Mare + Co. Substack

Hi, I’m Tina Sawtelle, founder of Mare + Co.

This is where I write in two registers — and I’m not shy about saying they can share the same space.

One is the business writing: practical financial thinking and AI experiments for small and mid-sized business owners, and for anyone championing the work of SMBs. The other is Mare Creative, the storytelling side of Mare + Co. — home to the At Our Table podcast and personal essays on the realities of being human. Same person, same table; different kinds of conversation.

The business writing is for you if:

• You run on gut feel and want insightful financials to back it up.

• You’re curious about AI and want practical applications.

• You’re looking to learn from someone who’s actually done it.

• You’re serious and ready to grow your business.

The storytelling is for you if:

• You like a good conversation about family, music, food, and what it actually takes to build a life while building a business.

• You’re my Dad or Mom (my two biggest fans).

Who am I?

I’m an operator, not a consultant. I spent decades running organizations on real P&Ls — most recently a decade at a nonprofit live entertainment venue, first as CFO and then as CEO. Before that, years in higher education finance, among other things.

I also grew up in a teeny-tiny rural Maine community surrounded by small business. My mom ran a diner; my dad ran a construction company. That’s where I first learned what running a business actually asks of the people doing it.

Now I run Mare + Co., where I use AI to make CFO judgment affordable for the owners who’ve always been priced out of it — and where Mare Creative lets me tell the human stories behind that work. This newsletter is where I think out loud about all of it.

What to expect

Every article opens (a new habit I’m testing…) with the key takeaways up front, so you can tell in a few seconds whether it’s for you.

On the business side, most weeks:

• What I’m Testing with AI: the actual experiments — what’s working, what isn’t, and what I’m still figuring out.

• Just One Thing: the new music I’m dialing into, or what I’m reading, cooking, gardening, watching, or learning in my own life.

On the Mare Creative side:

• At Our Table: a conversation-driven podcast I co-host with my stepdaughter, Lindsay Pilot, exploring the realities of being human.

• Essays: the personal writing — family, gratitude, and the moments in between (a recent one paired my mom and Noah Kahan).

I’m building Mare + Co. in real time (founded in January 2026), and the writing is evolving as I go. I’ll be honest about what I’m still working out and where I hold firm beliefs based on what’s worked — or failed.

Subscribe and my articles land in your inbox most weeks, Tuesday to Thursday morning: practical financial thinking you can use, the AI testing done for you, and the occasional story worth pulling up a chair for.

Mare + Co. is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

—Tina

Building what’s next with clarity, courage, and some good tools.