Jessica Kranz Hughes
Co-Founder & Principal
Bio:
Jessica Kranz Hughes is a strategic leader in global partnerships, brand innovation, and business development, with extensive experience spanning the B2B, B2C, hospitality, and nonprofit sectors. Skilled at forging high-impact collaborations, she pairs financial acumen with visionary storytelling to drive revenue growth, brand elevation, and industry-defining alliances.
Before co-founding Concordia Partners, Jessica held senior leadership roles at Marriott International, where she was one of the original architects of the company's brand partnerships program. She established foundational collaborations with brands and organizations such as The Container Store, West Elm, and the American Red Cross, laying the groundwork for partnerships as a strategic capability across Marriott's portfolio.
Building on that foundation, Jessica was brought in to drive growth in sports, music, and entertainment—negotiating and managing multimillion-dollar agreements with premier organizations including the NFL, NBA, MLB, USTA, Manchester United, Mercedes-AMG Petronas, Universal Music Group, and AEG. In this role she developed the experiential and storytelling partnerships that expanded Marriott's larger partnership ecosystem, driving both brand elevation and customer loyalty.
Jessica's talent for uniting corporate objectives with compelling narratives makes her a trusted strategist for businesses looking to sharpen their competitive positioning and deepen consumer engagement. At Concordia Partners—a Women-Owned Business—she helps companies design and grow their partnership ecosystems, guiding them toward purpose-driven marketing, loyalty-building strategies, and culturally intelligent brand approaches designed for long-term impact.
Deeply committed to service, Jessica is also active in nonprofit initiatives, board service, and community advocacy. She holds Bachelor of Science degrees in both Psychology and Sociology from Guilford College and has completed executive training in negotiation at Yale University.