ABOUT
F&C'S STORY
Front & Center began the way many good businesses do — building the plane after takeoff with bubblegum, paperclips, a hope and a prayer.
I started the firm in 2016 after stiletto-sprinting through an international litigation firm, a mid-market tech company, and an early-stage startup.
I didn't come up through an agency. I learned by getting my hands on the work — as an intrapreneur, then as a founder — and getting a front row seat to decisions, deadlines, and consequences.
What I found, across every industry and stage I worked in, was the same through line. Founders didn't need more strategy decks, repackaged problems, or blue-sky planning sessions. They needed help making the hard calls.
What to move on. When to wait. Where to pivot.
So I built a practice around exactly that.
In 2022, I co-founded a sister firm to handle execution at scale. That chapter deepened my understanding of how I work best — and sharpened my clarity on what F&C is at its core. The through line was always the same: senior-level strategy, embedded client partnerships, and the kind of trusted advisor relationship that actually moves things forward.
Today, Front & Center operates as a principal-led fractional CMO and personal brand advisory practice — selective by design, serious about fit, and built around the belief that the right partner at the right moment changes everything.
Success, to me, looks like leaving you calm, steady, and confident. Think of me as another adult in the room — helping you make better decisions when the stakes are high and the road ahead isn't obvious.
VISION
F&C exists for the founder who is done doing this alone — and ready for a partner who actually gives a damn about what they're building.
Not a vendor. Not a consultant who disappears after the deck. A trusted advisor who shows up, holds the whole picture, and helps you build something worth standing behind.
MEET MARY BETH
Let's get to know each other. I'll go first.
Fifteen-plus years in brand and marketing. Two businesses of my own. More war stories than I can responsibly tell at a first meeting — though wine helps.
I founded Front & Center in 2016 after a late-night curtain call on a startup I'd helped build from the ground up as employee #5. No severance. No safety net. Just rent due, fur babies to feed, and a decision to make.
So I sent 10 emails. Offered to write blogs, design social posts, draft site copy — whatever would move the needle and get me through the next month.
By December, I was in the black and filing my LLC.
What started as a bridge became the best work of my life.
Front & Center has since partnered with 50+ founder-led businesses — lawyers, designers, service providers, retailers — helping turn big ideas and eye sparkles into something that actually holds up in the real world.
Across every engagement, my role has stayed the same.
I see the board. I calm the room. I help leaders make decisions when the stakes are high and the widgets are gone.
When I'm not doing that, you'll find me under a barbell, bopping around Park Circle with my three rescue pups, or talking shop with my DevOps husband over a glass of red.
He builds systems. I build brands. We make it work.
