com Deanna has been in the social media business since 2010 with Snapfish.com a leading photo eCommerce site and loves the authentic, storytelling nature of Social Media Marketing.