#671: Going national while staying true to your local roots with Jay Rushin, H&H Bagels

The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlstrom

The Agile Brand

Business, Marketing

5 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 2 May 2025

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

How do you take something that's iconically local and make it feel authentic—everywhere? That’s the challenge facing every regional brand trying to scale. When your name is practically synonymous with a place—like H&H is with New York City—growth isn’t just about expansion. It’s about staying true to what made you iconic in the first place. Today, I’m joined by Jay Rushin, CEO of H&H Bagels—a brand so New York it’s practically a supporting character on Seinfeld and Sex and the City. Jay has been leading the charge to take this beloved local brand national, with over 70 franchises signed and new locations popping up from Boca Raton to Santa Monica. Leading the company since 2014, CEO Jay Rushin has re-imagined the H&H Bagels brand by growing the number of New York stores and launching the franchise model. Jay has deep familial ties to the H&H Bagels brand - his father-in-law acquired H&H Bagels in the late 1980s - and a passion for the brand’s unique history and legacy. Rushin utilizes his skills gleaned from over twenty years in finance to lead his team in the growth of H&H Bagels. RESOURCESH&H Bagels: https://www.hhbagels.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brandsDon't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnowThe Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company

Transcript

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0:00.0	Your brand may be staying on top of current trends, but are you agile enough to stay relevant,
0:04.6	resilient, and successful as customers, competition, and the world continues to change at a
0:10.4	breakneck pace. I'm thrilled to share the newly revised version of my first book, The Agile
0:15.7	Brand. I'm calling it the Agile Brand Revisited. It's been updated to reflect our continually changing world,
0:22.1	and it provides seven principles that form the backbone of an Agile brand, offering detailed
0:26.8	insights and actionable steps for incorporating them into your business strategy. This is the book
0:31.9	that started it all, and I'm excited to share it with you. It's now available in print and digital
0:36.4	formats and available everywhere.
0:38.3	Learn more by going to the Agile Brand Guide website at www.
0:42.3	www.adagelbrand guide.com.
0:44.3	The Agile Brand
0:48.3	Welcome to Season 7 of the Agile brand, where we discuss the trends and topics marketing leaders need to know.
1:00.3	Stay curious, stay agile, and join the top enterprise brands and MARTEC platforms as we explore marketing technology, AI, e-commerce, and whatever's next for the Omnichannel customer experience.
1:12.6	Together we'll discover what it takes to create an Agile brand, built for today and tomorrow,
1:16.6	and built for customers, employees, and continued business growth.
1:20.6	I'm your host, Greg Kilstrom, advising Fortune 1000 brands on Martec, AI, and marketing operations.
1:32.4	The Agile Brand Podcast is brought to you by Tech Systems, an industry leader in full-stack technology services, talent services, and real-world application. For more information, go to
1:38.0	T-EK Systems.com. To make sure you always get the latest episodes, please hit subscribe on the app
1:44.1	you listen to podcasts on,
1:45.6	and leave us a rating so others can find us as well.
1:48.6	And now on to the show.
1:51.6	How do you take a brand that's iconically local and make it feel authentic everywhere?
	...

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