Death Wish Coffee Co. has named Sasha Auguste as Chief Marketing Officer, adding a CPG operator with omnichannel and DTC experience to the Saratoga Springs-based brand's executive bench as it presses into a broader retail expansion. Auguste steps in to oversee marketing strategy, brand positioning, and digital initiatives at a brand now distributed in more than 25,000 stores nationwide and holding the top Fair Trade and Organic roasted coffee positions by SPINS MULO scan data as of December 2025.
Why the Hire Signals
Auguste arrives from YumEarth, where she led a full strategic repositioning of the better-for-you confectionery brand, built an innovation pipeline into new segments, and drove growth across DTC, Amazon, and key retail partners simultaneously. Before that, she repositioned the Kidfresh brand and launched its direct-to-consumer business. That track record — retailer relationship management, omnichannel architecture, and brand differentiation in competitive natural categories — maps directly onto the challenges facing a coffee brand trying to grow shelf presence while protecting a premium, mission-driven identity.
For operators and buyers watching the specialty and natural coffee shelf, this hire is a signal worth noting. The organic and Fair Trade premium coffee segment has grown increasingly competitive as private-label programs from major grocers improve in quality and mainstream roasters accelerate their certifications. Death Wish's move to install a CMO with proven retail-expansion and DTC credentials suggests the brand is prioritizing both wider distribution and deeper direct relationships with its consumer base — a dual-channel strategy that has become table stakes for natural food brands targeting $100 million-plus revenue thresholds.
What Operators Should Track
Integrated brand strategy hires at this level typically precede category review cycles, new SKU launches, or a shift in trade marketing spend. Foodservice buyers and retail category managers sourcing premium coffee should expect a more assertive presence from Death Wish at trade show floor activity and in buyer decks over the next 12 to 18 months. Steve Gardiner, CEO of Death Wish Coffee Co., noted the brand's intent to "up our game further" — language that signals investment in both trade and consumer marketing budgets.
For suppliers, packaging partners, and agency vendors tracking growth-stage CPG brands, Death Wish represents a well-established natural channel incumbent with the infrastructure to accelerate. Auguste's emphasis on innovation pipelines at prior brands suggests new product development is already in motion. Retail-ready packaging, e-commerce content optimization, and AI-driven personalization for DTC are all logical adjacent investments as the brand scales its marketing function under new leadership.
Brands managing similar omnichannel transitions — building retail velocity while sustaining DTC margins — can find relevant positioning and media strategy context in F&B Department's brand launch coverage and growth marketing intelligence.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
