Brett Arndt has always loved a story and finding the most unique way to tell that story led him through multiple startups in his early 20s, working across customer service, marketing and business development. After his tenure with early-stage companies, Arndt went out on his own and founded Experience Fresh in 2011, where he serves as CEO.
Experience Fresh is a full-service digital marketing agency that creates the most unique digital experiences for innovative brands and businesses of all shapes and sizes that drive emotional connection and trust between brands and their customers.
Under Arndt’s leadership, the firm has transitioned from building in-house agency teams and leading creative and marketing strategies for dozens of organizations to launching an in-house digital division with an increased focus on progressing toward an agile, highly creative output. In 2021, the agency accelerated growth, scaling from four team members to 16 over 18 months and doubling down on a minority acquisition model in boutique, founder-led high impact agencies. Today, Experience Fresh is a team of 23 and is continuing to scale and expand its services and reach coast to coast.
“Brett exemplifies exceptional leadership in the way that he makes people the center and focus of all that he does,” said his staff. “He puts people first – in the way he leads his team and company; in how he builds client brands and champions client relationships; and in how he differentiates the agency model.”
His efforts have led to building an impressive portfolio of experience, triple-digit growth year over year since 2019 for the company and recognition as a 40 under 40 in 2022 by the St. Louis Business Journal. Arndt also formed strategic partnerships with Los Angeles-based Buffalo8 and its parent company BondIt Media Capital.
According to Arndt, the hustle and investment has been worth every late night and long weekend as the company has grown through acquisition and seen 1,500% growth in three years. In addition, Experience Fresh has retained 100 percent ownership and full voting rights.
“The biggest risk we took when starting Experience Fresh was to bootstrap and double down in scaling and growing the company,” said Arndt. “What catalyzed our growth from consultancy to a full-service digital marketing agency was betting on ourselves, not bringing on outside capital, and hiring our first team members who took risks to be a part of something bigger.”
As a result, Arndt has found renewed success in the industry and as a leader, as well as recognition as a Titan 100.
