Oh Frac! Ep10: Adidas Exec Kremena Yordanova: The Right Time to Hire a Fractional Executive

On this episode of Oh Frac!, host Adir Ron sits down with Kremena Yordanova—ex-adidas and ex-Reebok turned fractional CMO who “builds momentum by design.” Kremena walks us through her readiness quiz (a fast filter for fantasy vs. feasible), how she vets founders with “Why now? Why me?”, and why the “one hire to do it all” mindset derails growth. We dig into juggling five calendars across time zones, going from D2C roots to B2B relationships, and bridging the tired brand/performance divide. She shares a brutally honest frac’d-up moment (five social agencies later…), the tool she swears by (consumer insights), and clear signals of dream vs. nightmare clients. If you’re a founder considering a fractional leader—or an operator eyeing the leap—this episode is an unvarnished, highly practical guide.

 

Key Takeaways

• Readiness first: ask “Why now? Why me? Top 3 priorities? Success signals?”

• Fractionals sell outcomes, not hours—set deliverables and decision trees early.

• Don’t chase funnels; align brand + performance as one system.

• D2C lessons translate to B2B: longer cycles, same strategic logic.

• Push back on scope creep—high-leverage work > microtasks.

• PR isn’t optional; credibility fuels LLM/AI discovery and demand.

• Embed social capabilities when possible; agencies ≠ instant traction.

• Consumer insights tools beat assumptions, especially in new markets.

• Sweet spot she serves: ~$5–10M revenue, expansion/GTMs across regions.

• Dream client: clear North Star & openness to challenge; nightmare: shifting goals hourly.

Chapters
00:00 Cold open & who is Kremena
04:30 Time-zone chaos & five calendars
09:00 How the frac she got here
13:30 From D2C roots to B2B plays
18:00 Breaking silos: brand vs. performance
22:30 Saying no, scope, and prioritization
27:00 The “one hire to do it all” trap
31:30 Frac’d-up moment: five agencies later
36:00 Quickfire: networks, tools, client types
40:30 Future of fractional & starter advice

Kremena's LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kremena-yordanova/ 

Adir’s LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/adir-ron/

Keywords
fractional CMO, fractional leadership, founder readiness, readiness quiz, D2C to B2B, go-to-market, scope creep, decision tree, brand vs performance, PR strategy, consumer insights, Europe startups, ABM, executive consulting, startup growth