Podcast appearances and mentions of Jen Rubio

Twenty Minute VC Mike Cessario is the Founder and CEO @ Liquid Death, the man hacking the healthy beverage market with the first hilarious water brand. It is working, Liquid Death's latest valuation was over a staggering $700M and Mike has raised over $200M since founding the company from the likes of Science Inc. Away's Jen Rubio, Dollar Shave Club's Michael Dubin, Swedish House Mafia and Tony Hawk to name a few. Prior to founding Liquid Death, Mike was in the advertising industry at a number of dirrect firms including VaynerMedia. In Today's Episode with Mike Cessario We Discuss: 1.) From Canned Water to $700M Business: How did rockstars' hydration problems lead to the founding of Liquid Death? How did growing up with guns and heroine needles around him at school, impact how Mike sees the world today? What is he running from? What is he running towards? Everyone said, "canned water, that is a stupid idea". What does Mike tell to all entrepreneurs who are told their idea is stupid? How does Mike advise on picking your idea? 2.) How to Build a Truly Great Brand: What does the term "brand" mean to Mike? What does he mean when he says, "truly great brand transcends functional value"? What are the single biggest mistakes Mike sees founders make today on branding? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your brand, if it is good? What are the biggest brand mistakes Mike has made with Liquid Death? What brand does Mike most respect and admire? Why that brand? 3.) Marketing: The Secret to Reaching Millions of People with Little Budget: How does the Liquid Death team come up with the ideas they have for content? Why does Mike believe the label "storytelling" is kinda BS? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your marketing? What was Mike's biggest lesson from their Superbowl commercial with kids drinking Liquid Death, looking like beer? How does Mike decide which channel to prioritise? How has the rise of TikTok and short form video changed their approach to content? How does Mike approach resource allocation for new pieces of content? Do they spend big on few bits of content or spend little on many and see what works?  

Twenty Minute VC Mike Cessario is the Founder and CEO @ Liquid Death, the man hacking the healthy beverage market with the first hilarious water brand. It is working, Liquid Death's latest valuation was over a staggering $700M and Mike has raised over $200M since founding the company from the likes of Science Inc. Away's Jen Rubio, Dollar Shave Club's Michael Dubin, Swedish House Mafia and Tony Hawk to name a few. Prior to founding Liquid Death, Mike was in the advertising industry at a number of dirrect firms including VaynerMedia. In Today's Episode with Mike Cessario We Discuss: 1.) From Canned Water to $700M Business: How did rockstars' hydration problems lead to the founding of Liquid Death? How did growing up with guns and heroine needles around him at school, impact how Mike sees the world today? What is he running from? What is he running towards? Everyone said, "canned water, that is a stupid idea". What does Mike tell to all entrepreneurs who are told their idea is stupid? How does Mike advise on picking your idea? 2.) How to Build a Truly Great Brand: What does the term "brand" mean to Mike? What does he mean when he says, "truly great brand transcends functional value"? What are the single biggest mistakes Mike sees founders make today on branding? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your brand, if it is good? What are the biggest brand mistakes Mike has made with Liquid Death? What brand does Mike most respect and admire? Why that brand? 3.) Marketing: The Secret to Reaching Millions of People with Little Budget: How does the Liquid Death team come up with the ideas they have for content? Why does Mike believe the label "storytelling" is kinda BS? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your marketing? What was Mike's biggest lesson from their Superbowl commercial with kids drinking Liquid Death, looking like beer? How does Mike decide which channel to prioritise? How has the rise of TikTok and short form video changed their approach to content? How does Mike approach resource allocation for new pieces of content? Do they spend big on few bits of content or spend little on many and see what works?  

Mike Cessario is the Founder and CEO @ Liquid Death, the man hacking the healthy beverage market with the first hilarious water brand. It is working, Liquid Death's latest valuation was over a staggering $700M and Mike has raised over $200M since founding the company from the likes of Science Inc. Away's Jen Rubio, Dollar Shave Club's Michael Dubin, Swedish House Mafia and Tony Hawk to name a few. Prior to founding Liquid Death, Mike was in the advertising industry at a number of dirrect firms including VaynerMedia. In Today's Episode with Mike Cessario We Discuss: 1.) From Canned Water to $700M Business: How did rockstars' hydration problems lead to the founding of Liquid Death? How did growing up with guns and heroine needles around him at school, impact how Mike sees the world today? What is he running from? What is he running towards? Everyone said, "canned water, that is a stupid idea". What does Mike tell to all entrepreneurs who are told their idea is stupid? How does Mike advise on picking your idea? 2.) How to Build a Truly Great Brand: What does the term "brand" mean to Mike? What does he mean when he says, "truly great brand transcends functional value"? What are the single biggest mistakes Mike sees founders make today on branding? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your brand, if it is good? What are the biggest brand mistakes Mike has made with Liquid Death? What brand does Mike most respect and admire? Why that brand? 3.) Marketing: The Secret to Reaching Millions of People with Little Budget: How does the Liquid Death team come up with the ideas they have for content? Why does Mike believe the label "storytelling" is kinda BS? Why does Mike believe people will always hate your marketing? What was Mike's biggest lesson from their Superbowl commercial with kids drinking Liquid Death, looking like beer? How does Mike decide which channel to prioritise? How has the rise of TikTok and short form video changed their approach to content? How does Mike approach resource allocation for new pieces of content? Do they spend big on few bits of content or spend little on many and see what works?  

Today Equalman sits down with Away CEO, Jen Rubio, who discusses how she navigated her journey through success and what helpful tips can help us achieve the same. Jen Rubio is an American-Filipino businesswoman. She is the co-founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Away, a luggage manufacturer and retailer. Rubio has served as head of social media at Warby Parker and global director of innovation at fashion company AllSaints. 5x #1 Bestselling Author and Motivational Speaker Erik Qualman has performed in over 55 countries and reached over 50 million people this past decade. He was voted the 2nd Most Likable Author in the World behind Harry Potter's J.K. Rowling. Have Erik speak at your conference: eq@equalman.com Motivational Speaker | Erik Qualman has inspired audiences at FedEx, Chase, ADP, Huawei, Starbucks, Godiva, FBI, Google, and many more on Focus and Digital Leadership. Learn more at https://equalman.com

Johnny recounts his experiences traveling through Poland and Ukraine and the humanitarian work he did there in collaboration with the organization Humanosh. He speaks with the people who reached out to him to come over and help Jen Rubio and Scott Mitchell about how they got involved and what they've seen of the crisis at the border. He also speaks with Polish doctor Kate Pikulska, who has worked on several humanitarian efforts with Humanosh, in Lviv. Then he welcomes Jordan Wiseley to the podcast to talk about how his impulsive trip to Poland to help out turned into becoming a UN recognized humanitarian organization Foreign United Peoples NGO. Here's where you can donate to Humanosh to help them deliver life-saving shelter and supplies to refugees. Here's where you can donate to Jordan Wiseley's NGO to deliver supplies to Ukraine and transport refugees to Poland. Host: Johnny Bananas Guests, Jordan Wiseley, Jen, Scott, Kate Pikulska Producer: Sasha Ashall Additional Production: Juliet Litman and Chelsea Stark-Jones Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, On Deck is announcing that it's raising a $20 million Series A led by Keith Rabois at Founders Fund with participation from Learn Capital, Chamath Palihapitiya, Slack Fund, Village Global, Eric Yuan, Fred Ehrsam, Allison Picken's The New Normal Fund, Charles Hudson at Precursor Ventures, Adam D'Angelo, Jen Rubio, Elad Gill, Julia DeWahl, Henry Ward, Afton Vechery, Jules Walter, Eric Su, Julia Lipton, Scott Belsky, Anthony Pompliano, Bloomberg Beta, Dylan Field, Aarti Ramamurthy, and many, many more members of the On Deck community. We cover why On Deck has a chance to build a Stanford for the internet: On Deck Investment Thesis. Natively Integrated Education. Platform and Team Constellation. The On Deck Opportunity. You can read the full original post and subscribe at notboring.co. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/notboring/message

In this exclusive talk, design unicorn Away co-founder Jen Rubio and tennis legend Serena Williams discuss the power of collaboration in business, and winning leadership insights from their careers.Support the show (https://websummit.com/)

Olivia Perez is a journalist, businesswoman, and entrepreneur in New York City. She is the founder and host of the Friend of a Friend podcast, a weekly talk show that deep dives into the next generation of luminaries. She's interviewed talent like Bella Hadid, Hannah Bronfman, Jen Rubio, Ross Bailey, Morgan DeBaun, Lindsay Peoples Wagner, and moderated panels for businesses like Shopify, Bumble, Hxouse, WWD, The Wing, and more. Perez is also a contributing writer to Forbes.com, and has written for Harper's Bazaar, Teen Vogue, and Huffington Post. A graduate of New York University's Gallatin Program, Olivia has made her mark as an editorial and cultural archaeologist, digging up the best of the unknown to encourage her followers to push past their comfort zones and create their own trends. She's partnered with brands like Chanel, Kith, Tory Burch, Michael Kors, Nike, Calvin Klein, and as a brand ambassador for Outdoor Voices and Coach. In 2018, Perez co-founded System of Service, a community that provides accessible and engaging service opportunities for all that strives to create impactful service experiences beyond the dollar. In today's episode, we chat about landing her first internship at Teen Vogue, is getting a job based on who you know or is it based on your resume, navigating the uncertainty post-grad, starting her own business and platform, starting Friend of a Friend while in college, and pivoting her business into a podcast. This episode is sponsored by Fig Face. Book in a facial at figface.com Follow Olivia at: @livvperez.

https://www.instagram.com/livvperez/?hl=en (Olivia Perez )is a journalist, businesswoman, and entrepreneur between Los Angeles & New York. She is the founder and host of the Friend of a Friend podcast, which explores the next generation of visionaries. She's interviewed talent like Maggie Rogers, Bella Hadid, Hannah Bronfman, Jen Rubio and has also moderated panels for businesses like Shopify, Bumble, Hxouse, WWD, The Wing etc.  Perez is also a contributing writer to Forbes.com, and has written for Harper's Bazaar, Teen Vogue, and Huffington Post. In 2018, Perez co-founded https://www.instagram.com/systemofservice/?hl=en (System of Service), a community that provides accessible and engaging service opportunities for all that strives to create impactful service experiences for both future & present generations.

We're taught as entrepreneurs to fight against obstacles & constraints that come up in our businesses. But what if we used those constraints to be more creative and more innovative instead? Hear my advice on how I've used constraints to breed creativity in my business - it involved risotto balls and egg boxes! Podcast mentions… Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia. I can highly recommend his book “Let My People Go Surfing” - which is all about the way he does ‘business unusual'. Jen Rubio of Away Luggage. Listen to the interview below from How I Built this where Jen tells a story of using a constraint to breed creativity. > Follow me over on Instagram @micaelakarina > Follow the podcast on Instagram @viaairmailpodcast > Leave me a voicemail with your questions, comments, and feedback: Click “message” & start recording! > E-mail me: viaairmailpodcast@gmail.com > Sign up for my newsletter - I send little helpful, insightful letters every two weeks - straight to your inbox. > Leave me a review! It will help others discover this podcast!

Jen Rubio is the co-founder and Chief Brand Officer of #Away - a global lifestyle brand that's working to transform the entire travel experience. Under her leadership, Away has been named one of Fast Company's “World's Most Innovative Companies,” one of TIME's “50 Most Genius Companies,” one of LinkedIn's “Top Startups,” and a Forbes “Next Billion Dollar Start-Up.” Before starting Away, Jen built her career as a branding, creative, and social media expert, redefining how customers and brands connect at companies like Warby Parker and AllSaints. Jen's been named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Marketing and Advertising, Inc.'s 30 under 30 list, and NRF's People Shaping Retail's Future list. Born in the Philippines, Jen moved to New Jersey when she was seven years old. She grew up traveling, and has lived in seven cities on three continents. When she was young, Rubio bought a lemonade stand from another child who lived on her street for $20 which she borrowed from her father. About Janette's TV Your Life, Your Way! Need some inspiration, education, entertainment and empowerment to take you from where you are now to where you want to be? How about a good laugh or cry? An online lifestyle TV show created for women (and smart men), Janette's TV is the premier online platform busy gals (and smart gents), across the globe flock to live life their way. With an over 5 million influential and decision-making FEMALE following, ages 30-55 worldwide, from fashion to finance and food, dating, relationships, sex, aging, business, leadership, money, finance, must-have products and everything in-between, our episodes and special segments feature celebrities, thought-leaders and experts in various fields who delve into an array of personal and professional issues you like to discuss. The goal - to enlighten and impact you with their relevant stories, journeys, practical advice and easy-to-implement tools regardless of what you desire and aspire to. Episodes are now available in podcast for those who prefer to listen than watch. However, if you would like to do both, please visit and subscribe to our YouTube Channel www.youtube.com/YourMarketingMagnet with 9 seasons and over 450 aired episodes. Please leave your comments in the post and share us with all the amazing women and smart men in your lives. And please hit the #BELL to be notified of all our upcoming episodes. Thank you! You're Listening to Janette's TV Podcast. Hosted by Janette Burke, Executive Producer, Host/Creator, Media Strategist, Presentation & Performance Mentor and Trainer Thanks for joining us!

In 2015, Jen Rubio was traveling back from a trip to Switzerland when her luggage broke in the middle of a crowded airport, sending her clothes and belongings everywhere. As she looked for a replacement she couldn't find the kind of iconic, high-quality, affordable luggage she was looking for. Jen called up her friend Steph Korey - the two met in 2011 at Warby Parker back when they had only twenty employees - and they got to work. Just a few years later, they launched their direct-to-consumer luggage company, Away, in 2015. It boasts high end features such as two built-in USB ports and a durable, sleek design but is a fraction of the price of competing luggage. The Away team now has more than 100 employees and tens of millions in revenue. They have expanded their product line, which now offers the bag in six sizes and eight colors and have partnered with people like Gray Malin and Karlie Kloss. In their conversation, Jen and Monica talk about how Away launched without a product, the way they handle collaborations, and why the retail and digital arms of the business aren't so different after all. “More than anything we believe in making travel more seamless and more enjoyable.” – Jen Rubio. Learn more about this episode of The Mentor Files with Monica Royer at www.MonicaandAndy.blog/28

In conversation with Jen Rubio Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away, a direct-to-consumer luggage brand which has radically disrupted the market since it's launch in 2016. Here, she speaks to TANK's Caroline Issa about evolving travel trends, keeping good habits while in transit and building a loyal brand-following without rigging the algorithm. 

In conversation with Jen Rubio Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away, a direct-to-consumer luggage brand which has radically disrupted the market since it's launch in 2016. Here, she speaks to TANK's Caroline Issa about evolving travel trends, keeping good habits while in transit and building a loyal brand-following without rigging the algorithm. 

Ep starts at 2:18 :)

If you’ve been to an airport in the past few years, chances are, you’ve seen Away suitcases in abundance. But just four years ago, Jen Rubio found herself stranded in an airport with a broken bag and not a single go-to brand to solve her problem. So in 2015, she and her co-founder Steph Korey decided to found Away, a luggage company that would change the way people travel today. The result was a collection of sleek luggage at an affordable price, complete with a portable charger and more travel essentials that emulate the modern traveler today. Away has sold over 1 million suitcases and counting worldwide and created a cult following of jet-setting customers who have made their product their most trusted travel companion. The company has raised over $156 million in support and recently announced its $1.4 billion valuation.   In this episode, Jen and I talk about what it's really like to work in tech as a woman, how a coffee table book saved their business, and how she’s determined to have it all at no expense.   For more, follow Jen on Instagram at @Jennifer.  

