Pronouns: he/him

Ryan Pintado-Vertner is a Chicago-based Activist and Strategic Marketing Impact Expert with two decades of experience guiding Fortune-level brands, building startups, and leading nonprofit organizations. Ryan also served as Mission Partners’ inaugural Social Entrepreneur in Residence from 2022-2024. He remains an active member of our senior consulting team.

Ryan believes it’s not enough to create yet another brand in the marketplace; we have to go beyond the basics to create brands with empathy, purpose, and vision—brands that will bring more justice, regeneration, equity, and wellness to the world.

He is the Founder & CEO at Smoketown, a boutique brand consultancy whose fractional CMO services and strategy practice help mission-driven consumer brands maximize their growth and build more traction while having a transformative social and climate impact. In 2022, Smoketown is celebrating its fourth year of leading change for over 40 brands.