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Paul Jankowski

Paul Jankowski

Founder and CEO of New Heartland Group, a Nashville-based brand strategy and cultural insights agency focused on connecting brands with the 60% of Americans living in the New Heartland.

Jul 2, 2026

Mintel Little Conversation

Mintel Little Conversation

Consumers Brands Can't Afford to Ignore: Rethinking America's New Heartland

Jul 2 · 28m

Andrew DavidsonHOST
1:58
Was there a moment when you realized the industry was fundamentally misreading this huge swath of the country?
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:06
It really wasn't a lightning bolt type moment.
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:09
It was this series of rooms, these brand strategy rooms, these client rooms that I was hearing the same dismissive assumptions.
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:19
I'd be with really smart brand teams or agency folks and hear things like, you know, Heartland consumers are really behind or they're not our growth audience.
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:28
That's if they even accounted for the new Heartland, which pretty much has been no one up to this point.
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:35
You know, they would think they're just this rural conservative market.
Paul Jankowski
Paul JankowskiGUEST
2:39
And that's just not the world that I know.

8 MINS LATER

Andrew DavidsonHOST
10:37
I mean, who's getting it right? Could you give an example of a brand that's getting it right?

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