EP189 - Code Commerce and Grocery Shop This episode was recorded right after Jason & Scot received their iPhone 11 Pro Max's.  Jason mentioned a new iOS feature to take full page screenshots.  Here is how to take full page screenshots in iOS 13. Event Recaps: Code Commerce - Sept 9 and 10 in New York City Groceryshop - Sept 15-18 In Las Vegas Amazon News Amazon orders 100,000 electric vans from Rivian Amazon Changed Search Algorithm in Ways That Boost Its Own Products Other News BDO reports more than 7k stores already closed in 2019, which is already more than any other year Some contreversy over store closure numbers. IHL disagreed with Coresight methodology and findings.  Coresight store closure tracker IHL score closure study Don't forget to like our facebook page, and if you enjoyed this episode please write us a review on itunes. Episode 189 of the Jason & Scot show was recorded on Sunday, September 22nd, 2019. http://jasonandscot.com Join your hosts Jason "Retailgeek" Goldberg, Chief Commerce Strategy Officer at Publicis, and Scot Wingo, CEO of GetSpiffy and Co-Founder of ChannelAdvisor as they discuss the latest news and trends in the world of e-commerce and digital shopper marketing. Automated Transcription of the show Transcript Jason: [0:24] Welcome to the Jason and Scott show this episode 189 being recorded on Sunday September 22nd, 2019 I'm your host Jason retailgeek Goldberg and as usual I'm here with your co-host Scot Wingo. Scot: [0:39] Jason and welcome back Jason Scott show listeners. Jason it was we got a lot to cover tonight we'll see what get a couple trip reports before we jump into that I'm dying to know did you get your iPhone 11 on new iPhone day was September 20th. Jason: [0:58] I did I was traveling during the week that it was an out so I was like at code Commerce secretly listening to the announcement. In the audience and then that Friday I was still in New York so I super convenient for my Apple they made it 5:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. East Coast time so I got to pre-order. That that Friday and I my phone arrived this is Sunday my phone arrived on Friday. Scot: [1:30] Look at it all moved over and everything's rocking. Jason: [1:33] I did I think. Scot: [1:35] Pictures senior pictures. Jason: [1:36] So I suspect we got similar if not exactly the same models I got the 11 Pro Max screen. Scot: [1:46] I got the same thing yes you have impeccable taste sir. Jason: [1:50] Yes twinsies and I would say the upgrade experience continues to get smoother and less glitch free so, in general it was super easy one wrinkle I was using a unpopular feature of the 10 which is dual Sims. And so the way in the the US they don't have two SIM ports so one of your Sims is virtual and one of them is a physical Sim so I had to a work phone account in a personal phone account and in the upgrade Apple convert your former esim to a physical Sim so now I have two physical Sims and I can't fit them both in my phone so I'll have to go back to an AT&T store and get a new esim. For all those people that want to have have a new definition for first world problem. Scot: [2:47] Watches get two phones. Jason: [2:50] Yeah not a fan I've carried a lot around a lot of phones and it's much easier to have to I mean I have one in the to send feature actually works quite well. Articulated there different carrier. Scot: [3:01] How to upgrade. Jason: [3:03] Except for this week I mean I'm still fine I'll I'll still be able to travel with the with the once a mint I can swing by and AT&T store last time I did this no one in the AT&T store never heard of any ECM but I have a feeling they've got it all I'll Donald in by this time. And so I don't think we need to cover a lot like it's you know mostly well-known, new features like you know why she related to camera but there is one secret e-commerce TV feature that I'm I'm kind of happy about 4 maybe only be relevant to his nerves of the show. Scot: [3:40] I'm trying to block what is it. Jason: [3:43] So in the the Safari screen capture so when you you do the combination of buttons to take a picture of your screen. You can now and now gives you the option to grab not just the visible part of the screen but the entire webpage all the way to the bottom. Scot: [4:05] Nice so you can get your lung checkouts. Jason: [4:09] Yeah yeah and so when you're taking pictures of mobile experience is to illustrate two teams or clients or things like that which is something we do a lot in the old days what you had to do is take a bunch of pictures and Stitch them together. And so now this is super seamless in it actually works in Safari and male and a couple other programs that weren't as relevant but they're for web pages that's a handy little feature. Scot: [4:33] If I'd call that an e-commerce feature as much as it Chief digital strategy retail officer feature. Jason: [4:39] Fair enough fair enough a ux, u.s. benefit I guess and on the flip side I feel like the last three years I've been waiting for the stupid true vision camera to go in the back so that we can finally get our shoe size right but I'll have to wait at least another year for that was. Scot: [4:55] Did to get the little pixels and also that we can. Jason: [4:59] So that front camera that does your your face recognition has it's an advanced measurement device that measures in 3D in it in the few retailers that are they use that for clever e-commerce experiences like Warby Parker will measure your face and recommend frame specifically for your face and it it it's like millimeter accurate so we're there to be a camera like that on the back of the phone you could imagine measuring a space to make sure that the refrigerator would fit the opening in your kitchen or the sofa would fit in your living room or exactly what size shoes you should order from a particular vendor Nike watch that feature without the fancy camera but it would be much better with this this hyper accurate camera. Scot: [5:47] Yeah he agreed and while you were traveling will you get a pretty cool recognition. Jason: [5:52] We did we did that must have been you because I was busy not focusing on the podcast. Scot: [5:57] It was snot me I think it was it was so it was just people someone out there likes our content. Jason: [6:05] Are the Luminous body of work. Scot: [6:07] What is a if you know how many hours that people have to listen to us. Jason: [6:11] We we yeah we're about 200 hours. Scot: [6:16] That's a it's a lot of us out there in the universe. Jason: [6:21] Yes yes so if you ever have The Misfortune of hearing me speak in person I usually open up by saying in the highly unlikely event you don't get enough of me in the next 30 minutes there's 200 more hours of me on the interweb. Scot: [6:31] Google I got a lot to cover let's jump into it first when I get a trip report from recode decode that was held in beautiful New York City September 10th how's the show. Jason: [6:46] Yeah it was awesome so we waited to that in the last segment but this is code recode the the publication which is now owned by box them a very fancy show that I went too early in the year that they call code conference and Jason Del Rey there has been enough that show a couple times is the Commerce correspondent for them and he is started the series of events called code Commerce so used to be, like an evening event on top of other shows where he would have like three speakers and now for the, third year in a row he's had his own Standalone two day event in New York city so this is the third annual code Commerce, and I like it it's a conference more than a trade show so there there's a few exhibitors but. [7:38] It mostly is a single agenda of speakers everybody sits in the room with since to the same speakers, there are no presentations that are all interviews with journalist mostly Vox journalist interviewing the the gas so it's a pretty dynamic. Dialogue and you know sometimes people you know that stuff out that maybe they didn't plan to, the audience is allowed to ask questions and so I got a little fired up at some point and ask some some questions and some of the speakers, and so I just really like it they get a really good collection of speakers. And I feel like the format lends itself to getting really useful stuff it's small and intimate so the networking was great I got to meet and talk to a lot of. Listeners on the show I got to meet a couple of guests that we've had on the show that week we did not have in person so. That was fun so all-in-all a good thing that one other thing I should say is in addition to that, that's her speaker format they also have a half-day of off sites where you pick one and let you choose your own adventure of these I ate different offsides and they take you behind the scenes of a of a retail or e-commerce business. And know that those can be cool to I had a complex so I didn't get to do that this year but in. [8:57] Let's see what's hot in 90 seconds or less there's probably 18 speakers at the event so there, there's a guy Kim Downing used to be the chief creative officer at Neiman Marcus he moved to a mall of group in the New Jersey called triple five and they're they're famous for having taken over this mall development in New Jersey called The American Dream It's At Nigam all owned by the same folks that own Mall of America I've been trying to open it for 20 plus years it's supposed to open next month don't hold your breath based on their past track record openings and not doing it and I have to be honest like like these guys seemed totally disconnected from reality like there just talking about what a great experience it is and how everyone in Manhattan is going to want to go to New Jersey to escape Manhattan and you know go shop for other necessities at this this giant mega mall and it's you know it's the anchor tenant in the mall is Barney's who's already bankrupt you know all the other tenants are tenants that have eight other stores in Manhattan and it just it just seems like, yeah he came up there pitching a small development like half an hour after Scott Galloway did 45 minutes on why malls were dead. [10:14] So not super exciting. They we had Jason Drogi who's the vice president of uber everything so that's all the services at Uber besides the car-sharing so he does all the restaurant delivery that you know food is a particularly interesting area for me it was an interesting interview at the end I got up and asked him if his service was good for the the restaurants because I like, there's a lot of evidence that. That all these delivery services are disaster for the restaurants cuz the margins are super low the customers are super opportunistic and the restaurants can't sell liquor in most cases which is where they make most of their profit so I had a premise that. That these services are a disaster for the restaurant and the services are not 20% of all restaurant consumption so that's a pretty big. Inflection points and Jason did not have a kid a very good satisfying answer for why he was he was good for the restaurant business. Scot: [11:15] Do you lease disagree with you. Jason: [11:17] Like she did not make a strong argument we were talking about that after the fact he kind of like pivot away from the question. And talked about you know what like you know how they could be good for restaurants but not like the underlying economics of it being tough. Scott Galloway did a couple things he recorded a podcast the final episode of Land of the Giants with Jason Del Rey and he did a 45 minute presentation I most enjoyed it I've sometimes been critical I think Scott is super funny and has a lot of insightful things to say, but he has a tendency to be highly repetitive so if you seen him once and then you see him a bunch of other times. [12:01] It's a lot of the same content which is maybe something all I'll public speakers struggle with but I would actually say most of the content in this show. Mabon thoughts I'd heard of his before from Twitter or what. That was the first time you put them together in a presentation so I thought that was good and interesting and he was. You know he's been super negative on the wework IPO and you know so we spent a lot of time talking about those guys. He's eating a kind of a bullish on breaking up Amazon so he shared his POV on. And that whole thing and you know just. Had some sort of interesting controversial povs which is what he's he's usually known for he also pointed out. That light from his perspective the mall business is just totally dead and the specialty apparel business is next to go after that. That voted poorly than for the American dream project which is a mall full specialty apparel. [13:04] So next up Jennifer Hyman from Rent the Runway so that's, awesome story she's one of the three really well-known female entrepreneurs in our space and that was an interesting conversation talking a lot less about the the original model and more of their. Their monthly rental model and and you know some of that the new competition that's emerged in the rental space so that was an interesting conversation. David Kahn the CEO of Birkenstocks Scott you'd be familiar with him because he's he's had he's been one of those outspoken controversial positions on Amazon they were selling a ton of shoes on Amazon. Century pulled off the platform completely because they felt like they couldn't protect their intellectual property. Now they're they're back on Amazon in a very conservative mild way they've authorized a few resellers to sell an Amazon but they don't sell Direct. And David was prominently featured in the episode of Land of the Giants that focused on. Why Amazon could be bad for companies and potential should be broken up so is interesting to hear from David and I was joking with you before the show. You know what brand like Birkenstocks you you kind of expect that hippie would like long hair and Birkenstocks to walk on stage and he can't you know he's like a witch I could bank or in a in a like custom suit so it's kind of funny. [14:25] So then we had your favorite brand on a BofA Steph Korey and Jen Rubio from away until they talked a lot about their. There a growth strategy and and you know some of the success they've had in their retail strategy moving forward and that was all. [14:45] Someone interesting Max Webb Gin who's the founder of a firm which is an interesting payment model that a lot of e-commerce sites use their. Sort of an interesting financial model they're there like a no fees lending system so you get charged no late fees. There's some really interesting novel things about it and he he was sharing that we had Marie. Myrna Levine who's the VP of global Partnerships at Facebook and so she was mostly talking about Instagram and in Instagram checkout which is. Something near and dear to do e-commerce smokes and a little bit about the Facebook Marketplace. And again you know she painted a pretty Rosy picture I got a chance to get up and ask her a couple questions I asked her you know if. I said hey there's a bunch of from my perspective yqx problems with Instagram check out that make a not very appealing to Brands like most notably you can only sell one product at a time. And ask if they plan with all of that and she she said that yeah they still consider Instagram check out a real early beta and that they would expect it to evolve a lot before General release, and I said you know bigger picture you talked about how important it is for consumers to have stored payment information to make things like this work. [16:08] You know is it realistic that customers are going to ever trust Facebook with their payment information by giving your your track record and she totally dodged that question and talked about like all the great security features they were using for payment. Which was not the point right like obviously I'm sure Facebook is using the best. Encryption technology in tokenization but it's at the point is there there a damaged brand when it comes to trust in. It's going to be really interesting with it I can get a bunch of consumers to give him payment information and give her a chance to answer that and she she was not a very compelling enter answer. [16:45] And then wrap it up probably the big Marquee interview was Mark Lori who's the president of digital at Walmart Jason did written, that's somewhat negative article that was like super popular a few months before so. How to take props to mark 4 for coming into the lions den and facing him. And I not shockingly well polished Walmart exec did not break a bunch of news in the interview. But it was interesting to see him there and you know there are few questions where would say like. He did not seem as enthusiastic as you would expect someone to be that was, I'm super fired up about the role like I think Jason you know like tried to grill them on whether he was going to leave Walmart at the end of five years and you know Marge answer is it like absolutely I live like committed to be there and she seems like wait are you staying because you love it or because you made a commitment. [17:44] So that that was really interesting generators one of the co-founders of Harry's that's a great idea to see story Julie rain Wainwright is the CEO of Rio Rio was. One of the most colorful interviews of the show so that was cool and then Tara walpert who's the VP of agencies that use Google who's mainly focus on YouTube and so she talked a lot about like how how there, they're expanding influencer marketing and expanding Commerce features on YouTube so pretty rich robust lineup that had a in a bunch of different stuff for different people and I thought it was well worth the time. Scot: [18:27] Code to seems like Lori had bet a lot on grocery kind of going to show with the pickup and then also all those Acquisitions they did on digitally native brands for loose stool kind of your gear just harder or had the blue kind of come off that Rose. Jason: [18:44] I think the answer is yes or no so I think they're Walmart is Super Bowl champs grocery part of Jason's article was Mark tends to get a lot of credit for digital Grocery and apparently that's creating some conflict because most of the digital grocery work actually happens in the stores and you know Mark was like hey it like that's totally fair like this the stores are killing it on digital Grocery and yeah we probably do get disproportionate amount of the credit totally understandable that digital groceries going awesome so he like I would say he had a good answer and double down on digital grocery digital native Brands if it was a little bit like yeah I originally we bought some Brands and that's no longer the strategy that were much more bullish on incubating brands from scratch in house then we are buying Brands and he confirmed the rumor that Jason Delray had heard that. One of the Acquisitions ModCloth that they're there might even be discussions going on to sell it back to someone else. [19:42] So I think Mark like with Express that he was still bullish on the space, but that's why you know they had to learn at Walmart that like buying a brand and integrating it was was probably a challenge so he pointed out he pointed till I come all is well home which is a de jure need a brand that they incubated in house and then there was kind of a third category that they were talking a lot of a little bit about and you may have seen some news sort of you know turning up the the focus on the marketplace which is probably near and dear to your heart and I think they've announced the pilot of fulfillment by Walmart which for the first time there duet they're not that helpful products for some of the third parties and that they have an interest in dramatically improving their tool set and you're improving the experience for third-party sellers so. Scot: [20:33] Seems like a one theme with Rent the Runway and maybe a way would be diepio Market to that come up because diepio Market's been somewhat open with Chewie getting out and, real real and a couple of other folks and those guys are kind of both could be on in the pipeline the Jason drone to a month. Jason: [20:54] He did yeah yeah so there was in the pre-ipo companies were mostly pretty koi which You is kind of what you would expect the date you know they're open to it in aren't you know I'm close but that they don't need to go public and that's not that you know they didn't start the pump the company to necessarily go public Julie Wainwright you know who's at the real real and they they finish their offering already right am I. Scot: [21:20] Yeah they been out for all the done really well. Jason: [21:23] Yeah and so she you know she had a lot more sort of insight about what either the the pros and cons have been on the other side and. And you know how there was some interesting conversation about. [21:40] The impact of competitors and their successful IPO you know bringing more people out of the woodwork she also has a totally fair an interesting POV about being a, female entrepreneur and some of the challenges raising money and she's like you know she talked a lot about how like. Should have been a lot of time convincing every male investor why, that the business use case was even appealing to women and she's like you don't know nobody that we work at Uber ever had to explain to an investor, that white small businesses need office space or people need a ride right but but she often would have to convince someone that that. You know that women would benefit from buying these used luxury goods and that often authentication was a super important thing in so she she told some funny stories and, I felt was a sort of appropriately cocky she talked about 1 BC that like. So I didn't get the pitch and like felt like all the money they were investing in in selling authentic products was was a waste of time and now that they've had the successful IPO that VC has funded a new competitor and is like publish blog post talking about the importance of authenticity, and I think she's like whatever dude we were here before you and will be here after your death which is kind of nice in both. Scot: [23:07] Yeah I've heard the Rent the Runway and the Stitch fix lady's house somewhere story where a bunch of mail DC's wouldn't invest because they didn't understand the concept or they would say I don't know if I don't think my wife would use this. Jason: [23:18] Yeah and I think that sounds like the common Trend right is that everybody's market research as they go ask their wife and that you know that's pretty small sample size. Scot: [23:26] Yeah cost of the new zip from there had a mini Starbucks and went to Vegas for grocery shopper. Jason: [23:33] I did I would load it up on Starbucks order my phone and Jen it out to grocery shop which is in Las Vegas so is reminder this is the second year of grocery shop grocery shop is a a show by the folks Miss founded, shoptalk that's focused primarily on grocery in cpg and so. Drew really fast it was maybe 1,500 people last year was 3,000 people this year that it was at the Venetian and felt a lot like shop Taco Shop talk and grocery Shopper moving to Mandalay Bay next year for people that care about their Las Vegas venues there Starbucks at both so it's kind of neutral to me. [24:17] The end it was also a good show I'd say it in a different way so most of the the Keynotes at this show were Marquee brands, but the content was less interesting to me because for the most part their brands aren't allowed to come up and just give a commercial for their, their business and that you know there weren't like critical questions or necessarily new content so well. You might have been interested in a lot of the companies in the Keynotes there are folks like Target and, beyond meat and honesty and ortado in Procter & Gamble that were giving key notes Coca-Cola Sam's Club. [25:04] Either wasn't a ton of like interesting new useful takeaways in that contents but the the 3,000 + people that attended the show where all industry insiders there a lot of the breakout panels that were where super interesting and they were just that I just had a ton of useful conversations, at the cocktail parties and you know at the Starbucks between sessions and just felt like that the networking was super valuable for me so. Kind of the opposite of a recode it was less about content and more about networking. [25:43] I did host a couple of panels so I was the MC for two panels I did. A panel called preparing for grocery Commerce that was kind of targeted at people grocer that are just getting into e-commerce and I had three panelist on that session I had to, a Stephen Raymond who's the VP of e-commerce at Hain Celestial which is a house of brands most notable for their Celestial teas, I had Wayne Dewayne who's been on this podcast he's the VP of e-commerce at constellation brands. Which is a bunch of alcohol and Spirits brands, so we actually drink some Coronas on stage while we were chatting so that was a big hit. And then I had to Dan Bracken who's the VP of consumer Insight at Church & Dwight which is a. A big cpg so they each kind of gave their their learnings and best advice for new people entering the e-commerce grocery space I got good feedback that that was useful. [26:38] And then on the second day I did a more advanced panel on connecting customer data points so far this one we had kind of to Keynote panelist. We have to bring in a retailer so the retailer is a Steve Henning who's the VP of digital. For Wakefern Food Group which is a big Co-op of of Grocers. And talked about where they are and in data and what their customer data strategy is and got an all the bits and bytes of, add emps and. All those sorts of things and then for the brand perspective we had Doug stranton who's the chief digital Commerce officer at the Hershey Company so got got his perspective and Doug has a bonus that was also the chief digital officer at Unilever for number of years so so it was kind of their in a lot of their formative so a lot of interesting insights from both of those guys you know when you're getting into the hardcore management of data and activating that data for customer experiences. Scot: [27:43] The so. What's kind of the meta Topic at grocery is it still curb versus home or is it Amazon jump the shark with Whole Foods or more. Almost feels like maybe Brands going direct his kind of. Jason: [28:03] So this show like so it is. Like there's a lot of groceries at the show but there's a lot of cpgs at the show so one big thing is the whole disruption of cpgs right that the there's a lot of digital native brands that have lines that are like competing with income in cpg, and you know I'd say a year ago the dialogue was like this is a huge disruption in this year like there's more evidence that those brands are, you can achieve a certain level of success but then are really sort of plateauing, the the incumbency Bee Gees have not successfully launched a new a lot of new products and so there's a lot of dialogue, about how those companies are doing things to get more customer intimacy and get better connected to the customer and watch products that are more relevant to customers and then they're there was an awful lot of talk about the sort of third approach in this whole thing which is retailers launching brands, and how those those retail brands have been successful and how they've evolved a lot from the original, start a private label and in fact one of the the Keynotes Stephanie winquest use the EVP of food at Target. You know they launched a major new grocery brand for Target but basically at the show so. [29:24] So her keynote was a lot about this new food brand in that. The that the Retailer's sort of competing with the the incumbent and Challenger cpgs is was a big conversation at the show. Scot: [29:37] Yeah and then I'm watching your Twitter feed it seems like there is some interesting Target kind of talking going on there with what did we learn from Target. Jason: [29:46] Well I talk about that you like so Target is maybe the poster child for being the most successful at that strategy so they want to strike 5 brands. Now sell over 2 billion dollars but one place where they haven't been big as in grocery and so in fact, like grocery was a newish strategy for target maybe we'll call it seven or eight years ago and well a lot of categories at Target or any kind of known for surprising and delighting customers and having these. You know premium products that that the customer wouldn't expect. Grocery was always sort of the me to category for Target like like if you needed something that they may have had it but it wasn't something. [30:24] You were excited about acquiring. Inside out you know a lot of this conversation was about Target doubling down on Grocery and you know trying to get to the point where they're surprised is. And Delight for grocery in the same way that they they are four other categories and they said they launched a new owned brand for food called good and gather they kind of retired a lot of their older brands. And you know this is a a focus on. Simpler products fewer ingredients non-GMO mostly Organics in so it's not so much a knock off of a of a national brand but you know what a set of products that they think I'm particularly targeted at the. Target guest and they're forecasting this will be the the biggest. I'm on brand that Target has which is pretty big because you know some of that apparel brand cell cell 2 billion dollars each a year so. [31:27] So if they hit that forecasts that that will be somewhat impressive so that was a lot of the the target conversation I would also say you like shipt. You know there is a lot of conversation about curbside pickup & Home Delivery Target owns the company in that spaceship. And there's a lot of talk about how successful that's been for Target but ship still is in the business of providing the services for other party so shipped had a big. Presence on the trade show flooring was a big sponsor and said there's there's a lot of talk about Last Mile in the Bears pros and cons of the different meth. Scot: [32:00] Code for their highlights from grocery. Jason: [32:06] For me those were a bunch of big takeaways I got to sit sit down with a couple bucks and record a couple podcast that will get out of here in the weeks to come so I mentioned Doug Stratton who's the chief digital officer at Hershey you and I are both chocolate Advocates so like we wouldn't miss the chance, to get a podcast with him and then I also got to sit down with a zebra car while who's the VP of Shopper marketing at the Coca-Cola Company in, can I talk about how coke is thinking about digital and what what they're doing in in digital which is interesting you know it is interesting like we are now. Grocery is a very low margin business, the average sale price for a lot of these products or the Brand's is super low and so historically these have not been very digital categories you you don't think of. A big digital investment to sell dollar candy bars or cans of soda, but you know now these guys are you know front-and-center focusing on digital because it's really starting to impact their business. Scot: [33:09] Wrinkle in the other Megatron to uncover before we jump into some news. Jason: [33:13] Nope nope I think that's a ton but if you're in that space I would definitely think about putting that on your on your wrist for next year and come visit us at Mandalay Bay. Scot: [33:22] I forgot to ask when you're in New York did you get to see the new Apple store or did you miss me. Jason: [33:28] I didn't sit at the Apple Store at you open this Friday so I've done some video walkthroughs you and I are going to be back in New York Knicks next month together so maybe if schedules permit would be super fun we should go visit the store together. Scot: [33:43] Awesome I look forward to that Coldwell wanting to lose last couple minutes to talk about some news and it wouldn't be a Jason Scott show without some Amazon news. Jason: [34:00] Amazon news new your margin is there opportunity. Scot: [34:10] To a lot of news out there on Amazon some of it I was going to put into the political bucket before we talk about that though you're one of the things that kind of hid in my world it was interesting was they made a big investment and Order of electric vehicles Tesla has competitor called rivian, and ribbons coming out with trucks with electric platforms so Amazon announced not only they invest an undisclosed amount that they were part of a $700 round and they were listed first which kind of flies are the largest but they ordered a hundred thousand electric delivery vehicles from Caribbean and they're saying they should have prototypes in 20/20 start volume out in 2021 and have them all on the road by 2024 this is kind of interesting because Amazon has not really said much about a green lot of Amazon employees have been. [35:09] Rallying internally Jason Del Rey has written about this so it was kind of a pretty big vote for our insert limit their carbon footprint as a company and then it's also interesting because they are propping up a big rival to two, Tesla in the form of rivian and you know Elon and Jeff are going at it as latest Rockets So Alive people kind of said this is kind of another way for Bezos to really kind of get under a Elon Musk in by supporting a competitor. Jason: [35:41] Interesting so we might see some Amazon high speed trains in the near future to them. Scot: [35:49] Whatever the Rival to boring could be. Jason: [35:55] Exactly the thing that toy strike me about this which seems like Amazon's exact Playbook is I want to say they made this huge announcement the day before there was a big scheduled like green demonstration and a bunch of Amazon employees were planning on walking out to Tess art of advocate for Amazon embracing adrenal footprint and so do I get Amazon has historically been very good at these like proactive PR moves and it seems like this was they were totally able to leverage that this time. Scot: [36:29] Yeah yeah. They have a picture of the Prototype van will link to it and show notes it looks really good so it's going to be interesting that the big question is really the range on these things so, you know the I don't know how much it typical Prime band drives a day but I see him on the road constantly so be interesting to see if they have to come up with some clever way of rapidly charging these things are or they're going to ship them in a different way or something. Jason: [36:54] They each do half a day's delivery so that's why they had to get so many. Scot: [36:57] Yes it could be it could be part of it so I don't I don't know the ranges. Jason: [37:00] Quick clarification question for me so like obviously Tesla makes a bunch of electric vehicles and I know they've talked about business vehicles and trucks but as far as I know they don't they don't have a, like a van form-factor I feel like Amazon's about Sprinter vans in the past which is the big, Mercedes V8 like is it obvious that this is a trivium's a direct competitor with like is this worse news for Tesla or is it worse news for Mercedes. Scot: [37:26] I think it's probably worse news for Mercedes Elon if this is a tweet or live interview I've seen him talk about how he really likes the Mercedes Sprinter and they should work together on the electric one he always has little twinkle in his eye and you can't tell if he's just basically crazy or if there's something going on there I think Mercedes a Tesla have crossed licensed a lot of technology to I wouldn't be surprised if this doesn't Force something go on there between Tesla and Mercedes to get the Sprinter platform Electric. Jason: [37:59] Got you and I assumed that like the Des customer will then be FedEx. Scot: [38:05] What FedEx use it so UPS actually has a big electric thing going already and I don't know who they are platform is on that it's, maybe I don't know I don't know what UPS uses but I've seen them them talk a lot about getting to carbon-neutral pretty quickly and they have some electric fans out there. Jason: [38:30] That's going to be an interesting space to watch if only to a podcast about that kind of stuff. Scot: [38:34] We will will keep track of it here and then also on the vehicle to podcast where it's been even more time talking about that Scot vehicle Trends going on how about on the political side there's been a lot of negative stuff out there on Amazon and so I'll turn to you for this the highlights on that. Jason: [38:51] Yes I know. Scott loves talking about the political stuff it's his favorite thing to do so it's a big big, generosity on his part time to pass it over to me. [39:05] So you know there continues to be a bunch of Niger negative sentiment you got all these Democratic candidates talking about breaking up Amazon without. [39:16] Necessarily obvious reason why the last couple weeks there were some actual that government announcements about like looking into antitrust issues in the one that affect an Amazon was that the FTC was talking about probing some of the 3p practices and in the one that comes with the most is, Amazon, disadvantaging third-party sellers in favor of their own practices so essentially like the The Narrative goes you can't both play in the game and be the referee it's not fair, that you're selling products in competition with your Marketplace Sellers and you, control things like whose product shows up in Search and how visible every product is and so, that's a big narrative like the counter narrative is like this is in a remotely new idea retards have been selling their own products for over a hundred years they always put their own products and favorable positions and they charge brands in order to have have good positioning in the store said that like there's, there's nothing particularly new that Amazon's doing that Walmart and Woolworths before then, didn't do but it is getting a lot of visibility and one of the the big articles that came up there was kind of interesting is Wall Street Journal. [40:46] Actually like ran an article where they they talk to some Amazon Engineers that like, confidential confidential admitted that Amazon had changed their search engine to intentionally by us their own products and so again debatable whether that's, illegal or immoral in any way and I'll leave that to others to decide but one way it's interesting is Jeff has always talked about being the most customer-centric company in the world and wanting to have the best experience for customers and it's super controversial if you search for Energizer batteries like pretty obvious what your intent is and you would imagine the best experience would be too quickly get you to Energizer batteries but when amazonbasics batteries have higher visibility on that search term then Energizer batteries, like arguably like you're trying to boost your own profits at the expense of being customer-centric and so it's kind of a. [41:49] A pretty tangible example of of where Amazon might be drifting from their their idealistic morals, and so that that's been a little interesting to follow that, that exact issue is one of the episodes of Land of the Giants and a former guest on the show Charlie Cole who's the the chief digital officer at to me and Samsung by cheat he very explicitly said it is like look, I don't mind competing with Amazon that's totally fair they can make products to compete with me that's totally fair but when people search for my product on Amazon and they intentionally put their products in front of them that's not a good customer experience and just don't lie and say you're trying to be customer-centric when you're doing stuff like that was gonna as blunt as Charlie put it so an interesting space. Scot: [42:39] Yeah I guess cleaners and go to watch them navigate through this stuff and you have the counter argument would be well retailers for doing it for years and. Old Roy, dog food in a Walmart is in front of the Purina dog food that kind of thinks sometimes you know these the physical arguments don't really translate to to the digital where you know it customer is clearly expressed a brand new you should get them their quickie soap to be a lineman. Jason: [43:08] Yeah yeah like a little less controversial but like you know there's some labels like Amazon choice and and some new labels that they're testing and people are like is Amazon gaming nose and I I may have made a smart a tweet at some point where I showed like staff picks from Trader Joe's and I'm like oh my god do you think some of these might not actually be stabbed pics. Scot: [43:29] Go in any other needs any other Amazon usually cover. Jason: [43:36] I think those those were the big things I know we're running short on time so let's let's get to our last genre. Scot: [43:46] We haven't talked to her about Mulligan lately but I was reading some reports that a we've already had over 7,000 store closures heading 7300 as of September 1st I think that's more than we've ever had in any previous year and we still got three to four months ago, another world retail you kind of if you can make it through October you you're probably not going to close for December that thing's going to be pretty pretty bad if you're going to close for those two months so I think it will slow down but I think we have a chance of hitting 8 or 9 K hear some of the this is based on data from video so some of the top store closures are Payless with 2,300 stores Gymboree with 750 Charlotte Russe. And then on the watchlist they have several companies that are our kind of they look at this kind of load of ducks to assets and then also are they losing money making money in kind of protective time when there may be a chapter 11 events Forever 21 is on there a JCPenney at send a Pier One in Francesca's chokes, I'm surprised this didn't include more mattress worse cuz around me you know we still have like eight thousand mattress stores just in Raleigh-Durham and they're pretty much all closed all the sudden I wonder if this is under-reporting a little bit and I was kind of surprised that mattress stores weren't one of the big contributors. Jason: [45:15] We'll see that's a great point because it's something funny came out about all this so I think the macro points are totally true like that we are seeing more store closures in a single year than we ever seen before there are actually like we'll see if they come to play or not but like that on that watch was the one that they're like strong rumors are really preparing for a a bankruptcy which would be somewhat surprising at this point is Forever 21 because prove your point like. You know you really wouldn't want to go in a bankruptcy right right before the holiday season and there are there rumors that, if they did that the malls might be a potentially bail them out as they have, I've done for at least one of their apparel retailer in the past Aeropostale so that's kind of interesting but I I see the inside baseball I found an interesting study also, so this instead of you just said it is from video and they did a bunch of their own research so most of their store closure information came from, public disclosures so it's public companies that said in a 10K or an investor call that they're planning to close X number of stores. [46:28] And so that's that was their data source for the store closings and like I'm sure all the stores are closing video also cited the source that we see most commonly for tracking these store closing closings and openings which is core site which is a research firm that does this really useful can a weekly tracker on how many stores are closing and how many stars are opening a bunch of stores have open this year not enough to offset the closings and that that would also be a first so while there been a lot of closing in the last couple years that I've actually been more openings than clothes XO, this could be the first year we had a net negative and course I may have had a net negative last year even that now that I think about it but. Here's what's interesting about that so all of these companies are arbitrarily picking a list of well-known retailers in tracking. [47:20] The opening and closing and said there's another market research firm out there IHL that does a bunch of retail research. And they conducted a lot more comprehensive study and they said hey we are going to look at every retailer that operates 50 or more stores in North America and track how many they've opened and closed. And we're going to estimate where they don't have public disclosures or we're going to call them and ask and we're going to use real estate records and so instead of just kind of. Tracking press releases we're going to really do the math on all this and, they not surprisingly they found more store closures then then video or. [48:02] Coresite but they found way more store openings than either of these companies so pretty this IHL research that came out, there are still more stores opening then closing it just interesting to think about like I, I think our macro points are totally true that retails not going away that were way over stored in the US that we we do need to be closing stores in our closing stores in there that's a a necessary adjustment but it is interesting I feel like in the Echo chamber of our space like this coresight research gets its reported and recited and blended into other people's research on the time and was kind of funny to see this I shall study come out and explicitly point out that. Coresight research is not particularly rigorous and somewhat random so it was like a little inside baseball research fight. Scot: [48:56] Yeah and I wish square footage is what really matters right because you know Closing one JCPenney is is like I don't know. Jason: [49:04] Yeah you have to open off a lot of the way stores to make up for a JCPenney. Scot: [49:07] Yeah yes that's what really matters and I've never seen anyone really be able to track that very well unfortunately. Jason: [49:12] No no and I unfortunately like we've all seen the summaries of the IHL I'll confess it's inexpensive study to buy so I haven't actually. Bought the research but I don't think they have the the net square footage in there but just anecdotally if you look at the list of stores that are open and closing you're absolutely right like in general there's there's more bigger stores closing in smaller stores open. Scot: [49:37] One one last thing to make sure you put on your your calendar the Disney plus subscriptions it opened up so you can go ahead and pre buy that so on November 12th, and they have exciting new Star Wars TV live action show called The Mandalorian that off and up is pretty excited about to make sure you sign up for that Jason. Star Wars fan listeners. Jason: [50:02] And before any listeners Panic Scott and I promise to pre-record a podcast so that we don't have to skip a week while Scott is binging the Mandalorian. Scot: [50:12] Yes sadly I don't think they're going to do a bench so I think they're going to do it's hard for traditional TV people to get their heads around it but they're going to have kind of really someone a week or something so I have time to podcast. Jason: [50:25] Good news good news in like slightly related there is this interesting thing Target in Disney have announced that they're opening these permanent shopping shops and so you're going to see a bunch of unique Disney merchandise at Target I think that is potentially going to be beneficial to you Scott but I seen speculation that the Disney plus service could be one of the things that's heavily merchandised in that. In that assortment. Scot: [50:55] Cool hopefully I'll have more Star Wars Target exclusives those are those are the good ones. Jason: [51:00] Exactly what was in that is a great place to wrap up this new show cuz we've come out perfectly use the a lot of time as always if if I wasn't Earth have a question or comment feel free to hit us up on our Facebook page or on Twitter as always if you have time we sure would appreciate if you go to iTunes and finally give us that five star review that we've desperately been begging for but we have a we sure appreciate your time today and we have a bunch of great shows in the pipeline so appreciate you keep listening. Until next time happy commercing.

