AMA Pittsburgh Coffee Connections: Community is the New Marketing
About this Event
Topic for 6/17/26
Community is the New Marketing: How Steel City Women’s Collective Grew from Walks to a Movement
In a time when people are craving more authentic connection, some of the most powerful brands are not being built through big campaigns. They are being built through shared experiences, word of mouth, and a clear sense of belonging.
For our June Coffee Connections, Fallon DeRiggi, founder of Steel City Women’s Collective, will lead a roundtable conversation on how a simple idea became a growing community movement in Pittsburgh. What started in 2023 as the city’s official chapter of City Girls Who Walk has evolved into Steel City Women’s Collective, a broader wellness and community network designed to help women meet, move, connect, and feel part of something bigger.
Fallon’s story offers a practical look at what many marketers are trying to understand right now: how do you build a brand people want to be part of? She did not start with a polished business plan, a full identity system, or a revenue model. She started with action. A walk. A post. A reason for people to show up. From there, weekly Wednesday and Sunday walks created a low-pressure way for women to meet new people, build friendships, and experience the kind of community that feels natural rather than forced.
This conversation will explore what marketers, founders, community builders, and nonprofit leaders can learn from movement-based brands. We’ll talk about what makes people feel like they belong, why consistency matters, how customers become advocates, and why community can become one of the most powerful forms of marketing.
Expect a practical, open conversation about starting before you feel ready, testing ideas in public, building trust through real experiences, and creating the conditions for people to carry your message for you.
Discussion topics will include:
How City Girls Who Walk Pittsburgh began with a simple idea and grew through action
Why Fallon started before having a business plan, logo, or revenue model
How movement clubs are reshaping connection, wellness, networking, and local community
What makes people feel like they belong to a brand or organization
How community members become brand ambassadors without being asked
What marketers can learn from grassroots growth, local pride, and shared experiences
Roundtable questions:
Have you ever launched something before you felt fully prepared?
What makes people feel like they belong to a brand?
What is the best example you’ve seen of a customer becoming a brand ambassador?
How can marketers create community without making it feel manufactured?
Where does community fit in your current marketing strategy?
About the speaker
Fallon DeRiggi is the founder of Steel City Women’s Collective, a Pittsburgh-based wellness and community network created to help women connect through movement, shared experiences, and local events. She launched the group in 2023 after reaching out to the creator of City Girls Who Walk in New York and securing permission to start Pittsburgh’s first official chapter.
What began as a casual walking group quickly grew into a welcoming community for women looking to meet new people, explore the city, and build meaningful connections. Under Fallon’s leadership, the group evolved from City Girls Who Walk Pittsburgh into Steel City Women’s Collective, expanding its focus beyond walks to include wellness, friendship, networking, and community-building across Pittsburgh.
Fallon’s approach is rooted in a simple but powerful idea: you do not need to have everything figured out before you begin. Sometimes the best way to build something meaningful is to start, listen, learn, and let the community help shape what comes next.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
