Podcasts about Skus

Five years ago you could hire a PPC manager for bids, budgets, keywords, campaign types and structure, and that was the whole job. Today Mike argues that a good Amazon PPC marketer is just a good Amazon marketer, and the job now reaches into what used to be somebody else's problem entirely: fees, refunds, logistics, and the one he thinks is most underrated, stock.This is the case for letting your marketing team into your inventory data, and it starts with a client who flatly did not believe it mattered. Conversion rate is a product page problem and a PPC problem, they said. So Olena on the Ad Badger team built the chart that settled it - unit session percentage plotted against warehouse balance - and the split was uncomfortable. Above one threshold the numbers held. Below it they didn't. Sales, conversion rate, Buy Box. Not out of stock. Just low.That sent Mike into inventory distortion - the combined financial drain of overstocking and stocking out, estimated to cost global retail 10 to 30% of total sales volume, and almost never mentioned alongside ACoS. He breaks the damage into four buckets: lost revenue that doesn't happen evenly (half a million Buy Box checks found roughly one in three products has at least one location with a suppressed Buy Box), rank decay, the PPC tax you pay while competitors take cheaper clicks, and capital locked up in overstock.Then the SOP. Three reports - advertised products, FBA inventory health, and detailed page sales and traffic by ASIN - dropped into Claude with a prompt, and you have a dashboard. Mike walks an anonymized $400K a month account where roughly 30% of the catalog was fully out of stock and a couple of SKUs sat on over 1,000 days of supply. Plus the one nobody automates: nothing tells you when a product comes back in stock, which is exactly when you want the ads switched back on.We'll see you in The PPC Den!

If you spend the next thirty minutes listening, you stop bleeding cash on dead stock and start buying smarter, not more. One operator added one point five million dollars to his top line by fixing his inventory forecast. It was not about volume. It was about precision. David LeBlanc was doing thirty thousand dollars a month with six SKUs. He saw a slight dip in sales and cut his next purchase order by fifty percent. Three weeks later, he was out of stock. His ranking tanked. This episode breaks down why revenue-based forecasting is actively killing your margins and how to fix it with Caiman Data AI. You will learn how to stop guessing and start predicting. You will see the exact tools to predict sales and decision touches that separate profitable brands from struggling ones. You will get the Voltage 3 insights that turn data into cash flow. This is not a theory session. This is an operator's playbook for Amazon and ecommerce sellers who want to protect their cash flow. If you are drowning in tabs, ads, listings, and pricing, this is your reset. Listen now to stop buying blind and start building a brand that scales without breaking your bank account. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast is where you get the real talk on inventory management, sales forecasting, and margin protection. Do not let another month of bad data cost you your ranking. Hit play and apply the first move today. Implement with us. Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep390

What should you really be designing a new product for? In this CMD Gold episode, we revisit episode 99, where Renaud Anjoran and reliability expert Andrew Amirnovin explore Design for X (DfX), the practice of designing a product around specific objectives that go far beyond simply making it function. They examine 12 areas where products can be deliberately optimized, including shorter development times, crowdfunding, manufacturing, assembly, quality, packaging, reliability, maintainability, ergonomics, fewer SKUs, and sustainability. Along the way, they explain why simplifying products, reducing part counts, using proven components, mistake-proofing assembly, considering the real-world use environment, and involving the right specialists early can prevent costly problems later. The key message is that DfX is not about maximizing every possible objective. Different products have different priorities, and some objectives involve trade-offs. What matters is identifying the right ones early enough in development that you still have the freedom to make changes.   Show Sections 00:13 – Introduction: Revisiting Design for X 01:46 – Design for shorter development and time to market 04:26 – Designing for crowdfunding 07:12 – Design for Manufacturing and Design for Assembly 11:43 – What should product designers consider from the start? 15:57 – Fewer parts, standard components, and mistake-proofing 19:23 – Modularization and simplifying assembly 23:35 – Design for quality 30:52 – Why packaging must be considered during product design 34:06 – Design for reliability 42:58 – Design for maintainability 46:48 – Design for ease of use and ergonomics 47:07 – Design for fewer SKUs 47:53 – Design for sustainability 48:41 – Which DfX objectives matter most? 49:24 – How to implement Design for X in practice 50:53 – Using expert design reviews 51:23 – Adrian's present-day takeaways   Related content Agilian - DfX, Industrialization & NPI Support Sofeast - The New Product Introduction Process Guide QualityInspection.org – How Good DFM and DFA Help with Production Cost & Quality QualityInspection.org – The Design for Reliability Process for Launching Reliable Products QualityInspection.org – Don't Leave Packaging Until the End Agilian – Why Test Components and New Products to Failure During NPI? Get in touch with Sofeast Connect with us on LinkedIn Contact us via Sofeast's contact page Subscribe to our YouTube channel Prefer Facebook? Check us out on FB

The Storm Skiing Journal and Podcast likes it when ski areas are run by people who are good at running ski areas. Please subscribe to the email newsletter to get new posts the moment they're live. Thank you for supporting independent ski journalism.About CamelbackOwned by: EPR Properties, managed by Peregrine Hospitality (formerly KSL Resorts)Located in: Tannersville, PennsylvaniaYear founded: 1963Pass affiliations:* Ikon Pass: 7 days, no blackouts* Ikon Base Pass: 5 days, holiday blackoutsClosest neighboring ski areas: Shawnee Mountain (:24), Jack Frost (:26), Big Boulder (:27), Skytop Lodge (:29), Saw Creek (:37), Blue Mountain (:41), Pocono Ranchlands (:43), Montage (:44), Hideout (:51), Elk Mountain (1:05), Bear Creek (1:09), Ski Big Bear (1:16)Base elevation: 1,252 feetSummit elevation: 2,079 feetVertical drop: 827 feetSkiable Acres: 166Average annual snowfall: 50 inchesTrail count: 45, with three new trails for 2026-27 (not on the map below, but discussed on the podcast)Lift count: 12 (1 high-speed six-pack, 1 high-speed quad, 1 fixed-grip quad, 2 triples, 2 doubles, 5 carpets – view Lift Blog's inventory of Camelback's lift fleet)For reference:The Zoom transcript (click “transcript” above for the Substack transcript, then click on any text block to teleport to the associated point in the video; timestamps below DO NOT MATCH THE VIDEO)00:03:25.000 --> 00:03:37.000Stuart Winchester: Welcome to The Storm! I'm your host, Stuart Winchester. Today is Wednesday, September 16th, 2026, and I've got a really good show for you today.00:03:37.000 --> 00:03:45.000Stuart Winchester: we're going to talk some Pennsylvania skiing. And Pennsylvania skiing is a really interesting thing. As I travel around the country.00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:56.000Stuart Winchester: and ski at all these different places in the Midwest, and out West, and in New England, and in the Mid-Atlantic. Uh, and as I talk to folks who… who don't ski that much, or only ski at the big mountains.00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:05.000Stuart Winchester: I'll often bring up some experience I had at a Pennsylvania ski area. Pennsylvania has quite a few ski areas as 21.00:04:05.000 --> 00:04:20.000Stuart Winchester: public chairlift-served ski areas, and it does 2.6 million skier visits on average per year. That is more than any state except for Colorado, California, Utah, Vermont, and New York.00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:26.000Stuart Winchester: It's more than Washington, it's more than Oregon, it's more than Montana, it's more than New.00:04:26.000 --> 00:04:39.000Stuart Winchester: So, Pennsylvania is a really important ski state, which is probably why Vail Resorts owns 8 ski areas there, because it is really close to a lot of population centers. In western PA, you have Pittsburgh.00:04:39.000 --> 00:04:54.000Stuart Winchester: and Seven Springs, and Laurel, and Hidden Valley, and then you have Philadelphia on the east side, and you can also draw up from Baltimore and D.C. for Round Top and Whitetail. And uh…00:04:54.000 --> 00:04:57.000Stuart Winchester: And Jack Frost's Big Boulder up in the Poconos. So…00:04:58.000 --> 00:05:00.000Stuart Winchester: Vail has a big presence there.00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:15.000Stuart Winchester: Icon has a presence there with Camelback and Blue Mountain. Uh, and then Indy Pass just signed their 8th ski area in Pennsylvania with Spring Mountain, uh, down near Philadelphia. So, so it's, it's a place where a lot of skiers start.00:05:15.000 --> 00:05:19.000Stuart Winchester: And it's a little bit of a funny place to ski, because…00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:29.000Stuart Winchester: it tends to have an outsized number of novice skiers, which is great. They're very good at doing that. Uh, but it can make it a little chaotic.00:05:29.000 --> 00:05:38.000Stuart Winchester: And the lift lines can get a little crazy, and people are all over the hill, and sometimes they're walking down the hill because they're frustrated and they're giving up.00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:40.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, and…00:05:40.000 --> 00:05:44.000Stuart Winchester: You take that as your baseline in Pennsylvania.00:05:44.000 --> 00:05:49.000Stuart Winchester: And you had any sort of complications.00:05:49.000 --> 00:05:54.000Stuart Winchester: And things get out of hand really quickly. And in general.00:05:55.000 --> 00:06:00.000Stuart Winchester: For that reason, the ski areas that have survived in Pennsylvania.00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:07.000Stuart Winchester: are among the best operators in the world, and I would put that up against anyone.00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:14.000Stuart Winchester: It's a very, very challenging environment, not only because you have a high number of novice skiers.00:06:14.000 --> 00:06:17.