About this live episode
Every season of The Longer Game ends the same way: live, unscripted, and fast-paced. For the Season 3 finale, host Michael Maher, Chief Idea Officer at Cartology, brought back three returning guests for a wide-ranging roundtable on the future of CPG.
The starting point was Michael's working definition of retail — not one channel, but all of them at once: e-commerce, in-store, marketplaces, and everything in between. From there the panel dug into how quickly the shelf is moving, and the question underneath the whole conversation: how do brands stay relevant when the ground keeps shifting?
Who was on the panel
Caroline Grace , Founder & CEO of Product & Prosper, operates a portfolio of companies that build, grow, and invest in product-based businesses — especially CPG, food and beverage, and wellness. Her focus is rebuilding a brand's foundation so it can scale across omnichannel retail, which for her means Amazon and chain and physical retail like Whole Foods.
She came in optimistic about what is happening across CPG heading into trade show season.
Sam Hager , Co-Founder & CEO of MixShift, builds the backend for Amazon growth, working with agencies and with brands that want to own their own data and processes. After more than a decade in the space — including running his own agency — he brought the operator's view of what actually scales and what quietly breaks.
John Gargiulo , Founder & CEO of Airpost, rounded out the panel with the brand and creative side of the equation.
Key takeaways
- Retail is not one channel — e-commerce, in-store, and marketplaces all move together.
- Rebuild the brand foundation before scaling omnichannel: Amazon and physical retail.
- Own your data and processes; borrowed systems are what quietly break at scale.
- Creative and brand storytelling are growth levers, not afterthoughts.