If Only Creative

0:00Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Welcome to the Emerging Brands podcast. Sharing the stories behind brands you'll want to shop next. I'm your host, Kelly Bennett. I am a New York City-based brand strategist for CPG Food and Beverage Brands. In each episode, I'll take you behind the scenes of founders that are building better-for-you products and bringing them to market. it. Also, I talk to brand builders, retailers, industry experts, and tastemakers who help bring those cool products to your shopping cart. You will hear stories of real-life founders, their launch strategies, and practical advice you could use to grow your own brand or simply discover what's next on shelf.

0:42Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:And the best part is you could shop all the brands featured on the show. This podcast is brought to you by Hummingbirds. Hummingbirds is the go-to platform built for creator-powered retail activations. They're connecting everyday creators with CPG brands to generate shelf-level awareness, drive in-store momentum, and generate authentic content in markets that matter the most. Go to hummingbirds.com for all the details and let them know I sent you. This podcast is brought to you by Glimpse. Glimpse is an AI-powered deduction management tool that disputes and recovers invalid deductions, winning brands thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours back to founders so that they can focus on what really matters most.

1:35Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:If you're a brand selling in retail, go to tryglimpse.com backslash trial for 30 days free and let them know I sent you. Now let's dive into the new episode. Hi everyone. Welcome back to a new episode of Emerging Brands Podcast with Kelly Bennett. Today I have Marissa Sanchez Dunning. She is the founder of If Only Creative and I love bringing on strategic partners for emerging brands so they could really understand the process of the creative that goes into creating a standout brand. So Marissa, I'm so happy to have you on the podcast today and just nerd out about all things creative. Thank you so much for having me.

2:27It's literally, I've been looking forward to speaking with you for months. So this is like a highlight. I'm so excited. Thank you for having me.

2:35Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Good. Well, that makes me really happy. Let's first start talking about what is, if only creative walk. I know you do a lot of things, which is so inherent to a creative, right? We could, we do so many different things, but I would love if you could walk us through the studio you've built. Yeah. Um, what a big question. I'm like, it's kind of evolved since it started, but I guess if only creative, um, is a design studio, uh, that I founded about a little bit over three and a half years ago. And we really focus on working with POC owned, women owned, impact driven food and beverage brands. So we work with brands split between hospitality.

3:23So we focus on restaurant bars, cafes, but we also love working with, you know, standard CPG products. And it's been great.

3:32Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:That is so cool. I really like your background and your passion of making sure that creatives of all backgrounds are represented well and beautifully. So can you walk us through a bit of your professional background and what was really important to you in building If Only Creative? Yeah, that's such a good question. And it is also really important to me. I think, you know, my background is I finished my undergrad degree in England. And as soon as I graduated, even when I was in college, I started working in standard design agencies from smaller brand boutique ones to marketing agencies that focused on bigger campaigns.

4:19And I love the industry. And what was also really, I don't know, you just like graduate college and you step into the quote real world. And for me, I just didn't see a lot of representation of women of color in the space, maybe, you know, and I don't know if that just comes down to where I was working when I first stepped into the field, or just the industry as a whole. But then I moved back home to California. And I stepped into a role at a design studio specifically focused on, it was super niche, specifically focused on sustainable packaging design. And that was really exciting for me because as much as I had the skillset of stepping into an agency space, understanding the strategy there, the business development side, the client relationship side, I had no education, no formal education around sustainability and packaging.

5:23So that was really, really cool for me to step in and help him build it. And I was there for about two years, got promoted to a partner pretty quickly, maybe like a year in. That's incredible. It was crazy. I was, you know, I was young and just working really hard. And we were, we spoke at the Dye Line. We got a lot of press features. We were signing contracts with Nike. We had meetings with Sonos. Like it was awesome. And again, I just kind of throughout my professional career, I feel like I've hit these ceilings of, yes, this is great. And this is awesome. But I just, there was something there that was missing.

6:07I didn't feel super connected to it. I didn't feel super passionate about it. And especially being young and being a partner, I was like, well, do I need to be? Like, is this just a job and I can just come in and do it and step away? Right. You know, I was like, no, I like I should feel like I was craving that within my professional career. And that was when I realized that the people in the room who we were having meetings with, they were fine, but they weren't who I really aligned with. And I thought to myself, okay, well, if I can help support somebody else build their dream, then I feel like I owe it to myself to at least try.

6:53And so that's what I've been doing for the last three and a half, almost four years.

6:58Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:so I love that I love when you have the ability to weave in what you're genuinely passionate about into your job because we are at our jobs a lot and so when you're able to find that fulfillment and also find a business where both are checked, to me, that is like the most magical moment. I feel like that in my career too. It took me a while to figure it out. You figured it out way quicker than me. But it's just like the best feeling when you know the work that you're doing is also feeding just how you want to show up in the world and who you want to support. And so walk me through what did it look like starting to build the studio of your own?

