Marketing Building Products: Storytelling, Sustainability, and AI Insights with Susan Fernandez
Marketing building products to architects and designers is more complicated than ever. In this episode of I Hear Design, host Robert Nieminen talks with Susan Fernandez, founder of Cast Carbon and partner at UpSpring, about what it really takes to break through the noise and connect with today’s A&D professionals.
From her early days branding pavers to launching circular materials at Cast Carbon, Susan shares why storytelling is crucial—even for the most utilitarian products—and how to craft a narrative that resonates with specifiers. She explains why Gen Z staffers, not firm principals, are driving product research, how AI is changing the way designers source and compare materials, and why transparency beats perfection when it comes to sustainability claims.
Plus, learn how something as simple as color branding (think: pink insulation) can make all the difference in standing out to overworked design professionals.
Meet Our Guest
Susan Fernandez, Senior Vice President, Marketing, UpSpring and Co-Founder, Cast Carbon
Susan is a Senior Vice President at UpSpring and a skilled brand strategist who specializes in helping her clients discover their unique voice and differentiate themselves in the competitive building and architectural product industry. By working closely with her clients, Susan uncovers their brand identity and develops comprehensive strategies that align with their business development goals.
Susan is also the Co-Founder of Cast Carbon, a pioneering startup focused on revolutionizing building materials with environmental sustainability. Cast Carbon’s innovative material, a type of “botanical cement,” uses minerals to bind plant matter into a solid form, merging the strengths of both the plant and mineral worlds. The result is a renewable, lightweight material that sequesters carbon while offering the durability, fire resistance, and stability of traditional mineral-based products.
