Who We Are

Russ has led high performance teams and advised leading companies throughout the CPG industry including manufacturers, retailers, and suppliers. He has developed notable expertise synthesizing category and shopper insights to create and drive innovate go-to-market solutions at retail.

At Nestle and Campbell Soup Russ led large centralized teams spanning category leadership and shopper insights functions. At IRI he built up the alcoholic beverage practice, led the Safeway team during the formative stages of category management, and helped launch Safeway’s first commercial application of loyalty marketing.

Russ has been a retail strategy consultant for several of the world’s largest food and beverage companies. He is a graduate of Stanford University in economics and political science. He lives in downtown Toronto with his wife and youngest daughter.

Michelle is a market research professional with 25 years of collective experience on the client side of General Mills and as a supplier with well-known companies such as GfK and Research International. She has recently worked across various industries with leading companies such as Pfizer, Mondelez, Nestle Purina, Nestle USA, Nestle Waters, Abbott Nutrition, Dole, Hain Celestial, etc.

Michelle’s experience in research design, implementation, project management, and analysis is a tremendous asset to the success of her clients’ projects.

Michelle has a B.S. in Marketing from the University of Central Missouri. She lives in downtown Kansas City where she is also involved in real estate rentals.

Brad has over 15 years of experience designing and managing large scale shopper insights initiatives for the world’s largest brands. He specializes in developing creative research solutions and turning complex data into compelling, persuasive stories for C-level executives and functional leaders.

Brad has experience both on the client side and the supplier side, working extensively across CPG as well as food service, telecom, financial services and transportation & logistics. he has developed trusted long-term relationships with a range of companies including Nestle, PepsiCo, Heinz, Intuit, McCormick, SC Johnson, Verizon, and others.

Brad is a graduate of the University of Florida with a degree in advertising. He lives in the suburbs of Kansas City with his wife and two children.

Maggie is a marketing strategy and consumer insights executive with over 25 years of client-side experience in brand management and market research at some of the world’s largest CPG companies. She is passionate about synthesizing, learning, and developing strategic action plans to address business challenges. She is widely recognized by her colleagues for her action-orientation.

Maggie led the creation of the Market Intelligence Center of Excellence at Nestlé Dreyer’s Ice Cream. At Nestlé SA, she led an Insights team that launched effective category growth initiatives including shopper-based assortment and arrangement principles.

Maggie holds a BS in Marketing and Finance and MBA from the University of California at Berkeley. She lives in Walnut Creek, California with her husband and has two sons in college.

Josh has 15+ years of experience connecting brands with their customers, leveraging a variety of custom market research solutions to drive marketing ROI. With a primary focus on communications optimization, he has delivered actionable insights across a number of verticals, including Financial Services, Automotive, Healthcare, and Alcoholic Beverage.

Josh's strength lies in his ability to see the "big picture" and to turn "numbers into stories" - allowing clients to more directly affect change in their organizations. He most recently built a global ad tracking program and analytical framework for a large automotive manufacturer across four continents.

Josh is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison with degrees in Marketing and Finance. Originally from the New York City area, he lives in the Chicago suburbs with his wife and three young children.

Nikki is a recognized and proven influential leader driving cross-functional decisions via a strategic, solution-oriented aptitude. With over 25 years of experience, she identifies growth opportunities by translating insights into action. She has cross-industry experience, both globally and in the US. Nikki is valued as a trusted partner/consultant credited with growing, managing and retaining partnerships.

Nikki’s client- and agency-side experience at companies such as Mondelez International and Circana powers her ability to see the big picture. Nikki uncovers the true problem to solve, identifies the best approach to generate solutions, and specializes in illuminating insights through compelling stories. Additionally, Nikki has created and led immersive experiences that drive a deeper understanding of stakeholders to inspire meaningful action.

Nikki earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Montclair State University with a double concentration in Marketing and Management. Nikki resides in New Jersey with her husband and son.

