The Old Way vs The CPG Agent Way
Hiring a full-time CMO is slow, expensive and risky. There's a smarter way to get senior marketing leadership.
The Old Way
- 6+ month executive search to find a CMO
- £150k+ salary, bonus, equity and benefits
- 12-month notice period if it doesn't work
- Generalist hire — strong on brand, weak on performance (or vice versa)
- Slow to ramp — 90 days before they ship anything
- You're locked in regardless of business pivots
The CPG Agent Way
- Embedded within 2 weeks, shipping in week one
- 1–3 days per week — pay only for what you use
- Cancel or scale anytime, no long-term lock-in
- FMCG/CPG specialist with full-stack growth experience
- AI-powered audits surface wins in the first sprint
- Flex up for launches, flex down in steady state
The “Middle Ground” is Where CPG Brands Stall
You've outgrown your junior team or freelancers, but you aren't ready for a full-time CMO at a six-figure salary. This is where growth plateaus. You need the head (strategy) and the hands (execution) working in sync.
Seniority
Someone who has managed multi-million pound budgets and global launches.
Objectivity
An outside-in view to identify the bottlenecks your internal team might miss.
Speed
Don't spend three months learning the business. Use AI-driven audits to find wins in week one.
Is This the Right Move for Your Brand?
Why Founders Choose This Over an Agency
There are 10,000 marketing agencies. There are very few people who've actually run marketing inside the businesses you want to become.
We sit on your side of the table
We manage your agencies — we don't compete with them. Our only loyalty is to your P&L.
Senior brain, not a junior account exec
You get an operator who's run multi-million pound budgets — not a 24-year-old learning on your dime.
Strategy AND execution oversight
Most agencies execute without strategy. Most consultants strategise without execution. We do both.
AI-augmented, not AI-replaced
Our proprietary tools cut research and planning time by 80% — so you pay for thinking, not grunt work.
Built specifically for CPG/FMCG
We understand listings, slotting fees, trade marketing and shelf velocity. Generalist agencies don't.
When It's the Right Move
If any of these sound familiar, you're probably ready for a Fractional CMO.
Revenue is plateauing
You hit a ceiling and the same playbook isn't moving the needle anymore.
Marketing feels reactive
Your team ships campaigns but no one owns the strategy or the numbers.
You're prepping a raise or exit
Investors want to see a CMO-level marketing function — not a freelancer stack.
You're between CMO hires
Your last CMO left and you need senior cover while you find the right replacement.
Is It a Fit?
We only take on a handful of Fractional partnerships at a time. Here's how to know if we're right for each other.
Best fit if you're…
- Doing £1M–£50M revenue and ready to scale
- Have product-market fit but lack a marketing engine
- Want senior strategic leadership without the salary
- Open to being challenged on positioning and GTM
- Ready to invest 3+ months to see structural change
Not a fit if you're…
- Looking for a junior to execute someone else's plan
- Need someone in the office 5 days a week
- Want a yes-person who won't push back on the brief
- Pre-revenue and still searching for product-market fit
- Expect overnight results without strategic groundwork
What You Actually Get
Not vague 'strategic guidance' — concrete artefacts, decisions and outcomes you can point to.
Strategy & Positioning
- Marketing strategy & 12-month roadmap
- Brand positioning & messaging architecture
- Category & competitive analysis
Performance & Analytics
- KPI frameworks (ROAS, CAC, LTV, contribution margin)
- Weekly performance dashboards
- Budget allocation & media mix modelling
Team & Agency Leadership
- Mentor and upskill your internal team
- Manage (or replace) your agencies
- Run hiring for senior marketing roles
Channel & Campaign Oversight
- D2C, retail, Amazon, paid social, SEO, retention
- Launch planning & GTM execution
- Trade marketing & retailer activation
AI-Powered Acceleration
- Full Pro access to the CPG Agent platform
- PersonaForge, Launch Validator, Growth Blueprint
- Custom AI workflows for your category
Common deliverables across engagements
Everything a Full-Time CMO Delivers, on a Flexible Basis
Strategic Direction
A clear marketing roadmap aligned to your commercial goals. We define your strategic moat and brand positioning.
Performance Oversight
We build the KPI frameworks and dashboards that actually matter. No vanity metrics — just a relentless focus on ROAS, CAC and contribution margin.
Team & Agency Management
We manage your existing agencies (or help you fire the bad ones), mentor your internal team and help you hire the right talent as you scale.
Tool-Powered Intelligence
As a Fractional client, you get the full power of the CPG Agent AI Suite. We use PersonaForge, Launch Validator and Growth Blueprint to automate the grunt work — so we focus on high-level growth.
How It Works
A proven 4-stage rhythm that turns marketing chaos into a compounding growth engine.
Discovery & Audit
Two weeks of deep-dive across your data, team, agencies and category. AI-powered audits surface the highest-leverage opportunities.
Strategy Development
We build a 12-month roadmap with clear KPIs, owners and budget allocation. You get a strategy your whole leadership team can rally around.
Execution & Momentum
We embed with your team and agencies, lead weekly stand-ups, ship campaigns and unblock decisions. Visible wins inside 60 days.
Optimise & Scale
Continuous testing, performance reviews and reallocation. We flex involvement up for launches, down in steady state — always tied to your goals.
Transparent, Predictable, Scalable
No hidden fees or long-term lock-ins. Scale my involvement up or down as your business evolves.