IntroductionFrom the Simplr studios in San Francisco, this is your weekly briefing.With the latest retail and e-commerce trends, I’m Vincent Phamvan.Popular travel company, Away, will not be selling their products on Amazon any time soon. At the 2019 Code Commerce Conference in New York, co-founders Jen Rubio and Steph Corey revealed that Amazon has contacted them several times about selling on their marketplace. Current search results for Away luggage on Amazon pull up Amazon recommended products, but Rubio said those who buy that product are not their target audience.More after these retail headlines.Syte Raises $21.5 million in FundingVisual AI technology company, Syte, announced they raised $21.5 million in funding. The new investment brings the company’s total funding to $30 million. Syte announced they plan to use the funding to grow their global reach. Visual search is one of the top retail trends of 2019, with retailers like Walmart and Target enlisting the help of Pinterest and Hayneedle for similar technology. The new funding indicates Syte is positioning itself as one of the go-to startups for AI-enhanced visual search, with plans to quadruple their user base in 2020.Shopify to Pass Ebay as Second Largest E-Commerce PlatformShopify is expected to surpass eBay this year and become the second largest e-commerce platform in the U.S., trailing only Amazon in terms of sales volume generated by merchants. The company is also estimated to have more than 1 million merchants using the platform by the end of the year. Its $40 billion valuation has already surpassed eBay, which is valued at $34 billion. The estimates are based on Shopify’s continued growth, which has pushed its stock to more than double this year.Nordstrom's Small Format Locations to Accept Rival ReturnsNordstrom’s latest small format locations opening in Manhattan this month will accept returns from rival companies like Macy’s and Kohl’s. The move comes as the retailer makes its big push into New York with smaller Nordstrom Local stores focused on providing services. The strategy isn’t unheard of, with Kohl’s accepting Amazon returns nationwide since July, but it’s a creative new approach for Nordstrom. Their new Local locations will also offer services like shoe repair and stroller cleanings in an effort to increase engagement and convince consumers they’re a better alternative.Away Won’t Sell on Amazon Any Time SoonAway was founded in 2015 and sold a single hard-shell luggage case that had an ejectable phone charger. They have since expanded to sell a wide variety of travel accessories. They’ve opened seven brick-and-mortar stores and have their own media publication, Here Magazine. It also now has a $1.4 billion valuation. While you can expect them to continue to expand into wellness products and apparel, in addition to their luggage and travel accessories, the co-founders revealed you wouldn’t find their products on Amazon.At the 2019 Code Commerce Conference, luggage brand startup, Away, said they would not be selling their products on Amazon any time soon. Co-founders Jen Rubio and Steph Corey admitted the retail giant has contacted them several times asking if they’d like to sell their products on their marketplace. The search results for Away luggage on Amazon pull up an Amazon recommended product, and Rubio said that some people would buy that product, but those who do are not their target audience. The luxury luggage company revealed at the conference that they have bigger ambitions. Rubio said , “I think, really, what we’re trying to build is a long-lasting, beloved consumer brand,”Closing.Thanks for joining us on the latest episode of the E-Commerce Retail Briefing. Don't forget, Simplr can help you scale up your customer service with 24/7 support. Find out more at Simplr.ai.Until next time.

What does it mean to be fearless? For many, it’s walking into a situation, knowing that you’re supposed to be afraid of what’s to come, but pushing through anyway. For others, like Jen Rubio, being fearless is just always making the most of every decision, and not allowing the idea of "fear" stop you from following your intuition. On today’s episode, Jen and I discuss the success of her luggage brand Away, what it means for her, and how she got to where she is today. Specifically, I ask Jen about her personal background that created the foundation for the future that she cultivated for herself. She shares her experience of immigrating to the US at age 7, understanding what it means to be different, and how going with the flow in life can be incredibly beneficial. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away, the suitcases you see absolutely everywhere. Jen and her co-founder, Stephanie Korey, started Away in 2015, raising $31 million in seed financing, making it one of the highest-funded female-backed startups. On the couch, Jen gives her tips on mastering a co-founder relationship (17:35) and how they launched their brand before even having a product (20:07). This episode of Skimm’d From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott. 

SELF-PROMOTION

Jen Rubio, cofounder, president and chief brand officer of the billion-dollar Away, shares how she and her cofounder, Stephanie Korey, were struck with the idea of making luggage fit the modern lifestyle, how they deliberately built up the company and applicable lessons learned while they were both at Warby Parker - a trailblazing direct-to-consumer company. Plus, get insight on a few maverick marketing experiments that both succeeded and failed in the most illuminating of ways.

Selling Luggage and a Lifestyle How Steph Korey and Jen Rubio co-founded a luggage company for the modern adventurer that is taking the world by storm. Jen Rubio called her friend Steph Korey to vent about an irritating, expensive problem that just about any frequent flyer has endured at some point. She had a busted carry-on. Rubio was suffering from suitcase-demolition blues, and Korey wasn’t sure what brands to recommend. So Rubio texted a dozen of their trendiest, travel-savvy friends—the kind of people who would know all the best hotels in Bangkok—but they had no clue where to direct her to buy the perfect suitcase. They were quick to tell her which brands to avoid—sharing similarly frustrating stories of failure—but no one had the answer she was searching for. The search seemed hopeless. A single, action-packed year later, Korey and Rubio shipped the very first piece of Away carry-on luggage. Today, the luggage company that is so much more than a luggage company has sold over a million bags to customers across the world and captured the imagination of a generation known for its desire to chase down experiences instead of possessions. “This business isn’t really about luggage or suitcases at all,” Korey says. “What we’re really creating is a travel brand, and travel has the ability to really impact someone’s life.” With an eye on revolutionizing the luggage industry while leaving the world better than they’d found it, Korey and Rubio designed a bag that is durable, practical, and looks dang good in an Instagram photo. And that was only the beginning. Charting the Course In the beginning, Korey wasn’t sure she even wanted to start a business. She just wanted to learn more about the way other people traveled. She and Rubio had become friends while working together at Warby Parker, the online store that home delivers hip eyeglasses at affordable prices, so they knew firsthand the challenges that come with life at a startup. Rather than cannonballing into the deep end, the pair chose to start small and simply follow their curiosity. They decided to create a survey and send it to 50 people in a vast array of demographics, including male and female students, young professionals, established professionals, and retirees, who lived both in the US and abroad. After sharing information about how they traveled, how they packed, and what travel products they used, each person taking the survey was asked to forward it to five of their friends who also came from varied backgrounds. When the survey finished making its rounds, Korey and Rubio had over 800 responses to sift through. The pair was quickly able to start noticing themes, particularly when it came to how the existing luggage industry wasn’t meeting travelers’ needs. The survey results showed that travelers wanted a light piece of carry-on luggage that maximized packing space and still fit in the overhead compartments of airplanes. They also dreamed of a bag that could take a baggage handler’s beating if they decided to check it, including wheels and zippers that wouldn’t fail. Respondents also expressed the need for a place to put dirty, sweaty laundry after trips to the gym, summer walking tours through cities, or perilous mountain climbs. Oh, and they hated traveling with dead cell phones. With these results in mind, Korey and Rubio moved into the next stage of development. Korey says they were still unsure whether they wanted to start a business when they sat down with a group of designers from the fashion, luggage, and industrial design industries. They weren’t even sure when they decided to partner with two industrial designers to transform their findings into a product design. The team had plans for their new carry-on bag in one hand, and plane tickets to Asia—where they planned to meet with dozens of luggage manufacturers—in the other, but were still unsure where this journey would land them. It was only when a family in the manufacturing business told them their radical design could be actualized that it all clicked together. And just like that, the family agreed to manufacture the first 3,000 Away carry-on bags. Well, not quite. “I’m glamorizing this story a little bit,” Korey says. “It’s, in reality, probably a little more along the lines of we begged them to work with us.” Korey and Rubio spent days with the family, attempting to convince them to manufacture the bags. With every new pitch she used to convince the family—that they were about to revolutionize the luggage industry, and their business model was totally unique, and this was a chance to get in on day one with a company that was going to be huge one day—she felt herself becoming more convinced that this was it. It was finally time to start this business. Their manufacturers came around, too. “I’m entirely certain that they didn’t believe any of that,” she says. “Actually, they’ve told us that they didn’t believe any of that, but that we were so sincere and passionate about what we were doing that they just couldn’t turn us down.” Now that the ball was officially rolling, and Away was on the verge of becoming a reality, they had to jump a final, daunting hurdle. They had to find the money. Gathering Supplies “Raising any kind of capital is difficult, but raising seed capital is particularly difficult, because you can’t really tell the story of your business metrics at all, because they don’t exist,” Korey says. “You just have to tell the story of your vision and what you’re trying to create, and it really takes a leap of faith from investors.” But she adds that the knowledge she had gathered from her time leading the supply chain at Warby Parker, and Rubio’s experience in the marketing team there, gave them a definite advantage. “That is for sure the only reason that we were able to convince investors to take that leap of faith,” she says. “We knew what we were doing, and we would create something that resonated and that was successful.” In fact, she recommends that all aspiring entrepreneurs invest some time working at a startup. “I think it’s essential that you spend at least a couple years working at a startup first, for two reasons,” she says. “One, find out if you like it! Some people don’t like that chaos. … And then the second reason is it really gives you a sense of context of all the different pieces that go into creating something from nothing.” In the summer of 2015, Korey and Rubio were ready to create something, so they met with more than 20 different investors across the United States over the course of a week. After many failed pitches, and several uncomfortable red-eye flights, the pair met with Forerunner Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm that invests primarily in early-stage ecommerce brands. While most of the firms they met with simply didn’t understand what they were trying to do with Away, Korey says that Forerunner was captivated by their vision. “We’re really creating a broader brand and business around inspiring people to live a life of new experiences, and equipping them with all the products they need to make those travel experiences more seamless,” she recalls saying in her pitch. Within the first meeting, Forerunner was on board as a partner. With over $2.5 million raised, it was finally time to make some suitcases. Excited by the prospect of holiday sales, Korey says they set their launch date for November 2015. But as the date drew closer and the production of the first 3,000 suitcases was delayed until February of the following year, they had to get creative. Instead of selling the suitcases during the holiday season, they published a coffee table book called, The Places We Return To and paired it with a gift card for the February release of the first round of suitcases. “It was really one of the first moves we did as a brand really establishing ourselves as first and foremost about travel and not about travel products,” Korey says. In the book, they featured stories and photos of successful chefs, writers, photographers, and other talented professionals. Each person was asked about their favorite place in the entire world, why they loved it, and what they did during their visits. “We ended up with this collection of short stories that were very intimate because it was about people who were so knowledgeable about their favorite place in the world,” Korey says. Those featured in the book helped spread the word about the exciting new travel company, its mission, and the revolutionary new suitcase that was on the way. And the word traveled like a millennial with a break between jobs. Korey says they prepared 2,000 books and gift cards. By Christmas, every one had sold. Embarking on the Journey In February 2016, the first ever Away customer (his name is Adam) received his carry-on bag. Three years later, over a million bags in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes have made it across the world in shipping boxes, overhead bins, and car trunks. The ribbed, hard-shelled luggage is becoming more recognizable by the day. By offering their luggage at direct-to-consumer prices, what was once reserved for only the chicest of travelers could now make it to the general public. They take their social impact seriously, as well. Away works with manufacturing companies that have, as they say on their website, “exemplary and thoughtful work environments we would want for our own employees.” The company has also partnered with several charitable organizations, including Peace Direct, Charity: Water, and Kode with Klossy. So what’s next for Away? Korey says the company is currently working to expand across Europe, Asia, Australia and other parts of North America. Taking a page from Warby Parker and other disruptive ecommerce startups, they’ve also launched a brick-and-mortar component to their business with six American storefronts and one in London. And as Away continues to expand, they’ll continue to release new products that support the modern traveler. Korey is excited to see where the company goes next, not merely because she wants the business to flourish, but because she genuinely cares about the needs of Away customers. From the moment Korey and Rubio sent their first survey, they knew that the “why” behind their brand lay directly at the feet of their customers. “You should never start a business because you want to start a business. It’s a terrible reason to do it. It’s going to be a long slog if you’re not really focused on a particular insight or a problem that you’re trying to solve,” she says. “Whether you’re just getting started and you don’t know where to start, or you’ve already gotten started, and you’re trying to figure out the next step, it really starts with deeply understanding the customer.” It starts the way Away did: with a need, an idea, and a customer survey. Interview by Nathan Chan, feature article reprinted from Foundr Magazine, by Erica Comitalo Key Takeaways How one phone conversation between Korey and Rubio inspired the idea for Away The role data played in cementing the need for better luggage How the data insights were transformed into a product design Why one investor and one manufacturer decided to take a chance on Away How Korey and Rubio made the best of a worst-case scenario during their launch The journey from producing an initial batch of 3,000 units to selling millions Why Korey believes every entrepreneur should work for a startup first What the future expansion of Away looks like Korey’s words of wisdom for aspiring entrepreneurs

This week on Inc. Uncensored, writers and editors discuss how Jen Rubio, the co-founder of suitcase startup Away, built her empire. Plus, they talk about chips made from crickets—and the rise of alternative-protein snacks—and how the founders of Health-Ade seized an opportunity in the kombucha market.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Magical streaming, a round with no wrong answers, and back-up Chrises. Tonight's guests: Virginia Pickel, Jen Rubio, and Joe Crowe

Um, actually, don't be confused — It's about personal heroes. Thanks to Allie Sandstrom, Jen Rubio, and Rick Tetrault for playing!

