C'EST WHAT?

What C'EST WHAT? does

C'EST WHAT? LLC is a Portland, Oregon-based boutique innovation strategy consulting firm founded in 2016 by Michael Perman, a professional Sommelier and futurist with 25+ years of innovation experience (including prior leadership at Gap Inc.). The company delivers multi-sensory immersive team workshops that combine sensory stimulation (music, culinary/taste, touch, emotion) with mindfulness-based creativity frameworks to help corporate teams reframe innovation challenges, align on future strategy, and build cultures of creativity. Its proprietary methodology, branded CRAVING THE FUTURE®, is codified in a published book (Amazon, $40) and a library of digital excerpts on topics such as Jungian archetypes, sensory experiences, and creativity skills.

The firm's core product is the in-person multi-sensory innovation workshop, supplemented by the RELAUNCH/ESSENTIAL 3.2.1.0 virtual experience ($3,210 per team session, a three-week structured engagement), private wine-tasting events led by Perman as a Sommelier, and individual life and career coaching. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales (founder-led outreach via email/Calendly) with a self-serve e-commerce storefront for digital downloads ($5 each), the book, and branded merchandise ($30 caps). Marketing is content-driven, centered on a podcast series, blog articles, and social channels (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram), with named enterprise clients including Levi's, Banana Republic, Gap Inc., Adidas, Hyatt, Hershey's, Tillamook, Stoller Family Estates, Brew Dr Kombucha, Daimler, Starbucks, the US Navy, and Gensler.

The business is privately held with no institutional funding, a stated headcount of 1-10, and operates from a single Portland headquarters. Revenue is generated almost entirely through professional services fees and workshop bookings, with ancillary income from book royalties, digital downloads, and merchandise. There are no disclosed software products, AI/ML capabilities, APIs, or technology integrations; the company's "platform" is its human facilitation methodology and the founder's personal brand and credentials.

Name

C'EST WHAT?

Legal name

C'EST WHAT? LLC

Website

https://cestwhat.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Innovation Consulting

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDABAMAH

Creativity & Innovation Mindset

Education/Corporate Training & Professional Development/Soft Skills Development

SECONDARYTHAHAMAG

Product & Innovation Summits (Roadmap, Launch Readiness, Innovation Days)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Corporate Meetings & Summits

Keywords

• Innovation strategy consulting
• Multi-sensory workshops
• Brand strategy services
• Executive coaching
• Future foresight consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Innovation Strategy Workshops & Consulting: Multi-sensory immersive team workshops and innovation strategy consulting services for corporate clients. Includes in-person and virtual sessions focused on brand strategy and innovation leadership.
2. Wine-Tasting Events: Private wine-tasting events conducted by professional sommelier Michael Perman. Events are themed and wines are curated to match client goals, with wine sold directly to clients at reasonable prices.
3. Life and Career Coaching: Executive coaching services provided by Michael Perman using foresight skills and mental fitness approaches to help clients navigate their future paths.
4. Digital Products: Sale of podcasts ($5 each), PDFs, and digital guides including Future of Sustainability, Future of Digital Tribes, and other innovation content.
5. CRAVING THE FUTURE Book: Published book available on Amazon for $40, featuring inspiration, practical tools, and expert advice on innovation.
6. Merchandise: Branded merchandise including C'EST WHAT? baseball caps with leather strap priced at $30.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

C'EST WHAT? LLC delivers multi-sensory innovation strategy workshops and consulting to corporate teams, pairing professional sommelier-led wine events with proprietary foresight and creativity methodologies. The firm also offers one-on-one life and career coaching, the RELAUNCH/ESSENTIAL 3.2.1.0 virtual innovation experience, the published CRAVING THE FUTURE book, and a portfolio of digital downloads and branded merchandise sold online.

Product overview

C'EST WHAT? LLC is a boutique innovation strategy consultancy offering a portfolio of workshops, coaching services, digital products, and merchandise. The core offering centers on multi-sensory innovation workshops led by Michael Perman, a professional Sommelier and futurist, combining immersive team experiences with strategic foresight methodology. Key products include the RELAUNCH/ESSENTIAL 3.2.1.0 virtual innovation experience ($3,210), wine-tasting events with strategy integration, life and career coaching, and the published book CRAVING THE FUTURE. The company also offers downloadable digital content including podcasts (Future of Sustainability, Future of Digital Tribes) and PDF excerpts on creativity skills, Jungian archetypes, and sensory experiences for innovation—all priced at $5. An online store offers merchandise including branded caps ($30). The portfolio is unified by a proprietary methodology for mindful innovation and future forecasting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CRAVING THE FUTURE: A book by Michael Perman about transforming deepest desires into new realities, featuring innovation strategies and practical tools.
• RELAUNCH/ESSENTIAL
• Mindspark

