Valerie van Schaick – Alpine Hearing Protection

Valerie van Schaick, Chief Marketing Officer at Alpine Hearing Protection, leads the global brand strategy for one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies in the hearing protection category. From sleeping better at night to protecting hearing at festivals or on motorcycles, Alpine develops solutions for moments when sound becomes a challenge. In this conversation, Valerie shares how the company drives rapid international growth through a combination of problem awareness, fast execution, product innovation, and data-driven marketing, all while navigating the balance between performance marketing and long-term brand building.

Building a Category Through Awareness

Unlike many established markets, hearing protection is still in the early stages of consumer adoption. For Alpine, this means that a large part of brand growth is about expanding the category itself. “We are still in a category where a big part of the job is creating problem awareness,” Valerie explains. “I often compare it to skiing; when we were younger, nobody wore helmets. Now everyone does. Hearing protection is going through the same shift.”

Increasing awareness of hearing damage is gradually changing behaviour. Governments are also playing a role, particularly in countries where regulations require music venues or festivals to offer ear protection. As awareness grows, the category expands, creating new opportunities for brands that move quickly. “For us, it’s really two things: driving problem awareness and opening new channels and geographies. When you’re still in an early-stage category, growth comes from awareness on one side and availability on the other.”

“For us, it’s really two things: driving problem awareness and opening new channels and geographies. When you’re still in an early-stage category, growth comes from awareness on one side and availability on the other.”

Winning the Market Through Availability and Speed

Because the category is still developing, Alpine places strong emphasis on being present early in new markets and channels. Securing distribution and visibility early allows the company to build market share before competitors catch up.

But availability alone is not enough. According to Valerie, the defining advantage of high-growth companies is speed. “The biggest difference between companies that grow fast and those that don’t is speed,” she says. “Speed in developing, speed in launching, and speed in reacting to new opportunities.” This mindset extends across the organisation. Alpine focuses on rapid experimentation and learning-by-doing, rather than spending too long developing perfect strategies.

That approach also requires flexibility in marketing decisions. “Sometimes you see a creative that you personally don’t like at all, but it sells extremely well. That forces you to stay open and learn from what consumers respond to.”

“The biggest difference between companies that grow fast and those that don’t is speed. Speed in developing, speed in launching, and speed in reacting to new opportunities.”

Innovation Driven by Real-Life Listening Moments

Product innovation at Alpine begins with understanding how hearing plays a role in everyday life. Rather than focusing purely on technical specifications, the team starts by identifying real-life use cases; the moments when hearing protection can improve people’s well-being.

“We look at the moments in people’s lives where their ears play a role and where we can contribute something positive, whether that’s physical health, comfort, or mental wellbeing.” These use cases range widely: sleep, focus during work, festivals, motorcycling, travelling, and even swimming. From there, innovation combines consumer insight with technical expertise.

“We look at the moments in people’s lives where their ears play a role and where we can contribute something positive, whether that’s physical health, comfort, or mental wellbeing.”

Scaling Global Marketing Through AI and Data

As Alpine expands internationally, the company faces another challenge: producing large amounts of marketing content across multiple markets. “We produce hundreds of pieces of content every week,” Valerie explains.

To keep up with this pace, Alpine relies increasingly on AI and automation tools. AI helps generate visuals, translate content, and tailor messaging to local cultures. This allows the company to scale communication globally while maintaining relevance in different regions. “AI helps us scale globally while still keeping local relevance.”

In addition, Alpine focuses on identifying moments of receptivity; situations when consumers are naturally more open to hearing protection. “There are moments when people are naturally more open to the message

Balancing Performance Marketing with Brand Growth

As a fast-growing digital company, Alpine operates in a strongly performance-driven marketing environment. Revenue growth, volume growth, and return on advertising spend are key metrics guiding daily decisions. However, the company is gradually expanding its focus to include more traditional brand-building metrics as well. “We are starting to balance lower-funnel metrics with top-funnel indicators like brand awareness and branded search.”

Data plays a central role in this process. Marketing teams continuously analyse search behaviour, creative performance, and marketplace data to optimise campaigns. “We look at data every day to decide where to invest, how to invest, and what message works.” At the same time, Valerie emphasises the importance of maintaining clear brand values as a guiding framework. “You need a framework of values that stays constant,” she says. “But how those values come to life in communication must remain flexible.”

“You need a framework of values that stays constant. But how those values come to life in communication must remain flexible.”