Melina Polly
Marketing & Brand Consultant
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I build brands that drive business and shape culture. Over the past two decades, I’ve helped shape some of the most iconic names in tech and consumer — Apple, Airbnb, Adidas, and Headspace — and co-founded a purpose-led DTC startup from the ground up.
I’ve led marketing and creative organizations from startup to scale, teams from 2–350 people, managed global P&Ls, launched integrated campaigns, managed cross-functional teams, and guided companies through high-stakes moments including IPO. I’ve also built in-house agency models for Apple and Airbnb — bridging brand vision with operational execution and global delivery.
Career highlights include:
- Building and leading Apple’s international advertising through the iPhone and App Store era, creating a global agency network and leading all campaigns
- Leading Airbnb’s post-IPO brand transformation and scaling global marketing
- Co-founding Henry Rose, the first EWG and Cradle to Cradle certified fragrance brand (DTC/omnichannel)
- Repositioning Headspace to bring meditation into the cultural mainstream
Operating Expert Rating
Articles by Melina Polly
Finance 101 for Early Stage Startup Founders with Debbie Rosler
In this Mucker Growth Session, Debbie Rosler from Burkland dives into the fundamental financial best practices and infrastructure early -stage startups need to put in place. Finance 101: Why Should...
Engineering Customer & Product Feedback Loops with Holden Munson & Sofia Maravich
In this Mucker Growth session, Holden Munson and Sofia Maravich from Rethink Labs, explore how to develop a useful system of collecting customer data and integrating it into your team....
How Startups Can Win More Enterprise Deals Through Value Selling with Mike Genstil
In this Mucker Growth session, Mike Genstil with ValueCore delves into the concept of value selling and its application in enterprise sales. Delivering value at every touchpoint of...
How to Keep Your Emails Landing in the Inbox with Google’s Updated Spam Policies with Daniel-wise Ojaide
In this Mucker Growth session, Daniel-wise Ojaide from Warmbox.ai delves into the changes to Google and Yahoo’s updated spam policies and how to ensure your emails and outbound campaigns are...
Best Customers, Best Results: Unlocking Retention-Driven B2C Growth with Julius Lai
In this Mucker Growth session, Julius Lai from ArtShare discusses customer retention, which is often overlooked but essential for startups facing growth challenges. The following content will provide practical recaps...
Leveraging a Financial Model for Fundraising Success with Steven Plappert
In this Mucker Growth Session, Steven Plappert, CEO and co-founder of Forecastr, tackles how to use your financial model to the best capacity when fundraising. Your financial model can be...