This is the way we hum our songs, and make rhymes of actors, all day long. Tonight's guests: Allie Sandstrom, Jen Rubio, and Rick Tetrault

The science of words, rhymes and music... just not in the song that I sing. Today's guests: Jared Stern, Jen Rubio, and Allie Sandstrom

While we are on our winter break, enjoy this rerun of one of our favorite episodes! In 2015, Jen Rubio was traveling back from a trip to Switzerland when her luggage broke in the middle of a crowded airport, sending her clothes and belongings everywhere. As she looked for a replacement she couldn't find the kind of iconic, high-quality, affordable luggage she was looking for. Jen called up her friend Steph Korey - the two met in 2011 at Warby Parker back when they had only twenty employees - and they got to work. Just a few years later, they launched their direct-to-consumer luggage company, Away, in 2015. It boasts high end features such as two built-in USB ports and a durable, sleek design but is a fraction of the price of competing luggage. The Away team now has more than 100 employees and tens of millions in revenue. They have expanded their product line, which now offers the bag in six sizes and eight colors and have partnered with people like Gray Malin and Karlie Kloss. In their conversation, Jen and Monica talk about how Away launched without a product, the way they handle collaborations, and why the retail and digital arms of the business aren't so different after all. “More than anything we believe in making travel more seamless and more enjoyable.” – Jen Rubio. Learn more about this episode of The Mentor Files with Monica Royer at www.MonicaandAndy.blog/28

This podcast will provide a 5 minute highlight reel of all that happened in the startup ecosystem last week. So let’s begin with the news around funding. So, guess what? This week’s startup funding scene has been quite great. We are talking about a total of 330 funding rounds, $6.7 billion total funding, 99 acquisitions recorded, and a transaction of a total acquisition amount of $7.3 billion. That being said, let’s dive right into the highlights. Gokada a Nigeria based ride-hailing startup raises $5.3M In many large cities across Africa, motorcycle taxis are the most common mode of shared transport. That includes Lagos, Nigeria, where ride-hail startup Gokada has raised a $5.3 million Series A round to grow its two-wheel transit business. Gokada has trained and on-boarded more than 1,000 motorcycles and their pilots on its app that connects commuters to moto-taxis and the company’s signature green, DOT– approved helmets. The startup has completed nearly 1 million rides since it was co-founded in 2018 by Fahim Saleh — a Bangladeshi entrepreneur who previously founded and exited Pathao, a motorcycle, bicycle and car transportation company. Zero raises $20 million from NEA and others for a credit card that works like debit Just ahead of the launch of the Apple Card, a startup that has its own take on modernizing the credit card industry, Zero, is announcing the close of its $20 million Series A. The new round of funding was led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA), and brings Zero’s total raised to date to $35 million, including both equity and debt funding. Today, only 33% of millennials have a major credit card, a Bankrate survey found — largely because they’re wary of falling into the vicious debt cycle. Instead, this younger demographic often only carries a debit card. But that also means they’re missing out on credit card benefits — like points, rewards and cash back. Zero’s idea is to offer a rewards credit card that works like debit. The Zerocard itself is a World Mastercard, so it earns credit card cash back. But unlike a traditional credit card, it’s combined with an FDIC-backed checking account called Zero Checking. That means Zerocard and Zero Checking work together in the app, allowing cardholders to see one net number they can spend from. Hunters.ai raises $5.4M for its autonomous threat-hunting solution Hunters.ai, a Tel Aviv-based startup that built an AI-based threat-hunting solution, today announced that it has raised a $5.4 million seed funding round led by YL Ventures and Blumberg Capital. Sofar Sounds house concerts raises $25M. Sofar Sounds announced it’s raised a $25 million round led by Battery Ventures and Union Square Ventures, building on the previous $6 million it’d scored from Octopus Ventures and Virgin Group. The goal is expansion — to become the de facto way emerging artists play outside of traditional venues. The 10-year-old startup was born in London out of frustration with pub-goers talking over the bands. Now it’s throwing 600 shows per month across 430 cities around the world, and more than 40 of the 25,000 artists who’ve played its gigs have gone on to be nominated for or win Grammys. What else caught our eyes last week? Well, I mean anything bitcoin needs a mention. So, ya CoinBits launches as a passive investment app for bitcoin. Finman, who built his first company while still in high school, is launching a new startup called CoinBits, which allows users to passively invest in bitcoin. The idea, according to Finman, is to democratize access to the currency by letting everyday folks invest nominal sums through well-known mechanisms like roundups on transactions made with a credit or debit card or through regular transactions from a customer’s savings or checking account to bitcoin through CoinBits. That’s pretty great. The next thing I want to bring to your notice is this recent hike in non-alcoholic beverage startups around the world. In their recent article, TechCrunch talks about how millennials, according to various studies, are consuming less alcohol than previous generations and are therefore seeking non-alcoholic beverage alternatives. For example, we have Seedlip, a non-alcoholic spirits company. Or Haus, launching this summer, an all-natural beverage distilled from grapes that has a lower alcohol content than most hard liquors. Haus, like any good consumer startup in 2019, is shipped directly to your door. Perhaps the most noted so far is Liquid Death, canned water for the punk rock crowd, I mean why not? I’m loving this trend. Liquid Death has attracted nearly $2 million in funding from angel investors like Away co-founder Jen Rubio and Twitter co-founder Biz Stone. Then you have Bev, a canned wine business that recently raised $7 million in seed funding from Founders Fund, thinks marketing in the alcohol industry is the problem. Founder Alix Peabody designed a line of female-focused canned rosé. Peabody explained most alcohol brands cater to men, and that’s a problem.

Today on A Call to Lead, I talk with Jen Rubio, the inspiring co-founder, president, and chief brand officer of Away. Jen co-founded Away on the notion that luggage—holding many of life's most important things when we travel—had become commoditized. Away injects style and community into travel. Jen and I talked about building great brands and thriving cultures, and about leveraging mistakes to learn and grow. Here are 5 Points that my team and I found particularly useful as we all work to build our own businesses: Having worked at Warby Parker earlier in her career, Jen knew that core values are key to building successful startups. She and her colleagues crafted Away's core values bottom-up: "We waited til we had maybe 30 or 40 employees. We were on a fun team trip in Nicaragua, and we split up into groups and asked people to describe what they thought our core values were. That set the stage. Our core values include being thoughtful, being iterative, being customer-obsessed, being empowered, being accessible in terms of having all the context that you need." Now that Away has nearly 300 employees, Jen and her senior team constantly reevaluate: "Core values are very precious and they should guide what you do. But it's important to take a step back and say 'hey, the company's growing really quickly, do these still ring true? If they don't, what are the things we can be doing to make it feel true? And if we don't want to do any of those things, should this still exist as one of our values?'" Jen and I believe in creating workplaces where it's okay to fail and make mistakes. Jen tells her team: "If you don't do it because you're scared, you're for sure not going to get it." And learn from each other's mistakes: "We encourage everyone to publicly share what they've learned from mistakes or failures. And we're constantly iterating. So we say, 'If you aren't making any mistakes, then you're not thinking big enough or moving fast enough." Jen smartly notes that brand-building happens from the customer's perspective: "When you're building a brand, it's so easy for people to be like: 'This is our brand book, this is who we are, this is what we're doing.' But nobody really cares what a brand says about itself."   You can learn more by visiting: www.sap.com/acalltolead. And you can subscribe and listen to episodes on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, and Stitcher. We welcome your feedback on the pod! Tweet me @JenniferBMorgan and use the hashtag #acalltolead or e-mail us at acalltolead@sap.com.

