Los Angeles  ·  Available for Work

hannah
mcgough.

I build and grow brands that deserve attention.

The challenge isn't building more. It's building what actually matters and making sure it connects. Whether it's AI, consumer, or mission-driven work, I focus on the ideas that earn their place and make sure they show up that way.

Selected work Get in touch →
10+ Years in Brand
$1M+ Studio Revenue
30+ Brand Clients
Cornell B.S. + B.A. '15
Hannah McGough — Brand Strategist, Los Angeles
*hm Brand & Marketing Studio
ChapStick ✦
Suave ✦
Disney ✦
Sephora ✦
Sol de Janeiro ✦
Glow Recipe ✦
Riley Rose ✦
TOMS ✦
Sorel ✦
Blank Beauty ✦
Beauty Bakerie ✦
Hatfetti ✦
OurX ✦
Forever 21 ✦
AT&T ✦
Goldfaden MD ✦
ChapStick ✦
Suave ✦
Disney ✦
Sephora ✦
Sol de Janeiro ✦
Glow Recipe ✦
Riley Rose ✦
TOMS ✦
Sorel ✦
Blank Beauty ✦
Beauty Bakerie ✦
Hatfetti ✦
OurX ✦
Forever 21 ✦
AT&T ✦
Goldfaden MD ✦
Hannah McGough
✦
About

I bring a perspective on brand uncommonly found in a creative lead.

I've spent the past decade working across corporate, startup, agency, and founder environments, helping brands define what they are, launch into the world, and build real traction.

I tend to operate when things are still taking shape. I also step in when something strong needs to move faster, clearer, or further. That means building the strategy and making sure it actually happens, aligning teams, moving quickly, and keeping the standard high without slowing momentum.

I've worked both brand-side and agency-side, so I understand what's needed beyond the brief, not just what's asked for.

Based in Los Angeles. Available for full-time roles, consulting, and partnerships.

Brand strategy & campaign execution
Freelance team management
Product launches & go-to-market
Paid media, DTC & retail
Experiential & IRL activation
Brand identity & creative direction
Work

Types of Problems
I Solve.

The tools vary. The context changes. But the underlying challenge is almost always the same — something valuable exists, and not enough people know it, feel it, or act on it.

Something exists, but people aren't engaging with it

When the value is real but it isn't reaching the people it's meant for. I work backward from the gap between what something offers and what its audience actually experiences.

A brand or system has value, but it isn't translating

Whether it's a product, a platform, or a mission-driven org, the challenge is almost always the same: making the value legible to the people who need it most.

Momentum has stalled and needs to be rebuilt

Post-launch plateaus, brand fatigue, stalled pipeline. I diagnose what's actually happening and build a path back without discarding what's already working.

A launch needs to become culturally relevant and commercially effective

GTM strategy through campaign production and activation — launches that land, not just go live. From consumer brands to public-facing platforms.

A platform or mission-driven org needs to connect with the people it was built for

I apply the same strategic rigor to non-consumer contexts. Those can look like technology companies, conservation organizations, and community brands hosting public-facing experiences.

Selected Work

Selected work.

Across consumer, retail, and early-stage systems.

Request full portfolio + case studies →
ChapStick
CPG / Campaign
ChapStick

Reviving a legacy brand and rebuilding cultural relevance

Suave
CPG / Integrated Campaign
Suave

Scaling a mass brand through modern creative and integrated campaigns

Riley Rose
Retail / Brand Experience
Riley Rose (Forever 21)

Building a new retail concept and in-store brand experience from the ground up

Sephora
Retail / Merchandising
Sephora

Identifying and launching breakout brands into retail at scale

Blank Beauty
Beauty / GTM
Blank Beauty

Translating new technology into a consumer-facing brand and go-to-market strategy

Emerging Brands
Startup / Brand Building
Emerging Brands

End-to-end brand building across early-stage consumer companies

Hatfetti
Founder / Original Concept
Hatfetti

Original concept, building a brand from idea to execution

Clients

Brands I've helped
build & grow.

Creative
Real TechniquesSuaveAlternaChapStick OurXDisneyAT&TGoldfaden MD PancakeNowHPPY SkinWindskinYoungblood TIDLPuroast Coffee
Advertising
VarsityTOMSAshapopsSorel MaelysFunny WaterAlpyn Beauty
360 Marketing
LeverdenBlank BeautyBeauty Bakerie Premium JaneEver
Brand Identity
HatfettiBlossoming BoxElevarOne Earth Health
Where I'm Evolving

Where I'm evolving.

I'm particularly interested in environments where product, behavior, and storytelling intersect, especially in emerging technology, experiential, and mission-driven work that helps reconnect people to each other, to the natural world, and to causes with real long-term consequence.

Hannah McGough
⚡
Emerging Technology / AI

Systems that shape behavior faster than people can consciously process. I'm interested in the intersection of technology, brand intention, and human response, and how companies communicate and market in this new environment.

🌿
Conservation & Mission-Driven Work

I've spent a decade helping brands earn attention, and I could keep doing it for another decade. But lately I've been asking a different question: what actually deserves it? I'm increasingly interested in applying the same tools to work that reconnects people to the natural world.

