READ SPEAR Independent operator + advisor Oaxaca / MX

I help makecomplicated businesseseasier to see.

An outside view can help
the whole come into focus.

Start with the request ↓
Quick diagnostic

How can I help?

Choose what brought you here.

You say“We need a new website.”
I’m also looking at
  • The offer
  • Positioning
  • Product hierarchy
  • Decision journey
  • Operations

Sometimes the website is the problem. Sometimes it is where a larger problem becomes visible.

You say“The brand isn’t landing.”
I’m also looking at
  • Who it is for
  • Why it exists
  • Market contrast
  • Product truth
  • Internal alignment

Distinction usually begins with a business decision, then becomes a design decision.

You say“We have a product idea.”
I’m also looking at
  • The actual customer
  • Production
  • Compliance
  • Margin
  • Route to market

A good concept also has to work in production, regulation, and the market.

You say“We need to get this out.”
I’m also looking at
  • Sequence
  • Dependencies
  • Claims
  • Channel
  • What can wait

Launch problems often begin earlier than they first appear.

You say“Everything takes more effort than it should.”
I’m also looking at
  • Handoffs
  • Ownership
  • Incentives
  • Information
  • Tools + feedback

Sometimes the problem isn’t a person or a product. It’s the way the parts interact.

Method

It’s hard to see the machine when you’re knee-deep in the gears.

I don’t arrive with a process that assumes the answer.

I can work across the gaps between the people already involved.

And sometimes the website really isn’t the problem.

Selected projects

The work, in context

I look at how the parts affect one another before deciding which part to change.

Founder-ledSpirits / importing / brandLive ↗

Tso’ok Rum

Oaxacan mountain rum

Cloud forest in the Sierra Mixe mountains of Oaxaca
Sierra Mixe / Oaxaca / source region
Context
Remarkable cane spirit. Remote producers. No established path to the U.S. market.
System in play
Producers → product → compliance → importing → distribution → brand
Role
Discovery / producer relationships / product / brand / importing / route to market / digital
Public result
VinePair Top 50 Spirits of 2023.
ClientCannabis / CPG / digitalLive ↗

Summit Made

Colorado cannabis

Cannabis plants growing at the Summit Made facility
Colorado / cultivation facility
Context
Established operator preparing its brand and product portfolio for a more competitive market.
System in play
Cultivation → product portfolio → positioning → retail → customer
Role
Positioning / product naming + architecture / copy / creative direction / digital
Public work
A clearer platform around purity, provenance, and products made for the life around them.
ClientAg-tech / commercial storyLive ↗

DAGDA AgMix

Automated cultivation system

DAGDA AgMix automated cultivation mixing system
Hardware / software / operations
Context
A capable technical system whose value depended on how hardware, software, operators, and economics worked together.
System in play
Recipe → equipment → operator → crop consistency → economics
Role
Positioning / information architecture / economic tools / customer story / copy / digital
Public work
A sales experience organized around repeatability, confidence, and measurable return.
ClientHospitality / placeLive ↗

Tobacco River Ranch

Eureka / Montana

Landscape at Tobacco River Ranch in Montana
450 acres / 2 miles of river / 6 stays
Context
Six unusual accommodations encountered mainly as individual rental listings.
System in play
Place → stays → guest expectations → booking → operations
Role
Destination positioning / experience architecture / copy / booking journey / digital
Public work
One hospitality story grounded in river, privacy, dark skies, and whole-ranch gatherings.
ClientCannabis / operations / servicesLive ↗

Camaraderie Group

Operator-led cannabis services

Cultivation facility canopy, lighting, ventilation, and environmental controls
Operations / facilities / production
Context
Years of operating knowledge lived across services, products, people, facilities, and results.
System in play
Facilities → people → production → products → proof → services
Role
Positioning / offer architecture / information architecture / copy / creative direction / digital
Public work
A service platform that makes the team’s practical experience and range easier to understand.
ClientHome fragrance / CPG / ecommerceLive ↗

Sacred Wild Goods

Intention candles / Montana

Sacred Wild Goods intention candles arranged with dried botanicals
Scent / intention / ritual goods
Context
An established maker with a deep catalog and a distinctive world that needed a clearer way to shop.
System in play
Intention → scent → catalog → navigation → purchase
Role
Ecommerce strategy / information architecture / copy / creative direction / Shopify
Public work
A more legible storefront organized around scent, intention, and the feeling of a room.
Built from the inside

Not just the wrapper.

Products developed, sourced, shaped, launched, and carried into the market.

Cuentacuentos

Legacy agave spirits

Tipo Bueno

Mezcal for the round

El Barro

Mezcal de la casa

Tso’ok

Oaxacan mountain rum
Operating history

I’ve spent a long time inside complicated businesses.

Whole Health Discount Center

Seven years running an early online dietary-supplement store / millions of consumer products sold / product research / copy / compliance / data / fulfillment / operations / acquisition

Cannabis

Ownership / cultivation / products / licensing / books / special projects

Spirits

Producers / product development / importing / distribution / fundraising / market

Everything between departments

Hospitality / ag-tech / systems / positioning / digital / getting it done

In public

Some of it is on the record.

Writing + appearances →
Book

Marijuana Cultivation Reconsidered

Amazon ↗ By Read

The good, the bad, and the funky

Mezcalistas ↗ Feature

Following mezcal’s footsteps, Mexican rum is on the rise

PUNCH ↗
Start hereAvailable for projects and ongoing work

Tell me what’s
not working.

If the parts seem reasonable but the whole still isn’t working, I’d be glad to take a look with you.

Read Spear speaking in the doorway of a rural production site in Oaxaca
Read Spear / Oaxaca
Start a conversation ↗
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