The CPG Guys Expands a $20,000 Podcast Into a Commerce Platform

By James Calloway

Retailers will pay $20,000 to pitch retail media or data on The CPG Guys, according to the show, as the 2020 podcast expands into a broader commerce platform.

Retail veterans Sri Rajagopalan and Peter V.S. Bond founded The CPG Guys in 2020. The founders will acquire two executive share groups from CPG marketing veteran Ken Coogan’s Coogan Partners and launch a new show. The CPG Guys describe both developments as part of a larger effort to position the podcast as a brand for commerce executives.

The expansion also introduces a direct charge for some guest appearances. The $20,000 fee applies when retailers appear on the show to pitch services such as retail media or data, according to The CPG Guys.

Why are Bond and Rajagopalan expanding the format?

Bond and Rajagopalan started The CPG Guys in 2020 to educate and talk with fellow retail executives. Since then, the hosts have interviewed executives at large consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands, startups, retailers and vendors.

Companies in the interview roster include Walmart, Pernod Ricard and Ibotta. The show has also attracted almost 50,000 followers on LinkedIn, giving the founders an audience built around their retail-industry conversations.

The CPG Guys describe the acquisitions and new program as an extension of that base. Their larger goal is to make the podcast a broader brand for commerce executives rather than leave the business centered on one show.

The new show is the clearest format expansion. The executive share groups add a second type of offering, although the available details do not set out their membership, pricing or launch schedule.

How does the paid-guest model fit?

Retailers that appear to pitch retail media or data will be charged $20,000, according to The CPG Guys. The fee creates a defined paid category within a show aimed at retail and commerce executives.

The available details do not address charges for retailer appearances that do not pitch those services. They also do not disclose revenue projections for the new show and share groups.

That limited disclosure leaves the size of the opportunity untested in public. The announced expansion has three parts:

• The acquisition of two executive share groups from Coogan Partners.
• The launch of a new show.
• A $20,000 charge for retailer appearances tied to retail media or data pitches.

The founders have built the expansion on assets they can point to now: an interview roster spanning Walmart, Pernod Ricard and Ibotta, plus an audience of almost 50,000 LinkedIn followers.

What is the point of building a brand?

The CPG Guys say the goal is to position “the podcast as a brand.” That language covers three different structures: original podcast episodes, a new show and executive share groups.

The strategy also uses the founders’ existing network of CPG industry interviews. Bond and Rajagopalan’s guest list includes executives at large CPG brands, startups, retailers and vendors, with Walmart, Pernod Ricard and Ibotta among the names.

No audience or revenue targets accompany the announcement. The founders have not said how many members the two share groups will have, what they will cost or when the new show will begin. Those details will determine how quickly the broader brand can add activity beyond the original LinkedIn following.

For commerce executives, the immediate change is concrete: the 2020 podcast is set to become a package that includes a new show, two incoming executive share groups and a $20,000 retailer appearance model. The next test is whether those additions can turn The CPG Guys’ existing reach into sustained participation and revenue.