7:53Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:And again, going from one that it sounded like it was very successful, you made partner. What made you want to take the leap in saying, wait, I really want to do this myself? Yeah, that's a great question. I think if we had time, I would completely walk you through my like personal life and just there's so much there to unpack. But I think the cliff notes of that is consistently throughout my life, I've had milestones or I keep hitting certain ceilings where whether it's personal or professional, and I just brave more like I want more. And I think that I have kind of, I don't know where it comes from, maybe just my upbringing.

8:39I grew up around a lot of really amazing, strong Latino women who have always been super independent and super resilient and just very much like, if you're not happy, leave, no matter the situation. Right. That mantra. Yes. And so I think growing up, it kind of gave me the superpower where I have always question things more than, you know, the standard person or like, I really, really have strayed away from like any sort of complacency. And I think from my personal life, you know, I was, I got married really young. I went through a divorce pretty young. I just made a lot of changes and I moved around a lot as a kid.

9:23And so I think being used to change and evolving, I sort of got to do it and like in an exciting way where I'm so excited for the next era of myself because we're never the same you know I'm going to be different tomorrow and I'm going to be different next week but I found comfort in that where I feel a lot of people find fear I sat with it and I was like okay like let's just do this and so at that point when I was a partner and everything was going well things also started to, you know, I'm also a big believer in things will reveal themselves when they need to, and things will happen when they're supposed to.

10:04And it's up to you to listen to those signs and changes and, you know, really take them on. And at that time, it was just a gut thing. It was a gut thing. And I learned the longer that I run the studio and also maybe just the older that I get, I learned to really lean into my gut instinct and just listen to it no matter what is on the other side. And yeah, I just sat down with him and had a conversation and it felt really, really good. Obviously I was terrified because I was stepping into something that in my head, it was an idea. And, you know, if only creative was just built on this rebellious sort of daydream of I want to work in a space where there's like disco balls and murals and just a boost of serotonin when you walk in.

10:59But I also want to work with really fucking cool brands doing really cool things. And I feel like those two should align. And I didn't step into it to make money. I didn't do any of that. And so I think that's also given me a superpower in its own right, you know, just because the pure intention is there to help people, you know.

11:19Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Very cool. So how do you work with brands now? Because it's like you said, it's evolved over the idea, the concept. How does it look in today's lens? Yeah. So when we first started the studio, I was heavily in, we still are, but social media, management, content, partnerships split between brand partnerships and influencer. and we heavily did, and we still do like commercial product photography, which I love. And, but we didn't do a lot of design work in the beginning. And over the last year, I think I am really, really excited about where we're at and kind of, I feel like we finally found the sweet spot of what we want to be doing.

12:13So half of the work in the studio is more social media based under retainers. So content creation, social media management partnerships. And then the other half is more higher level like identity work. So we support clients with building. Yeah. Just like brand design, websites, photography, packaging design, which is really exciting. But yeah.

12:38Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:That is so important. I literally created a post just yesterday of the importance of what steps to take in the pre-launch era of building a brand. It's not important, but it is. What was that? I just said that I feel like people don't pay attention to that pre-launch space enough. I do. And that's why I'm obsessed with pre-launch and why I've doubled down because I've worked with so many brands over the years. I've been building consumer brands for 15 years and just have seen so many bumps in the road when you don't have a solid foundation. And that's why I'm so focused on pre-launch. But in that, talking about the steps pre-launch, I really emphasize great branding, packaging, and photography.

13:39Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:I think sometimes people overlook that, especially with AI, et cetera. Totally. But good product photos, good lifestyle photos, a good headshot of the founder with their product, that stands out so much. And I get pitched every day brands to come on my podcast. I talk to founders who want to work with me. and it's one of the things, especially for the podcast, that is so critical that I look for. It just elevates your brand. Even if you're brand new, if you have some really solid photos and a great package, you're off to the races. Exactly. I mean, it just goes so far because I feel like, well, A, I just want to step back and say, I really admire all the work that you do and I love.

14:31Oh, thank you. the brands that you work with. I'm just obsessed. And I feel like I know when a brand has worked with you because they just feel like super set up. They understand, they know what they're doing. Okay.

14:45Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:That is the best compliment you just made my whole day. Thank you. It's true. And I, I totally agree. And I'm in these conversations almost every day, not only with potential clients, but current clients in my team, just people have seconds. Like we don't have the attention span that a brand might need that isn't investing in these sorts of things like branding and packaging. And, you know, the story might be there, which is like so important and the product could be incredible. But if it's not presented in a way where, you know, in this day and age, we're scrolling, it's half a second. I mean, I don't even know, you know, so it's really important, not only on socials and the digital space to have a really good presence, but also on the shelf.

15:34Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Absolutely. What is your approach when a brand could be a potential client or they are getting ready to reach out to you? Can you walk us through that? Because I know everyone has their own process and I really like to break down those really early steps so that a founder can get organized also and knowing, okay, I have this done, check, now I'm moving on to the next thing. So can you walk us through where you work with brands, what you look for, and essentially where you take them? Yeah, that's a great question. I think, again, it's kind of like evolved since we've grown and gotten a little bit bigger, but I feel like a really good sweet spot for me whenever I hop on a call with like a potential client and they have a brand, they have an idea, they have this product.