EP174 - Web Smith of 2PM  Web Smith (@web) is the Founder and Editor-in-chief of 2pm, a curated, subscription-based media company.  We cover a wide variety of topics around digitally native vertical brands, including the recent Harry's acquisition, and Away investment. Don't forget to like our facebook page, and if you enjoyed this episode please write us a review on itunes. Episode 174 of the Jason & Scot show was recorded on Wednesday, May 16th, 2019. http://jasonandscot.com Join your hosts Jason "Retailgeek" Goldberg, Chief Commerce Strategy Officer at Publicis, and Scot Wingo, CEO of GetSpiffy and Founder and Executive Chairman of Channel Advisor as they discuss the latest news and trends in the world of e-commerce and digital shopper marketing. Transcript Jason: [0:24] Welcome to the Jason and Scott show this is episode 174 being recorded on Wednesday May 15th 2019 I'm your host Jason retailgeek Goldberg and as usual I'm here with your co-host Scott window. Scot: [0:38] Hey Jason and welcome back Jason Scott show listeners Jason one of our favorite topics on the podcast is the Mega Trend that has several names that that we talked about our favorite is DMV because it just rolls off the tongue but there's Brands going direct to Consumer and I'm sure there's others in there and tonight we're excited to have on the show one of the top experts on this Trends both from being in the trenches but also the Strategic level we have with us tonight web Smith web is founder of 2PM DTC e-commerce newsletter that is published at wait for it to p.m. everyday full disclosure for listeners both Jason and I are fans of the letter end of the executive membership enjoy reading. And prior to starting to peel web was a senior executive investor founder and many well-known DTC Brands and he also as part of his whole portfolio what he does he advises and invest in lots of these Brands as well welcome to the show web. Web: [1:44] It's my honor guys for having me. Scot: [1:48] Call someone one kind of fun topical thing I just saw that the luggage company had no idea they call themselves a travel lifestyle company but I think of them as luggage company away, just raised over $109 and I think they're in the the definitely the Unicorn club which is valuation over a billion dollars but I think they're closing in on a billion dollars and I hear you have a fun away store. Web: [2:13] Oh yes well you know I know that, one of you guys is a fan of Jen Rubio and she certainly on my good side a long story short I think it was maybe for 4 weeks ago for 5 weeks ago and I was joking about wanting to go to the Masters and everyone wants to go to the Masters but, but I don't have a joke that I would want to go one day but I also want to be able to afford my kids college education. [2:36] DaVinci respond she says you know do you want my tickets and I'm like well. Yes yes of course I want your tickets she's like to meet up in you get to Georgia I confirm that I can get to Georgia and in the next, 3 hours is a really interesting sequence of events happens she responded she has one ticket it's a very special ticket, but in that time I told my dad who's always wanted to go that I was going to take him, buying two regular price ticket regular price tickets for the Masters for Sunday with Tiger In Contention cost $2,400 per, okay so I buy these tickets which is a huge sacrifice and long story short. My dad fly so maybe go to Augusta, and I end up selling those tickets aside all together because Jen got me two of those special tickets, so I can honestly say that that time gesture is responsible for probably a top 15 or 20 day of my life with my dad it was a bucket list item for him, and we got to see you know the Masters and style. Scot: [3:50] Yep and tiger sounds like you're a tiger fan is really awesome to watch him kind of make a comeback I thought it was a pretty interesting moment. Web: [3:57] On that day every everybody was a tiger fan that was really spectacular to watch. Scot: [4:02] Awesome, Aiken South Carolina and the guy that runs all the concessions at the Masters lives in my neighborhood I don't live there anymore but my old neighborhood and we all would get jobs at the concession so I worked at the Masters for 6 years. Web: [4:17] How many elements are cheese sandwiches have you sold. Scot: [4:20] A lot. The with Aaron Works their way up to the Beer tent because a back 10 beers were like a dollar 75 or something like that and then all these quarters would fight with her so I get tips which is exciting and second of all are there so many quarters swing around it that you could help make an extra like 5 or 10 bucks from falling quarters. Jason: [4:43] I just wanted to an awesome fact about stuff that I didn't know that. Spence I don't where you able to liquidate the the general admission tickets to you invest in in. Web: [4:54] So I did not and that was very painful that was a lot of money for me but again it was my dad and he's no 63 and he's always wanted to go so I did it, at the end of the day I still ended up net positive I got two of the most special, tickets in all sports and I got to watch Tiger In Contention on Sunday and obviously ended up winning for the first time in 14 years so. I got over that expense for the sake of how wonderful of the time it was my dad. Scot: [5:25] If it happens again don't forget your favorite podcasters. Web: [5:29] I will never forget you guys. Jason: [5:33] Yeah that is awesome and I'm pretty confident on your hundredth birthday one of the things you're not going to regret is is your investment in going to that Masters. Web: [5:42] I agree with you I'm a piece of it. Jason: [5:46] So speaking of things you might regret one of the things we offer to do on the show is is get kind of the, brief background bio of Our Guest so that was nurse can kind of understand for the how you came into your your current role and knowledge base can you can you come, walk us through your high level of career progression. Web: [6:08] Sure long story short I would say that I got my my first big boy job my real beginning e-commerce back at Rogue, Rogue is a sporting goods and Equipment Company manufacturer and a consumer brand here in Columbus Ohio I was responsible for auditing and, running paid search and so on and so forth or time there I learned a lot about you know frankly high tension, advertising company was still growing at that time it was it was maybe a hundred people if it's now it's six hundred people, it's one of the most underrated e-commerce companies in America my opinion. [6:52] I think it's actually run so I learned a lot from a group shortly after that, I cook pounded missing the name of Kevin Lavelle that company's doing really really well now it's Consolidated in Dallas and the team is strong, having to step down as CEO himself and a gentleman from Stitch fix is now running the show, from there I sort of switch gears and went on the publishing side so, I was at unpaid for a little bit I was there director of gear Patrol director of e-commerce or e-commerce platform on top of the existing publishing structure first, real ghost experiences are my first real contact Commerce or what I like to call them to your Commerce operations understanding how, audience & N Supply meet in the middle. [7:48] I consulted for a little bit and finally I decided to go all-in on 2 p.m. and it's been almost almost three and a half more years now, and I'm loving every minute of it. Jason: [8:01] That's awesome and for listeners who might not be familiar with, the 2 p.m. news that are let's let's break that down a little bit so this is a email newsletter is a freemium model right like you have a free subscription and you have some premium content, that you can pay for do I have that right. Web: [8:19] Yes yes so you know I started the letter, because I wanted a place to go where we could just focus on her industry without any distractions keep in mind this letter came about when every publication Under the Sun found a way to talk about politics, whether it's National or recode or whatever they found a way to talk about champagne I just wanted a place to go or like you only focused on. On the issue at hand how to understand the industry that we are in and how to be able to better operate on that on that intelligence it's always started for group of a couple dozen Allegiant obviously it expanded and, but the letter itself fully monetizing the beginning of 2018 and it's it's been no looking back ever since it's, the structure that business is 3 folds we have, pay subscription we have a Consulting arm and then we invest in direct to Consumer brands with some of our cash flows. Jason: [9:27] Yada interesting and the primary Topic in the newsletter is all things direct-to-consumer native brand is that. Web: [9:36] Well I would say it's a little broader than that it's it's e-commerce in general but it's a combination of, digital publishing data branding and and traditional Commerce my belief is that you won't understand one vertical, unless you understand how they all interact together. And the executives to understand how all of these articles are interacting with one another are the best computer to operate in this ever-evolving space. Jason: [10:05] Awesome in in so like what's the profile of the ideal subscriber. Web: [10:10] Shirk so here's a great test that I I do maybe once every 6-8 weeks I opened the list to come to my event we I host a dinner it's fully paid for by my myself and Dory, sponsor partner. And I first come first serve we usually hosts 24 people at a round table an amazing dinner always amazing always an amazing time everyone that shows up is always director VP level and above. So I don't dig through to figure out how many Executives I have in the executive membership what I'm finding is that it's heavily skews in that direction, these are people that are actually making the decisions actually implementing the products and the positioning. And I like that that's where the focus is and I'm hoping to never have to expand beyond that. Jason: [11:09] Got it got it and Scott mentioned that both he and I are executive members in so short of mine ocean for the kind of content you publish in this will be a good test you can tell me about, I'm wildly off-base are by have it is is you really have sort of three kinds of content that I've found useful, you do these memories which I kind of news curation and I think you know they say that in the coming couple times a week, you write a bunch of original content in your own sort of povs which are these sort of weekly reports and then you also have this executive Library which are these really useful, list like the the jewel need a vertical Brand Power with sore with small that investors in the space or agencies in the space stuff like that Dua, do I have the sort of content types roughly right. Web: [12:02] You do and one of the last, inside added in the last several weeks is a member research Series where I will pick two companies against one of them and expect and explain its excuse me explain how these companies are which company is better positioned to take the market, so the first one was stockx vs goat. That that research document actually influence a and upcoming investment round that's all I'll say about that. And the most recent one was Peloton versus tunnel. Pelton's obviously be on demand cycling Hardware / platform, and tunnel is the functional fitness, mirror / digital weight apparatus that you that you attach to your wall so I explained, based on both empirical data and some anecdotal evidence which which company I feel like to take the majority of the marker moving forward nothing that's been really interesting for my executive member. Jason: [13:12] Awesome and then if I have it right here last. Weekly report the topic was direct-to-consumer Playbook is a trap maybe you could tell us a little bit about what with your POV was there. Web: [13:31] Yes so one of the one of the most frequent questions that I did is from investors at asked me to help build a Playbook. Or direct to Consumer Brands what to do in the situation which agencies to go with. Choose a copywriter you know key terms that you want for SEO depending on the industry what song is this, the notion of that of that particular report is that any company that's been successful in the DTC space space whether that achieving unicorn status or below or right below it or are you asking me got there. By being antitetico to what was written before then. So instead of following what someone else is what another business is doing right write your own path if that's really what you want if the debt exit is really what you want to achieve That's the basis of the record. Jason: [14:34] Yeah that's so like I sent you a you like there is no point buck or at least there there's not one Playbook that works for multiple play brands. Web: [14:45] Correct everything that Harry's did. Was Waze was antithetical to what was going on in the Market at that time if you remember them going to Target with soft, you know I thought we saw that you were supposed to be a direct consumer brand why are you giving up why are you giving up Margin for wholesale. Or were they open their pop-up shop in New York there their Barbershop why would you go into retail that's a that's a poor investing why not just invested ads. So on and so forth are five examples that I mentioned in that document and one thing is clear they they achieve a unique outcome because they were a unique company that was well run by there to Founders. Scot: [15:32] So so it sounds like the Playbook is rip up the Playbook. Web: [15:37] That's that's that's exactly right. Scot: [15:38] If you can be a disruptor Fila disruptor you can't follow Playbook. Web: [15:43] Correct correct I'm going to ask you to put someone on the spot there's a quote. There's a quote in the actual lab report and it says embarrassed it's hard only the disruptors will survive I will survive, and it says Anonymous founder that was actually a quote by Kevin LaBelle who co-founded business name with me, and he made a good point the whole Spirit of the document itself was to remind Founders that they have to continue disrupting if they want to succeed they can't follow what everyone else is doing and expect that unique outcome. Scot: [16:17] Brickell let some so it's that's good let's take out of it this thirty thousand foot level you're the timing of the show here is really good because you mention Harry's and they just required for 4 is a record for one of these to join in Africa brands at 1.4 billion by folks that operate shit and then we just talked to her about even since I've I kind of put our little strip together we had the away investment do you feel like, taking the Playbook piece of side you feel like we're kind of super early in this space or is like this 1.4 billion dollar sale almost like a sign that work on towards the end game. Web: [16:56] Oh I definitely think they were early you know I was talking to Alex at Lightspeed earlier today and one thing that he added was that that you know there will be more there will be more stories like what we've seen from Harry's in a way, it's just a matter of time and companies are finding out what it takes and they're they're finding their stride and they're moving towards profitability a lot earlier and omni-channel operation. Omni-channel operational success earlier and it sits and dividends. Scot: [17:29] It seems like invest yet these exits typically actually get more and more investors calling in this is that kind of what you're saying is the investor interest is still on the rise. Web: [17:40] Stoner eyes. However I tend to be biased I believe that companies should take as little money as possible. So hopefully these companies are being Savvy about who you know they invite to their capital. Scot: [18:01] Yeah but if some is the ones that are scaling up or having to do omni-channel and break the Playbook and you mentioned like opening a barber shop that's all that just kind of feels like. The need to raise more Capital daddy how you reconcile those two things. Web: [18:19] That's your question I mean listen going back to our days at missing mizzen is in over 700 stores right now I'm not even including the Nordstrom deal so that's 700 + independent retailers around the country. We did that because we were hoping for more cash flow and it worked out well. The team bear did a successful job well beyond my time they're digging into that model and really developing strong relationships with these retailers, sometimes these operations are less capital-intensive than you would think it will all depend on the demand for the product. In the hope that the products the sell of the product will pay off. That's that's what I'm saying from a lot of the companies I mean from all reports Harry's was profitable. And I'm hearing that that away was profitable or very very close. Scot: [19:20] Yep this is kind of an aside but it kind of came to me that you probably got a really nice portfolio of these things have you ever thought of starting an angel list for people could invest alongside of you. Web: [19:34] No I haven't listened I'm still figuring out. How to build a strong Media company in 2 p.m. And until I understand the ins-and-outs of of consistency over time II can't go all in on the investment side like I would want to. What is an interesting idea the problem is the more the more opinions that you have at that stage of growth. From investors the more viewpoints on it so forth I think the more convoluted you're going to be as a founder. Nice guys rescue much but one of them one of the more bullheaded Founders that I know is it's been what he have a recessed you can't tell that kid anything, it really believes what he believes and it's paying dividends for him so my fear was getting a lot of investors involved early on is that the goal often for early-stage investors is to, I guess in for some influence on the strategy or the model and you know I tend to believe that you're supposed to listen to your gut and do your own thing and then and operate with a few strings as possible, so I would actually say that we strapping to a certain point and then seeking investment what you have some social life. Traction would be your social proof rather would be would be the play. Scot: [21:03] Cope with assignment Jason with sign up for mini mini Millions if you heated Angeles thinks I'll just put him on Spotify. Jason: [21:12] You talk about Annoying opinions that investors don't want mine would go right at the top of that list. Scot: [21:19] I was searching on Google for shoe and you did not come up. Web: [21:24] Yes please. Jason: [21:26] Why are you here yet exactly yeah I'm actually at the other end of of, that that chain like I'm always getting the call because my client you know just got some goofy request from their investor so. Yeah I feel like I have great great empathy for the, the management team in that regards but the interesting thing is, you mentioned what kind of in the first Inning on the DMV bees it does feel like they've done a lot of Buzz and they get a lot of mind sharing our space and a lot of people are talking about, it seems like the number of entrances really balloon it wasn't that long ago that you know there was a you know you could name all of the these digitally native brands in or you know, probably less than 10 minutes I mentioned you you have a, Visa executive databases on your site your your power ranking for digital native brand has a 316 companies on it, is like what's your what's your POV like in the market support 360 companies and can they all have a great exit and is it going to jump to thousands or you know is there going to be a reckoning. Web: [22:51] There will certainly be a reckoning it clear I'm not a fanboy I'm actually quite bears. I'm very bullish on the companies that have it figured out. So I agree with you that the volume will go up I personally think that the volume is ridiculous but it's really easy to raise 3.5 million dollars out of the gate right now no to specially if you went to Wharton, or one of those schools and you just have like that that direct-to-consumer sort of prestige that those schools offer at this point. It's too easy and I don't think that the companies that have raised money easily are the ones that are most likely to succeed. So yes there will be a reckoning and it will be sad but I do think that building a direct-to-consumer brand a digitally native brand is the best way to launch a company that is it in this day. Jason: [23:51] Interesting yeah I want to drill down a little bit more but I do think it's funny like you mentioned earlier that like, companies that are looking for a Playbook to Simply follow or probably wrong and I can agree with you I get the moment there's like this, this specific Buzz that does have a. Seemingly A playbook attached to it and in it you know we haven't seen a lot of phenomenal exits from that play book yet but that's the whole like, Warden student hires red antler raises 3.5 million dollars spends it on a branding kit, invest in some huge huge cock and like it does seem like there's this sort of. Traditional play that that you know you're you're starting to see a bunch of of Brands follow and it is interesting cuz there's not necessarily a lot of evidence that. That there's a strong exit at the end of that tunnel. Web: [24:52] I can't agree with you more if so it's frustrating for me partly because we have such a hard time raising money ourselves, I don't think that you did Russell retire match of the time or that type of growth Capital but that's not bad for the side. You know whenever there is ease and a low barrier-to-entry you're going to have hundreds if not thousands of competitors I think those competitors or false the Wayside especially as, Facebook continues the whole tight they're their inventory of as the bill self. That means that cost is going to continue rising and it's going to wash my to be friends out it's unfortunate but it's true. Jason: [25:36] Yeah so you bring up the Facebook CAC tactics and it's funny you know you significant number of the well-known DMV bees have now shown up on Shark Tank, and I I miss having a fascination with a show we've had a bunch of gas on the on the show that that are are DMV bees, that had a shark tank experience, and they're all there's a number of wisdom's that the Shark Tank investor share some of which I like wildly disagree with but one when it comes up a bunch on that show is there really negative on companies who like, have primarily grown through Facebook marketing and you know there's a there's like a strong perception that there's, there's not like that that customer acquisition through Facebook isn't Portugal a scalable for these brands that there's a small amount of, audience that you can buy really cost-effective way that it starts getting really expensive really fast and I do tend to agree with that so it is, it is funny to see some of these brands with a over-dependence on on a couple of these digital marketing Tech. Web: [26:44] Absolutely into that point you know I hear the other way I believe that the brands have the best organic audiences are the ones that have the best, long-term opportunity to succeed. It's at that point ironic and I said this had a recent speech in San Francisco the companies that are the most likely to have successful direct-to-consumer operations are existing Media Company. Jason: [27:14] Interesting for example. Web: [27:17] The best example right now with some is an example that that will probably be scoffed at but Arsenal sports or so we'll probably do 40 million in e-commerce in 2019. That would put them in the top 2004 online retailers. Scot: [27:35] Glenda what is Barstool song I'm not from Earth that is it just it kind of pulled in some affiliate sporting good stuff or is it private label stuff. Web: [27:44] No this is I mean they they have in their store they have something along the lines of 1700 1800 skus. Apparel knick knacks so on and so forth, in addition they have Behr Premium media subscription that I want to say this something like. 15 million since March and November 2018 so baby are moving in a recent article with biggie day. Your CEO Erika nardini. Mentioned by two digit is editor-in-chief she believes that there is there going to be a 150 million dollar beer company. A lot of that is Commerce and and commerce except for Commerce feeds into successful advertising but that point to side, I've noticed that it's easier for companies like that to ramp up without that's where I can just jump off exorbitant customer acquisition cost any news to companies that are purely there to sell a product to a consumer. Scot: [28:51] Yep cuz I already have the audience it's just kind of kind of matching the products already to the pre-established cap that they stay. Web: [28:58] Correct they already have the audience so when you so in that context, the reason why I carries a successful or an away is successful or a glossy a successful is because they already have the audience in their own way away is done a great job of tree sticks with them, company to launch a new product they have tens of thousands of people in the CRM to sell to. Agua CA she's a referral traffic is from into the Boston is dead they just recently went on to buy Facebook ads in the last 2 or 3 months. There are nine figure annual revenue company this morning so that's the common thread and I I'm surprised that more. Drive to Consumer brands on understand that. Scot: [29:44] Yeah yeah there's some of the media companies have tried this stuff and kind of failed miserably to kind of the big guys don't seem to get right. Web: [29:52] What's what's up with the top one in your mind because I I feel like Community first and then I'll give Mike solution. Scot: [30:00] So they're worse the guys that rebranded to the terrible brand Tribune company and then like in there they tried to do some e-commerce stuff and it got lost, steel I get AMC anyone that kind of has newspapers inside of there has just been kind of challenging. Web: [30:20] I think it's always thrown out is probably in your throat list and jackthreads. I actually think that Jack threads was succeeding. It was exceeding Jason Ross is a Columbus guy used to advise me early on with Ms in, when do we need salt to throw away I actually think that it was it did it that the company can be complementary I think that that that that girl Weston that ordered that media organization want to. Raise capital on a media valuation on the timer salutation obviously there's a premium on being in the evaluation and that affected that relationship. But, she's doing really well under that system it's a shame that they shut it down and made it seem that that Thomas was not exceeding. Scot: [31:13] Cool we'll be watching that closely let's give it a little bit it wouldn't be a Jason Scott show if we didn't talk a little bit about Amazon and what what do you make of Amazon just generally and are they this Unstoppable Force I would love to hear yours a rock with you that I'd love to kind of feather and how you think some of these brands should think about Amazon are they they friend or frenemy. Web: [31:39] That's a lot of questions yes they are an Unstoppable Force they cannot be broken up. I'm going to Weis you want but that's my that's my summary, they are both friend and foe to Brandon's I think that brands have to be extraordinary really Savvy when they decide to partner with Amazon. Otherwise they won't end up getting burnt but as you saw this week with the recent development Amazon is partnering with Adobe. It's one of those Magento Strikes Back situation where that partnership will allow consumer Brands early-stage direct consumer Brands to build stores. On top of Amazon's logistic structure instead of having to you build a store. Pasta market and recruited 3pl issued to move the product. Yes I feed the Amazons continuing to find ways to show me entire ecosystem and as long as they make consumers happy and they are. Scot: [32:49] Gold and then you kind of hinted that you know you have to be kind of prudent this are you talking about Amazon you are kind of taking a bunch of data and coming out with a competing products I've noticed they're they're being very aggressive and the mattress base review. Web: [33:04] Yes that's exactly what I mean there's always a chance that if you have a product that can that can be easily knocked off your you're going to pay for your participation. Scot: [33:15] Yes it's a how do you know when someone comes to you for advice on that is the answer if it's easily knocked off don't sell on Amazon or is it you know a more nuanced kind of thing or how do you advise books on it. Web: [33:29] It's the 41 stye eye tend to say that you should you should have a category of product that you're comfortable selling on Amazon whether it's your your your shell products or or maybe like you're cheaper. Your cheaper skews beings that do not cannibalize your existing audience and your own platform. Jason: [33:53] Yeah that makes sense and I think we've heard from some of the some of the brands that are both direct-to-consumer and having a successful presents on Amazon like a tuft and needle that there's, sort of a product delineation strategy what are there you know there's a arrangers use that they'll only sell direct to Consumers and then there's the rain just use, the doll maker available on Amazon and now there's even Amazon exclusive. Web: [34:22] Correct I think that's the way to do it. Jason: [34:25] Yeah I know that's seems like that makes a lot of sense of night they at least make that strategy what pretty, pretty robust I want to touch on one thing you mentioned cuz we haven't covered in on the show yet and will probably do a little deeper dive in a in an upcoming new show but you you reference, announcement that I think was yesterday that, Magento which is not owned by Adobe is launching a new partnership with Amazon where I sent you a you can run a, your own URL Magento sites, that it's pre-integrated to all the Amazon infrastructure so you can leverage fulfillment by Amazon and Amazon payment and it is essentially a way to have your own destination on the web, I'm for sellers that are primarily been using using Amazon and it's for real Old-Timers like Scott and I don't want to our age, Amazon actually offered a product like that themselves called Amazon webstore that they discontinued in 2015 so this is a interesting play to see. [35:29] Adobe facilitating that now, you know cuz one thing is if they also announced that sitting on Amazon web services and you know that if that ends up being the the hosting strategy for Magento in the cloud, that that's going to be an interesting conundrum you know there are a lot of retailers that are going to want to operate their their e-commerce site on Adobe web services the more I agree with you I found that to be an interesting, news this week. Scot: [36:01] What will the floods concerned about you know these Brands seeing just your Amazon sales presumably now Amazon can see everything your shipping and I don't think they would look inside of your AWS pull and see what's going on inside their but they'll definitely you know they can see wow you sold you know, 80 widgets a day on Amazon and worshipping 300 seems like there's a pretty big Direct business here so you don't have to run your whole infrastructure, how many people adopt. Web: [36:38] I'm anxious to see myself it's going to be a test for a lot of companies especially if they hope to streamline speed and availability from the logistics tampon. Scot: [36:48] Yep and it feels like they're shooting it's a fire shot over shopify's bad because shopify's been mopping up Webbie be done any research of like the platforms are these companies choose it just anecdotally it feels like Shopify is got like 80% or something. Web: [37:04] Without a doubt I just it's one pole vault I've worked with several of these companies, I I've consulted Bigcommerce I'm very close to photoshop 5 have a lot of fix my inner circle. Love what a Dobies hoping to do with Magento whole body issue. I want to say was 6 weeks ago. I said. If you are directing superbrand today which platform do you use to launch on Shopify webflow eCommerce a big Commerce or Magento it was 96% shop. With over 400 boat. Jason: [37:49] Yeah that I hadn't seen that, that skewed by that that's early Echoes my own antidotal impression is it just it feels like Shopify is totally one that face so it makes sense that, Magento Adobe had to do something big to try to disrupt that that pattern, on a side note you know Walmart has now lot like they've acquired some did you need a Brands but they'd actually launched a couple of their own he wants to abetting brand Caldwell House when I'm home but this week they wants to another one that's a premium bicycle brand called by Athens, and what would I find fascinating about those two Brands you can't buy either of them on Walmart.com you can only buy them on their own websites and these two, Brands websites that are owned by Walmart and invented by Walmart are hosted on Shopify Plus so you. [38:42] Despite the fact that Walmart owns you know their own proprietary you know multibillion-dollar e-commerce platform they that they also are turning the Shopify for these, these sort of a Nation brand self to watch on a, slightly Gigi note the Adobe announcement seemed to imply that these stores could do everedge fulfillment by Amazon and map was particular interesting to me I'm eager to learn more because, it wasn't Euro in Amazon was encouraging you to use them for all your fulfillment whether it was sold on Amazon or not but in the in recent times it feels like, they're Amazon's capacity has been so constrained that they really like curtailed your ability to to ship goods from fulfillment by Amazon for orders that weren't collected on the platform so so it's going to be interesting to see whether, whether this is a pivot back or not but. [39:41] Putting them on the shelf or second and turning back to the the broad direct-to-consumer topic one of the things that's frustrating to me as a consultant is, that the DTC companies have so much Buzz that I I frequently like go to these digital days and you know all these sort of, multi consultant events and I share a lot of my counterparts, sort of talking about deceiving the future and then one has to move Daddy to see you and that's going to be the model that winds, and you mentioned that you're sure a little barishan on a lot of these companies I'm equally bearish and the thing that I keep noticing is, me and you talked about the incumbent then in particular you'd like the cpg space like the Procter & Gamble in the universe and there's a scary stabbed that none of them have invented, any, no billion dollar brands in the last 10 years I know three, companies and you know she hear all these people talking about how it's all these Challenger Brands brands that are eating the, the incumbents lunch. [40:51] But none of these DLC brands have hit 3, as yet either you know for your point they've all raised a ton of money from investors that that need them to hit three commas, in order to have a successful exit so they're in this weird space where where do they have to get to a billion dollars and sales at least, and embrace you of any have ever achieve that, and I've noticed there's a third category that seems wildly more successful than either of the other two and this is what I'm curious about your thoughts. [41:24] It's these new brands that are being launched by the retailer Target in the last 5 years has watch five brands that have sold over a billion dollars. And you know Kroger has some of the most successful brands in the world that they've created themselves that's it's some of the interesting like the DTC brands are, are having a lean into whole wholesale distribution for Tech but the guys are really winning are these retailers that are kind of falling, some of the the components of the DDC Playbook but they're but they're leveraging the the huge audience that they already have in terms of Shoppers that are coming in their store if you. You think I'm wrong there if you seen that as what. Web: [42:03] I don't think that you're wrong at all I think it just goes back to the conversation you're having earlier but you're having great success with these private label Brands because they have an audience. Allow these directions to Consumer brands have underestimated how difficult it is to develop an audience that you're not paying. And that's where the advantage shifts The Leverage ships back to the incumbent. Jason: [42:33] Yeah no for sure and then I eat I do think when your return you have a portfolio of ways to monetize that same audience it's a huge advantage and in that way I think some of these DDC native companies that are a category like glossy a that you know is doing really well in the entire category seems like they have an intrinsic advantage over, a lot of these d2c companies that still feel like single Product Company. Web: [43:00] I would agree wholeheartedly one of my most one of my recent post was about the importance of these direct to Consumer brands that are essentially products companies. Converting or or I guess graduating to becoming category Brands the only way that you'll succeed is if you are a category brands. Can you name can you name one of these to record one of these directions to my brands that stayed in one lane sold one product all the way through you can't. Bonobo started his pants I mean that's not the best example because they simply sold for life. Every word they raised through in a million + 8/330. So I never use bonobos as an example but but there are others even even the Dollar Shave Club became of a category brand before they before they, before the accident carries category they owned half of half of the target. Away becoming a category brand obviously glossy the category brand allbirds is Shifting in that direction Evelyn is Shifting in that direction it's only a matter of time in the company that aren't prepared to do that are going to be left behind. Scot: [44:12] Let some, it's coming up soon to kind of play the chessboard out and when you do you what do you think happens to to kind of retailers and then we're super barishon malls here on the Jason and Scott show so where do you see balls also in the hole by Future. Web: [44:32] Yeah I haven't I got a nuanced answer you want the answer to that I'm not barisan almost embarrassed on the middle class. Embarrassing the middle class in general. I believe that that subset of America consumer is struggling the most to maintain their to their place in society. And you're seeing it reflected in every every retail marker malls the malls in a middle-class are struggling. I've been to some wonderful cheer animals in Columbus you have Easton. You know obviously Hudson yards will have to be exactly does New York needed to be a success in Miami you have Bal Harbour. Not like there are numerous examples of of malls that cater to the upper middle class and higher that better almost invulnerable. Obviously there are the numerous Bargain Bin sellers that are appealing to you know economy buyers, what is the middle class in all of those retailers are getting eaten up at warp speed, that's where you're bullish this comes from or saw your tears just comes from with respect balls that's, yes there are stores closing because they're closing after after months and years of dwindling demand from The Middle. Jason: [46:01] Yeah know and we've actually kind of hit that topic several times on the show, Casey will MBA from Deloitte talks a lot about this and a great consumer bifurcation in that you don't essentially is is the same thing that you know there's, increasingly affluent consumers on there's a you know a lot of successful businesses that cater to them and there's importunately. Increasingly financially distressed consumers and there's there's businesses unit value based businesses that are doing really well catering to them but it's the. [46:33] People stuck in the uncomfortable middle that you know don't seem to have a great future. [46:39] I did have one other like start a question about how some of these days you'll need to Brands Play In traditional retail mall or otherwise we started off the show talking about Harry's and some of the, other clever things that they've done and I don't know we mention on the podcast but I know you mentioned that in your report there's a lot of speculation that carries with predominantly, sold the retail so I think between J.Crew and Target like you know the the number is I've heard or like 80% of their revenue came from those, does retail stores versus their their direct consumer e-commerce presents and there's a, like from customer acquisition standpoint you you could totally understand that like you know obviously that if they're selling those razors at wholesale to Target and J.Crew that would be you Julie margin iroso, but the the interesting thing I have heard and I'm curious if you've heard the same thing is that because Harry's built a really desirable premium. [47:40] Brand before they went to these retailers and they didn't use these retailers to build a brand that use these retailers to amplify the brand that they already built. The dude actually able to negotiate terms with the retailers that were not traditional wholesale economic terms. And so I've been led to believe that that Harry's was much more profitable for Harry's in Target than a nutritional consumer goods at Target with cell. Web: [48:09] Target benefited greatly from cherries from Harry's involvement, what are the what are the prime directors of Target management over the last 10 years just to get more Millennia since the store, need more younger Millennials to buy more products in Target and it's certain jump-started. Stop Target 2.0 with respect to their their continued Revenue growth. So yes Harry's probably had some leverage that other companies didn't but when it comes down to it Harry's get exactly what they're supposed to do baby, that they can compete in traditional retail boundaries are within traditional retail boundaries against the incumbent, the brand was strong enough to do that in over that time they they threw the guy was that that was the case there were there have been a few companies I won't name them unless you want me to that I have gone into Target and not succeeded, so so Harry's. Yo it should have been an early marker for a lot of analysts see that because they were succeeding there eventually they were going to exit in some way shape or form. Scot: [49:23] Has been a great discussion and kind of your very topical with current time and I know we're up against time so it would love for you to whip out your crystal ball and look 10 years into the future it's 2030 time frame what's what do you think retail and e-commerce look like it at that. Web: [49:46] Remind me of the Year again 20:30. Scot: [49:48] Its 2029 but I added one cuz it sounds more futuristic. Web: [49:54] Are you not have a pretty positive person but may I may I just get dark for a second. Scot: [50:04] Let's go dark. Web: [50:06] Okay I think that as the years progressed the middle class will continue to pleading. So a lot of the products and services that we see for through Amazon to Target and Walmart are all appealing to higher consumer I hire a consumer. Those products and services and retailers both digital and physical will continue to thrive over the next 10 years. But I don't think that retail in general will Thrive with it and I do think that that that we're going to see a retail induced recession in the next five seven years it will probably stagger into that from your mother. But that's that's turning the future that I'm prepared. Scot: [50:58] Go to the counter argument was we need to kind of solve the middle class problem to have a prosperous view of the world in 10 years is kind of your underlying thesis. Web: [51:05] 100% And is it very clear that no one cares about that right now. Scot: [51:10] I think we do. Web: [51:14] I I care about it. Scot: [51:14] 3 out of 300 million Americans. Web: [51:17] Sure I guess what I'm saying is that the people that have the ability to make changes now don't seem to care enough about making changes now. Scot: [51:27] Those guys yep you're right. Jason: [51:29] It is as if you look at the big history if you can and get out of our kind of Iran and look at the all spectrum of human existence so I get every time this happens it eventually gets off like you just have a revolution you Lop off the heads of all the rich guys and and you know you start to develop a middle-class again for a little while so. Web: [51:47] Problem with this is a problem with this iteration of that story is by the time that can happen either we're going to be on another planet or the rich guys are going to be another planet, material are harder to Lop off an Intergalactic head. Jason: [52:05] Yeah you are going dark you are a happier follow-up question in 20-30 has Tiger surpass Jack Nicholson Nicholas remastered. Web: [52:14] Gosh me and you're putting me on the spot listen I've never read against tiger I will root against them now the kids, he said his mind when he was 7 years old that he was going to be Batman you have to believe that he's going to fall. Jason: [52:32] Yeah I I for one I hope he does it I didn't even watch the web we are really pressing up on time so if folks want to contact you what's what's the best way to find you online. Web: [52:46] Just WEP web on Twitter or you can email me at web web at the number to p.m. l.com. Jason: [52:56] Awesome I appreciate it and it is obviously happen again we've used up all our allotted time so if folks have further questions or comments about today show we encourage you to jump on our Facebook page or hit us up on Twitter. Scot: [53:10] And what we really appreciate you taking time out of your super busy schedule doing a 8000 things you make us look like Slackers is actually pretty easy to do so we really appreciate you have being on the show. Web: [53:23] It's my other guys thank you for having me. Jason: [53:26] Until next time happy commercing.

Courtney Boyd Myers (aka CBM) is the co-founder of AKUA, a business on a mission to bring sustainable sea greens to the consumer market through kelp jerky. After learning about the immense environmental benefits of ocean farming kelp, CBM made it her mission to create a commercial want. She saw a clear market need for tasty, healthy, plant based jerky, thus AKUA was born. Brian and CBM discuss the benefits of sustainable ocean farming, how to communicate your brand story, and the importance of marketing. There’s a lot to learn in this episode so keep your ears open. To learn more about the benefits of kelp on both your body and the environment check out AKUA @lifeakua on Instagram or at akua.co. You can keep up with CBM and her kitesurfing adventures @CBM on Instagram and on Twitter. To get further inspired check out @away and their founder Jen Rubio @jennifer or @thisisaday for all your travel and sustainable fashion needs. If you’re into girls being given the opportunity to shape the future of tech check out kodewithklossy.com to learn more about how Karlie Kloss is paving the way for more female engineers. Till next week!

In early 2015, Jen Rubio was racing through an airport to catch a flight when her suitcase broke, leaving a trail of clothing behind her. She tried to replace it with a stylish, durable, affordable suitcase — but she couldn't find one. So she decided to create her own. In less than a year, Jen and her co-founder Steph Korey raised $2.5 million to build their dream travel brand: a line of sleek, direct-to-consumer suitcases simply called Away. Jen's hunch that the brand would emotionally resonate with young, jet-setting customers paid off. Today, Away has become a cult luggage brand that has sold more than one million suitcases. PLUS in our postscript "How You Built That," how Jon Maroney made sledding easier for adults and more dynamic for kids with a pair of sleds that strap to your legs.

We sat down with Jen Rubio—who co-founded Away luggage in 2015 with friend Steph Korey—to hear all about how they got their start, what it's like to see your luggage in every airport, and how the brand continues to rule at high-profile collabs, from Dwyane Wade to the Despicable Me minions. Check out the full show notes here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's guest, Jen Rubio, followed her curiosity all the way through to a 700 million dollar company. Jen is the co-founder of Away Travel, which is one of the highest funded female backed startups to ever exist. In this episode Jen discusses following your curiosity through until the end, the biggest misconception about entrepreneurship, where she see’s influencer marketing heading, Away’s own storytelling strategy and more. Jen is proof that if you let your curiosity lead you, the rewards can be life changing.

While we are on our winter break, enjoy this rerun of one of our favorite episodes! In 2015, Jen Rubio was traveling back from a trip to Switzerland when her luggage broke in the middle of a crowded airport, sending her clothes and belongings everywhere. As she looked for a replacement she couldn't find the kind of iconic, high-quality, affordable luggage she was looking for. Jen called up her friend Steph Korey - the two met in 2011 at Warby Parker back when they had only twenty employees - and they got to work. Just a few years later, they launched their direct-to-consumer luggage company, Away, in 2015. It boasts high end features such as two built-in USB ports and a durable, sleek design but is a fraction of the price of competing luggage. The Away team now has more than 100 employees and tens of millions in revenue. They have expanded their product line, which now offers the bag in six sizes and eight colors and have partnered with people like Gray Malin and Karlie Kloss. In their conversation, Jen and Monica talk about how Away launched without a product, the way they handle collaborations, and why the retail and digital arms of the business aren't so different after all. “More than anything we believe in making travel more seamless and more enjoyable.” – Jen Rubio. Learn more about this episode of The Mentor Files with Monica Royer at www.MonicaandAndy.blog/28

"[As a founder] there is no stopping. The commitment is bottomless in a way that I've never had before...and so it requires a level of emotional resilience and balance that is not the easiest thing to do," says Josh Hoffman, co-founder and CEO of biotech startup Zymergen in the latest episode of the firm's podcast, Exchanges at Goldman Sachs. Hoffman joined Jen Rubio, co-founder and chief brand officer of luggage startup Away, and Dan Dees, co-head of Goldman Sachs' Investment Banking Division to discuss what it's really like to start and scale a company. This podcast was recorded on October 18, 2018. The information contained in this recording was obtained from publicly available sources and has not been independently verified by Goldman Sachs. Neither Goldman Sachs nor any of its affiliates makes any representation or warranty, as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this recording and any liability as a result of this recording is expressly disclaimed. The recording should not be relied upon to evaluate any potential transaction. Goldman Sachs is not giving investment advice by means of this recording, and this recording does not establish a client relationship with Goldman Sachs. Copyright 2018 Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC. All rights reserved.