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, but also because you have…00:06:17.000 --> 00:06:31.000Stuart Winchester: not a ton of snow, sometimes in the west part of the state, where there's higher elevation, they do get a lot of snow, but… but not as a rule, you couldn't count on it for natural snow. Uh, you get a lot of rain, you get a lot of warm-ups.00:06:31.000 --> 00:06:35.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, and… and you, in general, have to rely on…00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:42.000Stuart Winchester: a very short season, generally mid-December-ish to mid-March-ish.00:06:42.000 --> 00:06:45.000Stuart Winchester: And the skiers there…00:06:47.000 --> 00:06:52.000Stuart Winchester: They're they're accustomed to a pretty high standard, so.00:06:52.000 --> 00:06:57.000Stuart Winchester: So when things do get out of control, uh…00:06:57.000 --> 00:07:04.000Stuart Winchester: They really rebelled, and they really noticed. So, a couple years ago, this is what happened at Camelback. So, Camelback…00:07:05.000 --> 00:07:09.000Stuart Winchester: You know, I don't generally do ops stories, uh…00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:10.000Stuart Winchester: You know.00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:19.000Stuart Winchester: ski area didn't groom this run, or they haven't opened this lift, or, uh, you know, they usually let this bump up, but they don't, or, or…00:07:19.000 --> 00:07:27.000Stuart Winchester: you know, they… they are trying to save money, or they're being cheap. I generally don't bother with those, even though I get a lot of messages.00:07:27.000 --> 00:07:32.000Stuart Winchester: Complaining about things like that, because there's almost always a pretty good reason.00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:38.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, and it's almost always temporary, and it's really not worth the effort.00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:48.000Stuart Winchester: to write the story if I'm just writing about, you know, why Stratton or Mount Snow or Magic Mountain didn't open a certain lift on a certain day.00:07:48.000 --> 00:08:04.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, it's, it's a lot to track down and it's a lot of, uh, this person said this and the other person said that. It's just not the kind of thing that I'm want to cover with the storm, right? I want to do bigger stories. I want to do trend stories. I want to look at the culture and evolution of skiing.00:08:04.000 --> 00:08:11.000Stuart Winchester: And the passes, and all the infrastructure, and all the fun stuff. So I don't generally cover the day-to-day stuff, just because…00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:18.000Stuart Winchester: The ski areas that remain in 2026 are, for the most part, run by really good operators.00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:32.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, it… because… and they've survived. Most of the bad ski areas that were either mismanaged or were in the wrong places, they went out of business a long time ago, which is why the number of ski areas has been stable for around 25 years now in America.00:08:32.000 --> 00:08:35.000Stuart Winchester: So I but I started to notice.00:08:35.000 --> 00:08:45.000Stuart Winchester: several years ago that I was getting an outsized number of complaints around one ski area in particular in the Poconos.00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:47.000Stuart Winchester: And it was Camelback.00:08:47.000 --> 00:08:51.000Stuart Winchester: And Camelback had a long history of being an independent.00:08:51.000 --> 00:08:52.000Stuart Winchester: And…00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:54.000Stuart Winchester: Really…00:08:54.000 --> 00:08:59.000Stuart Winchester: the way it's been described to me by… by season pass holders, and I've skied…00:08:59.000 --> 00:09:04.000Stuart Winchester: some at Camelback, but I don't have that depth of knowledge of having grown up there.00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:20.000Stuart Winchester: That Camelback for a long time, for decades, set the standard on snowmaking, on grooming, on just general maintenance of lifts in the ski area in the Poconos. And that was why they had chosen to ski there all those years.00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:30.000Stuart Winchester: But things had started to fall apart when a new owner showed up in 2019. It was at the time KSL Capital, who was.00:09:30.000 --> 00:09:43.000Stuart Winchester: was managing it for EPR Properties, which is the entity that bought it, and they own a bunch of ski areas, EPR Properties, including a bunch owned by Vail, including North Star, and a lot of the old Peak Resorts in Ohio and such.00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:50.000Stuart Winchester: And KSL Resorts was a division of KSL Capital.00:09:50.000 --> 00:09:53.000Stuart Winchester: which is a part owner of Altera.00:09:53.000 --> 00:09:58.000Stuart Winchester: But for some reason, Altera, which is very good at running ski resorts.00:09:58.000 --> 00:10:00.000Stuart Winchester: did not…00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:15.000Stuart Winchester: get assigned as the… as the owner of Camelback. And when KSL Resorts purchased Blue Mountain, not in Ontario, the Blue Mountain in Pennsylvania, that's about 45 minutes from Camelback, two years later, in 2021.00:10:15.000 --> 00:10:26.000Stuart Winchester: That ski area also did not fall under Altera's ownership. And it was an odd choice to make, because Altera's really good at running ski areas, and they run…00:10:26.000 --> 00:10:35.000Stuart Winchester: Mammoth, and Deer Valley, and Steamboat, and Solitude, and Palisades Tahoe, and Stratton, and Sugarbush, and they definitely have.00:10:35.000 --> 00:10:41.000Stuart Winchester: the institutional knowledge and internal firepower to be able to run these ski areas in the Poconos.00:10:41.000 --> 00:10:43.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, Blue Mountain…00:10:43.000 --> 00:10:47.000Stuart Winchester: Had the benefit of a long time tenured management team.00:10:47.000 --> 00:11:02.000Stuart Winchester: That kept the place, by all accounts, running pretty well. Camelback, on the other hand, seemed to be falling apart before our eyes, and before the eyes of the loyalist skiers who loved the place so much. And they were really, really concerned, and I started to…00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:08.000Stuart Winchester: Because they had put, uh, a management team in place, it seemed.00:11:08.000 --> 00:11:10.000Stuart Winchester: that…00:11:11.000 --> 00:11:22.000Stuart Winchester: was not familiar with the… with the inner workings of a ski area. Uh, I… I hosted Dave Makarski, the former general manager of Kalenbach, on this podcast.00:11:22.000 --> 00:11:33.000Stuart Winchester: and very nice guy. We had a great conversation. Uh, he's not a skier. And, and, you know, sometimes you can be not a skier and run a great ski resort. Uh, look at Bill Stritzler up at Smuggler's Notch.00:11:33.000 --> 00:11:43.000Stuart Winchester: Bill hasn't skied in years, and he snowboarded for a little bit, but he's not a daily skier. Look at Shawnee.00:11:43.000 --> 00:11:54.000Stuart Winchester: that where the owner… that's one of the most modern, nice ski areas in the Poconos, uh, and the owner has not skied in decades. So, so it's not always necessary, uh, but…00:11:55.000 --> 00:12:10.000Stuart Winchester: It does help and it's certainly a benefit. So everyone I talked to, I was, I was gathering all this stuff for a story and I was gonna write about Camelback and, and it, it really seemed like it was the worst run ski area anywhere that I could find based on the amount of feedback I was getting.00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:25.000Stuart Winchester: I was gathering all this feedback from all these long-time pass holders, and then they hired a new general manager, and so I scrapped the story, but I still wanted to get it, and by all accounts, Jason Bays, who I'll bring on the podcast in a moment.00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:34.000Stuart Winchester: has really done a nice job of turning CamelBak around. So, so let's go to Jason now.00:14:09.000 --> 00:14:16.000Stuart Winchester: My guest today is the Vice President and General Manager of Camelback Ski Area in Pennsylvania.00:14:16.000 --> 00:14:26.000Stuart Winchester: Camelback runs six chairlifts, or maybe seven. I might have had a typo there. Serving 45 trails on an 827-foot vertical drop.00:14:26.000 --> 00:14:41.000Stuart Winchester: Prior to taking the top job at Camelback, he was general manager for Great Wolf Resorts around the United States. He also spent time as chief operating officer and general manager of Mountain Creek Ski Area in New Jersey and director of operations.00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:54.000Stuart Winchester: for Jay Peak, Vermont. His very first jobs as a teenager were as a lifeguard and ski instructor at Camelback. Jason Bay is my guest. Jason, welcome to the Storm. Awesome to have you. How you doing today?00:14:53.000 --> 00:15:00.000Jason Bays: Thank you, Stuart. Great to be here. I've been a listener from day one, so excited to join you.00:14:59.000 --> 00:15:14.000Stuart Winchester: I love that. I'm so hyped to hear that. I know I started with a little Northeast focus. You know, you're the… you probably know this already, but you're the second straight guest I've had on. There was a Mountain Creek alum, Chris Haggerty, on yesterday. Are you acquainted with Chris?00:15:13.000 --> 00:15:18.000Jason Bays: Yeah, Chris and I worked together, um, back in our days at Mountain Creek, great guy.00:15:17.000 --> 00:15:33.