Earned: Unlocking the Power of the Creator Economy

In our first episode of 2022, Conor sits down with Liah Yoo. A powerhouse YouTuber, Liah is the founder and CEO of KraveBeauty, the sustainable beauty brand dedicated to demystifying skincare. We start the episode by hearing where Liah's interest in beauty came from, and learn why she decided to launch her own YouTube channel in 2011. Liah shares her "trial and error" strategies for expanding her...

In our 40th episode of Earned, Conor sits down with Aïda Moudachirou-Rébois, SVP, Global CMO of MAC Cosmetics. We start by discussing the current "makeup rebound," and Aïda shares why she believes the vertical is picking up steam. We then dive into MAC's community of 13,000 professional makeup artists, and learn how the brand leverages their field insight to inform product development. Aïda speaks...

In Ep. 39 of Earned, Conor sits down with a true industry titan: Susan Kim. Now the CEO of fast-growing, coconut-powered skincare brand Kopari Beauty, Susan previously led the marketing divisions of influencer-favorite brands Huda Beauty and Benefit Cosmetics. We start by learning about Kopari's focus for 2022, and Susan shares why she's prioritizing top-of-funnel brand awareness and articulating...

In Ep. 38 of Earned, Conor sits down with Angelic Vendette, VP of Marketing at influencer-favorite activewear brand Alo Yoga. We begin by walking through Angelic's impressive career journey, from her time at Holt Renfrew, to starting and selling her own digital marketing agency, to leading marketing teams at Sephora, Dolby, and Stitch Fix, before landing her dream role at Alo Yoga. We learn what d...

In Ep. 37 of Earned, Conor sits down with an expert on brand building and outdoor apparel: Steve Lesnard. Now the Chief Brand Officer at Sephora, Steve previously served as the CMO and Global VP of Product Creation at The North Face, and Global VP and GM of Nike's Running division. We first hear how The North Face adapted its practices and culture to prioritize employee well-being throughout the C...

In Ep. 36 of Earned, Conor sits down with Sandrine Crener de Schutter, program director at Harvard Business School and expert in all things luxury marketing. We start the episode by diving into the challenges and advantages of online teaching and remote learning, and hear why Sandrine believes virtual instruction can facilitate more individualized learning models for different types of students. S...

In Episode 35 of Earned, Conor sits down with Soyoung Kang, CMO of TikTok's favorite brand, EOS. We start the episode by diving into the origins of the brand's unfiltered "Bless Your F-ing Cooch" shaving cream collaboration with TikTok creator Carly Joy (@killljoyy), which went viral and doubled EOS' business practically overnight. We then take a step back to hear about Soyoung's impressive backgr...

In today's very special episode, Conor sits down with Igor Vaks, founder and CEO of influencer marketing platform CreatorIQ, to share some exciting news. We're thrilled to announce the new global combination of CreatorIQ and Tribe Dynamics, bringing together the best in the business in influencer marketing, performance management, advanced analytics and benchmarking solutions, and creating the def...

In Ep. 33 of Earned, Conor sits down with Adeline Leong, CMO of fast-growing clean makeup brand Kosas. We start the episode by exploring Adeline's own professional journey, and learn why she decided to pursue a career in the beauty industry. We then dive into the differences between working at large, established companies and smaller, up-and-coming brands, and Adeline shares advice for how young b...

In Episode 32 of Earned, Conor sits down with Robert Triefus, CMO of iconic, top-ranking luxury fashion brand Gucci. We start the episode by learning how Gucci has embraced digital to expand and engage its community, and Robert shares a few ways the brand leverages technology to enhance and personalize the customer experience. We then dive into Gucci's investment in the gaming industry, with Rober...

In Episode 31 of Earned, Conor sits down with Amy Martin, head of marketing at the fast-growing functional fitness company P.volve. We start the episode by unpacking P.volve's growth, and hear how the omnichannel brand was well-positioned to weather the COVID-19 pandemic with its at-home training equipment and virtual classes. We dive into P.volve's functional movement methodology and "no injury"...

For Earned's 30th episode, Conor sits down with Julian Reis, founder and CEO of SuperOrdinary: the beauty incubator and global growth partner helping popular U.S. brands break into the Chinese market. We start by discussing the challenges foreign brands encounter competing with domestic brands in China, and which Chinese brands to look out for. Julian then explains the recent changes in China's an...