Consider this the Jen Rubio step-by-step guide to delivering a good pitch. Super granular details will be most helpful, i.e. what to do a month before, the night before, 10 minutes before (look in the mirror and repeat a mantra, walk in with a particular attitude, know the answer to their first question, etc.)

Launching November 1, this 6-episode podcast will serve as a crash course in how to knock your next pitch out of the park. You'll learn from Away co-founder Jen Rubio as she delivers must-know advice for all budding business entrepreneurs. 

Launching November 1, this 6-episode podcast will serve as a crash course in how to knock your next pitch out of the park. You'll learn from Away co-founder Jen Rubio as she delivers must-know advice for all budding business entrepreneurs.

Launching November 1, this 6-episode podcast will serve as a crash course in how to knock your next pitch out of the park. You'll learn from Away co-founder Jen Rubio as she delivers must-know advice for all budding business entrepreneurs. 

Launching November 1, this 6-episode podcast will serve as a crash course in how to knock your next pitch out of the park. You'll learn from Away co-founder Jen Rubio as she delivers must-know advice for all budding business entrepreneurs.

Jen Rubio, co-founder of travel brand Away (creators of cultishly loved suitcases) talks with Erin Patinkin and Natasha Case about how a college dropout with no experience in the worlds of travel or luggage built one of the most talked about travel companies of 2018. She and her partner raised capital, gained loyalty, and disrupted a staid space through the power of storytelling and consistent pitching. She maintains that building Away as a lifestyle brand, not a suitcase company, opens up a bright future for them and their partners.

