In this episode of Marketing Vanguard, live from the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos, Nic Brandenberger, CMO of Mammut, the 164-year-old Swiss mountaineering gear company, unpacks why Davos represents a unique opportunity for C-suite marketers and how the experiences brands create matter far more than the products they sell.
What you’ll learn:
- How to shift the definition of “brand” from product provider to experience giver
- Why breaking out of the marketing silo is a critical competitive advantage
- The strategic advantage of being a part of Davos
- How to balance wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels
- How consumer-centric foundation separates great marketing from mediocre execution
- Ways to identify and penetrate niche communities in fragmented markets like US mountaineering
With nearly a decade of experience at Procter & Gamble, where Nic built foundational expertise in consumer-centric marketing strategy and brand management, he brings a data-driven approach to the outdoor and adventure market.
His insights on balancing B2B wholesale partnerships (65% of revenue) with direct-to-consumer growth strategies, alongside Mammut’s expanding U.S. market presence, offer actionable guidance for marketers navigating the intersection of heritage brand legacy and modern digital transformation.
Introducing: Frontier CMO
In an era where the marketing playbook is being rewritten daily, how can brands stay ahead? Joshua Spanier, Google’s VP of AI and Marketing Strategy, pulls back the curtain in Frontier CMO, his new podcast and weekly insights letter featuring the marketers, thought leaders, and industry pioneers who are reinventing marketing.
Josh previews the tough questions and unfiltered conversations featured on Frontier CMO, including:
- AI as a leadership test: exploring the “human” side of the AI revolution. As technology and tools advance the challenge becomes equipping marketing teams to leverage these technologies
- Brand relevance and connection: writing the next playbook for brand relevance by showing up as a main character in the places and spaces that connect with your audience
- Agentic Commerce: understanding the transition from “speed vs. certainty” to a world where shopping is fast and smart
- The new marketing organization: knowing where AI makes work faster and smarter and restructuring teams to keep up. Redefining agency partnerships to elevate insights and creativity in real time