🏛
Public-Facing Experiences

The design of shared experiences, physical spaces, institutions, cultural programs, shapes how people understand the world. Brand strategy isn't separate from this. It's embedded in it.

↗
Systems That Shape Behavior

The most interesting work sits at the intersection of how things are designed and how people actually respond. I want to be in rooms where that conversation is happening with rigor and care.

Process

A philosophy
before a playbook.

Great brands must first solve a real problem that a lot of people care about — and will gladly pay money and attention to you (over others) to get help with.

It's through this lens that the best identity, creative, and marketing can be born, and a business can sustain.
Stage 01
Discovery
Start here
  • Consumer research & insight
  • Brand positioning strategy
  • Visual identity & messaging
  • Competitive landscape mapping
Stage 02
Launch
Build momentum
  • Go-to-market strategy
  • Campaign creative production
  • Retail & DTC coordination
  • PR & launch activation
Stage 03
Growth
Scale it
  • Paid media strategy & creative
  • Influencer & creator programs
  • IRL & experiential activations
  • Brand partnerships
Experience

Career timeline.

Request full resume →
2020 – 2026
Hannah McGough — Brand & Marketing Studio
Founder & Owner

Managed brand strategy and campaign execution for clients including ChapStick, Suave, and Disney. Owned client growth and retention across a studio generating $1M+ in revenue. Built and managed cross-functional freelance teams across strategy, creative, production, and content.

Founder
2025 – 2026
Blank Beauty
Chief Marketing Officer

Built and launched a new consumer brand from scratch, scaling to $30K/month DTC revenue within the first quarter through rapid go-to-market testing across paid media, organic social, partnerships, and live events.

Full-time
2019 – 2020
Beauty Bakerie
Director of Marketing & E-Commerce

Partnered with CEO to redefine brand strategy and implement integrated marketing and launch planning across DTC and retail. Led cross-channel initiatives spanning product launches, influencer, and retail expansion into Ulta, Nordstrom, Target, and CVS.

Full-time
2017 – 2019
Forever 21 / Riley Rose
Head of Brand Education & Sales

Core member of the founding team that built Riley Rose from concept to 30+ locations, designing and scaling the in-store experience, service model, and brand partnership program from scratch. Built and launched a revenue-generating in-store events and services program contributing ~16% of total store revenue.

Full-time
2016 – 2017
Sephora
Merchant Team - Skincare

Managed highest-performing brand class in Skincare and supported growth of legacy brands and launch of emerging brands. Identified early consumer trends, including Sol de Janeiro, Glow Recipe, and Supergoop, contributing to their introduction as category leaders.

Full-time
2015 – 2016
AT&T
Client Solutions Executive

Ranked #1 nationally in Business Sales Leadership Program, exceeding revenue targets by 275%+. Managed enterprise and SMB accounts, identifying growth opportunities and driving revenue across product lines.

Full-time
C
Cornell University
B.S. Communication & Media Studies + B.A. Film, Class of 2015. Graduated early · 3× Dean's List · Senior Editor, The Cornell Daily Sun · Vice President of Marketing, Slope Media Group
Field Notes

Field Notes.

What I'm thinking about — on brand, behavior, and what actually deserves attention.

Hannah McGough
Conservation / Meaningful Work
What Actually Deserves Attention

I've spent a decade helping brands compete for attention. Most of them didn't need it.

At the same time, the things that actually matter (biodiversity, ecosystems, the economic systems we depend on) are collapsing quietly, with almost no ability to command that same attention.

We've built an economy around manufacturing demand, while underfunding the things that sustain us (and keep us mentally well). I'm interested in contributing my creative marketing talent using the same tools to make people care about what's real, not just what's being sold to them.

AI / Systems / Behavior
The Responsibility Shift

I used to spend weeks building what can now be done in a day: campaign shoots, brand worlds, full go-to-market systems. AI collapsed the timeline.

So yes, build your brand faster. Do it in a day, if it's something the world actually needs.

But then what to do with that saved time, money, energy, and even staff?

The opportunity isn't to flood the market with more — it's to reinvest into real-world presence like community, experiences, and moments that bring people together around a product instead of isolating them behind a screen consuming it.

Brand / What Makes People Care
The Niche Advantage

Most brands don't have an awareness problem, they have a sameness problem.

They're all running the same playbook: ambassador programs, influencer affiliate networks, templated pop-ups - and wondering why nothing actually sticks.

At the same time, consumers have more options than ever. Which means they're gravitating toward brands that feel specific, and brands that clearly understand a narrow audience and solve something real for them.

When you actually know your customer, you stop defaulting to the usual channels and start building things that fit how your audience already lives, whether that's intimate community moments, unexpected partnerships, or entirely new formats that don't look like "marketing" at all.

The future isn't louder brands, it's sharper ones.

Say hello

Let's build
something
great.

Whether you're building a brand, a platform, or something that needs to move, I'd love to hear what you're working on.

✉ hello@hannahmcgough.com LinkedIn →

Los Angeles, CA  ·  Available globally