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, yeah, I'm, uh, I'm not sure, I'm sure you're aware I'm based in New York City and Mountain Creek is one of my go-tos and, and was my home mountain before I started traveling all over the place for the storm. So, so, you know, Jason, I, I think it's awesome that you grew up at Camelback. Tal.00:15:34.000 --> 00:15:41.000Stuart Winchester: your childhood Camelback. What was the kingdom of Camelback like to you, uh, when you were growing up skiing there?00:15:40.000 --> 00:16:03.000Jason Bays: Yeah, look, I, you know, took, I grew up in Pocono Kid, born and raised 10 minutes from the resort. After school ski program was the first, you know, first sort of foray into life at Camelback and was immediately hooked in the summer as a swimming pool and two water slides. I thought that was the most awesome place in the world too.00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:45.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:15:54.000 --> 00:15:55.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:04.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:21.000Jason Bays: And my parents thought it was a great babysitting service, you know, relative to that. So it was just an awesome, awesome place to grow up and, you know, be part of the small but mighty ski community that is Tannersville, Pennsylvania, in this area, in the Poconos.00:16:21.000 --> 00:16:39.000Jason Bays: um, you know, when it came to get a first job, uh, there's no place I was, uh, gonna consider other than Camelback. It's where all my friends were, it's where we all hung out all the time, and, um, you know, really just got introduced to, uh, to the sport, and, um, had some freedom. It was the first time I had some freedom, and it was to be at Camelback, so that's.00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:29.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:16:39.000 --> 00:16:56.000Stuart Winchester: So you worked there, and you were part of the machine, so to speak, and I realized you were sort of on the peripheral of the machine, as opposed to in the center of it, as you are now. But, you know, you grew up in the Poconos, and had that experience, and you had this vision of Camelback in your head, right? Then you went off and had a big life, as…00:16:56.000 --> 00:16:57.000Jason Bays: Yes.00:16:56.000 --> 00:17:00.000Stuart Winchester: as people do, and you went and worked at all these places that I just mentioned.00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:03.000Stuart Winchester: And then you came back to Camelback.00:17:03.000 --> 00:17:06.000Stuart Winchester: When you, when you arrived.00:17:06.000 --> 00:17:10.000Stuart Winchester: How had the place changed? And I just want to tee this up. I, you know.00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:19.000Stuart Winchester: before you came on, I was talking about how I don't generally write operations stories, right? Because it… there's usually a good reason for why a trail is closed, a lift's not running.00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:26.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, but a few years ago, I started to get an outsized number of complaints about Camelback.00:17:26.000 --> 00:17:38.000Stuart Winchester: And so I started to write a story about it, and then when you came along, I shelved it, because honestly, everyone immediately was like, oh, this is so much better. So, you know, how had…00:17:38.000 --> 00:17:41.000Stuart Winchester: Camelback changed.00:17:41.000 --> 00:17:42.000Stuart Winchester: when you…00:17:42.000 --> 00:17:44.000Stuart Winchester: Came back to work there.00:17:44.000 --> 00:17:51.000Stuart Winchester: And what were the challenges facing the resort? What did you focus on immediately?00:17:50.000 --> 00:18:08.000Jason Bays: Yeah, I'll just back up to say, you know, just to contextualize, um, from when I was there as a teenager and, um, through college on the ski team, too, I would say that community was a really big word, um, that was used all the time. You, you felt like it was, it was the Camelback community, and there's a really big emphasis on the ski product.00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:28.000Jason Bays: Um, as a ski instructor, like, what we were putting out, how we were doing lessons, how many lessons we could do, and the experience that was surrounding that. And same thing on the water park side. And, you know, I think the, um, you know, some of the observations, um, coming back to Camelback was, um, I think there's a little bit of focus, um, focus direction for, for, like, to focus on the ski product.00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:44.000Jason Bays: and focusing on the water park product, and I sort of look at it as, like, a… as Disney World, right? Whereas we fill out… if we do the ski part well, we do the snow tubing part well, we do the water park well, that puts heads in beds, um, versus trying to put heads in beds.00:18:44.000 --> 00:19:01.000Jason Bays: And then have them do the activities. We're leading with an activity front and centered focus. And that means making the strategic investments in the ski product, in our recreational product, and making that the very best that it can be.00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:23.000Jason Bays: back in 2008 when I was here as a teenager, that was all there was. There was no hotel product, right? So the ski product got outsized attention just naturally because it was a 560-acre resort that identified as a ski area and a water park. And I think some of the context that was missing was that while there's been a great evolution of Camelback as a four-season resort.00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:16.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:40.000Jason Bays: It's really important that, to me, that each of those business units gets the time and attention that they would deserve if they were stand-alone units, particularly because a cog… it's a cog in the wheel, and that wheel is… it's a flywheel. It needs to… it all needs to turn at once, and so we lead with.00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:43.000Jason Bays: the recreational offerings first.00:19:43.000 --> 00:19:48.000Stuart Winchester: You know, you mentioned the community, and I wasn't aware…00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:59.000Stuart Winchester: that there was such a strong community around Camelback, and I'm not surprised, because most ski areas have that group of folks who, you know, they're retirees, and they boot up at 8am, and they take runs together.00:19:59.000 --> 00:20:14.000Stuart Winchester: But they were really passionate, and the running theme, Jason, in the emails and messages that I got from Camelback locals was that they loved Camelback. It wasn't that they hated Camelback, they hated to complain about Camelback.00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:18.000Stuart Winchester: They wanted to love it, but they couldn't. There was there was.00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:34.000Stuart Winchester: a lot of things they cited, uh, not making snowmaking when it's cold, understaffed grooming, uh, missed lift inspections. I don't know if this is true. This is what people were… they were reaching, I think, for answers. Uh, put it all together, and there was… it was definitely…00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:47.000Stuart Winchester: seemed as though the ski product was not the focus. So when you came in, what did you focus on right away and say, okay, this is what we gotta change, you know, we have to cover every trail 100% right away, or whatever it was?00:20:47.000 --> 00:21:09.000Jason Bays: Yeah, I think that's, look, I would start, you hit the nail on the head that there's a very passionate skiing community here at Camelback and in the Poconos and it means a lot to people. This is second, third generations that are learning to ski here, bring their families here and be part of this. And to your point, everyone wants to be prideful of Camelback, right?00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:24.000Jason Bays: This was the, this was family run for a really long time and, you know, very focused on sort of the, you know, season pass holders renewing year after year.00:21:24.000 --> 00:21:40.000Jason Bays: You know, a couple of things. One is I think that how we authentically tell our story isn't done in a way that is, you know, is done in a way that's authentic. A, bringing back the Camelback Mountain Facebook page that communicated ski related content.00:21:38.000 --> 00:21:39.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:21:40.000 --> 00:22:06.000Jason Bays: Right? I think that, you know, there's only so many things you can say about a hotel room and how exciting it is. Like, we really lead now first with authentically telling the story. Our snow report got a lot more detailed, gave granular information as to what was going on. So, you know, did we have a perfect winter last winter? By all means, no, but we communicated that authentically. And where we messed up, we took.00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:23.000Jason Bays: the blame for it, and said, hey, we didn't get this right, and where we were working to improve the experience, we communicated that… communicated that story. So, to me, it started from a communication standpoint, that we were authentic, that we were honest, that we were truthful, and that we were communicating on a medium that.00:22:23.000 --> 00:22:31.000Jason Bays: our guests would see, um, and relate to. So I think a big miss was, I think, admittedly, a big miss was removing the, um, Camelback Mountain.00:22:31.000 --> 00:22:53.000Jason Bays: social media pages, um, and bringing those back were really important so that, um, we could tell the story authentically. I think SKUs really appreciate, um, knowing what's going on, and to your point on, hey, there's sort of this rumor flying or that rumor flying, um, you know, we were able to, uh, sort of hone in and, and tell, tell that story. Secondarily, I think from an infrastructure standpoint.00:22:53.000 --> 00:23:09.000Jason Bays: um, we really needed to make sure that we had, um, the right team in place. And we have an amazingly talented team at Camelback, um, but we did not have key positions filled, um, in certain areas. Um, and so, we bolstered up the snowmaking. Snowmaking team went from.00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:05.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:08.000Stuart Winchester: Like, what areas?00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:30.000Jason Bays: you know, 3 to 4 to 30, um, this past winter, um, that makes a big difference, right? Our trail rollout was, um, you know, first to open in the East, uh, for Pennsylvania, um, and, uh, um, and, and focus on the core products. Um, same thing with lift operations. We brought in a really experienced lift, uh, maintenance manager.00:23:12.000 --> 00:23:13.000Stuart Winchester: Hey!00:23:13.000 --> 00:23:14.000Stuart Winchester: Wow.00:23:14.000 --> 00:23:16.