This week, I sat down with Sydney Chestler, Director of CX at Fresh Clean Threads, to talk about what it really takes to build trust in customer experience, not just close tickets.

We get into what it means to lead CX at two wildly different brands, from helping a 25-year-old skincare fan find her first serum to supporting a 45-year-old dad buying tees for vacation. Sydney shares how she’s built a career around understanding what customers actually care about and how to design experiences that feel human, honest, and clear.

We cover the shift from reactive support to proactive CX, the importance of tracking “silent wins” like low ticket-to-order ratios, and why transparency should be your brand’s default setting. Sydney breaks down why the best metric isn’t how many tickets your team closes, it’s how many you prevent by setting the right expectations.

We also talk about leadership. Sydney opens up about how mentors shaped her career and how she now pays it forward by building teams that feel heard, supported, and empowered. Her approach is rooted in empathy and connection, and it shows up in everything she does, from team culture to how she thinks about the customer journey.

If you care about building trust, leading with transparency, and empowering your CX teams to do their best work, this episode’s for you.

Listen now for insights on leadership, trust, and how to turn every touchpoint into a relationship, not just a transaction.

📲 Follow Sydney:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydneychestler/

📲 Check out Fresh Clean Threads:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fresh-clean-threads/

Website: https://freshcleantees.com/

👋 Enjoying Above the Fold?

Keep the insights coming by subscribing to my newsletter, Sunday Postcards. Each week, I share tips, stories, and strategies that help you unlock the secrets to brand success. Written from my experience in the marketing world, it’s your go-to source for staying ahead of the curve. Subscribe at www.sundaypostcards.co and join the community!

Connect with Jess on:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jess-cervellon

Twitter: x.com/jesscervellon

Instagram: instagram.com/jess.cervellon

This week, I sat down with Rachel Coburn, a fractional marketing leader who’s worked with some of the biggest names in health and wellness, including AG1 and Happy V, to talk about what it really takes to build brands that last beyond the hype.

We cover growth, brand strategy, and what happens when the pursuit of “acquisition at all costs” starts eroding trust. Rachel brings the kind of honesty and experience that every marketer needs to hear, because she’s been on both sides of the equation. From running performance channels to building full marketing ecosystems, her perspective hits hard: retention starts at acquisition, and brand equity starts with truth.

Rachel opens up about why the DTC space has lost some of its transparency and how brands can get it back. We talk about the balance between performance and authenticity, why marketing ops deserve way more credit than they get, and how to keep growth and retention teams working together instead of in silos. She also shares her advice for early-stage founders, from who to hire first to why you should bring a CX expert into the conversation before launch, not after.

We also dig into creativity and process, two things Rachel refuses to separate. She calls herself a “process freak,” but it’s her eye for brand storytelling and love of cinematic content that makes her stand out. Whether she’s talking about AI in marketing or the art of a well-crafted ad, Rachel’s take is clear: real connection always beats shortcuts.

If you’re building a brand, leading a marketing team, or rethinking what growth should look like in 2025, this episode is packed with lessons you’ll actually want to use.

📲 Follow Rachel:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelecoburn/

👋 Enjoying Above the Fold?

Keep the insights coming by subscribing to my newsletter, Sunday Postcards. Each week, I share tips, stories, and strategies that help you unlock the secrets to brand success. Written from my experience in the marketing world, it’s your go-to source for staying ahead of the curve. Subscribe at www.sundaypostcards.co and join the community!

Connect with Jess on:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jess-cervellon

Twitter: x.com/jesscervellon

Instagram: instagram.com/jess.cervellon

This week, I sat down with Tess Awal, CX Manager at Dr. Squatch — the men’s soap brand that turned natural hygiene into a full-blown lifestyle movement. If you’ve ever seen their cheeky ads or heard about their viral Sydney Sweeney “bathwater” drop, you already know: Dr. Squatch knows how to make personality a growth strategy.

We cover creativity, leadership, and what it really takes to build CX that keeps customers talking. Tess shares how her background in fashion photography and visual merchandising taught her the art of storytelling through experience, and why good CX is a lot like good design — it’s about knowing what makes people stop, look, and feel something.

She talks about how Dr. Squatch keeps its humor while scaling into major retailers like Walmart, Target, and Costco, and what really went into the Sydney Sweeney campaign that broke the internet. Tess also shares why she believes “bad feedback” doesn’t exist when you care enough to listen, and how she ensures customer insights are front and center — even the company’s COO reads NPS reports every week. Finally, she explains what the Unilever acquisition means for the brand and why loyal fans have nothing to worry about.

If you’re building a brand, leading a CX team, or figuring out how to stay human as you grow, this episode is packed with takeaways you can actually use. Listen now for lessons on creativity, brand voice, and why humor, empathy, and authenticity never go out of style.

📲 Follow Tess:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tasnuva-awal/

📲 Check out Dr. Squatch:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dr-squatch/

Website: https://www.drsquatch.com/

👋 Enjoying Above the Fold?

Keep the insights coming by subscribing to my newsletter, Sunday Postcards. Each week, I share tips, stories, and strategies that help you unlock the secrets to brand success. Written from my experience in the marketing world, it’s your go-to source for staying ahead of the curve. Subscribe at www.sundaypostcards.co and join the community!

Connect with Jess on:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jess-cervellon

Twitter: x.com/jesscervellon

Instagram: instagram.com/jess.cervellon