Aaron Zagha is the CMO of Newton Baby, one of the largest DTC baby sleep brands in the U.S., known for its innovative baby mattresses, cribs, and more.

Expect to hear about:

– From Banking to Ecom: How Aaron went from M&A to e-commerce after two failed startups, and found his calling in data-driven marketing.

– Bootstrapped Growth: Why Newton Baby scaled to 8-figure sales without outside funding, and how Aaron thinks about profit-first marketing.

– The Influencer Bet: How leaning into Instagram creators early helped Newton dominate a premium, trust-based category.

– COVID Opportunity: Why Aaron doubled ad spend while competitors pulled back, and how that unlocked a lasting step change in growth.

– AI & Brand: How Aaron's using GenAI for creative and his take on what marketers get wrong about the difference between "brand" and "performance" marketing.

Find Aaron on:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronzagha/

Brad Woodgate is the founder and CEO of Joyburst and The No Sugar Company, the two latest brands in Brad's long history in CPG, beginning with Wellnx Life Sciences in 2000. 

Expect to hear about: 

– Bootstrapped from Day 1: Why Brad never raised outside capital, and how each brand he started built the financial foundation for the next one. 

– The No Sugar Bet: How Brad recognized that “no sugar” would be a lasting global health movement, and built a brand to lead it. 

– Disney x Joyburst: The story of how Disney’s executive team discovered Joyburst and made them the official beverage partner for Inside Out 2 and Lilo & Stitch. 

– On Stage with Vanilla Ice: How Brad met Vanilla Ice and created a "Joyburst" song with him, to help Joyburst break into Costco. 

– Founder Advice: How Brad manages his time running 4 companies and his #1 piece of advice for other founders. 

Find Brad on: 
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-woodgate-b30b8113/

Henrik Jonsson is the CEO of agood company, a Swedish brand that creates truly sustainable or "circular" phone cases and other products, hitting profitability in 2025 under his leadership. 

Expect to hear about: 

– The Circular Revolution: How agood company turns old phone cases into new ones using a circular model, creating products that are truly sustainable. 

– The Retail Pivot: How agood company shifted from DTC to 85% retail sales after realizing online acquisition wasn’t profitable. 

– Breaking the Premium Myth: Realizing that reports from consumers saying they'll pay more for sustainable products are simply not true, and how agood company adapted. 

– Local Production, Global Scale: The strategy behind opening factories in Texas, South Africa, and India to localize production and enable their circular model. 

– Leadership in Balance: Henrik’s candid take on the emotional rollercoaster of being a first-time CEO, and why sleep, health, and family time are how he stays in balance. 

Find Henrik on:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/henrik-jonsson-1915378/

Dr. Andrew Hughes returns to the "Human Thread" series to help Forest and Leah tackle one of marketing’s most delicate frontiers: emotion. Where’s the line between resonance and manipulation? Together, they unpack how emotion captures attention, why overload leads to burnout, and how brands can use emotion responsibly in an always-on digital world.

Expect to hear about:

• The Amygdala Effect: How emotional triggers hijack attention
• Emotional Overload: What happens when every ad makes you feel too much
• Sensory vs. Emotional Fatigue: Why today’s marketing feels “too loud”
• Ethics & Emotional Profiling: When empathy becomes exploitation
• Brand Takeaways: Designing emotion that connects—without crossing the line

Nick Saltarelli is the co-founder and co-CEO of Mid-Day Squares, a functional chocolate brand doing $40M in annual revenue across North America.

Expect to hear about:

– Family as Cofounders: The journey of building with his wife and brother-in-law, and why weekly therapy was non-negotiable.

– Starting with Constraints: Why they made a self-imposed rule to not use Facebooks ads in year one and still hit $1M in sales.

– Building in Public: How transparency and a commitment to authenticity shaped Mid-Day Squares’ bold content strategy.

– Securing Costco: How they relied on their fanbase to beat Costco's Road Show record in 36 days.

– Bitcoin & Cocoa: How a 700% spike in cocoa prices led Nick to start transacting directly with farmers in Bitcoin.

Find Nick on:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-saltarelli-063a5965/ 
Twitter/X - https://x.com/nickywonka

Jillian Chisari is the VP of Digital at Bucherer, the global luxury watch retailer known for selling everything from $1,000 timepieces to six-figure collectibles.

