New CMO, Proven Playbook
Catalina Crunch has appointed Charlotte Mostaed as Chief Marketing Officer, adding a packaged-goods veteran to its leadership bench as the better-for-you snack brand pushes past 30,000 retail doors nationwide. The hire signals the Indianapolis-based company is shifting from founder-led growth into a more structured omnichannel expansion phase — a transition that has direct implications for convenience channel buyers watching the better-for-you snack set.
Mostaed joins from Health-Ade Kombucha, where as CMO she oversaw brand marketing, e-commerce, direct-to-consumer, consumer insights, innovation, media, and creative. During her tenure, the brand's revenue doubled, household penetration climbed to millions of additional consumers, and Health-Ade rose to the No. 2 kombucha position in the U.S. Her work also helped position the company for its acquisition by Generous Brands. Earlier in her career she held senior marketing roles at POM Wonderful and Procter & Gamble, building brand strategy and go-to-market programs across national and global portfolios. Ad Age named her to its 40 Under 40 class in 2023.
What She'll Oversee
In her new role, Mostaed will lead brand and creative, category management, consumer insights, direct-to-consumer, and omnichannel strategy for Catalina Snacks. The appointment comes as the company rolls out Snack Size Multipacks — a format increasingly relevant to the convenience channel, where grab-and-go packaging and portion control are consistent inside-sales drivers. The c-store channel's better-for-you snack segment has expanded steadily over the past several years as operators upgrade their packaged snack sets to meet demand from health-conscious, on-the-go shoppers.
"As we scale beyond 30,000 retail doors and continue to expand our portfolio, we need a marketer who's built this kind of growth engine before — and that's exactly what she did at Health-Ade," said Doug Behrens, CEO of Catalina Snacks. "She has a rare ability to turn consumer insight into brand momentum."
Channel Implications
For c-store operators, the Catalina Crunch story is worth tracking for two reasons. First, the brand's protein-forward, lower-sugar positioning maps directly onto the better-for-you snack trends NACS data has flagged as a consistent inside-sales growth driver. Second, the Snack Size Multipack launch gives category managers a new entry price point and a pack format suited to the forecourt impulse purchase. Brands that crack omnichannel scale — meaning credible DTC data layered onto mass and natural retail velocity — tend to arrive at convenience chain buyers with stronger sell-in stories and more refined planogram recommendations.
Mostaed's mandate will be to sharpen that story. "Catalina Crunch has built an incredible brand at the intersection of taste, nutrition and a clear consumer need," she said. "I'm excited to expand how we connect with consumers, strengthen our brand storytelling and reach new audiences."
For operators building out their better-for-you snack sets or evaluating emerging CPG brands for the c-store shelf, Catalina Crunch's retail footprint and new marketing leadership make it a supplier to watch heading into 2027 planogram resets.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
