The reported "backlash" against corporate DEI efforts notwithstanding, the diversification of the C-Suite is as inevitable as it can be achingly slow. Democracy doesn't appear magically or even organically. It takes deliberate cultivation. Modeling, mentoring, peer support are at least as important as corporate policy. And that is where the Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA) comes in. BECA not only helps companies cultivate a new more representative generation of executives, it recruits the C-suite itself to create opportunity, access and equality by sharing experience with rising Black marketers.

For a while now, it seems all we talked about was digital, digital, digital in retail. And while no one is downplaying the importance of e-commerce - online sales average about 15% of total US retail sales according to the US Census Bureau - there has been a resurgence of the in-store experience. Shoppers don't want to be tied behind a digital screen. They want to get out and see, touch, and feel the product before pulling out their credit card; they want the confidence that they're making the right decision. And above all, people just want to be entertained.

At MediaPost's own recent Brand Insider Summit for CPGs the topic of celebrity partnership was high on the agenda. As brands struggle to differentiate in a very cluttered environment, any opportunity to draft off of an existing fan base helps. And of course, celebrity and sports stars were the original influencers that marketers leveraged for decades before social media made stars of everyone. In some ways the venerable footwear and foot health brand Dr. Scholls is going old school in partnering with Olympic Gold Medalist Gabby Douglas.

Connoisseurship has come even to donuts in recent years. Lush flavor combinations, customizations, sheer size - have all become product differentiators as a number of regional fan favorites extend their footprints. With over 155 locations, the 17-year-old Duck Donuts was ahead of this curve in customized dunkers. But how does it expand and defend its brand in this hot category?

As we ramp up for next week's Brand Insider Summit: CPG in Nashville, I turned to an old friend of MediaPost's to reflect on his 15 years at MillerCoors and his path to digitizing a foundational category in traditional advertising. In talking to Brad Feinberg, VP of Media and Digital Molson Coors AmCom, however, it was clear that his much earlier experience in entertainment marketing was as formative as his time in CPG.

Imagine getting your shot on Shark Tank, attracting multiple offers from these celeb investors, including the prospect of lucrative licensing deals...and then walking away. The founder and CEO of puffy blanket and outdoor gear brand Rumpl, Wylie Robinson, walked away from the Shark offers to pursue his own source of funding and even an NFL licensing deal. And he learned a lot of lessons along the way.

Americans love drinking, but apparently we will do just about anything to avoid tap water. The soft beverage shelves are overwhelmed with new entrants and ideas - like non-alcoholic "hop-infused water." We explore with category pioneer HOP WTR and its VP of Marketing and Innovation Ryan Haggerty the challenge of explaining an unfamiliar brand and an unknown category in ways that break through market clutter.

Brand partnering has been a key theme recently at MediaPost's Insider Summits. As customer acquisition costs soar, it makes sense that companies try to draft off of one another's existing customer bases. In fact a few curious co-brand combos have been hatched at our retreats. One of them aligned the sleep, wellness and beauty brand Overnight Beauty, with the vitamin and supplements company OLLY.