MARCOCo-Founder, CMO
In late 2020, my co-founder, Luke Christianson, and I launch Marco Sweets & Spices. Marco creates internationally inspired ice cream, celebrating beloved flavors from around the world.
The idea for Marco came from a perfect marriage of what we’re passionate about and what we saw as a hole in the market. I’m an avid foodie and an avid traveler. And although I may be on one end of the spectrum of passion towards both of these things, I’m certainly not unique. There’s been a widely publicized foodie revolution in America in the last 10-15 years. People are eating more foods from around the world, alongside a more diverse consumer base who is seeking flavors that better represent them.
At the same time, we realized the ice cream aisle didn’t reflect the plethora of flavors from around the world we’d come to love, and that more and more people crave. So, we started Marco to create delicious ice cream that celebrates these beloved flavors from around the world.
Despite launching in the teeth of COVID shopping anxiety, we were able to successfully roll out a frozen supply chain for DTC and build a substantial amount of press (notably from the New York Times, Boston Globe, Forbes, and many more) which we parlayed into a launch in the retail channel the following year.
Within a few short years, we had expanded our distribution from the specialty retail channel to larger natural chains, all the way up to a national launch with Albertson’s owned stores. All told, we secured distribution and succeeded at retail nationally in over 2,000 grocery stores across all 50 states.
Despite our accelerated growth, we kept a scrappy, DIY start-up mindset and team. Personally, this allowed me to expand my expertise in brand strategy, packaging and brand design, DTC and retail marketing, and promotional planning. Needless to say, one wears a lot of hats.
Primary Areas of Focus and Creation:
Brand Strategy and implementation
Brand Design (in partnership with Alright Studios)
Packaging expansion to new product lines
All marketing assets (visual and copy)
DTC strategy
Retail Promo strategy and implementation
Partnership management
Field Team management
New account retail sales
Investor presentations and strategy
Brand Retail Partners