Products and services

• Innovation Strategy Workshops Multi-sensory team workshops for corporate clients that stimulate all five senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, emotion) to help teams craft innovation strategies and transform organizations into cultures of creativity and growth.
• Private Wine Events Private wine-tasting events conducted by professional Sommelier Michael Perman, themed and curated to match client goals, with wines sold directly to clients.
• RELAUNCH / ESSENTIAL 3.2.1.0 A three-week virtual innovation experience for teams that includes stakeholder interviews, an innovation care package (book, mindfulness recordings, discovery tools), and a two-hour workshop, with follow-up outcomes document and coaching call.
• Opportunity Forecasting Strategic consulting engagement that leverages foresight and insights to help teams distill possible paths into focused strategies for future growth.
• Stakeholder Interviews (Essential Rethink) Deep listening conversations with peers, thought-leaders, end-users, and front-line workers to illuminate key issues and emerging trends as part of executive and strategic alignment engagements.
• Life and Career Coaching One-on-one executive and life coaching by Michael Perman focused on identifying psychological saboteurs, activating sage powers, building resilience, and strengthening mental fitness.
• CRAVING THE FUTURE (Book) Published book by Michael Perman providing powerful ideas, practical tools, and expert advice on understanding what people crave and shaping the future through innovation, available on Amazon for $40.
• Future Skills Intro Free introductory digital guide to future skills and opportunity forecasting, part of the 'What's Coming Next' series.
• Future of Sustainability Podcast Downloadable podcast episode featuring insights on the future of sustainability from leaders at Harley Davidson, Molson Coors, and Rock The Green, priced at $5.
• Future of Digital Tribes Podcast Downloadable podcast episode exploring the future of digital tribes with Bosco Anthony, priced at $5.
• CRAVING THE FUTURE - Creativity Skills (PDF) Excerpt from the CRAVING THE FUTURE book focusing on creativity skills, available as a downloadable PDF for $5.
• Jungian Archetypes and Innovation (PDF) Excerpt from CRAVING THE FUTURE providing insights on using Jungian archetypes for innovation and future thinking, available as a $5 PDF download.
• WHAT CRAVING MEANS Graphic Graphic identifying seven key elements of the craving equation for creating what is next, available as a $5 download.
• Sensory Experiences - Igniting Innovation (PDF) Science-based excerpt on conducting sensory sessions during innovation workshops, available in $5 PDF format and executable virtually.
• C'EST WHAT? 100% Cotton Cap Branded 100% cotton baseball cap with vented layer and leather strap, available in black and dark blue for $30 including US shipping via UPS ground.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 multi-sensory immersion sessions conducted successfully
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• IDEO: Global design and innovation consultancy famous for human-centered design workshops with enterprise clients. Directly comparable as an enterprise innovation strategy and experience design firm, though far broader in scale and offering portfolio than C'EST WHAT?.
• Doblin (Deloitte): Innovation strategy consulting practice within Deloitte focused on growth, transformation, and innovation outcomes for enterprise clients. Comparable methodology and target buyer as C'EST WHAT?.
• frog (Capgemini Invent): Design and innovation consultancy serving Fortune 500 brands through strategy, design, and experience work. Comparable as a high-end enterprise innovation strategy firm, now operating within a much larger parent.

Regional players

• Master Sommelier-led events firms: Curated wine-tasting event firms targeting corporate entertainment and team-building clients. Comparable as competing providers of sommelier-led corporate experiences, though without the innovation strategy overlay.

Direct peers

• Business Innovation Factory (BIF): Innovation lab and consultancy that designs and facilitates transformative experiences for organizations, including immersive workshops. Comparable as a boutique innovation experience design firm serving enterprise clients.
• Innosight (Hurontario-Hartwell): Innovation strategy consulting firm helping companies navigate disruption via workshops, foresight, and growth transformation. Directly comparable to C'EST WHAT?'s innovation strategy and future-of-X engagements with major brands.
• Situation Interactive: Experience-led marketing and innovation consultancy combining immersive brand experiences with consumer insights. Comparable overlap with C'EST WHAT?'s sensory/immersive workshop format targeting large consumer brands.
• BCC (Barbara Carr & Co.) Executive Coaching: Executive coaching practice focused on leadership, saboteur identification, and mental fitness for senior leaders. Comparable as a complementary individualized-coaching revenue line adjacent to C'EST WHAT?'s coaching practice.
• Strategyn (now part of Planview): Pioneer of outcome-driven innovation and jobs-to-be-done methodology for enterprise product strategy. Comparable as a thought-leader in opportunity forecasting and innovation frameworks taught via workshops.

Emerging players

• Gapingvoid (Hofstede Insights): Boutique consultancy using visual/creative methods to drive culture change and innovation inside organizations. Comparable as a small, founder-led firm with proprietary methodology for corporate innovation culture work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/mperman?lang=en
• Facebookfacebook.com/Cestwhat4
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/c'est-what-
• Instagraminstagram.com/CESTWHATLLC

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about C'EST WHAT?