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:23:20.000 --> 00:23:21.000Stuart Winchester: Yep.00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:46.000Jason Bays: Um, to our team that really helped, um, support our Lyft, um, uh, operation. Um, decisions on when Lyfts ran and what time they ran, uh, you know, our thought was, let's, um, be more… like, you have to run the Terrain Park Lyft every day.00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:47.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:23:46.000 --> 00:24:06.000Jason Bays: to me, that's a commitment. We make that every day. We say we're running the Glen Lift every day. It services great novice terrain. It services the train park. And so, looking at the operational plan and saying, okay, what are ways that we can give back, you know, and make deposits back to our skiers? And in turn.00:24:06.000 --> 00:24:24.000Jason Bays: that builds momentum, right? People talk, and, like, the ski community is so connected, right? It's like, if you do something, like, people find out about it, because they're really, you know, they hear about it. And so, for us, focus on the core business was, um, you know, from a ski standpoint, was really important, and the infrastructure.00:24:12.000 --> 00:24:13.000Stuart Winchester: Right.00:24:17.000 --> 00:24:19.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:24:24.000 --> 00:24:41.000Jason Bays: to be able to do it. And I would just, lastly, just say I go back to making sure that our team had the resources to do their job. We're supported, we're empowered, collaborative leadership, you know, we sat around the table and said, this is the operating plan, this is what we're going to do for our guests.00:24:41.000 --> 00:24:46.000Jason Bays: And then go out and execute it to the best we can.00:24:45.000 --> 00:25:03.000Stuart Winchester: You know, Jason, I, I, I think you could have run for governor with one of the first things that you did, which was get rid of paid parking. I, I, I don't think that I've ever, uh, heard people happier about anything. Now, now, and let me, let me qualify this, right? I think in, in some instances, paid parking and parking reservations.00:25:03.000 --> 00:25:05.000Stuart Winchester: make sense.00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:18.000Stuart Winchester: you know, super high volume days. Arapahoe Basin, I think, is a model in Colorado where they only charge for certain days and certain times, and they keep backing off which days as they learn when they really need it. Camelback was charging every day.00:25:18.000 --> 00:25:36.000Stuart Winchester: All day, you know, a Monday with, you know, 10 people on the mountain, they were charging for it. And, you know, acknowledging that sometimes it's appropriate, I think Camelback got pretty out of hand with it, and when I had Mr. Markowski on the podcast, great guy, we had a great conversation, but he was not backing off that. He said, nope, paid parking.00:25:36.000 --> 00:25:51.000Stuart Winchester: we're all in. You said no. So talk about that and how you sold. I'd imagine it was a revenue stream, right? And you had to sell management on that, and I don't know if I'm giving you credit for something someone else did, but talk to us about parking and the evolution there.00:25:51.000 --> 00:26:12.000Jason Bays: Yeah, that was a week one decision from the Camelback team when I got here made from our leadership team at Camelback that everyone was in alignment on our senior leadership team here at the property and myself to remove the paid parking. And I think definitely there's actually you have so many nice pictures behind you.00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:30.000Jason Bays: I have a picture of the old paid parking sign behind me there, if you can see it on the corner, and it actually serves to me as a reminder of the guest experience, because someone's put a sticker on that paid parking sign that you probably can't see there, but it says, Ski Camelback, we're not happy until you're not happy.00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:19.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:48.000Jason Bays: Um, and it's a reminder to, to me and our team, um, that we're here to have fun, and we're here for the guest experience, and we're here to live, live and breathe fun Camelback style. This is not a, um, you know, we want guests to look forward to, to being here. And I think, you know, yes, there was.00:26:37.000 --> 00:26:38.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:26:48.000 --> 00:27:05.000Jason Bays: So obviously we ran a financial model. We didn't just, you know, get rid of paid parking and not assume, you know, that there wasn't some revenue to be recaptured elsewhere with a strategy to do it. But I think more importantly, you know, think about it.00:27:05.000 --> 00:27:22.000Jason Bays: a non-busy day, it might even be raining, it's 40 degrees, the last thing you want is someone running around a parking lot telling you, like, hey, I need you to hand over $15, and by the way, then you're gonna schlep your stuff up two different levels of parking, um, you know, that might be even charged higher, and then get to.00:27:18.000 --> 00:27:19.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:38.000Jason Bays: uh, the mountain and go to guest services. You know, I have a 3-year-old. If my wife and I went skiing, that would be an incredible amount of friction, um, just to get to, uh, the front of the mountain. And so I think putting ourselves in the guest lens of saying, is that really what we want the guests to experience?00:27:29.000 --> 00:27:30.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:27:38.000 --> 00:27:53.000Jason Bays: Um, it's not, and, and it was a burden to everyone at this, you know, you think I'm talking about, we talked to frontline associates too, like, the first thing that they had to tell people was that they had to pay for parking. You just imagine, sort of, the cascading effect that, that, that, uh, that that had, and we said, look, is there.00:27:53.000 --> 00:28:09.000Jason Bays: Um, is there a better way? Um, can we run shuttles to these lots and pick people up and bring them to the mountain and make them feel, um, you know, like our valued… like our valued guests? What does that arrival experience look like? Um, you know, that's really what we… what we looked at, and then said, okay.00:28:09.000 --> 00:28:25.000Jason Bays: can we… ultimately, will we drive more volume here? Will more people come because of a better guest experience? And I'll say that I would rather grow the sport, grow the industry. Our team would rather grow the sport and grow the industry than figuring out how to.00:28:25.000 --> 00:28:35.000Jason Bays: You know, sort of, you know, run a secondary ancillary business that's not to our core product and what we want our guests to experience here.00:28:34.000 --> 00:28:48.000Stuart Winchester: You know, it's a little counterintuitive, but sometimes, by removing a revenue stream, you get that less-is-more effect. Another example, your season pass, you know, according to my records.00:28:48.000 --> 00:29:04.000Stuart Winchester: Starting in 2020 to ‘21, the season pass was $599 at its early bird price, and it hovered between that and $649 for the next five years. This year, you put it on sale for $399. It's still at that price for unlimited Camelback.00:29:04.000 --> 00:29:20.000Stuart Winchester: That's a great bargain for, uh, for a season pass on the East Coast, and, you know, for the listeners, you are competing with the Epic Pass, which has Jack Frost, Big Boulder, right down the road, a couple exits down I-80, and their Northeast season pass is pretty affordable, and it's a pretty good deal.00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:33.000Stuart Winchester: So… so talk to us about that decision and… and… and how… how that $399 is worth it. You also wrote back, if you want to talk about, uh, the… the triple pack. I thought that was great, and I don't have the price right in front of me, but… but you've really done a lot to… to…00:29:33.000 --> 00:29:39.000Stuart Winchester: create more of a value experience for that loyal Camelback skier, from my point of view.00:29:39.000 --> 00:29:55.000Jason Bays: Yeah, thank you, and that's definitely the goal. Um, you know, I think our thought process here is let's get more people on Snow, um, and have them have a great experience while they're here. Um, I would love to tell you that there's some master business plan behind this.00:29:50.000 --> 00:29:52.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:29:55.000 --> 00:30:10.000Jason Bays: But, you know, truly, at the heart of what we do is, let's figure out how to get more people on snow, get them to a spot where they want to come back and learn and be part of it. And guess what I would just share to that is.00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:24.000Jason Bays: you know, we were charging a day ticket in 2025 of $169, um, at its highest point, right? And I would rather have a lifelong… I would rather have one per… I would much rather, I think from business proposition, we would rather have.00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:17.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:30:24.000 --> 00:30:39.000Jason Bays: one person definitely not come and spend $15 to $40 to park and $169 and say, I'm never coming back, versus $399, now they're like, wow, this place is awesome, I'm getting a great value, I bring my family.00:30:32.000 --> 00:30:33.000Stuart Winchester: Damn.00:30:39.000 --> 00:31:01.000Jason Bays: I want to come enjoy food and beverage. And hey, by the way, we also have this great snow tubing park and this great water park. And would you like to stay at our hotel when you come with your season pass and enjoy Aquatopia? And we're debuting The Curse of Camelback this fall, right? Which is the Halloween, if you haven't heard, it's a Halloween 13 scare zones. Take a chair, lift up to it.00:31:01.000 --> 00:31:03.