Sep 30, 2026 · 1 hr 2 min · 16 segments
On today’s episode, I’m joined by Kira Mackenzie Jackson, beauty and marketing expert, to discuss building standout brands, creating strong communities, and the evolving role of influencers in brand…
Siffat HaiderHost
Kira Mackenzie JacksonGuestBut I feel like at this day and age, like, they're both table stakes.
An incredible operating team- That is the first thing that I look for.
And, and I say that thoughtfully because I see a lot of brands that are afraid to spend money, and if you're afraid to spend money, you won't make money.
But I also see a lot of brands that are definitely not afraid to spend money [laughs] and spend willy-nilly and don't have any strategy behind how they spend.
So I guess that ladders back to, like, operating mentality, but that piece.
And then also a brand that is willing to grow and scale sustainably.
I think it is very appealing nowadays with all of the news about investments and M&A to say, "Okay, I'm gonna raise a shit-ton of money.
I'm going to launch in 600 doors, and I'm gonna be super successful." Like, more often than not, when a brand does that and doesn't have the right infrastructure in place, they're not able to meet that many customers, that diverse range of customers where they need to in order to drive sell-through.
And then you're stuck where you have a shit-ton of sell-in, and you're not driving sell-through.
You lose shelf space, and then those are the brands that fizzle out.

Honestly, I feel like this isn't talked about enough, but I, I feel like being really methodical about retail-

... is so important, and I feel like people are like, "Oh yeah, you know, I'm gonna launch, and I'm gonna get into Sephora or Target, and then that's it.
But I feel like at this day and age, like, they're both table stakes.
An incredible operating team- That is the first thing that I look for.
And, and I say that thoughtfully because I see a lot of brands that are afraid to spend money, and if you're afraid to spend money, you won't make money.
But I also see a lot of brands that are definitely not afraid to spend money [laughs] and spend willy-nilly and don't have any strategy behind how they spend.
So I guess that ladders back to, like, operating mentality, but that piece.
And then also a brand that is willing to grow and scale sustainably.
I think it is very appealing nowadays with all of the news about investments and M&A to say, "Okay, I'm gonna raise a shit-ton of money.
I'm going to launch in 600 doors, and I'm gonna be super successful." Like, more often than not, when a brand does that and doesn't have the right infrastructure in place, they're not able to meet that many customers, that diverse range of customers where they need to in order to drive sell-through.
And then you're stuck where you have a shit-ton of sell-in, and you're not driving sell-through.
You lose shelf space, and then those are the brands that fizzle out.

Honestly, I feel like this isn't talked about enough, but I, I feel like being really methodical about retail-

... is so important, and I feel like people are like, "Oh yeah, you know, I'm gonna launch, and I'm gonna get into Sephora or Target, and then that's it.
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