Gelato - Software Go to Market
Transforming a print platform into a global SaaS brand
The Brief
Gelato began as the world’s largest print-on-demand network, connecting creators with local producers. As the company scaled, a bigger opportunity emerged - the print industry itself was still offline and fragmented, in need of modern infrastructure.
The challenge was to turn Gelato’s internal technology into a new business and a new category, creating software that could power the world’s print production while earning trust in a conservative, relationship-led industry.
The Work
I led the brand and marketing build for GelatoConnect, a SaaS platform developed from Gelato’s own operational backbone.
We defined its positioning around efficiency, visibility, and sustainability, crafting a narrative that placed software at the heart of local, on-demand production. The launch strategy moved deliberately from internal alignment to external debut: onboarding early adopters through pilot partnerships before revealing the full platform at Drupa, the world’s largest print technology fair.
Our work introduced Gelato as both a network and a technology company, spanning identity, messaging, film, UI, and on-site experience. Alongside this, I built the commercial foundations required to support adoption, designing the demand generation and sales enablement engine that translated brand narrative into qualified pipeline.
This included sales narratives and materials, CRM and lifecycle design, and content and event strategies aligned to long consideration cycles typical of enterprise and mid-market print providers. These systems were essential to establishing credibility in an industry built on long-standing relationships and trust.
At the same time, the work reshaped Gelato’s brand architecture: GelatoCreate for e-commerce entrepreneurs, GelatoConnect for print providers, unified under the shared idea, Make it Together.
The Outcome
GelatoConnect became one of the most recognised brands in production software within its first year, not only for its technology, but for the clarity and confidence of its narrative.
The launch at Drupa established early momentum, but it was the sustained presence across global industry stages, from keynotes to technical deep-dives and partner summits that cemented brand recall. Gelato Connect stood out for its bold identity, coherent story, and consistent point of view on automation and the future of print.
Commercially, the platform reached double-digit-million ARR in year one, supported by a demand generation and enablement engine that unlocked predictable pipeline and accelerated adoption among leading print service providers.
More importantly, the work defined a new category for Gelato, positioning the company not just as a network, but as the software layer powering sustainable, local production around the world.