Karan Cushman | CEO, Brand Strategy
As Brand Strategist, Karan’s role is to ignite an emotional connection between a brand and its consumers to drive business forward. Through her direction, the Cushman Creative team focuses on developing integrated solutions that drive engagement, garner support and build brand leadership.
With more than two decades of experience, Karan is a marketing veteran who has spent the majority of her career immersed in the health, life science and biomedical industries. She received degrees in design and photography from Rochester Institute of Technology in New York. Her award-winning creative in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries has been recognized globally.
In 2006 Karan’s biomedical work became a personal mission when she was diagnosed with cancer shortly after becoming a new mom. Months later Karan was a survivor and Cushman Creative — a marketing firm dedicated to helping Biomedical companies that make a difference thrive — was born.
Karan’s extensive experience ranges from work with biotech leaders like Genzyme and Vertex to startups like Novo Biosciences. She has helped grassroots campaigns like ReMaine Healthy launch, non-profits like Make-A-Wish® raise the bar, institutions like The Jackson Laboratory grow into their own and life science brands like Lonza evolve over and over. She’s also worked with major consumer brands, including Coca-Cola and Delta.
Karan currently serves on the board of the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative and is a founding board member and Design for Good Director of AIGA Maine, the National Association for Design.
Being a Floridian first, Karan grew up around water, so you’ll usually find her near the open ocean. Whether she’s on a boat, a paddleboard or just sitting with her toes in the sand, the ocean feeds her soul. Lucky for her, she married a Maine lobsterman, had two amazing kids and found her calling in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.