SKU has hired veteran consumer-product leader and SKU mentor Buff Greebe as Executive Director of the nation’s leading CPG accelerator.
“Buff brings a fresh perspective, strategic vision, and a wealth of experience to an organization,” says SKU Board Member Rick Ressler. “As a SKU mentor for previous tracks, Buff understands the unique value that SKU brings to both the startups participating in SKU as well as the CPG leaders who work with them.”
Greebe is a seasoned executive with more than 35 years of experience in the CPG and consumer healthcare (CH) industry. He has held senior leadership positions at some of the world’s most iconic companies, including Unilever, Coca-Cola, Bunge, Novartis, and GSK, in ten different countries across Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Greebe started his career at Andersen Consulting and, in 2017, co-founded a boutique consultancy firm in Austin, TX, which specializes in helping CPG clients scale their businesses faster in the U.S. market.
“Buff understands the unique value that SKU brings to both the startups participating in SKU as well as the CPG leaders who work with them.”
“Throughout my career, I have seen the CPG industry from every angle, as a senior executive, consultant, investor, and mentor”, says Greebe, Executive Director at SKU. “I am excited about being able to leverage this experience in this new role. SKU has a stellar reputation and track record, and I am truly honored to be given the opportunity to lead SKU and work with the team and its network of founders, mentors and investors.”
Greebe’s participation as a mentor has provided him with a unique perspective on the needs of startups and the rewards for those mentoring them. His contributions have been invaluable to the founders he has worked with.
“Buff’s knowledge, experience and business IQ are off the charts>”
“Buff had an essential role in our business growth and success throughout the cohort, and the months that followed,” says Kacey Witte, founder of Growth Spurt Nutrition, a goat-milk toddler formula. “Buff’s knowledge, experience, and business IQ are off the charts.”
Greebe joins Chief Marketing Officer Michelle Breyer and Program Directors Brooke Wilson and Maddie Serviente on the leadership team.
SKU is a powerful force on the national consumer-packaged goods scene.The accelerator helps startups with their overall strategy, equipping them with the resources and relationships they need to successfully scale.
SKU runs multiple 12-week tracks a year, which includes a best-in-class curriculum on such key topics as marketing and sales strategy, supply chain, branding, financial planning and raising money.
SKU’s biggest differentiator is the mentor community, which includes leaders at such companies as Coca-Cola, 7-Eleven and General Mills as well as successful founders, investors and subject-matter experts. Each brand is matched with a hand-picked team of mentors who work with them throughout the program. In addition to sharing their knowledge with the founders, mentors build valuable relationships with each other.
SKU was founded in 2011 by Shari Wynne Ressler, Clayton Christopher and Richard Ressler, supported by a group of CPG founders and investors, including Scott Jensen. Board members also include Doreen Lorenzo and Christine Mei. SKU’s track record speaks volumes and includes such brands as Siete Foods, EPIC Provisions, and DUDE Wipes. Of its impressive alumni lineup of 120 brands, over 80 percent are thriving to this day.