Setup CEO, Joe Koufman, virtually sat down with Rod Johnson, the Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer for BLK & Bold Specialty Beverages, to share how the company started and how he has a natural ability to establish and maintain connections with others.

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Q1 | Tell us about your career path.

Johnson attended Indiana University where he worked for his school’s alumni call center. It was there that he learned the valuable skills he uses in his business today: “finding ways to connect to people around shared values, shared experience” and reigniting the magic from their past. The last role that he held before starting BLK & Bold was Assistant Dean for the business school of a small private liberal arts college. He enjoyed the role but he “felt that there was a much bigger issue that needed to be addressed,” and he wanted to use the skills that he developed at his previous role to address those issues. He explained that he explored the idea of entrepreneurism with his partner, Pernell Cezar Jr, and they focused on creating a business that reflected their own daily habits, which after some thought, was spent around a lot of coffee. Although Johnson wasn’t a coffee drinker, he still spent plenty of time in coffee shops, and he “fell in love with the coffee shop culture and the community that's built around coffee.” They decided to center their business around coffee, and BLK & Bold was born. 

Q2 | What is your company mission?

Johnson explained that it was important for BLK & Bold’s mission to be at the forefront of the company, and that they focus their efforts on giving back to the community. They want to bridge the gap between the community and for-profit businesses to make an impact beyond their business. BLK & Bold does this by donating a portion of their proceeds to organizations that support youth in need. He shared, “Annually we give 5% of our profits to about 15 organizations that are scattered across America that focus on different aspects of the human endeavor for kids.” These organizations focus on a number of causes including eradicating food insecurities, youth homelessness, mentorship, and education. Nonetheless, BLK & Bold and these organizations “are keenly focused on helping the most vulnerable demographic, which are kids.”

Q3 | What is your Superpower?

Johnson’s superpower is “connectivity and building rapport.” He gets along with others and can find his place in any crowd while still staying true to himself. His secret is, “being able to prioritize other people's interests and find a way to relate them to my own. [Doing this] has really resulted in some great relationships that I've been able to build over time.” Bonding and connecting with others comes naturally to him, and he feels fulfilled when he’s able to build and maintain relationships.

Q4 | What challenges do you face as a marketer?

A challenge that he has faced is “carving out a voice in a very crowded space” and ensuring that their team makes the right authentic partnerships. Johnson explained that they ensure that the partners they work with are aligned with BLK & Bold’s cause and are genuinely interested in furthering their mission. 

Q5 | As a leader what values are important to you?

Johnson shared that he tries to embody the company’s values in his own life. One of those values is attention to detail. He explained that it is very important to him as a leader, and he tries to surround himself with people who are detail-oriented. Johnson also appreciates consistency in others and he looks for that attribute when people are working with him.

For more marketing leadership advice, and a view into the mindset of marketing executives in various industries, be sure to watch the full interview with Rod Johnson, and keep an eye out for more thought leadership from our CMO Spotlights.

WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW TO THE RIGHT.