“We’ve got lost in this idea that a social media campaign or a great launch event or an influencer strategy is the answer to all [a company’s] problems,” she said. “A product or service that really unlocks something for customers is what will sustain your business.”
Practical as she is, Grede’s brands are prone to headline-grabbing marketing, from Skims’ celebrity-heavy collabs with the likes of Sabrina Carpenter to its “climate change-fighting” nipple bra and Good American’s Cindy Crawford campaign.
Her standout ad? Skims’ 2024 breast cancer awareness campaign fronted by survivor Olivia Munn for Susan G. Komen: “Jens and Kim are geniuses with some of their marketing ideas from over the years, but that one stands out to me because it touched people’s hearts,” she said.
Always listening
As well as her day-to-day work, Grede, 43, also sits on the board of The Obama Foundation, and has appeared as a guest judge on Dragons’ Den (the U.K.’s answer to Shark Tank).
In her downtime, you’ll find her lurking in the comments under her brands’ TikTok videos, deep in Reddit threads, and on product review sites. Grede is “obsessed with listening,” which is in part why she started a podcast.
Grede gets feedback everywhere. The other week at Selfridges, a woman stopped her to discuss how an episode of Aspire had helped her sister mid-meltdown. “That’s what I care about,” she said. “You have to listen and take cues from your audience.”
Keeping an ear to the ground has helped Grede’s brands pull in millions and influence culture. Skims’ revenue has more than quintupled over three years, and is forecast to exceed $1 billion in net sales in 2026.
At last count in 2023, Good American pulled in $200 million.
Grede was also one of the key architects behind the NikeSkims partnership, marking the first time Nike built a brand with an outside company, while Good American has made extended denim sizing mainstream, partnering with brands like Zara.