Expect to hear about:

– (Very) High-Ticket Ecommerce: Why selling $1K-100K watches online requires a different playbook than apparel or beauty.

– Building Trust: The authentication, servicing, and CX strategies that make customers comfortable buying luxury watches digitally.

– Testing at Low Volume: How Jillian approaches running marketing experiments with high-AOV but low-volume tests.

– Leadership & Boundaries: The lessons she’s taken from past bosses, her direct-yet-flexible management style, and why she protects time with her family.

– The Future of Search: How answer engines like ChatGPT are already reshaping discoverability and what brands must do to adapt.

Jillian's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillianelizabethsmith/

Jenny Casson, a two-time Olympic rower with team Canada, and Manuella Widjaja, a former YC startup operator, are the co-founders of Daylilie, a new apparel brand rethinking bras for broad-shouldered women. This episode is part of "The Climb," our series featuring founders in the early stages of building their brands.

Expect to hear about:

– Meet-Cute to Cofounders: How a cold DM about fit surveys turned into a partnership that led to Daylilie’s founding.

– Silhouettes, Not Sizes: Why they’re challenging outdated bra design by focusing on body shape, not just cup and band.

– Prototype to Patent: Their journey through seven prototypes and securing provisional patents on their side strap and cup designs.

– Going Viral: Their internal debate about whether to push for viral moments with Daylilie or a slower but steadier social media growth strategy.

Jenny's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifercassonoly/
Manuella's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manuellawidjaja/

Tiana Ravden is the founder and CEO of Eroe, a lingerie brand that keeps sweat stains off your clothes with an innovative, patented bra design that's been 10 years in the making and launched February 2025. This episode is part of "The Climb," our series featuring founders in the earliest stages of building their brands.

Expect to hear about:

– The DIY Spark: How Tiana cut up a T-shirt and slipped it under a silk dress, sparking the idea that became Eroe.

– Fabric Failures: Losing her “perfect fabric” right before launch and why the timing delay during COVID turned out to be a blessing.

– Patent Patience: Spending three years in back-and-forth battles with the patent office before securing her patent.

– Breakout Moment: How a Today Show feature sent Shopify orders flooding in from across the country.

– What’s Next: Fundraising, hiring key team members, and chasing wholesale partnerships to scale Eroe into a household name.

Tiana's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiana-ravden-%E2%9C%B4%EF%B8%8F-09778a3/

Wylie Robinson is the founder, former CEO, and Chairman of Rumpl, an 8-figure brand that makes performance blankets and sleeping bags for the outdoors.

Expect to hear about:

– Frozen Van Epiphany: How a night stranded in the Sierras inspired the idea for Rumpl.

– Kickstarter Launch: Turning a “sleeping bag blanket” prototype into $250K of preorders in 30 days.

– Co-Founder Split: Why diverging visions led to an early breakup, and Wylie’s advice for navigating founder separations.

– Shark Tank Spotlight: The reality of pitching on national TV, walking away from offers, and what the exposure delivered.

– Stepping Back as CEO: Why Wylie handed over the reins in 2024, and how returning to product and creative has reenergized him.

Extras:

– Wylie's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wylierobinson/ 

– Wylie's article (mentioned in episode) on navigating co-founder splits: https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/why-i-had-to-fire-my-co-founder-ceo-and-close-friend/321499 

Abdul Altaf is the 21-year-old co-founder of Yay Nuts, a Gen Z snack brand doing $250K in monthly revenue one year after launch. This episode is part of "The Climb," our new series featuring founders in the early stages of building their brands.

In this episode, expect to hear about:

– First Hustles: How Abdul went from Amazon bans, eBay flips, and vending machines to spotting a gap in the snack aisle.

– Gen Z Branding: Why he saw the opportunity to launch a fresh, trend-driven nut brand his generation could connect with.

– Breakout Growth: The TikTok strategy that drove $40K in the first month and $2M in sales within a year.

– Scaling Pains: The supply chain bottlenecks stopping the brand from jumping from $250K to $1M per month.

– What’s Next: Abdul’s plan to launch new flavors, expand DTC channels, and eventually take Yay Nuts past $50M in sales.

Abdul's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abdul-altaf/