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:31:01.000 --> 00:31:24.000Jason Bays: But I say all that to say we've got so many great cross marketing promotional opportunities at Camelback that that really becomes a super compelling business case for us. And I think it's the right thing to do for the sport is grow it, make it more accessible, allow more people to come here and see what we have to offer. I can't tell you how many people I meet, whether it's snow tubing, skiing.00:31:24.000 --> 00:31:41.000Jason Bays: water park, the hotel, whatever they're here for, CBKMA or Adventure Park, they have no idea that the other part exists to, um, the resort. And I'll share that that's been the case even in, like, when I was, uh, at Jay Peak running the water park.00:31:32.000 --> 00:31:34.000Stuart Winchester: Hmm. Okay.00:31:41.000 --> 00:31:43.000Jason Bays: People would come there, and they'd be like.00:31:43.000 --> 00:32:02.000Jason Bays: what is this mountain that is here? And it's Jay Peak, like, one of the most hardcore ski resorts in the world. And there were people that were coming there and were like, I had no idea there was a ski resort here. So, if it's true at Jay Peak, it certainly is true at Camelback, where.00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:49.000Stuart Winchester: Right.00:31:49.000 --> 00:31:52.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:31:52.000 --> 00:31:53.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, thank you.00:31:59.000 --> 00:32:00.000Stuart Winchester: Mm-hmm.00:32:01.000 --> 00:32:02.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, okay.00:32:02.000 --> 00:32:19.000Jason Bays: we have all these different offerings that people don't know about, maybe necessarily about all of them, so our fundamental business philosophy is make it accessible, make them lifelong, um, skiers and riders, and introduce them to everything that we have to offer here in the Poconos. And I would just argue, when I say Poconos.00:32:19.000 --> 00:32:41.000Jason Bays: Like go, like experience Shawnee and experience Jack Frost Big Boulder and experience, you know, the other great ski areas in this region and Mountain Creek and wherever else and get a flavor for it. I think that's, we could use more skiers in the industry and to grow the sport. So for us, that's sort of the long-term business model that we're using.00:32:22.000 --> 00:32:23.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:32:41.000 --> 00:32:58.000Stuart Winchester: So, I just looked at the triple ticket, and it looks like $149, and I think that's no blackouts. $199 includes rentals. That's pretty amazing. So, talk about that product, and then you mentioned the $169 peak day ticket. Have you settled on prices yet for 2020?00:32:58.000 --> 00:33:03.000Stuart Winchester: 6, 27. I should have checked your site in advance, but I didn't. So I don't know if you've.00:33:03.000 --> 00:33:21.000Jason Bays: Yeah, we have not, uh, posted, uh, day ticket prices for this year. Last year, um, we didn't exceed around $110, um, on a day ticket. Uh, so we kept it, I think, pretty reasonable for, for, for a, for a Pocono offering. Um, triple tickets, massive, um, success, uh, for us.00:33:10.000 --> 00:33:12.000Stuart Winchester: Oh, okay.00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:15.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, yeah.00:33:21.000 --> 00:33:37.000Jason Bays: Um, and when we talk about, like, again, getting more people introduced to the sport, you don't necessarily pick up skiing on the first time. Um, you think about that rental product, which we, um, tremendously… whatever we had on the pro forma for that was, uh, blown by by, like.00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:30.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:33:37.000 --> 00:33:53.000Jason Bays: 400% on the triple ticket with rentals. And what I really believe in is that, you know, you become a lifelong skier by getting repetition, not by going once a year. It's really hard to sustain as a skier going once a year.00:33:50.000 --> 00:33:52.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah. Okay.00:33:53.000 --> 00:34:11.000Jason Bays: and saying, oh yeah, that was our trip. We're really trying to create a guest for life and get them to return visit. That's in many ways more important to us than, again, trying to get, like, the highest yield on that one day that they picked. Like, come back and visit our resort and, um, you know, again, the business side to this is.00:34:11.000 --> 00:34:28.000Jason Bays: we're cross-marketing across all of our other offerings here that we have on this campus to say, come and visit us again. And again, to us, that's more important than, you know, the highest yield that we can get to. So the triple ticket's really successful. And I think one last thing I would share.00:34:28.000 --> 00:34:46.000Jason Bays: a lot of season passes in the market right now, um, the triple ticket's a great opportunity for people to get a couple of days at Camelback, even if they've committed somewhere else, and particularly, you know, our long season, um, there's plenty of time to use it, um, as well, uh, from the, uh, long season that we established from last year.00:34:46.000 --> 00:34:50.000Stuart Winchester: Jason, I think that's a really smart way to look at it as…00:34:50.000 --> 00:34:57.000Stuart Winchester: a… creating a habit rather than pulling as much yield as possible. And a lot of the larger operators.00:34:57.000 --> 00:35:11.000Stuart Winchester: get frustrated with me and the rest of the ski media because they don't understand why we focus on that peak price, right? Because the peak lift ticket this year at Beaver Creek is $392, set to be. Probably almost no one will pay that price, but…00:35:11.000 --> 00:35:28.000Stuart Winchester: What it does is it acts as a, a billboard for the rest of the ski industry and especially so, so Camelback for, for people who don't know when you're driving on I 80 I mean, you see it, it looms right over the highway. It is one of the major interstates in America, especially at night. The thing is lit up.00:35:28.000 --> 00:35:46.000Stuart Winchester: And so, chances are, if people think about skiing, and they think about where to go, they're gonna think about the most obvious one, and that's Camelback, and that's why, for many years, it was that, or Seven Springs was the busiest ski area in Pennsylvania, traditionally. So I think that's a really smart way to look at it, because if people show up that one time, and.00:35:46.000 --> 00:35:59.000Stuart Winchester: cost them, you know, $500 for 2 people, they're just not gonna come back, and they're not gonna try Shawnee, or… or Blue Mountain, or Jack Frost, or Elk Mountain, or Montage. So, um, I wanna talk about… Jason, I wanna talk about Lyft.00:35:59.000 --> 00:36:16.000Stuart Winchester: And… can you see this trail map? This is an old trail map. I mentioned that I know this, so for those watching on StormSkiing.com or YouTube, you can see this. So there's been a ton of changes, and I want to break all these down with you. The first I want to talk about is, over the past couple years.00:36:16.000 --> 00:36:32.000Stuart Winchester: Mark Antony and Cleopatra, these two lifts right here, an old triple and an old double, have been removed. Can you talk about why you took those lifts out of service, and if you plan to replace them with anything, or what you planned, or what the rationale was behind it?00:36:32.000 --> 00:36:49.000Jason Bays: Yeah, I appreciate that. Uh, that does predate my time here, that they had reached the end of their, um, uh, ability to operate. Um, and so they have, um, both been, um, sort of partially disassembled. Um, there is unfortunately not.00:36:35.000 --> 00:36:37.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:36:39.000 --> 00:36:41.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:36:46.000 --> 00:36:47.000Stuart Winchester: Okay.00:36:49.000 --> 00:37:05.000Jason Bays: I, by the way, two of my favorite lifts when I was a ski instructor, because you could get right up and not wait in long lines on the weekends, so absolutely realizing and recognizing the capacity that they brought, but no opportunity for us to.00:37:01.000 --> 00:37:02.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:37:05.000 --> 00:37:23.000Jason Bays: um, reinstate those lifts as presently, um, as presently, uh, uh, sort of, um, situated, um, and, and not, not, not able to, uh, um, not able to, uh, rerun them. It will require a, um, new, uh, chairlift to, um, to ultimately replace.00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:37.000Jason Bays: those two lifts. It saddens me to share that, but that is, in fact, what has happened there, and I've been very open with our season pass holders about that messaging and the why behind it.00:37:38.000 --> 00:37:41.000Stuart Winchester: So, so in fantasy ski resort world, Jason.00:37:41.000 --> 00:37:46.000Stuart Winchester: Would you put a new lift here, and what would you put, if you could?00:37:45.000 --> 00:38:04.000Jason Bays: Yeah, absolutely. Um, same thing. We've, uh, we've made clear, uh, with no time, no official time frame to share, um, but certainly, uh, we've, we've, um, had, uh, preliminary conversations, um, about a fixed grip, um, quad that would, uh, would be able to take the place of both of those lifts, uh, and create that.00:38:03.000 --> 00:38:04.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:38:04.000 --> 00:38:10.000Jason Bays: original redundancy that those two lifts brought to the resort when they were in operation.00:38:10.000 --> 00:38:27.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, that would be really nice. So, so, so these are gone and I, I have a, a current trail map now. So, um, and, and it's not completely current. We'll discuss the new trails in a moment, but this is the most current posted on your website. So, uh, we go over, these are the lifts that remain and see, uh, yeah, I, I miscounted in my intro, so sorry about that.00:38:27.000 --> 00:38:42.000Stuart Winchester: So this one is Stevenson, and Stevenson was, uh, it's a high-speed quad, uh, for the listeners, and it… it was a real junker. It was always stop, stop, stop, and, you know, it was… it was really… seemed to be falling apart and have a lot of issues. Now, uh, in 2020…00:38:42.000 --> 00:38:51.000Stuart Winchester: 5, this year, or 2024, I believe, Camelback, uh, McCarthy, the GM at the time, sent out a letter saying it was due for a…00:38:51.000 --> 00:38:53.000Stuart Winchester: Waltz.00:38:53.000 --> 00:39:02.