Bonin Bough

Bonin Bough is an accomplished marketing executive, best recognized as the host of CNBC’s "Cleveland Hustles" and the author of "Txt Me (646) 759-1837." Holding the record as the youngest C-suite executive at a Fortune 50 Company, he has worked for billion-dollar CPG brands such as Mondelez and PepsiCo before launching his own growth accelerator - Bonin Ventures. He also serves as a co-founder and advisor at Lockstep Ventures. Recently, Bough has taken on the role of Professor in Residence at TikTok, indicating his continued influence and relevance in the digital marketing sphere.

Throughout his career, Bough has spearheaded successful organization transformations and has played a key role in the rapid growth of globally beloved billion-dollar brands, including Oreo, Cadbury's, Pepsi, Gatorade, and Frito-Lay. His tenure as the Chief Growth Officer of SheaMoisture was particularly notable, wherein he led the company to grow by approximately 50% within 12 months, culminating in its acquisition by Unilever for close to $1 billion dollars. As a former Chief Strategy Officer at Wieden + Kennedy, New York, his expertise in leveraging the power of culture to influence behavior and inspire collective change further exemplifies his pivotal role in brand transformations.

As the former Chief Media Officer at Mondelez International, Bough was entrusted with managing over $3 billion dollars in media spend, ranking him as the seventh largest media buyer globally. He was instrumental in shifting the company's digital spending from 3% to over 32%, generating $2 billion in top-line net revenue and $300 million in bottom-line savings. His strategic initiatives have also led to Sour Patch Kids becoming the fastest-growing candy brand worldwide. During his stint as head of eCommerce, he successfully increased online sales from $65 million to $265 million within a span of 18 months.

Widely recognized for his expertise in innovation and mobile marketing, Bough has been honored with induction into the Advertising Hall of Achievement. His accomplishments have been highlighted in numerous notable lists, such as Fortune’s “40 under 40”, Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business, Ebony’s Power 100, and The Internationalist’s Internationalists of the Year. In 2020, Bough took up the role of Chief Growth Officer at Triller, a global social media platform, where he oversaw all revenue and marketing initiatives, continuing his legacy of fostering growth and success until 2022. Bough now serves as the co-founder and chief strategy officer at Group Black, one of the largest collectives of Black-owned media and diverse creators.