INDEPENDENT, STRATEGIST, FUTURIST, RESEARCHER, FREELANCER
INDEPENDENT, STRATEGIST, FUTURIST, RESEARCHER, FREELANCER
Hey, nice to see you here.
About
Who I Am
I'm Christina Viana Mendes, an independent strategist, cultural futurist and researcher based in Brooklyn, New York.
I've spent the last twelve years supporting both early-stage founders and industry leaders during critical inflection points—launching a new brand or product, getting clear on who to build for, and anticipating the future demands of an evolving market.
What I Do
I do all the under the hood, heavy lifting when it comes to building the strategic foundations and future path of your brand:
Answering the questions keeping you up at night as a founder. Supplementing your pitch deck to VCs with the data needed to show you mean business. Bringing strategic rigor and insight to your leadership team to finally put an end to swirling internal conversations. Substantiating your intuitive hunches about the market with hard evidence. Illuminating the realities of your current or prospective customers to better resonate and grow. Scenario planning possible, probable and preferable futures to ensure you're always one step ahead.
My real value comes from years of hands-on experience at a Director+ level, leading strategic research initiatives on the agency side, and working independently as both an advisor and embedded strategist at companies of various stages and sizes—uniquely positioning me with the perspective and experience to provide the kind of holistic solutions that are typically expected of a larger consultancy or agency.
I work directly with my clients, who normally hire me for:
→ Brand / Product Positioning Research
→ Strategic Foresight & Cultural Analysis
→ Audience Identification & Illumination (Market Sizing, Segmentation)
→ Brand Health & Equity Tracking
→ Quantitative Research (Survey Design, Execution & Reporting)
→ Qualitative Research (In-Depth Interviews, Ethnographies)
I’m a seasoned generalist by design with deep experience in taking a team’s vision, early hunches, or big questions and helping turn that into a path toward the kind of clarity needed to take big bets and shape new markets.
Where I've Been
I have a B.S. in Advertising and Information Management & Technology from Syracuse University.
After starting my career in digital strategy at McCann Health (now IPG Health), I moved to New York to work in data strategy for Droga5 before opening Trestle, an independent practice, in 2021.
Collaborate
Foundations
Build a clear, evidence-based starting point so you no longer need to rely on thoughts and prayers.
Brand Positioning Research
Market Sizing
Audience Segmentation
Customer Deep Dives
Design Targets & Personas
Social Listening
Competitive Audit
Journey Mapping
Custom Qualitative Research
Custom Quantitative Research
Foresight
Identify emerging trends, anticipate disruptions, and develop robust strategies for long-term success.
Strategic Foresight
Trend Analysis & Curation
Scenario Planning
Figures
See what’s working and what's not, so every decision moves the needle for your business and brand.
Brand Health Tracking
Brand Equity Analysis
Creative & Concept Testing
Select Clients
Hims & Hers
Bandolier
REI Co-op
Bowery Farming
Renaissance Learning
Epidemic Sound
Weight Watchers
Evident
Coinbase
Taïm
Beautiful Destinations
FUNDAMENTALco
Blackstone
Rhyme & Reason
McCann New York
Accenture Song
LVMH
RIMOWA
Moët Hennessy
Dos Equis
Harley—Davidson
lululemon
Nordstrom
CoverGirl
WME Talent
Gucci Equilibrium
New Museum
The Africa Center
The Meteor
Google Pixel
Instagram
Thorne
Category Expertise
Health & Wellness
Luxury Goods
Technology
Retail
Tourism
CPG
Testimonials
Lauren Governale, Head of Customer Insights & UX Research at Hims & Hers
“Christina has been exceptional at listening to what our needs are, flexing when needed, has acted as a true expert, and brought a super strategic and tactical POV to H&H. Personally, she's helped educate and upskill me to brand health tracking and measurement, and has acted as an excellent partner as I navigate this new initiative. And, she's just a lovely person to work with!”
Frank Renwick, Head of Marketing & Brand at Bowery Farming
“Rigorous, creative and strategic all rolled into one is how I’d describe the experience and the outputs. Really nailed what we were looking for.”
Head of Consumer Research, Confidential Company
“We heard amazing reviews from leadership, her report was thorough yet so easy to digest. Her strategic approach to reporting was exactly what we needed to enable leadership to see the value of what we're doing and finally get it.”
Group Strategy Director, Confidential Ad Agency
“Christina has an incredible ability to take a task, see it for its parts, create a solid project plan and then drive forward pulling in the right cross-functional teams. She jumped right in, finding a vendor and creating qual and quant components to give us a solid understanding of the client’s industry, customer perception and to identify potential white space. This work resulted in a full-day workshop with our clients, where Christina presented well and received high regards from our client. Her drive and tenacity to look beyond the ask is impeccable.”
Samantha Smith, Sr. Brand Strategist at REI Co-op
“It was a great experience. Christina was clear in her approach to the work, adapted to our business needs, graciously worked within our budget parameters, and was very available and collaborative throughout our engagement. I was truly excited by the output.”
Head of Communications Strategy, Confidential Ad Agency
“Christina is a fabulous strategist. Her thorough research skills, out-of-the-box analytics solutions, and insightful takeaways were instrumental to crafting rigorous but interesting briefs and POVs.”
Let's work together.
General Inquiries:
hello@thisistrestle.com