EP147- Industry News, Amazon, Apple, Recode, Shop.org, and holiday forecasts  It's a news-a-palooza this week including including Amazon, Apple, Recode, Shop.org, and holiday forecasts and more.  Scot and I get together in person in Chicago to discuss all the news an implications. Amazon News Amazon Go opens in Chicago and Jason has a trip report Bloomberg reports Amazon may have plans to open 3000 Amazon-Go stores Amazon Storefronts is a new feature for small businesses to curate collections Amazon has launched a new AI based visual discovery tool, Amazon Scout SnapChat and Amazon have partnered on a new social shopping experience, using visual search Amazon launched 14 new Echo devices Amazon and Good Housekeeping partner on Mall of America Pop-Up Apple News Iphones ship with new commerce features Background NFC Scanning Native QR Scanning Augmented Reality in web-browser via ARKit 2.0 Other News Holiday forecasts are beginning to come in Deloitte: 17-22% ($128b-$134b) (19.5% midpoint) Internet Retailer 15.5% ($120b) Forrester (preliminary) forecast 14-16% Adobe acquires Marketo Farfetch (luxury e-commerce marketplace) has successful IPO Event Recaps Code Commerce in New York.  All the interviews are available on YouTube (thanks to @DelRey) Shop.org in Las Vegas. Interesting new vendors: Seek - Augmented Reality in Mobile Browser hosted solution for retailers/brands. Hero - Connecting online shoppers live with associates in the physical store. Upcoming: Groceryshop October 28-31, Las Vegas Don't forget to like our facebook page, and if you enjoyed this episode please write us a review on itunes. Episode 147 of the Jason & Scot show was recorded on Monday, September 24th, 2018. http://jasonandscot.com Join your hosts Jason "retailgeek" Goldberg, SVP Commerce & Content at SapientRazorfish, and Scot Wingo, Founder and Executive Chairman of Channel Advisor as they discuss the latest news and trends in the world of e-commerce and digital shopper marketing. Transcript Jason: [0:25] Welcome to the Jason and Scott show this is episode 147 being recorded on Monday September 24th 2018 I'm your host Jason retailgeek Goldberg and as usual I'm here with your co-host Scot Wingo. Scot: [0:41] Hey Jason welcome back Jason Scott show listeners for long-time blisters you may detect something different in the audio today. Jason and I are actually physically in the same room together this only happens about, maybe one in 10 episodes maybe one in 20 but I am in Chicago for the B2B show called B2B next that started this evening and then is ramping up tomorrow and I'm giving a talk about, winning the away game for B2B companies and Jason lives in Chicago even though he rarely is here so it was fortunate we were in the same city at the same time. Jason: [1:15] It's super fortunate I'm just finding out now that you didn't exclusively come to Chicago to see me so I'm a little hurt but I am thrilled for your company and companionship none the less. Scot: [1:27] Yeah I can Chicago to see you... And do a quick cake. Jason: [1:31] Yeah I mean I feel like if I knew Scott wing it was coming to Chicago I would throw a trade show just to get you to do it. Scot: [1:37] That's thank you I appreciate it we should do a Jason Scottrade shift I'll be our next one of our 2020 goals. Jason: [1:45] Yeah if you're any of our friends in the trade show industry don't worry Scott's just joking. Scot: [1:49] Will have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches it'll be within the range of 6 Starbucks. Jason: [1:58] I like that last part a lot. Scot: [2:00] Call somebody excited to be here because there's an Amazon go store and I am going to stop by tomorrow morning if it's not raining but I heard you have already been. Jason: [2:10] I have indeed I've been super excited to touch you because I feel like this, week is just busting with exciting e-commerce news that Amazon go store actually opened last week, and I was out of town so some of that Amazon go stores are in locations that are open 7 days a week this particular one, is in a busy downtown area during the week that's kind of dead on the weekend so the store wasn't open over the weekend so today was my first chance. To go shopping and compare and contrast it to the Seattle locations. Scot: [2:47] Brickell what were the the pros the cons the differences the similarities. Jason: [2:52] So I have a feeling most Shoppers would feel that they were very similar to the Seattle one is a reminder just walked out technology you have to use an app. Scot: [3:04] JJ Watt hashtag JJ Watt. Jason: [3:05] #Jay Watts you have to use an app to get in the store you cameras watch you throughout the store you grab all your purchases at this convenience store format, and then you just walk out and Amazon automatically charges your account for your purchase at so that's the original promised the first store in Seattle had a very visible, kitchen until like the majority of items they sold we're actually not National brand food products they were. [3:34] Sandwiches and in meal kits that were made on site on the premise. And they also in that original store later got a liquor license and started selling alcohol, they open the second location in Seattle that did not have a kitchen and I and many others assume they use the one kitchen as sort of a hub-and-spoke and deliver food to, go shuttle locations from that kitchen so I was really curious to see what they do in Chicago when they open their first store and once again there is not a public kitchen so either they have. A private kitchen somewhere else in Chicago and they're delivering the meals in or, and I did seem slightly farfetch but they're delivering the meals from out of town, and restocking on the I was kind of curious if they had the date that they were made on the sandwiches and they they have the date their best consumed by. Which most of the sandwiches that were available when I was in the store where best consumed today so. Scot: [4:36] You could fly them in on that Fleet of Amazon Prime planes. Jason: [4:40] It's always remotely possible and since the store just hoping you can imagine there's a kitchen coming somewhere else that isn't live yet or maybe it already is why there's no there's no I could have been his one way or another store has more. Gondolas in the original store so there's more aisles in the store which since they're watching you with a bunch of cameras in the roof I imagine the aisles are a little harder to do because they potentially block lines of sight. It has two entrances. [5:12] So that adds a little bit of complication you walk through kind of a Subway style turnstile and scan a QR code on your Amazon Go app, to get into the store in the very first or when you were running the app and you grabbed purchases you could kind of see on the app I running, shopping cart you could see what Amazon thought you had it when you put something back you could see it disappear in real time from your cart. In this store and I did two shopping trips you don't get any real time does ability to what you're taking you walk out of the store and frankly the second you walk out it's not clear. If you been charged at all and then a minute later this receipt pops up that says pending and then about 3 or 4 minutes later, you get an itemized receipt that shows you what you charged and I don't know why the difference but I bet the. The scenario here seems a little problematic you could potentially being a cab on your way away from the store and find out you were. You are Miss charge for something. Scot: [6:14] Sounds like human intervention in there this is one reason I can think of you to have a pause like that you know of some kind of Mechanical Turk like check that's going on somewhere. Jason: [6:24] Potentially it the original store, they actually have Windows and you can see a video observation area where a bunch of guys in red shirts are watching video and this was like, even when I was an employee only mode none of that is visible in the store now that doesn't mean it's not there it just means they they didn't choose to build a. A window in that first or is in an Amazon owned building so you imagine, it's cheaper and easier for them to do exterior things where they're just a tenant in a in an office building. In the Chicago store so unclear they have an army of people watching I did two purchases and both were accurate, I bought a web we just walk out technology technology coffee mug for my wife some Amazon go. Scot: [7:15] You're hopeless. Jason: [7:16] I am I am Amazon go chocolate for for Stephen and I got the beam on a sandwich because, we heard that's the number one skew and I thought this would be a super exciting gourmet sandwich and Jeff if you're listening the sandwich wasn't that good I was so disappointed. Scot: [7:34] Too much Mayo not enough a Sprouts what what was off. Jason: [7:37] The bread to be my ratio I thought was way off it was way too much bread for two little feeling. Scot: [7:44] It's interesting that there's been a fair amount of traffic on Twitter around people that have gone to the store and initial reaction is oh I'm not worried about grocery stores I'm worried about 7-Eleven. At is a kind of what you think through this. Jason: [8:00] So I think there's two categories that are potentially at risk one is 7-Eleven or just hit more generically non gasoline convenience store so it turns out, that 80% of convenience stores sell gas and that's a special reason to go there that the Amazon go doesn't have so it is a competitor for those doors, but. Those those kind of sore tennis sell a bunch of prepackaged food in National Brands and there's a little bit of that in this store so there's National brand drinks and there's a few different varieties of chips but the assortment. Bike is probably like more Amazon made stuff it probably feels slightly fresher and more healthy than. Scot: [8:45] It sounds like an old Bon Pain or those are called or a Marks & Spencer in the UK where they're saying yeah kind of. Jason: [8:50] So I was actually going to say like a pretty amazed you or maybe sort of grab-and-go pre-made sandwiches like. Scot: [9:00] Where I'm from we call it pret a Manger you get the fancy French talk. Jason: [9:04] I work for a French company so I've learned like for French words and you just heard 3. The other ones not suitable for our general audience podcast in some ways. It feels like the primary use case for this store is, office workers grabbing lunch and not being gone from their desk that long and so you can imagine that that was the original problem that Jeff was trying to stuff for was getting Amazon employees back to work quicker, and yes I could be the Subway sandwich that this is more a threat to. Scot: [9:39] Yeah one of the writers so internet retailer is here in the city and one of the writers was saying in Chicago it is a huge problem to go out for lunch and his it's a four minute longer walk to the Amazon go store but it took him 2 minutes to get in and out and all the other places he walked by we're at the 30 minute wait so it is you know we've had arguments with some folks on Twitter that talk about, it's not really convenience and then one of the things I think long-term they're going for is there going to be less labor a better one that goes to one says it's got like three times the labor of any other store they've ever been in. How to get Amazon's just Staffing that early days to get people, trained and download the app to help kind of jump start it but I think long-term I think the labor will be very low on these. Jason: [10:27] Yeah I think you're right like the you are out customers are definitely outnumbered by Amazon employees at the moment. That's because there's some new things that customers are having to be taught and so you know we we were talking earlier it's it's someone analogous to an ATM machines first launched and Banks would staff a human to stand next to the ATM and teach you why in the short run that that didn't make sense why why. Put a person next to the machine trying to replace a person but once I want to learn how to use ATM machines they were able to get rid of those trainers in the airline's did something very similar with, electronic boarding passes where they had a lot of help initially so at the moment. They remove the friction of standing in line to pay but they had this new friction of having to download an app before you can even get in the darn store so that a lot of people standing outside the store in the rain, helping you install your your app now luckily Amazon's from Seattle so that people are familiar with standing in the rain, presumably they imagine a future when everyone already have the app install the and or it'll become more familiar and so they won't they won't need all that labor to explain everything to everybody. Scot: [11:42] Brickell and then last week you were at shop.org which unfortunate had to miss due to some hurricane issues but give us a little trip report from shop.org what was interesting there it was in Las Vegas this year your favorite City. Jason: [11:56] Sorry one other thing I forgot to mention on the Amazon go they just want to ride their super quick they did add alcohol to the Seattle store and there's been a lot of talk that's another, friction point because now you have to have another human you know you're supposed to just be able to walk out when you're done but now you have to have a human when you're walking out they can check your ID, and Zoe you know we talked about the pros and cons of that this store does not have alcohol so that that may have been some decision or maybe that it takes longer to get a liquor license. Scot: [12:28] This may seem unrelated but in my city of Raleigh we were a Goldilocks City for a lot of different things because we have just like a million million at people Ivory digital City and all that good stuff we have all of the different kind of Transportation model so we have all the lime bikes the birds and all that stuff I've tried all of them and what's interesting is they all have, if you're over 18 to use this and I'll have a driver license scanning mode where else can the front, Idaho Ciara and they scan the back and they're saving that data as you saying I am over this age I don't think that works for alcohol but, I kind of think there could be some way to do that and you have to work with the local alcohol real people but you know, Amazon really good at kind of saying alright let's take a room of people and put them somewhere in a back alley in Seattle not in front retail space and just like you know we fly all these drones out of remote locations why not have a lot of the stuff pushed to a cheaper location somewhere like maybe the people in the Amazon store they're standing around maybe they're standing somewhere in Seattle for the Chicago store if there's no reason to have to physically be there. Jason: [13:35] Telepresence for doing a d Checkers and in fact you can imagine that use that same teleprinter sentence for delivering alcohol at some point and I D Jackson. All kinds of boys like that I have zero doubt that Amazon can solve the technical problem of doing, inaccurate age verification at your point it will probably take slightly longer and be slightly harder to get the, the Bureau of Alcohol to agree that that's a suitable approach. So you would ask me about shop.org we had surgery on last week and we did talk a little bit about some of the content with sucharita so she gave, a presentation about marketplaces that was super interesting I know that's a topic that you sometimes have a personal interest in. I did some stuff on on the areas where artificial intelligence is actually getting Traction in retail in Commerce and got some decent feedback, but one of the things that jump. Org has added in the last couple years is an innovation section so this is a, less expensive portion of the trade show floor that's cheaper to exhibit that's enticing, newer younger emerging companies and so it's one of my favorite parts of the shofar to walk because I'm generally familiar with most of the, vendors that have been exhibiting shop.org for many years but it's fun to see some new you know sometimes crazy stuff. [15:04] Answer this year two companies kind of jumped out at me there's a company called Shiro. Which is really focusing on the problem of digital. Digital Shoppers getting the equivalent, personal experience of an in-store Shopper and so along the lines of the ID check you just talked about these guys are essentially, creating a telepresence solution so that store staff when they're not helping an employee customer in the store, can I have live chats and create video content for customers that are shopping the website. I'm so it's sort of a way to have a more human interaction with web Choppers that's whatever Jean the in-store labor force and that's, part of the genre of omni-channel that I think is really smart and interesting so I like that. Approach and then there was a company called seek and and I suspect we can talk a little bit more about this in general terms later but, Sikhism, augmented reality company for mobile phones we've talked a lot about how augmented reality is probably much more important than, virtual reality for Commerce in the short run and what seek is really focused on is. [16:28] Apple in OS 12 just launched some new features that now that you do good augmented reality in the web browser no app required and so seek is. One of the first companies with a tool set that retailers can, license on the cloud to have good a our experiences in a mobile web browser without having to get an app downloaded and I think that's really smart and obviously there. Timing their company launched with the the release of this new product last week. Scot: [17:02] Brickell and then last but not least I think you were going to New York to go to recode did you were you able to make it to that to see mr. Del Rey. Jason: [17:10] So sadly so I have a ticket I had a client call me in another Direction at the last minute but I did get an opportunity to watch, a lot of Jason's interviews on YouTube and they're they're uploading all the all the speakers to YouTube so if you're interested you are, they're all available in a couple that stood out to me the founder of Shopify who seems like. He's sort of up to his his public visibility in the last few months that you used to be kind of a rekluse that didn't, do a lot of public presentations he had a good conversation with Jason Delray I had sent Jason all kinds of specific questions I wanted to ask about shopify's size and Market penetration which I notice. Jason didn't get a chance to ask but he did talk a little bit about who's probably the Marquee you know Enterprise customer using Shopify which is Kylie Jenner, interview back into some of his answers you don't think he he was saying that over the last 2 years, Kylie Jenner sold 900 million dollars worth of product on the, maybe two and a half years sold 900 million dollars on Shopify which is in a pretty good scale we normally think of Shopify as a long tail solution for very small Merchants but that's a pretty good size. Scot: [18:39] Yeah I think what makes it work is I think it's not a huge number of skews right I think there's like, two nail polishes and tendus too. So I think she just has like in a quantity of Brazilian of 50 skews which doesn't put a cart through too many of its Paces Paces you don't need a fancy content management system you just need scalability in robustness on the check outside. Jason: [19:00] Yeah I know I totally agree there are some boxes that that checks that shows that they have good elastic availability for these peak days but you're right like there's a lot of things that you would exercise in the catalog with a million skews in it that. [19:14] That particular site isn't isn't demonstrating scale on it at all, I had asked Jason if you could ask who some of the big catalog we can go there but it was interesting cuz he what he talked a lot about hey we started trying to solve for the small business customer, and a lot of companies as they grow try to move up market and he he's claiming the day over we don't want to do that they don't want to abandon. Their core market so they want this new product Shopify plus which is intended to be more upmarket but they explicitly, launch that with a new team and a new office in a new city and sort of partitioned it. From the original offering so it really Leverage is the quote the court code base and add some new capabilities and services but his promise for. [20:10] How he was going to expand their Market rather than a band in the the low end of the market to move up was, The Silo this the Shopify + offering and he talked a lot about how in his mind, front and commerce experiences are actually pretty easy and he's a coder you mentioned a lot of the original Cody Road, is still in the platform and hasn't needed to change for the front end but they're like 90% of the ongoing development effort they're doing are all the post order code in. Complex water management and integration to to Legacy Erp systems and one of the big features they just launched for Shopify plus is the ability to manage multiple Warehouse locations for exam. Scot: [20:57] There was you I saw some people kind of kind of gasp on Twitter because I don't think that those numbers were public that Kylie had that he revealed I mean she had talked about in 2017 we talked about this on episode 145, what was out there that they were dude they did 300 million in 2017 so it means they probably did for 5500 maybe even 620 18th so you know I don't think a lot of people would have guessed, what was that big so kind of added her Revenue I don't know if she was aware of that or happy or sad or she's probably more on Instagram than following what's going on too. Jason: [21:33] Exactly where she I think she left Twitter so so he was safe I don't know yeah but that was the first time I heard some confirmation from a third-party Source oh. That was interesting another talk with Jen Rubio and Jen was actually at shop.org but then she she was also interviewed by Del Rey she's one of the two co-founders of a way which is, terrific example of a digital native vertical brand in the luggage space. Scot: [22:01] Yeah and I have my birthday present was away luggage to this is my first trip using it and I have to say I'm very pleased right now. Jason: [22:06] Nice so I feel like it gets really high marks we may need a product review from you the one thing I'm always curious about is I think a lot of the way luggage has the option for a smart battery built into the luggage, and there's a lot of controversy now about the airlines not letting you certainly not letting you check that but in some cases, making you take the battery out to even carry it on which frankly doesn't make sense to me. Scot: [22:32] Yep so it's checking it you can't check it with the lithium in there and they now pops out so I think they're V1 was fixed and now it meaning it could not. Jason: [22:40] The ball so it's easy to pop out and put in your lap. Scot: [22:41] Injectable that makes a lot easier to charge to like lifting your suitcase up onto the. Jason: [22:48] Well I look forward to buying something electricity from you at Future shows that we travel together. Scot: [22:52] Absolutely just at yeah I've got a milliamp hours of plenty. Jason: [22:57] So we've heard a little bit about a way one of her investors what was on Earth from Comcast best Adventures was on her show earlier, this year but one of the interesting comments that she made the Jason that I thought was really clever so they have a few stores at the moment one in SoHo in New York, in one of the kpi that they have for the store is. How many times people upload Instagram pictures from the store. In a way that sounds cheesy and sort of superficial but as we're in this world where, sort of Assortment and low friction shopping is moving out of brick and mortar and onto the you know these big online marketplaces one of the main roles for brick-and-mortar is around experiential environments, and one of the ways you know you've accomplished a exponential environment is when people shopping in the store, want to memorialize their trip to the store so I actually thought that was a kind of clever and smart metric to be looking at, maybe we'll do a deeper dive in some other show but there's this big trend of these instagrammable spaces the for example the Ice Cream Factory in San Francisco there's a couple temporary ones you just opened here. Scot: [24:19] Yeah I have a I have two teenage kids and every time we go on a trip we have to include their the things they want to do or these instagrammable places that they've seen on Instagram so. What time it was this bubbly ice cream thing and then it was raw cookie dough then it was let's see it's rolling ice cream is big now. Jason: [24:40] No answer I mean on the way. Scot: [24:42] The food is very instabul in which is a huge part of the experience. Jason: [24:46] And that sounds somewhat silly on one hand but it it makes a lot of sense and you know it someone reminded me in the old days like to differentiate yourself you just had to be unique amongst your 200 code students, in your high school class or ever did your high school class was, but these days you have to be unique amongst your ten thousand friends on Instagram and so you know it is harder to differentiate yourself and so these these opportunities for, more digitally native Shoppers to have a differentiated experience and share it you know makes a lot of sense so that's a smart thing for for retail designers to be thinking about. Scot: [25:25] Packaging for a way was really interesting that comes in a cardboard box what you expect, but then the bag is in a really nice kind of a cloth bag and then when you open it there's a whole experience around there's a little booklet there global travel pack that comes with it, and then they train you on how to use it and then there's a little book about, it is very much pitch is a Lifestyle brand of you know the things you can do with your way and then they promote hashtags that you should, do while you're going and you know it's almost kind of like the beginning of an adventure around travel and and going to see things so it's pretty well done your versus you're just like you know. Popping open a Samsonite or something and you know it'll be just fall out in this kind of experience. Jason: [26:10] The premise of her shop.org talk was. They build the brand less about talking about the features and benefits of luggage and trying to sell luggage and then said they are, they start from the perspective of selling travel experiences so the store, is less about here's how to demonstrate all the things in the luggage you can of course do that but the luggage is in vignettes of aspirational trips to Bora Bora in Amsterdam, and it's it's really about reading to me in for you having this fabulous vacation and oh by the way, you need this luggage to get there as more so than it is features and benefits of the Prada. Scot: [26:51] Absolutely cool thanks for the trip reports I think that was some good stuff like I got trips happening and it wouldn't be a Jason Scott show without. [27:16] So a lot to cover in Amazon news we talked to Jason give us his live report from the Chicago Amazon go store and then a friend of the show we going to get him on here Spencer soap. Yeah he he broke a story where there have been internal talks and I'll Circle back on this about. Amazon potentially opening 3000 Amazon go stores by 2023. Jason: [27:46] I think I might have been like 20/21 I thought it was a relatively short. Scot: [27:51] This is funny because we've been talking on Twitter about you. Just feels like. There are they are opening stores at a pretty good pace and it feels kind of prime now when they they decided with prime now it's go time and then suddenly there was 40 to 60, Prime storage pronounce doors to 3000 is a stretch just kind of getting that real estate I've heard a lot of skeptic say it's impossible while they do that and it figured out how the end of the alcohol sign 3000 Lisa's that fast so I think it will be. I think what could be happening here is your encourage the Amazon meetings to do a lot of brainstorming to write press releases from a future State and I think maybe there's some of that that kind of came up so I'm not sure. Yeah it feels like damn it nailed the format yet I think they're probably won't get a couple more figure it out but you know, when they do on a scale these getting to 3000 I don't think that's impossible. Jason: [28:48] Yeah I'm sort of in the same boat I'm up to mine so for sure. Part of the Amazon methodology when they first pitch new idea they write the six-page memo. Attached to that memo is they write an aspirational press release that they want to be able to issue when the things been successful so for sure there is a press release for Amazon go stores that talks about a mask deployment so. Scot: [29:12] We just open the 3000 store. Jason: [29:15] So that would that would be the exact Spencer one possibility is someone just saw that press release and misunderstood its purpose. The the other side of my brain says Amazon actually is pretty good at keeping secrets and they don't tend to have a lot of unintentional weeks so the fact that this was weed. Partly I believe that probably wasn't completely unauthorized and so, is that because they really are preparing for scale and if so you know I was surprised cuz I wouldn't have thought they nailed the format. [29:53] But you know or is it potentially I had fake I don't know but what I will tell you is, it's absolutely possible possible to open that many stores and Retail in that time. And retailers have done it, in the nineties I work for Blockbuster entertainment we opened a store every 12 hours for my entire 10 year so once you get to a certain scale, like these things are really Temple dies then the the advanced teams are you know just 6 weeks out in front cutting deals on leases and everything Cascades from that and so it. Absolutely possible if they decided to just penciled out and that they needed a big footprint of stores they could run 3000 stores by 2021 now. 3000 stores if this is really can me competing with a convenience store 3000 stores actually probably isn't enough to have a real meaningful business and now that Amazon's a trillion-dollar company. [30:52] You know if there's a million-dollar p&l for each of these 3000 stores like. Arguably isn't a big enough business to get in to be really material to Amazon so we'll have to see. Scot: [31:04] Do you think he'd stores doing a million dollars but what is convenient store to get to take gas out. Jason: [31:09] Yeah I'm trying to and I don't have specific knowledge that this is an estimate based on other types of small format stores, and I would imagine that in the those convenience stores there's a huge standard deviation cuz there's going to be some fast Runners that are easily 10 million dollar stores. If you have 3000 there's there's going to be some snow our stores in there too so to me, you know a million to a couple million per year for many kinds of restaurants would be very good. Scot: [31:41] So million at 3000 is 3 billion so each million is 3 billion so if they did five that be 15 but that's a needle mover for them to hunt. Jason: [31:53] You never like to talk about Revenue you always like to go with the big number. Scot: [31:56] Well then there's a multiple there that yeah so yeah so that that's. Jason: [32:06] That's going to be interesting to watch that would be to meet someone fascinating if that's the brick-and-mortar format that gets. Scale the fastest versus the books or the or you know some information of the grocery pick-up for some of the other things they've done. And a new store format won't will probably talk about in a minute but another piece of online news that we saw from Amazon this. Weaker last week was this new Amazon small business store fronts, and so I thought you might have a POV on that but the gist of it is it's a way for small business that's a 3-piece seller on Amazon to offer a curated collection, of products and have their own sort of landing page and in some ways you'd be where some of our listeners might not, Amazon used to have a Amazon webstore which was essentially. Competed with Yahoo web store and let us small business run their own website on their own URL that's not what this is. Scot: [33:13] Yes in a lot of people depressed confusing these things. That's the problem one of the main problems with Amazon webstore was it had the initials a w s s cousin to the cloud computing AWS, PSO2 Amazon used to have a thing where they would go out and run a store for people it was the downgraded kind of technology that. Your Target and all those guys ran this to me is just really giving a little bit of content to the store owners desk and be types so they can tell them or their story, and they're highlighting some of them and, part of the press release was really starting to thump their chest and say over 50% of the items or the units sold on Amazon or from third parties and there's an integrated TV commercial as well I haven't seen it running. So it feels like a didn't get like a huge I haven't seen on NFL games are in that kind of stuff which of the big spots I'm so don't know where they're running it but I did see the online version so but it is you if your 3-piece seller it is pretty cool to have an Amazon you know out there used to be kind of this dirty secret that some of the stuff you bought from Amazon list of these third parties now Amazon's kind of put you more front center so it felt like a big. If something is change they're pretty dramatically and how they're thinking. Jason: [34:32] And so I I think you sort of app we described it but I have heard people, sort of think of it as a Etsy competitor which is not really right Amazon does sort of have another offering that's more competitive with that seat and then the Jason Delray did Ash Shopify, if they considered it competitive and he had the the sort of typical competitor answer it feels like a little bit of a trap to me. Scot: [34:59] It's a trap. Jason: [35:02] Pictures of Admiral Ackbar. Scot: [35:05] Black bar on it yeah yeah I don't know if it's true or not I mean it is very hard for. Jason: [35:13] Going on Amazon I would use it likely wouldn't make that my only destination on the web like me Amazon has one channel for most people shouldn't be there exclusive Channel. Scot: [35:24] When your Kylie Jenner you can have your own store and not worry about Amazon and you know also comes to you and I'm sure she had a lot of power in their relationship. Promosi small business out there and you start on Amazon and then you're lucky if you get anyone to your website so so yeah yeah I think it makes a lot of sense for four people to embrace it and and, rapper on it a lot of people that's because some of the ones that are highlighting do you have more of car that Homespun handmade kind of provide to him like there's this handmade Candle company that was both on the front page of the store fronts and on the TV commercial I hope those people have a lot of inventory because it felt like they're going to sell out of those handmade candles pretty darn fast. Jason: [36:04] Yeah I was always a problem when you highlight the small businesses right. Scot: [36:08] Couple of quick things Amazon has been obsessed with visual shopping and they've done several kind of things around that so, the the first one is they've had they had something called visual shopping where you can kind of like pick some colors and stuff then they deprecated that, then they have active on the homepage if you look at the top bar I'm always logged in this Prime and I think this is available and non-prime to it'll say new and interesting finds and that's kind of like a Pinterest so you could put together a little you know of Jason's Board of interesting finds of cool gadgets I'm so Scott a Pinterest board, feel to it that I've always thought of new and interesting is kind like their Pinterest competitor have a new one called Scout if you go to amazon.com Scout and it's more of a Instagram meets machine morning to see thumbs up thumb down some stuff and then it's supposedly going to learn about what you like and don't like and and. Pretty quickly after 5 to 10 ups and downs you'll get to some interesting new products that that it learns that you may want so then so that kind of feels like Pinterest Army sorry Instagram so they've got. [37:15] Pinterest and Instagram covered the other big visual thing out there is Snapchat and actually just today announced integration with SNAP, where are you can go and take a snap of the picture and then Snapple use I assume they're using the machine learning a library that Amazon has for Parker Mission so you see a cool celebrity you see Kylie on your way home tonight you take a picture of her sneakers and it will identify them and then show them to you over on Amazon which feels kind of like an affiliate type model so I'm sure there's a rough share there but it is pretty interesting that snap is the front end of an Amazon kind of the backend which is Young so now they have an integration on the snap sides the good kind of, the three visual shopping Technologies covered in a way to different business models which is pretty pretty. Jason: [38:02] No I I would agree the Scout thing was kind of interesting to me I've heard some people describe it as Tinder for shopping. Scot: [38:10] Apple swipe right. Jason: [38:11] Yeah you go get products and go hot or not and they're broken at in the category so you know you you decide you're looking for, home furnishings and then you can say lighting and you get 5 chandeliers and you say like don't like don't like in as you're doing that, the assortments getting curated to visually 2/5 chandeliers that match your taste in so it's it's pretty fun and fast and immediate and they're promising, more categories to come it's slightly reminded me of you go old school on Amazon when they used to mainly sell this, stack of books and video. [38:52] The recommendation logarithm was based on what you bought but of course you could buy a book arm or watch a video that you didn't like and so they act they used to have an interface where you could look at all the stuff you bought and go back and say you liked it or didn't like it, and sort of refine your own recommendations and so if you want to invest some time you can improve it in my mind this felt like, how much more evolved visual version of that so that it's interesting to invent new ways to shop and, Amazon's always been great for the spearfishing but like you know browsing and Discovery has been the Gap so it's it's interesting to see them try new things and it seemed interesting the snap one to me. [39:36] Is a very interesting because a lot of social networks have tried to integrate Commerce and they generally try to do it in a bran friendly way, and like it's not particular brand friendly to say and we're going to sell everything on. Amazon right like when when you want that feature so this is like the Pinterest wins feature which is a visual search capability but then connecting all of those visual searches to Amazon, no other retailers ever going to buy an ad on your platform and so part of me wonders if snap was only able to do this because they sort of are in the Challenger position, Instagram feels like it's getting more of the momentum and so this was, a a big move snap could make but potentially the risk of alienating a lot of other advertiser's. Scot: [40:27] Yes snaps been under pressure and there. Their head of Partnerships left recently and he is a big yeah she was an internet analyst I've known for a while and, I imagine they may have been building some stuff out they realize how hard the backend is and they kind of got the front end working and they just decided to marry them together instead of having to go to all that. One thing that occurred to me as you're talking about they are stuff earlier is Amazon does have an AR functionality and it used to be buried in that so you'd have to go kind of down the sub menu at the hamburger menu down three levels in the camera app now and then update, you have, you have your normal scan barcodes but now you can search with photos is is kind of promoted to a very high level up inside the camera and then also you can do smile codes and then last but not least you could do if you had room so it's right in the camera now so they've they've upgraded the AR View and in the Amazon that up into the camera, which is pretty nursing another part of this visual search is Dave and Kurt are going to take out your Amazon app hit the camera button there's a lot of cool new stuff inside of there to play with now. Jason: [41:32] Yeah I know it's very cool, another big an Amazon announcement as if they didn't have enough is they had a president last week and they launched I want to say 14 new products with Echo embedded in them. Scot: [41:47] Yeah and I was really excited for you cuz I know you are really big on the Amazon button e things and they had an amazonbasics microwave and it has a button on there where you can order more popcorn. And I just envisioned you and having that installed by now have you bought and installed one of them. Jason: [42:05] So the challenges I have a 3 year old son that's where and how to talk to all the Echoes and. Would constantly be running the microwave if it was too in closer to the ground so I feel like it's probably a bad combination of might like Echo cook popcorn with nothing in the microwave will be happening a lot in my house. Scot: [42:26] I saw a lot of people scoff at this but you know the the microwave is a challenging thing so every every microwave you come across is different, and yeah sure if you're going to do a minute heat up or something it's not a big deal but for my microwave whenever I want to defrost something or whatever I have to take out the little guy and there's this complex you know, non-intuitive side of things you have to do where is it be really cool to say you know Alexa you know heat up this pizza and it just kind of knows that okay you need the heat at 50% and so it's I think there's actually something there that that actually is a time-saver to be able to say that for the microwave and have it kind of decode oh you know I need to go 50% power so the cheese doesn't get all rubbery or whatever it is that did microwaves do, so I don't think a lot of people realize that that it's doing that behind the scenes there's there's a fair amount of complexity as I read more about it, in there about what it's going to do with the voice that. I think it's pretty interesting. Jason: [43:21] No I I think there is some very real world use cases a lot of the space saver microwaves don't have a numeric keypad anymore and so you know now you have this. Awkward, dial that you know is sort of variable speed that you have to use to set microwave for 3 and 1/2 minutes and so like voice is the perfect way to have a minimal space footprint but still have no easy low-friction access to, you know all of those features that often don't get used in the microwave because they're too hard to find. Scot: [43:53] When when I was excited about is in my car I can I can put an echo dot in there and. It takes a little works at to connect it to the Bluetooth every time is it's not like Auto connected to the Bluetooth, but it's a really cool Auto interface but you know I don't think my OEM is ever going to have Alexa and the dash certainly they'll be some people that do that some people are brought into the Apple ecosystem some people are building their own so one of the projects I was excited about was called Echo Auto so it's kind of like an echo. But I think the Bluetooth going to be more persistent and smart and connect better but also has it kind of lays flat and I think you can velcro it to your dash and it also has eight little microphones on top so you know they're saying that it'll be able to hear inside of a car better, sex can be a pretty interesting auto experience that's why the one I was most excited about, but sadly I know you can't pre-order it unless you have an invitation so all the Amazon people listening I know I would love an invitation I don't know about Jason, Jason Jason would probably love an invitation to. Jason: [44:56] For sure without doubting you for your fancy Fleet of automobiles I'm just going to say that your OEM probably wouldn't add an Alexa interface unless and until Jeff Bezos divested blue origin. Scot: [45:10] Yes. Jason: [45:11] But there were a bunch of other products they improve the core products so they did another iteration of like the view in the. The View has a is a smaller footprint, overall but a bigger screen so I have a couple of the 7-inch devices and use them in my house and so now the, 10 feels more appealing they have a clock which it's an analog clock and I. I don't have a place to put this but I really want this, so it is a traditional analog clock that looks like a standard kind of office wall clock, when you set timers which is one of the things I'm most frequently do with the echoes in my house they have sort of stealthy LEDs around the rim of the clock, that show you the progress of the timer so you can see him visually how much, time you have left in a timer but the feature that I think is most cool which is super lame is when daylight savings happen, the hands on the analog clock actually moved to automatically change your analog clock for daylight savings. Scot: [46:17] You give me staying up you're going to get this or you have to stay up till 3 a.m. my time does it still 3 a.m. in Chicago or is it to him. Jason: [46:23] I couldn't tell you because I have no analog clocks and all the digital lens automatically adjust. Scot: [46:27] You can stay up all night watching and waiting to see what it does like this it just doesn't stand still for an hour and our plastic depends on if we're going forward or backward this is this is we're going to do a live report. The world's best book still nothing happening. Jason: [46:45] Rest of it we have some grass growing. My big thing I felt was interesting about all these releases is you know we talked about it CES this year that Alexa was embedded in like five thousand devices are 4,000 devices into, there was a school thought that they made these initial products to see the market and they're happy to sell these core products but that, they were you know trying to be very appealing to oems to get embedded in a lot of other products and so it's somewhat surprising to see them. Expanding the line of first-party products that they in bed in themselves and arguably. That could make it less appealing for other microwave ovens to license the tech or. They could make that the must have desirable feature that then entices other opm's to take the future. Scot: [47:37] Yeah I got a fire watching the video that they were. There's been a couple microwaves actually integrated with with Alexa and I get the feeling they're underwhelmed and I think they wanted to say here's where the bar needs to be you no have it, be able to talk about different recipes and talk about you know defrost my vegetables and have it understand that stuff. I think they're frustrated that allow that Williams to do that kind of thing. No some of the commands for like Alexa run the oven at 50% power which is I think they were trying to make more of an intuitively than than though instead. Jason: [48:10] No I think I think you could have hit the nail on the head with that I did feel to mention one other interesting product they have them or audiophile. Alexa now so you can I get an Alexa with a. Remote subwoofer which more directly causes us to compete with like the Sonos is of the world. Scot: [48:31] Recode pregnancy. Jason: [48:33] I teased earlier in our Amazon segment that we were going to talk about another new retail format from Amazon and that format is a pop-up shop that Amazon and Good Housekeeping, just opened at Mall of America. So this a curated assortment of products from Good Housekeeping and they all have smile codes which you mention which is Amazon's proprietary 3D barcode and you scan any of those smile codes, to be able to order those products from Amazon. Scot: [49:08] Cold sores a kind of touch and feel and then you can't really buy from there you have to buy them online. Jason: [49:12] Yeah my sense I have not visited yet Mall of America for a long time with the largest mall in the US it's so realize that status but it's this huge huge destination Mall in Minneapolis. Scot: [49:25] I've been there Camp Snoopy as big giant thing in the middle. Jason: [49:28] Yeah that's an amusement park in the middle of the mall I I've spent weeks Sweeping in that mall we don't we don't need to rehash those. Scot: [49:35] So we'll save that for another podcast. Jason: [49:36] Those stories but so an interesting new new partnership as Amazon you know partners with more these curators create you know novel newcomers experiences. Scot: [49:50] Okay that was Amazon news and looking at 9 Amazon news I like to keep track of everyone's holiday forecast cuz we're sitting here knocking on the door of October and so we Deloitte was out our good friend Casey and they are at 17 to 22% incest pretty robust with a 19 and a half midpoint internet retailer came out this week at 15 and a half and then sucharita was on and she talked about how they haven't formalize our forecast but she was thinking kind of 14 to 16% and she kind of highlighted that the the Grinch this year could be these tariffs and there is, creasing noise even since we had to treat on like literally 3 or 4 days ago you know Walmart is really kind of banging the drama and there's a lot of people out there saying, hey this this could be a pretty big head when coming in the holiday so we'll have to see how that plays out. Jason: [50:42] There's a part of this could be a scare tactic but they're saying in some categories that does terrorist could drive 10 to 25% pricing keep creases in some category. Scot: [50:52] And it's all the dollar store but what are they going to do. Jason: [50:56] Yeah that would that would obviously. Scot: [50:56] Scot a dollar 15 store doesn't have the same ringtone. Jason: [51:00] It doesn't but if you shop at our store you'll find a lot of not. I don't already sorry spoiler work yeah. There was another big acquisition in my world, on Friday I want to say and that was that a Dobby has been very active lately and Acquisitions we talked about their acquisition of Magento the e-commerce platform on Friday they acquired martello. Which is a big marketing automation platform that particularly excels in the B2B space. Scot: [51:38] That was a was a big deal in it how do you think that's going to is that kind of tying into Magento one report I saw so now that adobe owns Magento there's a lot more Wall Street people talking about it, I'm in every report I read is not very favorable towards Magento and it talks about them as a share loser to Shopify Bigcommerce, now a lot of that's anecdotal so do these Channel checks and there is kind of hearing you know if they'll be at these still be at the shop. To hear Rumblings Aid you agree with the B is this some kind of a very trying to stitch together a cloud in an interesting way because sales horses gut you know Cloud for everything they've got you Noah house Cloud car Cloud marketing Cloud sales Cloud 9 Stein cloud. Is Adobe playing catch up what's going on. Jason: [52:27] Infernus to Adobe I'm not even sure I would say they're playing catch-up they me depending on how you look at it, Head Start of lead sales for Salesforce from day one was Cloud oriented with a single product right so they they, yeah unquestionably dominated the cloud CRM model in eventually put a world of hurt on the, the traditional on-prem CRM folks and they've expanded to have what they now call is a marketing Cloud right so their marketing cloud, then they added exacttarget which was their sort of direct marketing thing and they since added a bunch of pieces to the the Salesforce marketing cloud. So they printed to me and where that actually is at sorry to be complicated a second Cloud for sales. Scot: [53:18] Is Commerce club. Jason: [53:19] It's a Commerce cloud and said they've Salesforce about to Commerce put Solutions, demandware and Cloud trays which is more B2B so that's in the Commerce Cloud Suites you got a bunch of these marketing activation tools in the the marketing cloud, Adobe has probably had a marketing Cloud longer than Salesforce and also through acquisition they acquired a bunch of, they would put their analytics Solutions in their CMS solution their campaign management solution and they have a bunch of customer data product, so I would actually argue adobe's had a more comprehensive. Suite of capabilities and what they call the marketing Cloud then Salesforce. [54:09] One of the tools in that sweet is called campaign manager and that probably is not the absolute strongest product in the sweet and it's primarily focused on b2c, outbound Communications and so Marketo bolsters that capability and sort of experience and in the B2B. I would agree that that in general Magento is a share loser to some of the cloud-based Solutions most notably Shopify but I would say, an area of strength for Magento has probably been on the B side of Commerce in so you could look at that from Adobe and say, hey the marketing cloud has been pretty successful and well penetrated in the The Big Brand b2c space. Between Marketo and Magento. Probably bolsters their treads in the B2B space and you know potentially on the longer tail a little bit more. Scot: [55:07] That was way deeper than I was. Jason: [55:09] Yeah I'll see a lot of my Adobe friends in my travels this week so that I'm sure they're going to tell me if I got that wrong. Scot: [55:15] Quotes of this was also a big week because we're both Apple Fanboys and lot of new stuff out there's new watches and phones and you had a fun Journey on your phone's I'm sure listeners would love to hear about. I had one where I I did the whole get up at 3 and was disappointed cuz launch day was the 21st and then I got to like 28th October 5th ship date, but being good under-promise over-deliver I got my Apple my new phone today. Came in 5 days earlier which was exciting and I was frantically installing and upgrading and so I got the x-maxx and I'm really happy with it it's got a longer battery doesn't feel ginormous I feel like I'm back to that plus format. I also have a. Pixel 2 and it feels like it's almost the exact same format as up until 2 so it's been good and then I also got the new generation 4 watch sadly it does not have the ECG yet it's coming soon, but the thing they did those genius there is they got rid of the bubbles and it just feels like the data display is, in a 50% larger so there's a lot more information on the watch which is which is kind of neat and it seems like the battery life there is dramatically improved tell us about your your phone experience. Jason: [56:31] Well first let me just paint a word picture for our listeners during this entire podcast on our face-to-face and Scott has mainly been playing with the Amazon VR feature on his giant Max phone and flashing his humongous Apple watching me. So I have some serious Apple Envy as we sit here I'm sad to say I had to replace my Apple watch 3 months ago so I did not pull the trigger on a Gen 4, I knew after I. Scot: [57:00] Is your screen cracked. Jason: [57:01] No not yet but it may be by the time I get home tonight. Scot: [57:05] Girl accident. Jason: [57:07] After I saw it I was going to have some screen envy and I I certainly just watching you and having some screen Envy, luckily there's a 24-hour Flagship Apple Store about 300 yards from where we're sitting right now so I can fix it on the way home and I don't think they're in a constrained Supply situation I think you can walk in and buy a watch. Scot: [57:28] Sounds like a fun trip that we can report on next week. Jason: [57:31] So I got up in the middle of the night in the middle of shop.org to place my. IPhone upgrade order at the earliest possible moment and I also pay a little bit of extra money in this Amazon upgrade program because you generally have. Preference for the new stuff. Scot: [57:50] The Apple subscription program. Jason: [57:52] Apple subscription program includes AppleCare so if you're going to buy AppleCare anyway it actually and you were for sure going to replace your phone every year, it actually does a pencil out to be a decent economic deal but the main reason I do what I don't want to get anyone is because, I want to make sure I get that new phone day one because frankly all my clients on day two are going to be disappointed if I show up without the new Apple product. Scot: [58:20] You have a secret it says retailgeek right on your laptop you have to I mean you at the bar very high. Jason: [58:25] Yeah so I got up early, finish my pre order was promised a launch-day phone I was traveling on launch day I sent that and it signature required so, I sent a signature required form to be put out in my house while I was gone somewhere justix went awry on that and the the phone didn't get there so I came home Friday night to a sorry we missed you. Scot: [58:52] Sad. Jason: [58:53] The saddest worst customer experience although it's my fault it still is the most disappointing customer experience you can possibly have your want your phone was here but now it's not. Scot: [59:05] Wow wow wow. Jason: [59:07] So jump on the UPS website change the delivery address to some UPS lockers very close to my house, and get it rescheduled for Saturday delivery so now I don't need a signature or sometime Saturday UPS is going to drop this at a walker that's half a mile from my house so I'll get it into the day Saturday still in time for my trip this week. Saturday 6 I get the exciting note that is in the locker walk over to the locker the locker opens and is empty. Want Walmart so that was very disconcerting turns out the driver made a mistake. They delivered it to the locker wait tonight and so I I did in fact like my phone, moments before we started this podcast but unlike you did not have time to activate it yet so I also got a big capacity Max and then and I'm excited for that as well. Scot: [1:00:08] So you know we ordered about the same time and you pay all that extra for the subscription I got my phone earlier. Jason: [1:00:13] Yes I mean the main takeaway from this whole story is Scott is better than Jay. Scot: [1:00:17] It just luck of the draw. Jason: [1:00:21] But I will say there were a couple things they were either surprises in this more the OS X launch and the hardware or that I just don't have missed during announcements but there's two kind of, relevant features to Commerce, so we did mention when the OS 12 operating system was iOS 12 was launched that there's a new improved AR library in it called AR Kit 2.0 what I missed, is AR Kit 2.0 that you do AR in the web browser no app required and so I'm that's the capability that are friends at Sea car using, to watch that so in general I don't recommend retailer spend a bunch of money on an app, because there's a lot of friction to getting users to download the app I do IKR experiences for a lot of in-store retailers and so now I get the best of both worlds my retail clients can implement, the in-store AR shopping features without requiring an app so that that's actually very exciting, and then the Easter egg in the hardware is the phones that you're holding the access model so that excess in the excess Max which is not how Apple want you to say it by the way they want you to say 10s. Yes in 10s maxed and coming soon 10 r. [1:01:46] All have an improved NFC chip over the previous generation, and what's exciting about this new NFC chip is a, it has a passive reader in it so the original phones with NFC chips they can really only be used for Apple pay and you couldn't use them for other experiences, now we have a complete implementation of NFC, and one of the things that means is for example a store could put an NFC tag in every fact tag in the store, and if you just wave your phone you don't have to launch an app or do anything you just have to have the phone unlocked if you just wave your phone over that tag. You will go to a web page that can have supplemental product information for all those pages so now we can have NFC tags that we put in our house to like, trigger scenes for virtue we can use them for shopping all sorts of capabilities in the NFC stack that we didn't used to have now with this new hardware we did so I actually bought. In NFC writer in a bunch of tags to start playing with us and they came even though I didn't get the phone so. Scot: [1:03:00] What are the most fun apps and if you look on Twitter iOS 12 I think comes with measure so you can go measure all kinds of random stuff there's always funny people pictures of people measuring like their cat's tail and all kinds of interesting thing so it's a it's a cool way to experience they are. Have a lot of fun measuring stuff. Jason: [1:03:19] I will say this some of the third-party measuring apps that use it still better than measure but it's fun to have a native Native program. Scot: [1:03:27] Call any other fan boy stuff. Jason: [1:03:31] Nope nope that was it again I think there's going to be another announcement with some iPads and then there's probably at least one model of iPad on my list for that so I'm. Scot: [1:03:43] One thing that we watch Pretty closely is the stock market to see what's going on in IPOs and there was an e-commerce IPO this week There's a European luxury Marketplace called farfetch and they went public on the New York Stock Exchange and this one was interesting date they price a little bit below the range but they end up raising 875 million which is not too shabby and the stock, October 50% on on diepio day does farfetch Marketplace lol you probably haven't heard of evaluation of 6.2 billion, be billion there revenues are about 400 million a year which we know that's a very good multi, but they're growing north of 50% year-over-year so that's why they are commanding a really good multiple there so it should be interesting to see what they do with those phones or largely European I'm in focused on luxury you can imagine more International expansion and maybe even a push into the US that's what I would do where I European luxury Marketplace. Jason: [1:04:43] The Ed suddenly found a lot of excess capital. Scot: [1:04:47] And did not this time I thought it was interesting we've talked a lot about a rvr on the show we did a deep dive you and I are kind of hobbyist on this and what did we miss in VR at least is that killer app, so I'm a big Elon Musk fan and he announced kind of surprisingly a SpaceX, project funded by a Japanese billionaire where they are going to go on a moon travel servngo launch from Earth on the bfr the big Dokken rocket and they're going to take that puppy and circle the moon and then come back and he announced on Twitter I use a mouse with air quotes because. Alive not a hundred percent sure he's serious about this but he generally is like you know what he says he's going to solve things that are not flamethrowers but they really are they did that, the boring companies real most the stuff that you think is a joke end up being real he did say they're going to live stream in 4k you were going to have series of cameras mounted on the spaceship and they're going to Live cast of er to imagine of your experience where you. [1:05:57] Be on the spaceship and looking around as it goes around the Moon bee that could be the killer app and I'm I'm curious to see what headsets he's going to work with and know you'll on, probably would decide the ones out there aren't up to spec so maybe they'll have to be a boring headset or a SpaceX headset or something that comes along with it so they'll be fun to watch and kind of out there, pretty super geeky. Jason: [1:06:21] You and I could be at the geekiest launch party ever for that product as weak sit in a dark room with her. Scot: [1:06:27] If you see the only sold two of them and it's the same guys that bought the Fire Phone. Jason: [1:06:35] Exactly there is a retail tie in there that the Japanese billionaire you know I think he sold like, 8 seats for this first flight in the Japanese billionaire bought all 8 he's a retail billionaire and he runs a