Larry is a Category Management & Shopper Insights professional with over 35 years of experience across major CPG companies (Kraft Foods, Coca-Cola, Heineken, and the Boston Beer Company) that span 17 categories and multiple supply chain environments. His expertise is in retailer collaboration, leading teams, and strategic thought leadership. Additionally, Larry has worked in pricing analytics and trade promotion management.

Larry most recently spent 9 years at the Boston Beer Company where he led the effort to build category management & shopper insights teams and capabilities. The primary focus was turning data into insights and implications supporting sales & marketing teams.

Larry has been an active member with the Category Management & Shopper Insights Association since 2010, presenting at multiple conferences and leading peer network groups. He has also served on the Shopper Insights Management Association (SIMA) advisory board since 2020. He graduated from Northeastern University with a BS degree in marketing and resides in the New York area with his wife.

Ken entered the world of CPG as a Senior Market Research Manager at ConAgra in the 1990s. He has also worked in advanced analytics at Liberty Mutual, Hughes Aircraft, and Encirq, where he was Director of Quantitative Marketing.

For the last 15 years Ken has run his own consulting practice called KMS Analytics, with expertise in statistical and econometric modeling and quantitative marketing research including segmentation, target marketing, test design, etc. His work spans multiple industries including CPG, telecom, pharmaceuticals, health care, financial services, etc.

Erin is an experienced market research project manager with a track record of success based on over a hundred diverse research initiatives. She has led studies ranging from Decision Trees, innovation assessment, package testing, and shelf arrangement for CPG firms of all sizes and across all categories.

On each project, Erin strives to deliver excellence throughout the process to ensure we deliver quality work in a timely manner. She takes pride in carefully thinking through the design to make sure our insights will prove actionable to our clients.

Erin became interested in market research during her undergraduate studies, where she majored in Marketing. She earned her MBA from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. She lives on the outskirts of Kansas City in Missouri with her husband and two children.

As the Director of Operations, Nicole assumes a central role in ensuring the seamless operation of our organization. Her responsibilities encompass a spectrum of crucial tasks, including but not limited to, coordinating resource allocations, overseeing comprehensive financial management, aiding in contract administration, and steering human resource initiatives.

Prior to her current role, Nicole served as a Senior Marketing Research Analyst, where she was the primary day-to-day point of contact for our consumer-packaged goods clients. Formerly, she garnered experience across various sectors within the marketing research industry, encompassing CGP research, B2B food/beverage and packaging research, as well as qualitative and quantitative telephone interviewing methodologies.

Nicole earned her Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Central Missouri. Presently, she lives in the Kansas City vicinity with her family.

Haley has a passion for discovering and connecting trends in data to tell a cohesive story. Her range of research experience across multiple industries, along with her specialized master’s degree allow her to view projects from a unique perspective.

Haley has worked on large-scale B2B research studies for Anheuser-Busch and has also developed custom market studies to support strategy development for ambulatory surgery centers in the healthcare space. She is skilled in all stages of a marketing research project including client management, research design, and data analytics.

Haley earned her B.S. in Marketing, and a Master of Marketing Research from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where she ran competitively at the NCAA Division 1 level. She now lives in Nashville, TN and enjoys exploring the city, hiking, and training for marathons.

Derrick has 15 years of combined experience on the client and supplier sides executing research projects in B2C and B2B.

Derrick specializes in complex data analysis and translating that complexity into something that can be easily understood for his clients. Prior to his time in B2B, he spent nine years working across multiple industries with companies such as Nestle Purina, Nestle USA, Pfizer and Abbott Nutrition.

Derrick has an MBA and B.S. in Marketing Research from Missouri State University. He lives on the outskirts of Kansas City with his wife and three children.

Cici is interested in furthering her knowledge and experience in data analysis and consumer insights. A highly motivated and detail-oriented individual, she strives to assist clients in visualizing success and identifying effective solutions for their business goals. Cici was previously involved in creative academic research at post-secondary institutions.