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, let me see what he said… like, a complete modernization of Stevenson. So, so did that happen? And talk to us about Stevenson, and what kind of shape it's in right now.00:39:01.000 --> 00:39:20.000Jason Bays: Yeah, great, um, yes, that was a, uh, look, an amazing, um, project that was completed by, uh, by Dave and team, um, to modernize that lift. Um, it has, essentially, Doppelmayr came in and put in an entire new, uh, minus the, uh, minus the, uh, uh, the terminals and the.00:39:08.000 --> 00:39:09.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:39:20.000 --> 00:39:35.000Jason Bays: Um, uh, and the structure itself, um, essentially all new components, all new electrical, um, uh, wiring components to it, a lot of the things that had plagued it. Um, and last year, uh, it operated 138 days.00:39:34.000 --> 00:39:36.000Stuart Winchester: Unbelievable.00:39:35.000 --> 00:39:53.000Jason Bays: Uh, which for Pennsylvania, uh, that's pretty darn good. I think we recognize it's a workhorse, um, it's key to accessing some really, um, fantastic terrain for us, um, and that modernization project with Doppel… in, um, partnership with Doppelmeyer that was done in the summer and fall of 2025.00:39:53.000 --> 00:39:54.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:39:53.000 --> 00:40:08.000Jason Bays: um, was, uh, very, uh, so it's all immediate impact, um, with, uh, Stevenson Reliability this past year, and we expect that to, uh, you know, knock on wood, to, uh, to continue going forward. We essentially, again, have a brand new lift, minus the, uh.00:40:08.000 --> 00:40:10.000Jason Bays: Uh, minus the physical pieces.00:40:10.000 --> 00:40:26.000Stuart Winchester: That's a really smart way to do it because they are tremendously expensive, these new lifts. And for folks who are watching or listening, this Stevenson is really important because you walk out of this giant hotel that's right here, that's not on the trail map with 400 and some rooms, and that is how you get up the mountain. Otherwise you got to.00:40:26.000 --> 00:40:41.000Stuart Winchester: pull your way over, so when that lift is not running or has problems, it's a real big issue. So, the alternative was, over here, Black Bear 6, uh, you replaced an old high-speed quad that was there, and… and I love this Black Bear 6 lift. It is…00:40:41.000 --> 00:41:01.000Stuart Winchester: Freakin' Ferrari, man. I think the price they gave me was something like $12 million that they spent, or maybe it was $10 to put that in. So that's the alternative, right? If you don't just modernize that current lift, you replace it. So, uh, Black Bear is awesome. I love it. It has bubbles. Is it too much? I mean, I know that KSL Now Peregrine had reasons for.00:41:01.000 --> 00:41:16.000Stuart Winchester: for putting it in, but what have you learned from a couple of years of having BlackBerry around, which is, again, probably the nicest lift in the state of Pennsylvania and one of the nicest in the Northeast, but maybe a little heavier than what you need for CamelBak, but I don't know, you tell me.00:41:17.000 --> 00:41:41.000Jason Bays: Yeah, you know, you know what I would share to that, um, you know, we, we brought it back for scenic chairlift rides this summer, and I mean, it's a massive hit. The summer, summer guests love, uh, the bubbles, they put them down when it's sunny, they put them down, um, probably gets more use in the summer as a bubble lift than the winter, uh, but look, it's, it's nice to, uh, have on the days where, you know, there's some liquid precipitation out here. It certainly happens in the Poconos.00:41:22.000 --> 00:41:24.000Stuart Winchester: Hmm.00:41:34.000 --> 00:41:35.000Stuart Winchester: Okay.00:41:41.000 --> 00:41:58.000Jason Bays: um, and, uh, and, and or, um, uh, you know, other, other weather events, it's, it's, it's a nice to have, um, and it certainly, it gets you up in, you know, a little bit over two minutes. Um, it's a smooth ride, it's a great ride. Um, you are not going to get any complaints from me that we have a, um.00:41:47.000 --> 00:41:48.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:41:51.000 --> 00:41:52.000Stuart Winchester: Mm-hmm.00:41:58.000 --> 00:42:11.000Jason Bays: bubble, D-line, six-pack, um, in place, uh, and able to operate as our main workhorse lift. Um, and, uh, I think the six-pack versus the quad was absolutely the right, uh, call. Um…00:42:11.000 --> 00:42:27.000Jason Bays: from my experience being here before with the Sullivan Express, um, with the four-seater, the six-seater, just the… the added, uh, ability, uh, there is, uh, is… is well worth it. So, uh, we're happy to have that… happy to have that lift. I… I wouldn't, uh… I wouldn't…00:42:27.000 --> 00:42:31.000Jason Bays: We won't be trading it in at this point. Let's put it that way.00:42:30.000 --> 00:42:38.000Stuart Winchester: It is a gorgeous machine, and I have to tell you, I'm that weird person who, if there's a line on one lift.00:42:38.000 --> 00:42:56.000Stuart Winchester: And no line on the lift next to it. Even if it's a slower lift, I'll take the slower lift, because I just would rather not deal with the hassle of the line. So right here, for those who are watching, is the Bailey Double, and this is an old chair lift. It's an old slow double, it runs almost exactly parallel to Black Bear 6, doesn't land quite as high.00:42:56.000 --> 00:43:16.000Stuart Winchester: on the mountain, but functionally, it does about the same thing for you. So I like Bailey, and I was glad to see that not only did you keep it, and it does run, and that was true even under the previous regime, but you got a new gearbox for it, which is a really big deal for a lift like this in several decades. Also, talk about the work you've done on Bailey, and how you hope to use that lift.00:43:16.000 --> 00:43:18.000Stuart Winchester: this year to complement Black Bear.00:43:18.000 --> 00:43:21.000Jason Bays: Yeah, so, um, Bailey Lift…00:43:21.000 --> 00:43:32.000Jason Bays: full disclosure, Bailey Lift, Meadows Lift, Raceway Lift, and our season pass holders are very aware of this. Um, unfortunately, uh, we're not, um…00:43:32.000 --> 00:43:41.000Jason Bays: ready for day one of last year, um, or even close. And so, uh, we had to do a lot of, um…00:43:34.000 --> 00:43:35.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:43:41.000 --> 00:43:57.000Jason Bays: normal PM maintenance, um, throughout the, um, end of fall and into winter to have all of them operational. Um, what I share to that is, um, we will run, just level set here really quickly, we will run all the lifts that we have on this trail map.00:43:42.000 --> 00:43:44.000Stuart Winchester: Okay.00:43:57.000 --> 00:44:02.000Jason Bays: Um, and take care of them, maintain them, operate them.00:44:02.000 --> 00:44:18.000Jason Bays: Staff them, everything that you would do to run the extra capacity, we certainly need it. We'd like more capacity, actually. So that being said, Bailey Lift is critical. We got it back online.00:44:08.000 --> 00:44:10.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah. Okay.00:44:18.000 --> 00:44:34.000Jason Bays: End of January, it ran for 2 or 3 weekends, and we had a failed gearbox, um, on it, which is really unfortunate. Um, this off-season, uh, we've replaced the gearbox, we've done a full PM over the course of the summer on it, which is…00:44:34.000 --> 00:44:50.000Jason Bays: the, as you, as everyone knows, the ideal time, uh, to be, um, conducting such work, um, so that it is ready on, uh, day one. Um, it is a critical backup lift. We will run it every weekend.00:44:50.000 --> 00:45:07.000Jason Bays: Um, that we're, you know, in season, I would say in the heart of season, we're gonna run it. Won't be shy to not run it. Um, same thing with the Meadows, same thing with the Glen, same thing with the Raceway, which, um, you know, I know that that was, um, certainly chief among the complaints of.00:45:07.000 --> 00:45:22.000Jason Bays: locals and guests who were visiting from out of town alike was Lyft availability, Lyft reliability. That was something that we focused as fast as we could on last year, but we're setting ourselves up this year to be.00:45:22.000 --> 00:45:39.000Jason Bays: um, very proactive to that, and recognizing the importance of, of each of, uh, uh, you know, each of these. And look, every once in a while, uh, if the, you always want to have, like, Bailey is critical because it's the only other, if there's Black Bear, without Black Bear, it's the only other thing left, right?00:45:36.000 --> 00:45:38.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:45:39.000 --> 00:45:55.000Jason Bays: Um, and so, uh, you know, I think the, you know, back in the, when I was here, like, every Lyft ran on the weekends. It was Camelback. Um, it was busy, right? Like, everything was going. That's, that's essentially our, our, our philosophy, um, will continue to be our philosophy going forward.00:45:46.000 --> 00:45:48.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:45:55.000 --> 00:46:11.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, Jason, I'll admit, I didn't come to Camelback last season, so I wasn't able to experience it firsthand. I really wanted to come to your May thing, which I'll talk about, I'll get to in a minute, but I had a shoulder surgery, so I wasn't able to do that. But I wasn't only basing my perceptions of C.00:46:11.000 --> 00:46:19.000Stuart Winchester: on locals' reactions. I had skied there myself in recent years, and the lift line management, I have to say.00:46:19.000 --> 00:46:21.000Stuart Winchester: It was…00:46:21.000 --> 00:46:33.000Stuart Winchester: really frustrating from a skier point of view, when you're waiting for the Stevenson lift, and there's a big line, and every chair is going up with one or two people, and this is not peak COVID or anything else, this is several years later.00:46:33.000 --> 00:46:50.000Stuart Winchester: So, you know, and I had a lot of locals tell me, oh, we walk up Sun Bowl because the lift line is just too chaotic. People come from both sides. No, no, again, that was all before. What's your philosophy of lift line management? How have you tried to tame that? And there's always, it's always going to be a little wild and hard in Pennsylvan.00:46:50.000 --> 00:46:56.000Stuart Winchester: Uh, but they could definitely have been managed better. Is that something that was important to you, that you focused on?00:46:56.000 --> 00:47:15.000Jason Bays: Yeah, we focused on that. We have a new lift operations manager that was hired in November of 2025, who took the bull by the horns. We developed a supervisor team in fairly short order to that as well, to build out a well-rounded team. And then I would just share that our lift attendants.00:47:15.000 --> 00:47:32.000Jason Bays: All hired locally within the community. And I think that we were fully staffed in LiftOps this year, which was a big, very big win. It starts there, right? A, the people, and then B, the right people.00:47:22.000 --> 00:47:23.