Promoting Culinary Brands, Partnerships and Talent.
We are a highly-specialized marketing company focused exclusively on food and beverage brands. We have a decade of experience working with category leaders, from cast iron cookware to kamado-style grills, poultry to peanuts, beef to bourbon, ice cream to Italian amaro. If a brand names come to mind, it’s probably one of our partners. While all of our client brands share a common industry, our approach to each brand is as unique as the journey that brought us here. To read more of the GUMBO story, click here.
Our Services
From day one, GUMBO Marketing has been client-led in both our focus and priorities. Our evolution has been 100% in response to the marketing needs of our client partners. The name GUMBO represents the rich mix of marketing disciplines and decades of experience we bring to our business relationships. Over the past decade, we’ve expanded into new marketing disciplines and acquired new resources. This has allowed us to take a fully-integrated marketing approach to the programs we develop and manage. Scroll down for more information on the services we currently offer.
Our History
In 2010, Ted Nelson revolutionized marketing in the Food and Beverage space with a very simple premise: consumers are influenced by the ingredients and tools they see their favorite chefs working with. When you combine this with growing consumer demand to know more about their food, Nelson reasoned that respected chefs are the ones best suited to inform and inspire consumers on food-related topics. Afterall, they’re the ones that possess the knowledge, skills and credibility that equates to awareness, trust and preference. This is how GUMBO Marketing was born. To learn more about our history, click here.
Our Leadership
Ted Nelson, Founder/Director of Strategic Partnerships
There’s a simple reason GUMBO Marketing is truly unique in the world of food and beverage: It’s the direct result of our founder, Ted Nelson, and the unique professional experience and instincts he has developed over the past 3 decades of working with national and international brands. Read more about Ted’s experience by clicking here.
Lael Fredsell, Director of Food & Beverage Programs
With a solid background in high-profile event management, Lael’s creativity and capacity for logistics have allowed GUMBO Marketing to excel in the experiential marketing space. His impressive knowledge of beverage brands and the post-prohibition, craft cocktail movement have earned him the respect of top bartenders across the country. Learn more about Lael’s experience by clicking here.
Roland Alonzi, Director of Media Relations
Roland has an extensive resume, highlighted by many major PR successes from his work in Travel/Tourism and destination branding. During his twenty-six year career, Roland has done more than just earn his clients coverage from high-profile, national media outlets. He is also well-seasoned in both media training and crisis management. He has become a go-to resource for clients who are looking to navigate today's always-on, digital environment. Learn more about Roland’s experience by clicking here.
James Williams, Director of Finance
James combines the discipline of military service, the empathy of a food service professional and the business savvy of an entrepreneur. He is an eternal student of innovation and technology as they apply to financial systems and procedures. James is our beacon of accountability, a trait that he personifies rather than preaches about. He is a major reason for the deep-seated trust we enjoy in our client and vendor relationships
He has used his financial success in the Mental Healthcare Industry as a platform to teach those who need basic money management and financial planning skills. He has been a member of the GUMBO Marketing team for 4 years.
Our Brand Partners
GUMBO Marketing works with an enviable portfolio of premium culinary brands. We are small by design, which means our clients are accustomed to working almost exclusively with senior members of our staff. This, in addition to our extremely high standards and the intense, strategic focus behind our creative approaches are why these brands consider us partners rather than vendors. We feel the same way!
Our Restaurant Partners
The pandemic has forced many restaurants to scale back their marketing activities (many parted ways with their PR firms altogether.) GUMBO responded by making critical PR services available to independent restaurants at a substantially discounted rate. Based on the success of this initiative, we now represent a small handful of leading, chef-driven restaurants across the South. We’re proud to call them partners!
Contact us
Our business development model is entirely referral-based. That said, we are happy to answer any questions regarding our capabilities, experience or programs currently in the market. All questions should be directed to ted@gumbomarketing.com.