16:29I think it's important for me to understand where they're at, whether they're still in testing or sampling or, you know, getting the actual product figured out and then understanding what it is that they're coming to us for. It's really important too. You know, because I do think that it's important that they also do their research on who we are to make sure that we're also aligned there. I am not somebody who will just take any client just to do it because I feel like working with people where values are aligned. Same. So important, right? I mean, it completely changes the vibe of any sort of workflow, any sort of project.

17:16And it's really important. So I think what I look for is just a founder who is really passionate, really driven to build their brand. They understand the value of these things that we've been talking about, branding, packaging, photography, and they're ready to take that next step and invest in it. Well said.

17:38Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:I think that service providers don't talk about it enough of the importance of finding the clients that align with you too, because yes, we need clients, right? In order to have a successful business, but it really is a two-way street. And I'm really glad that you touched upon that because you put so much of your own energy and I get that feeling from you too. and I'm the same way, you pour so much into your clients and you want to make sure that it's a good partnership. It's really personal. It is so personal. Even like, yes, I've grown a team and they're amazing. But again, I'm the main contact for everything.

18:20I touch almost every single project. And it's really personal. We're in meetings. We have conversations. We share energy. Right. And it's just important that the people that you choose to work with and bring into your circle align because it can totally affect you. Yeah.

18:38Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Oh, I've learned that lesson many times of when I get a gut feeling and then I'm like, well, maybe. And every single time I have wavered on that, I'm like, damn it. I knew it. It's a gut thing. It's a gut thing. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. So can you walk us through again of the so you do branding, packaging, photography? Can you walk us through how you essentially work with brands like high level just so that people could understand what it's like working with you in the studio? Yeah. So if somebody were to come to us and say, you know, I do want to highlight one of our recent clients. they're called show off.

19:26It is a new Latina owned salsa matcha brand. It's delicious. I have to send you some. Please. Amazing. So she, her name is Margarita. She got in touch and she had the product. She was working with somebody on production and she came to me and she was like, I love your work. I love the vibe. And that's another thing. I think when people see us, it's also important that they understand it's like a vibe check, right? If you come to us to work with us, you understand that we are bold, we're vibrant. We like to get kind of weird and that's kind of fun. And we push boundaries, which I'm really proud of.

20:12So she loved that about us. So there was already an understanding there. And so she came to us for product photography for launch she also came to us for website design and build and we did a suite of videos ugc stuff for her like recipe videos review videos oh cool and it was great so she came to us for that scope of work and what we'll do is we also put before every project or at the beginning of every project, we essentially do like a light strategy, especially if they don't have one, because as much as I can dive in and feel like I know what we're doing and deliver it's, you know, I mean, it's a strategy.

21:02People don't really think about that that much. So like, what? But that is the starting point of every single one of my projects where I'm like, okay, what's your strategy? Let's figure this out here because that's the only way that I will feel confident that we understand exactly what you're wanting us to execute. So at the beginning of that project for Show Off, we dove into building a pretty extensive social media and marketing strategy for Show Off. And from there, we dove into the product photography, the UGC, the videos, and then the website design and build. And I'm just so proud of it.

21:48It looks beautiful.

21:49Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:I can't wait to look them up on social after this. I love the name too. it's a good name. It's a really good name. It's a great name. And the owner, she's so awesome. She like works on the brand with her mom and the story is just so rad. Like she was like, you know, as a woman and especially as like a woman of color, there is a space that we feel like we can't really take. Like there's anxiety or fear to be too loud or take up that much space. And I think what she's doing through show off, which is what I resonated with so much and I love is that she's like, no, like this is just who I am. Like be bold, be vibrant.

22:37And the right people, you know, will find you.

22:42Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:Absolutely. And I think that also touches upon being clear on the personality of your brand and the voice of your brand and what you really want to accomplish, even in very broad strokes, but having that vision and then finding the right partners in order to put that into place to bring it to life. Totally. Totally. And again, like, because, I mean, you do this all the time. You help build brands. You handle strategy. And I feel like to align on that and to relate to you, I think that once you unlock something strategy wise, whether it's through messaging or through visuals, it's like a magic.

23:28Yes, exactly. That's a really good. Yeah.

23:30Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:It really is. My eloquent way of explaining it's magic. It's magical. And I totally agree. and I always love working with designers because they take the strategy and then they really start bringing it to life. And it's like, I get to see the founders also seeing their vision come to life. So I love what you do because to me, that's like the magical moment of it all coming together. And you could see it and you could picture it. And now it feels like a real life tangible thing. Even if you had some samples of products, It's honestly the visual branding in my experience that it really then it's like lights on.

24:12And then if you have product photography and dare I say a headshot of you as a founder

24:18Marisa Sanchez-Dunning:with your product, it is such a pivotal moment. It ties everything together. It does. It ties everything together. And I love that you do it all. Like from the visual branding to the photography to UGC to website. That's really cool. I admire how you've built that ecosystem. That's a great resource for emerging brand founders who are listening to this podcast for sure. Yeah. And I think that there's a formula there that we're talking about, right? It's like every new emerging brand needs solid branding, packaging, website, photography. And I love how you keep plugging this headshot because not enough founders feel comfortable or lean into the headshot.