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:47:32.000 --> 00:47:49.000Jason Bays: um, on the, uh, on the bus, um, as a catalyst to drive, uh, lift operations forward. Um, and then absolutely, uh, we focused on, uh, line management, queuing, um, we set new, in some cases, new queues. We had, um, uh, supervisors, in many cases, out.00:47:49.000 --> 00:48:04.000Jason Bays: um, putting up chairs, um, and, um, and managing the lift line. We added, once we got that right, and we felt like we were in a good spot, and we, you know, look, I think, admittedly, a couple technology hiccups here and there, it was not a perfect, uh.00:48:04.000 --> 00:48:17.000Jason Bays: we didn't, like, on opening day, it wasn't perfect, but, uh, we improved, it was a big focus for our team, and I think when we talk about fundamental ski operation, um, if we just were a ski area, we would absolutely be focusing on.00:48:06.000 --> 00:48:08.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:48:17.000 --> 00:48:36.000Jason Bays: lift queuing, but we have to do that, like, we have to execute that every day because we are a ski area, um, and that's core to our business, and so that's important. Um, then we added, once we got queuing, uh, uh, correct, we added surprise and delights. Lift, uh, chocolate chip cookies were massively popular.00:48:36.000 --> 00:49:04.000Jason Bays: We handed out over 15,000 chocolate chip cookies this winter at the Stevenson lift line. And so, you know, then it becomes fun, right? Then it's the hospitality side of the business of how do we engage with our guests now that we have full chairs going up for the most part off of the Stevenson and the Black Bear and the Sun Bowl. So we hired extra associates to do that, to surprise and delight, to help our guests.00:48:40.000 --> 00:48:42.000Stuart Winchester: Cool.00:49:04.000 --> 00:49:20.000Jason Bays: The one other thing I would just share is Sunbowl is a great example. How many people get down to the Sunbowl and have never ridden a lift before? And so you need that extra human touch to be able to help. It's not even just putting people in groups of four. It's just helping them with like, here's where you go to load the lift. Here's what you do.00:49:12.000 --> 00:49:14.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:49:20.000 --> 00:49:21.000Stuart Winchester: Yep.00:49:20.000 --> 00:49:33.000Jason Bays: Um, I think that that investment in our people to provide that service to our guests is very well worth it, and it's the difference between someone having a bad experience getting on a lift and never coming back.00:49:33.000 --> 00:49:43.000Jason Bays: or having a great experience, feeling well cared for, and wanting to try again. Um, and so that, that, that was, um, you know, I think that's a core, um, focus for us.00:49:43.000 --> 00:50:02.000Stuart Winchester: So, one of the ways that I can tell the resort is being run by a skier, in addition to all the things you just said, and your passion for the minutiae of things like lift lines, which I share, is that you're cutting 3 new trails in a resort that's 60 years old, and I love that. So, talk us through these trails, Jason. I'll do my best to trace them.00:50:02.000 --> 00:50:08.000Stuart Winchester: on the trail map. I don't have the updated trail map, I don't know if you've created it yet, but talk us through these three trails.00:50:08.000 --> 00:50:25.000Jason Bays: Yeah, so we're really excited. Look, this, you know, came after, you know, the so many guests, new guests that visited us at Camelback this past season. We said, you know what, let's do something fun and exciting. And like, you know, you think about how.00:50:25.000 --> 00:50:43.000Jason Bays: Um, yeah, I just, you know, if someone said, anyone puts in a new trail, uh, the skier in me wants to drive to that resort, no matter how big or small, and be like, alright, like, let's do it. Um, and our team feels, uh, you know, much of the same way. So, um, that being said, uh, we had a lot of natural snowfall this year, so…00:50:32.000 --> 00:50:33.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:50:33.000 --> 00:50:36.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah.00:50:36.000 --> 00:50:37.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, sure. Yeah.00:50:43.000 --> 00:50:59.000Jason Bays: I was acutely paying attention to where people were skiing when we had natural snowfall, where they wanted to go, and then, you know, maybe following those lines, too, and seeing what the fun was about. So, my point to all of that is, we said, let's create some, and I think for Camelback, too.00:50:46.000 --> 00:50:48.000Stuart Winchester: Mm-hmm.00:50:59.000 --> 00:51:15.000Jason Bays: it's very, um, you know, we wanted to create something that was sort of unique. I didn't want to just put in, like, regular trails that, A, we don't have a lot of space for regular trails, and B, um, we really wanted to create sort of unique experience. So, right underneath Black Bear, um, in between Sullivan and John Bailey there.00:51:07.000 --> 00:51:09.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:51:15.000 --> 00:51:30.000Jason Bays: um, there's a, um, there's a chute, um, where the old Alpine Slide used to go. Basculus goes back into Rocket, uh, but underneath there is some really fun rolling terrain. Like, it's, it's because the mountain, the, uh, Alpine Slide.00:51:26.000 --> 00:51:28.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, thank you.00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:54.000Jason Bays: back in the day did had several dips and curves and so we're going to lean into those dips and curves and create something sort of fun that you can get some you know launch some airtime off of if you want or carve a turn over it but it'll have some some really nice terrain variation in a way that most trails at Camelback don't have and they're coming off of an expert trail there so.00:51:54.000 --> 00:52:06.000Jason Bays: um, gives, uh, you know, anyone skiing Asp, Hump, Rocket, um, or Basilisk would be able to reach that trail, um, and, uh, and be able to, uh, just have a little bit more excitement on the way back down.00:52:06.000 --> 00:52:08.000Jason Bays: Um…00:52:08.000 --> 00:52:20.000Jason Bays: Upper Cleopatra there, if you go to the, uh, where the U is, uh, or where Upper is, we're gonna cut a trail through the woods there that's going to end up on the bottom of Big Pocono.00:52:19.000 --> 00:52:21.000Stuart Winchester: Okay.00:52:20.000 --> 00:52:31.000Jason Bays: Um, so it's gonna go down and across. So, um, that… um, and I see where your cursor is. If you go to the… where it says Upper on Upper Cleopatra.00:52:26.000 --> 00:52:29.000Stuart Winchester: So, like, here? Or…00:52:30.000 --> 00:52:32.000Stuart Winchester: Oh, upper…00:52:32.000 --> 00:52:54.000Jason Bays: So, Big Pocono, that's Uncle B. Yeah, right there. Yep, we're going through there. Yeah, so that's gonna be, that's a narrow blue square. So, you know, I think one of the things that's fun for us is we're gonna create a blue square there. That used to be a trail back in the 60s and 70s, fun fact, when Walter Foger was designing Camelback.00:52:34.000 --> 00:52:37.000Stuart Winchester: Upper… oh, this one. Okay, so you're cutting through here?00:52:37.000 --> 00:52:39.000Stuart Winchester: Oh, cool. Okay.00:52:49.000 --> 00:52:51.000Stuart Winchester: Oh, cool.00:52:54.000 --> 00:53:09.000Jason Bays: Um, that being said, um, the… actually, it got filled in with pine trees, so it's gonna be really cool, because there's pine trees on both sides. Um, we made it narrow, so we kept the pine trees, um, and so that's gonna be a really fun, um, sort of narrow… I think about, like, the, um.00:52:58.000 --> 00:52:59.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:53:01.000 --> 00:53:03.000Stuart Winchester: That's cool. It's pretty.00:53:09.000 --> 00:53:26.000Jason Bays: the ending of Jay Peak with some of the blues at the very bottom there by Interstate. We're trying to sort of have that, obviously in a much smaller zone, have that same effect, though, where you're feeling like you're really in the trees, and you've got some nice twists and turns to it. It's not terribly steep.00:53:12.000 --> 00:53:13.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, okay.00:53:26.000 --> 00:53:44.000Jason Bays: Um, two things on that trail. One is, it takes traffic off of Honeymoon Lane, which is a main boulevard, it pushes it onto the Sphinx, which has much more trail capacity, which is great, um, comfortable carrying capacity, and secondarily, um, on weekends, we're gonna have a hot chocolate, um, hut that people can ski up to.00:53:31.000 --> 00:53:32.000Stuart Winchester: Mmhm.00:53:44.000 --> 00:53:52.000Jason Bays: Um, and get shots of hot chocolate, um, as well, so we're excited to, um, uh, to offer that to our guests. We think that'll be really fun.00:53:46.000 --> 00:53:47.000Stuart Winchester: That's cool.00:53:51.000 --> 00:53:53.000Stuart Winchester: That was awesome.00:53:53.000 --> 00:54:17.000Jason Bays: And then the Stevenson, it's going to drop on the cliffhanger side and drop down that lift line and go right down into the Faroe there and follow that lift line. Vermont skiing in a very short array but very much Vermont skiing, that's an intimidating drop. Stevenson for those that may not be familiar has a extremely.00:53:53.000 --> 00:53:55.000Stuart Winchester: And it.00:53:58.000 --> 00:53:59.000Stuart Winchester: Okay.00:54:08.000 --> 00:54:09.000Stuart Winchester: Yeah, I think so.00:54:17.000 --> 00:54:34.000Jason Bays: extremely tight, um, and high, uh, crest of the lift, because the mountain crests, um, really steeply. Well, we're gonna ski that, um, and, uh, and make snow on it, and, uh, and, and, uh, and allow our guests to, uh, um, and allow skiers to, uh, to, to, to test, um, you know, a more narrow.00:54:34.000 --> 00:54:44.000Jason Bays: um, uh, trail up there that has a really great expansive view ov