As the Earned podcast takes a summer break (we'll be back on July 21st!), Conor reflects back on the learnings and milestones from the last 29 episodes.

In Episode 29 of Earned, Conor sits down with Chandra Coleman Harris, General Manager of beauty giant Revlon. We dive into Revlon's digital transformation during the pandemic, and learn how the brand leveraged lighthearted "edutainment" content, along with its #ButItHelps campaign, to stay connected with audiences. We also explore how Revlon amped up product categories like nails and hair color as...

For Ep. 28 of Earned, we're joined by Katie Welch, CMO of Selena Gomez's smash-hit makeup brand Rare Beauty! We kick off the episode by hearing about how Katie uses her own TikTok platform (with over 16,000 fans!) to mentor young professionals interested in the beauty industry, and how Katie herself broke into the space. We then walk through Katie's enviable marketing career, as she shares how the...

In Ep. 27 of Earned, Conor talks to former supermodel and clean beauty pioneer Josie Maran. We unpack why Josie decided to expand her eponymous brand's distribution by launching in Ulta, and learn about the 14-year-old company's upcoming rebrand. Josie reveals why she set out to "help the beauty industry become healthier to the planet and to the people," discussing the early challenges that came w...

In Episode 26 of Earned, we chat with Marianna Hewitt, powerhouse influencer, podcaster, and co-founder of sustainable, fast-growing, and oh-so-Instagrammable skincare line Summer Fridays. We explore how being an influencer equipped Marianna to be a brand founder, and conversely, how being a brand founder has made her a more effective influencer. But first, we learn why Marianna, who now boasts ov...

In our 25th episode of Earned, Conor sits down with Melanie Bender, president of Versed, the "cleanest drugstore skincare brand out there" and one of the fastest-growing, too. We hear about Melanie's non-linear path to the beauty world—from earning a degree in aerospace engineering, to sustainability consulting, to co-founding her own marketing agency—before diving into how she became the founding...

In Episode 24 of Earned, Conor sits down with beauty industry titan Kory Marchisotto, CMO of E.L.F. Beauty and president of Alicia Keys' skincare and wellness brand Keys Soulcare. We start the episode by discussing how various social media platforms like TikTok, Twitch, and Instagram are trending, before diving into Kory's background. Kory shares her most important learnings from her nearly two de...

In Episode 23 of Earned, Conor sits down with Shelley Haus, CMO of consumer- (and brand-) favorite retailer Ulta Beauty. We start with Shelley's journey from breakfast to beauty, and hear a bit about her time as marketing director for the Quaker breakfast portfolio before learning why she was drawn into the world of beauty. We then dive into Ulta Beauty's evolution over the last few years, and She...

In Episode 22 of Earned, Conor chats with Calum Watson, Global Partnerships Director at cult-favorite (and rapidly growing) fitness apparel brand Gymshark. We start by discussing the innovative initiatives Gymshark launched to connect its community amid the pandemic, and how the brand leveraged the home workout trend to drive growth. We then dive into Calum's background, and hear a little bit abou...

In Episode 21 of Earned, Conor chats with Sasha Plavsic, founder of clean beauty brand ILIA Beauty, which achieved a jaw-dropping 400% year-over-year growth in sales in 2020. We start the episode by discussing the "major breakout year" for the brand, and learn about the "risks that led to great results," including the launch of its popular Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40, pivoting to a DTC model amid...

It's our 20th episode of Earned! In this special episode, Conor chats with the man behind some of the recent years' biggest beauty deals: Shaun Westfall, Managing Director of the Consumer & Retail Group at Jefferies. We start the episode by discussing how COVID-19 has changed the market and affected how investors evaluate majority-offline versus DTC brands, before taking a step back and learning w...

In Episode 19 of Earned, Conor sits down with Scott Sassa, entertainment titan turned makeup mogul. Scott's previous roles include President of Turner Entertainment, CEO of Marvel, and President of NBC Entertainment—to name a few—but he currently serves as chairman of influencer-favorite beauty brand Milk Makeup. Conor and Scott start the episode by discussing the future of the consumer landscape...

New year, new Earned! In our first episode of 2021, Conor sits down with entrepreneur and brand builder Kevin Gould, founder of talent management firm and digital consulting agency Kombo Ventures, as well as the co-founder of three digitally native powerhouse brands that pulled in a combined $75 million in revenue last year: Insert Name Here, Glamnetic, and Wakeheart. First, we learn about Kevin's...