Cici has a B.A. in Political Science from Wilfrid Laurier University and is a recent graduate of the Research Analyst program at Humber College. She resides in Toronto, Ontario and enjoys spending her free time journaling, playing classical music, and rollerblading or ice-skating.

Luis is delighted to continue advancing his data analysis skills and market research techniques with Vista Grande. In previous roles, he has focused on market analysis in a wide range of industries. Luis is proficient at working in multicultural and international teams across multiple time zones.

Luis earned his B.S. in Business Administration from the University of South Florida and a Master of Global Business from the University of Victoria. He now lives in Toronto and enjoys doing Brazilian Jiujitsu, where he holds the rank of purple belt.

Kristina has a particular interest in human perspective. She harnesses this passion into the shopper's perspective in market research. Her previous experience is in survey design and technical analysis.

Kristina earned a B.Sc in Neuroscience with a minor in Computer Science at the University of Guelph. Her education has provided foundations in psychology, user research, and statistics– all which she leverages in being critical and holistic about market research. Outside of work, Kristina likes to paint, hike, and experiment with cooking new recipes.

Leo is leading the charge to bring survey programming in-house at Vista Grande. He has been a programmer in the market research industry for over a decade. His projects include a wide range of industries such as consumer goods, healthcare, and financial services where he has helped transform client surveys into actionable data.

Leo has experience setting up industry tools from conjoints, maxdiffs, and segmentation algorithms to shelf and hotspot exercises. He has also developed and built various custom solutions to ensure client requirements are met.

Leo has a B.Eng. from McMaster University in Hamilton. He currently lives in Toronto where he enjoys playing volleyball and staying active.

Shavin is an experienced market research professional and has gained over six years of expertise across various industries, primarily focusing on the consumer-packaged goods industry. He has played a crucial role in assisting clients with their marketing and branding strategies, helping them make well-informed decisions to foster future growth.

Shavin earned a Masters in Business Administration from Christ University, India. He developed a keen interest in market research during his academic years and conducted thorough studies to understand consumer behavior patterns. Since then, he has dedicated his career to assisting businesses in making well-informed decisions based on actionable insights derived from data.

Currently residing in Ottawa, Ontario with his wife, Shavin enjoys exploring the area's breathtaking landscapes on hiking and camping trips.

Thomas is a passionate digital creative and marketing specialist, originally from Melbourne, Australia. His sharp good’eye (mate) helps ensure our content and marketing material is of the highest quality. He has experience branding, designing, and writing for well-known household names.

A jack-of-all-trades, Thomas’ first job as a teen was at a grocery store as a shelf stacker where he gained an early appreciation for consumer-packaged goods. He went on to work his creative magic as a professional musician on cruise ships before diving into the vast depths of web development, design, and copywriting.

Thomas earned his B.A. in Sociology from Macquarie University, Sydney. He lives with his wife in Vancouver, Washington and likes to spend time staying fit, cooking, and playing music.

Hunter is someone that seeks to answer any and all questions. His analytical mindset drives his passion and curiosity in the data analysis and consumer insight environments. His previous experience with customer data in the financial and education industries has molded a very detail-oriented, legible framework that he strives to carry into Vista Grande.

Hunter obtained his B.S. in both Marketing and Information Technology & Analytics from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. Immediately after, he pursued his Masters in Information Technology, which was completed in August of 2023. He resides in northeastern Pennsylvania and enjoys kayaking, board/card games, and trying coffee beans from around the world.

Meghan is an experienced research analyst with several years working in a variety of industries, primarily automotive. She has an interest in consumer shopping behaviors and is excited to broaden her knowledge in CPG. Meghan loves working in market research because she is able to provide clients with meaningful insights to help grow their business.

Meghan earned her B.S. in Marketing from Central Michigan University. She is a native Michigander and now lives in the Metro Detroit area. When not at work, Meghan enjoys reading, traveling to new cities, and spending time with family.