On this week’s episode of Business of HYPE, jeffstaple plays an episode of one of his favorite episodes from the BLAMO! podcast featuring AWAY founder Jen Rubio. "We saw an opportunity in this space to make a brand that people care about, talks about travel a certain way, and just so happens to make a really good suitcase."  As always, thank you for tuning into HYPEBEAST Radio and Business of HYPE. Please don't forget to rate, comment and subscribe to our channel, as well as HB•R and MIC/LINE. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/businessofhype/support

Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away Luggage. Before starting Away, Jen built her career by creating compelling brand narratives for some of the world’s most innovative companies. She started at Johnson and Johnson. After working there for a couple years, she quickly moved onto work for herself as a social media manager, before that was even a real job title. In 2011, Jen joined the early executive team for Warby Parker as Head of Social Media. It was at Warby Parker, that she met her Away co-founder, Steph Korey. In 2015, Jen was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Marketing and Advertising. Jen eventually left Warby Parker and moved to London to join AllSaints, as Head of Innovation. However, her entrepreneurial spirit took over, and she quickly left that job to launch Away.  Away is a modern travel brand that creates thoughtful luggage and travel accessories, designed to make travel more seamless. Away has rapid growth: starting with less than ten employees and now boasting almost 200 employees. The company has pulled in more than $125 million dollars in revenue since its launch in 2016. Today Jen is here to talk about how to find the perfect co-founder, how to fundraise, and shares her expert insight on how to effectively brand a business.

Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away Luggage. Before starting Away, Jen built her career by creating compelling brand narratives for some of the world's most innovative companies. She started at Johnson and Johnson. After working there for a couple years, she quickly moved onto work for herself as a social media manager, before that was even a real job title. In 2011, Jen joined the early executive team for Warby Parker as Head of Social Media. It was at Warby Parker, that she met her Away co-founder, Steph Korey. In 2015, Jen was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Marketing and Advertising. Jen eventually left Warby Parker and moved to London to join AllSaints, as Head of Innovation. However, her entrepreneurial spirit took over, and she quickly left that job to launch Away.  Away is a modern travel brand that creates thoughtful luggage and travel accessories, designed to make travel more seamless. Away has rapid growth: starting with less than ten employees and now boasting almost 200 employees. The company has pulled in more than $125 million dollars in revenue since its launch in 2016. Today Jen is here to talk about how to find the perfect co-founder, how to fundraise, and shares her expert insight on how to effectively brand a business.

A chat with Jen Rubio, co-founder of Away and one of the women changing the landscape of travel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Direct-to-consumer brands don't often live up to the hype placed on them by endless amounts of VC funding and Silicon Valley fandom, says Jen Rubio, co-founder of travel brand Away, on the latest episode of TheCurrent Innovators podcast. Speaking to Liz Bacelar, founder of TheCurrent, at the British Fashion Council's annual Fashion Forum in London, Rubio explains that from its inception in 2016, she and her co-founder Steph Korey (who she met while both working at Warby Parker), were careful not to run their business like a lot of other brands in the space. "If you go back in time a little bit, a lot of new brands and e-commerce companies were positioning themselves as tech companies and raising a lot of VC money at tech valuations that would never live up to the public market at how retail companies are valued, and then run into the trouble of needing these stores and claiming they are a retail company and not a tech one," she explains. "We saw a lot of this happening in the industry and from the beginning Steph and I said, this is not how we are going to run our business. "If you go back in time a little bit, a lot of new brands and e-commerce companies were positioning themselves as tech companies and raising a ton of VC money at tech valuations that would never live up to the public market at how retail companies are valued. And then run into the trouble of 'oh we actually need these stores so now we're a retail company and not a tech company'. They've raised too much cash, they've burned too much cash," she explains. "We saw a lot of this stuff happening in the industry and from the beginning Steph and I were like, this is not how we are going to run this business." After pitching Away as a brand aiming to make travel more seamless, as opposed to simply making luggage, the business famously received a first round of investment before even having a physical product, for instance. From the lightbulb moment for the brand's concept through to its launch, Away spoke to over 800 people about what elements would make the perfect suitcase. It is that open approach to constant feedback that it continues to focus on to this day – helping to inform its product collaborations, new features and color palettes, and even locations for pop-ups and permanent retail spaces. In this conversation, Rubio also tells Liz how its first major hurdle – airline regulation that meant their smart suitcase was no longer allowed onboard – was an important opportunity to strengthen the relationship with Away customers; how retail landlords are finally giving non-legacy brands a chance; and why understanding your consumer is key to constant innovation.

Jen Rubio, Co-founder of Away, jets in to the studio (and yes she did come toting bags on the way to her 50th flight of the year) to chat with Alexa and Laura on how brand is a crucial agent of growth in the business - - maybe even more than the physical product, focusing on the customer experience and relationship with data,  investing in talent for their mindset and capability not necessarily their resume, and how the industry isn’t thinking about TV (YES TV) the way DTC brands are and seeing it’s value.  All this and her clear-headed, with product recommendation included, #KILLBUYDIY.  Get carried AWAY with this one ADLANDIA.

In 2015, Jen Rubio was traveling back from a trip to Switzerland when her luggage broke in the middle of a crowded airport, sending her clothes and belongings everywhere. As she looked for a replacement she couldn't find the kind of iconic, high-quality, affordable luggage she was looking for. Jen called up her friend Steph Korey - the two met in 2011 at Warby Parker back when they had only twenty employees - and they got to work. Just a few years later, they launched their direct-to-consumer luggage company, Away, in 2015. It boasts high end features such as two built-in USB ports and a durable, sleek design but is a fraction of the price of competing luggage. The Away team now has more than 100 employees and tens of millions in revenue. They have expanded their product line, which now offers the bag in six sizes and eight colors and have partnered with people like Gray Malin and Karlie Kloss. In their conversation, Jen and Monica talk about how Away launched without a product, the way they handle collaborations, and why the retail and digital arms of the business aren't so different after all.

More and more people are shopping online, and advertising platforms have taken notice, giving more on-page real estate to retail-related ads. If you’re in the retail industry, chances are you’re already using some form of online advertising to promote your products, but there is most likely room for improvement. Join Matt and Chris for another thrilling episode of the Best SEO Podcast, featuring "6 Ecommerce PPC Best Practices to Improve Your Advertising ROI" by Jen Rubio. Having 1st aired in 2009, with over 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape. For those new to the podcast, choose a past topic among the vast library of almost 500 episodes of all topics related to internet marketing: SEO, PPC, Email Automation, social media marketing and more.. Great for marketers, business owners and agencies from the novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand! www.bestseopodcast.com

More and more people are shopping online, and advertising platforms have taken notice, giving more on-page real estate to retail-related ads. If you're in the retail industry, chances are you're already using some form of online advertising to promote your products, but there is most likely room for improvement. So how can you ramp up your own PPC ecommerce campaigns to take advantage of this growth? In this episode, we will cover six helpful tips.Source: https://www.verticalmeasures.com/blog/ppc-advertising/6-ecommerce-ppc-best-practices-to-improve-your-advertising-roi/Presented by BestSEOPodcast.com (The Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing Podcast)Having first aired in 2009, with 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape.Great for marketers, business owners and agencies from the novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand!You can also watch this podcast episode here: http://bit.ly/3dadF4T

Jen Rubio is the co-founder and CEO of Away, a New York-based luggage company for modern travelers. Jen and her co-founder Steph Korey launched Away in 2015, inspired by a broken suitcase and a travel epiphany. Their goal was to create a brand that people could get excited about—luggage that’s both iconic and accessible. Jen joins Girlboss and Sephora Collection today to share her #LIPSTORIES with Girlboss editor in chief Neha Gandhi. She gets honest about what travel means to her, how to survive a nightmare travel day, and how you build a brand that people can't stop talking about.

Yahoo Finance's second installment of Breakout Breakfast! In this episode, Melody Hahm interviews Away's co-founder and COO, Jen Rubio. Recorded live from BUILD Studios. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, Inc. writers and editors discuss Evan Spiegel’s plan to improve Snapchat by separating the social and media aspects of the app. They also look at Small Business Saturday and the impact it’s had on independent companies. Finally, Jen Rubio, the co-founder of the luggage company Away, shares her tips and tricks for traveling during the holidays.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When I was returning home from a trip abroad, my suitcase was over the weight limit by about 10 pounds. I was a penny-pinching college student at the time, so, naturally, I took about 10 pounds of clothing out, put it all on right there at the airline service desk and saved the extra cost. Granted, wearing rain boots, three sweaters and a coat didn’t make for a very relaxing travel experience, but it was a quick fix to my dilemma. Everyone has some kind of wild travel story, from terribly delayed flights to celebrity sightings and even appalling behavior from fellow passengers. What’s your story? Share it with us @OnTheDotWoman on Twitter. The post Jen Rubio and Steph Korey: She’s Traveling Smart appeared first on On The Dot Woman.

My guest this week is Jen Rubio.Jen is the co-founder of the travel and luggage company, Away.We talk about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship and how through incredible branding and product design they actually made buying luggage cool again.awaytravel.com

Jessica Smith: Career Advice | Interview Prep | Job Interview Questions | Personal Brand | LinkedIn Tips | Salary Negotiation Hustle Con is a one-day startup event where the world's most successful non-technical founders: 1. Tell their origin stories 2. Teach the practical tactics they used to start and grow their startup 3. Share behind the scenes insights on their wins and losses I had an absolute blast at this year's Hustle Con event. It was my first time there, but it definitely won’t be my last. Big thanks to everyone who made the event possible! Each year Hustle Con invites the world's most interesting entrepreneurs, leaders, and do-ers to tell their 'behind the scenes’ story. Learn more at http://hustlecon.com/ Tune into today’s episode for the best success tips shared during the event. It will feel like you were actually there…ooooo neat, time travel. ROLL CALL (in order of mention in the show) - Casey Niestat, YouTube Star and founder of Beme - Miguel McKelvey, co-founder of WeWork - Mayfield Fund featuring Tim Chang and Rishi Garg, a Silicon Valley VC firm which has partnered with the founders of Lyft, Marketo, and SolarCity to name a few. - Jen Rubio, founder of the first-class company, Away - Manish Chandra, founder, and CEO of Poshmark - Shan-Lyn Ma, founder of Zola crushing the $300 billion wedding industry (GO GIRL!) - Tom Bilyeu, founder of Quest Nutrition and Impact Theory - Tucker Max, founder of Book in a Box and the well-known book, 'I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell' SHOUT OUTS - It was so great meeting each of you, I wish you all the success in the world and will be rooting for you as we continue to grow our businesses! - Gus Shultz, VP and Head of Talent for ScaleLab - Josh Edwards, Senior Accounting Manager at RiskSense - Austin Gaydos from Arena Solutions - Yoon Kim, founder, and creator of Starboard - Lucas Ho, start-up entrepreneur for VR apps concentration on museum industry SIGN UP TO ACCESS MY {free} CAREER SUCCESS RESOURCE HUB - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/lovemyjob Join the Career Café FB group: jessnessrequired.com/careercafe The café is yours to ask questions, share your experiences, and get the support you need to be successful in your career. Join the Wellness Squad FB group: http://www.jessnessrequired.com/JOIN/ The Well'ness SQUAD is a safe judgement-free online community to connect, support, & uplift one another. A virtual home for exploring mind body + spirit wellness. DO YOU HAVE A SECOND? LEAVE THE POD A REVIEW! This helps more people find the show, and in turn, I get to help more people like YOU. SUGGEST A POD TOPIC - Send me a note: http://www.jessnessrequired.com/contact - Send me a snap: http://www.jessnessrequired.com/snap SUBSCRIBE ON YOU FAV APP: - iTunes - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/itunes - Soundcloud - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/soundcloud - Stitcher - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/stitcher - Feedburner - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/podfeed FOMO is no joke…get on my NESS note list {aka email list} for updates on new shows, POPUP WORKSHOPS, online courses, free trainings, and more! Sign up here: http://www.jessnessrequired.com/careertips/ Check out my book, YOUR TWENTIES - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/book SHORT ON TIME? I got chu covered. - Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for Tiny Tips on the 5 wellness topics covered in my book: Self-Love, Health Mind, Body-Acceptance, Relationships, and Career - http://www.jessnessrequired.com/tinytips LET’S GET CONNECTED YA YA YA…. - Find links for my other social accounts on the Jessness Required homepage http://www.jessnessrequired.com/

Jen Rubio, Co-Founder of Away Travel, joins the Tim and John for a lively business conversation. Prior to co-founding Away, Jen was the Head of Social Media at Warby Parker, spearheading content and sponsorships. In 2015, Jen was named on Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Marketing & Advertising. But first, Japan invents a translating megaphone for the 2020 Olympic Games and the Hoover Damn was dedicated 81 years ago this month. We're all business. Except when we're not. Hear this show, and others, at www.focusgroupradio.com and please subscribe, like, and rate The Focus Group on all your platforms of choice. iTunes: apple.co/1WwDBrC Tunein: bit.ly/1SE3NMb Stitcher: bit.ly/1N97Zqu Google Play: bit.ly/1pQTcVW YouTube: bit.ly/1spAF5a Also follow Tim and John on: Facebook: www.facebook.com/focusgroupradio Twitter: www.twitter.com/focusgroupradio Instagram: www.instagram.com/focusgroupradio

Olivia Perez is an journalist, businesswoman, and entrepreneur in New York City. She is the founder and host of the Friend of a Friend podcast, a monthly talk show that deep dives into the next generation of luminaries. She's interviewed talent like Bella Hadid, Hannah Bronfman, Jen Rubio, and moderated panels for businesses like Shopify, Bumble, WWD, The Wing, and more. Perez is also a contributing writer to Forbes.com, and has written for Harper’s Bazaar, Teen Vogue, and Huffington Post. A graduate of New York University’s Gallatin Program, Olivia has made her mark as an editorial and cultural archaeologist, digging up the best of the unknown to encourage her followers to push past their comfort zones and create their own trends. She's partnered with brands like Chanel, Kith, Tory Burch, Michael Kors, Nike, Calvin Klein, and as a brand ambassador for Outdoor Voices and Coach. In 2018, Perez co-founded System of Service, a community that provides accessible and engaging service opportunities for all that strives to create impactful service experiences beyond the dollar. Follow us!  Olivia: @livvperez Okay Sis: @okaysispodcast Scout: @scoutsobel Mady: @madymaio  Current Fixations:  Olivia: Trying something new Scout: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday Mady: The Daily Good Newsletter from The Good Trade Join our SECRET FACEBOOK GROUP: Okay Sis(ters)   Shop our Amazon Shop (books, wellness, skincare) here! FabFitFun: Need an affordable way to try out the best of the best products? FabFitFun, our favorite subscription box, is hooking up the sisterhood. FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box that you can customize - think beauty, wellness, lifestyle! Each box is $49.99 but has a guaranteed value of at least $200...I MEAN. And if that deal isn't sweet enough, they are giving the sisterhood $10 off your first box!! Just click here and and our promo code - OKAY SIS - will be automatically applied :)