A Living Commerce Strategy Agency

Building Connected Commerce Strategies That Drive Growth

Why the Living Story Co.

A Living Commerce Strategy Agency.

Commerce isn’t static. Consumers and shoppers evolve. Retail ecosystems are reshaped. Media is being reinvented. Technology is redefining who wins.

In this environment, growth no longer comes from linear plans. It comes from operating effectively within complex, living commerce ecosystems—where consumers, shoppers, retailers, media, and technology continuously interact and evolve.

Our commerce consulting services enable organizations to build Future-Fit Living Commerce capabilities that foster long-term, sustainable growth in this new reality.

Who We Are

The Living Story Company is a boutique, independent commerce consulting agency that helps leading marketing and sales organizations strengthen their growth capabilities through best-in-class connected commerce strategies.

We operate as a global network of experienced independent consultants, bringing deep expertise across consumer behavior, shopper marketing, retail strategy, media, and commerce technology. Our model allows us to assemble the right expertise for each challenge while maintaining senior-level focus, flexibility, and speed.

We partner with organizations navigating complex, evolving commerce ecosystems—where consumers, shoppers, retailers, media, and technology continuously interact and reshape how growth is created.

Carl Preller

Meet the Founder

Based just outside New York City, Carl is an independent commerce consulting strategist with over 25 years of experience in building growth capabilities and leading organizational transformation across commerce, brand, shopper, and retail. He partners with senior leadership teams to unlock new sources of growth and translate marketing strategies into measurable commercial results.

Prior to establishing his own consultancy, Carl built a career spanning both the client and agency sides of the industry. He held senior marketing and sales leadership roles at Unilever, The Coca-Cola Company, and L’Oréal before moving into the global consulting and creative agency world. He has served in operating leadership roles with Kantar Consulting and WPP agencies, including Geometry Global (now VML Commerce) and, more recently, with TCC Loyalty Marketing, leading large teams through multi-market growth and transformation programs.

Today, Carl works globally with a curated network of senior independent and agency partners across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. Together, they help organizations design and execute growth strategies—modernizing capabilities, reshaping ways of working, and delivering sustained commercial impact for companies including L’Oréal, PepsiCo, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Mars Wrigley, Estée Lauder, LEGO, Under Armour, and Parkland.

Commerce Consulting Services

Our commerce consulting services are designed to help organizations anticipate change, define clear growth priorities, and activate connected strategies across the full commerce ecosystem.

Consumer & Shopper Future Insights & Trends

Future focussed consumer & shopper insights to lead category & brand growth planning

Category Vision & 3–5 Year Growth Drivers

Building your 3-5 year $Quantified Category Vision & Growth Drivers

Category & Portfolio Strategy

Unlocking Brand and Category Growth through Positioning, Product, Pack Architectures grounded in your Consumer Decision Hierarchy

Omni Connection Planning

Enabling audience driven, end to end, omni-channel brand media & touchpoint planning

Brand & Shopper Activation

Designing high impact brand activation that wins with consumers, shoppers and customers

Creative Services

Delivering organizational capability assessments and the development of training progarms to support Commerce team capabilities - including Customer Planning, Retail Media, Brand Building.

Strategic Customer Growth & Joint Business Planning

Driving best in class Customer Joint Business Planning

Retail Media Strategy & Planning

Building your Future Fit Retail Media Capabilities roadmap and organizing to win

ROI Measurement & Analytics

Integrated Marketing and Shopper Scorecards, Measurement and Analytics. We offer client services including brand look and shopper tool kits.

AI & Commerce Technology

Building best in class, AI enabled, Tech driven marketing and commercial plan processes. 

Commerce Training & Capability Building

Helping organizations build marketing and commercial capabilities through best in class team assessments frameworks and training programs. 

Who We Work With

We work with marketing, sales, and commercial leaders across a wide range of industries who are navigating growth in increasingly complex commerce environments such as PepsiCo, L'Oréal, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Haleon, Mars, Parkland, Estée Lauder, Under Armour, Lego, and others are some leading brands that have leveraged The Living Story Co. to enhance their organizational commerce capabilities.

Our partners typically include:

  • Global and regional brands
  • Sales and marketing organizations
  • Category and shopper marketing teams
  • Customer and retail strategy leaders
  • Organizations seeking to modernize commerce capabilities

We are especially well-suited for teams looking for senior-level thinking, practical guidance, and strategies built for long-term relevance—not short-term fixes.

How We Work

Our approach blends independent thinking, global experience, and hands-on collaboration.

We don’t apply rigid frameworks or one-size-fits-all solutions. Instead, we work alongside our clients to understand their unique challenges, priorities, and opportunities—then design strategies that fit their reality.

Every engagement is grounded in:

  • Deep insight and future-facing thinking
  • Connected strategies across consumers, shoppers, customers, media, and technology
  • Clear pathways from strategy to action
  • Practical tools and capabilities teams can sustain over time

This is where strategy becomes action—and where meaningful commercial progress begins.

Living Commerce

SERVICES

This is Where Strategy Becomes Action

We combine independent thinking with global experience to support meaningful commercial progress.