Amazon is testing its ad engine inside ChatGPT. If you spend the next thirty minutes listening, you will understand why this shift matters more than any algorithm update in the last five years. Amazon neared seventy billion dollars in advertising revenue last year. This is not a minor feature update. It is a fundamental change in how buyers discover products. Your current Amazon Ads strategy might be obsolete before you finish this episode. I break down what this means for your seller strategy and how to protect your margins. You will learn how to change your discovery approach before competitors lock in. You will see how David, a Voltage operator, scaled from thirty thousand dollars a month to over one million dollars by June 2026. His brand ran on a specific framework that adapts to these shifts. You will get the exact steps to audit your current listings against this new reality. This is not theory. It is operator experience. I show you how to use Caiman Data AI to track these changes in real time. You will know which SKUs to prioritize and which to pause. You will understand the connection between chat-based discovery and your business reports. This episode gives you the tools to stay ahead of the curve. You will see how to integrate this into your daily workflow. You will learn how to protect your cash flow while the market shifts. This is the fastest path from seller to operator. Listen now to secure your position in the new discovery landscape. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast is your daily source for operator-level insights. Do not wait for the algorithm to change. Change your strategy first. Get involved in the Voltage framework. It is the fastest path from seller to operator. You get Almost Automated Income with FBA, the core Voltage methodology, and the tools to build a resilient brand. This is not about chasing trends. It is about building a business that survives any shift. Listen today and start building your advantage. The market is moving. You need to move with it. This is your moment to act. Do not get left behind. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast is where operators come to learn. Join us and take your brand to the next level. This is your chance to lead. Not follow. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast. Operator-led. Seller-focused. Real results. Get involved in the Amazon CEO Playbook for $24.95 at voltagedm.com/blueprint: https://voltagedm.com/blueprint?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep389

Host: Lalo Solorzano and Andy Shiles Guest(s): Hal Berman and John Petitte Published: September 17, 2026 Length: 38:47 Presented by: Global Training Center Summary Tariff engineering isn't just a compliance exercise—it can become a powerful strategy for reducing landed costs, improving sourcing decisions, and strengthening profitability. In this episode of Simply Trade, Lalo Solorzano and Andy Shiles welcome back Hal Berman and John Petitte of Trade Insight for a practical discussion about how companies can approach tariff engineering as a cross-functional business initiative. The conversation explores why successful duty optimization requires much more than finding a different tariff classification. Engineering, sourcing, procurement, finance, operations, tax, supply chain, and compliance may all hold pieces of the information needed to determine whether a change actually makes financial sense. Hal and John share examples involving product design, component sourcing, final assembly, free trade agreements, and duty exposure to illustrate how relatively small changes can potentially produce meaningful savings. They also discuss the role of AI as a research and productivity tool for trained trade professionals—not as a replacement for human judgment. The bigger lesson: companies can get more value when trade considerations enter the product lifecycle earlier, rather than waiting until goods reach the border. Main Topic / Discussion Tariff engineering is the process of evaluating how legitimate changes to a product's design, materials, sourcing, manufacturing, assembly, or supply chain can affect tariff treatment and overall landed cost. The discussion emphasizes that effective tariff engineering requires a holistic view. A lower duty rate alone doesn't necessarily make a change worthwhile. Companies must consider supplier agreements, manufacturing costs, labor, logistics, tax implications, compliance requirements, and other costs before determining the actual return on investment. Build a Cross-Functional Team Compliance may help lead the analysis, but the necessary information often lives throughout the organization. Engineering understands product design. Procurement and sourcing understand suppliers and contracts. Finance can evaluate ROI. Operations and supply chain understand manufacturing and logistics constraints. Executive sponsorship can help these groups work toward the same objective instead of leaving compliance to pursue optimization opportunities alone. Start Small and Build a Repeatable Process Rather than reviewing every SKU at once, the conversation suggests identifying products associated with significant duty spend and evaluating specific opportunities. Even when the first project doesn't uncover savings, the exercise can establish a repeatable framework: which questions need to be asked, who owns the information, what constraints matter, and which stakeholders need to participate. Over time, tariff considerations can move earlier in the product lifecycle and potentially become part of product and supply-chain design. AI as a Trade Professional's Tool AI and technology can help trade professionals research classifications and analyze much larger product libraries, but the episode stresses the importance of human involvement and transparent reasoning. The objective is to give trained professionals better tools, clearer supporting rationale, and greater capacity—not simply automate away the compliance function. Key Takeaways • Tariff engineering goes beyond finding a lower duty rate; companies should evaluate total landed cost and overall ROI. • The strongest opportunities can involve product design, materials, sourcing, manufacturing location, final assembly, free trade agreements, and other special tariff provisions. • Compliance cannot effectively execute tariff optimization alone. Engineering, finance, sourcing, procurement, operations, supply chain, tax, and other stakeholders may need to participate. • Executive sponsorship can help transform tariff optimization from an isolated compliance project into an ongoing cross-functional business process. • Starting with high-duty products can create a manageable pilot project and establish a framework that can later be repeated across additional SKUs. • Bringing trade considerations into the product-development process earlier can give engineers and sourcing teams additional information when making design and supplier decisions. • AI can expand research and classification capacity, but trained trade professionals and human judgment remain central to defensible compliance decisions. Resources & Mentions • Global Training Center • Hal Berman on LinkedIn • John Petitte on LinkedIn Credits Host: Lalo Solorzano Andy Shiles Guest(s): Hal Berman - LinkedIn John Petitte - LinkedIn Producer: Lalo Solorzano

If you spend the next 30 minutes listening, your high-ticket SKU strategy stops bleeding margin on Amazon and starts capturing demand on TikTok Shop. Most sellers treat these platforms as one business. They are not. Amazon is your revenue engine. TikTok Shop is where your brand gets discovered. This episode breaks down why your top ten high-ticket items need both in 2026. You will hear how a premium storage system brand made forty thousand dollars a month on Amazon for two years, then lost ground when a competitor exploded on TikTok. That is the new reality. The shift in consumer behavior is not a trend. It is a structural change in how buyers find premium goods. You will get three concrete moves to align your catalog across both platforms without drowning in tabs. First, you will learn how to use Business Reports to track units per day for the last fourteen days on every SKU. Second, you will see how to separate your Amazon revenue engine from your TikTok discovery engine. Third, you will understand why bad data in your AI tools kills your margins faster than any ad spend. This is not a news recap. It is an operator's guide to protecting your asset. If you are running a brand at any level, from ten thousand to ten million dollars a month, this matters. Your margins depend on it. Your cash flow depends on it. Listen now to stop treating two different businesses like one. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast gives you the operator-led approach you need to win in 2026. One clear next step: open your Business Reports today and write down your units per day for the last two weeks. Do that before you touch another ad campaign. Implement with us. Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep-draft

Send us Fan MailEp. 251 – Larry Walsh, CEO & Chief Analyst at ChannelnomicsIn this episode of Partnerships Unraveled, we sit down with Larry Walsh, CEO and Chief Analyst at Channelnomics. After three decades studying how vendors and partners work together, Larry brings a data-driven, refreshingly clear-eyed view of what actually makes channel relationships thrive, and where the real opportunity for growth is hiding.Larry opens with a distinction that reframes the whole vendor-partner relationship: vendors tend to operate on narrative economics, describing value in ways people can believe, while most of the channel runs on vibe economics, things partners feel but can't always articulate. That gap is where misalignment creeps in. Larry shares an example of a vendor struggling with partner engagement, only to discover they were playing defense, protecting margin so tightly that the benefits weren't worth the effort. The fix isn't about equal treatment, it's about equilibrium: creating conditions where partners make money with a vendor, not on them.The conversation turns to friction in the go-to-market process, and Larry points to Channelnomics' own research on quoting: some partners wait three to five weeks for a quote, at a moment when customers expect Amazon-level speed. He also describes how partner programs accumulate like sedimentary layers, with policies piling up long after anyone remembers why they exist. His approach isn't chasing perfection, since that's expensive and never fully reachable, but building a continuous habit of asking whether a rule or process still earns its place, and removing what only adds drag for partners.Looking ahead, Larry sees the channel's role only deepening: less about moving boxes, more about becoming the connective tissue between vendor promises and customer outcomes, helping partners go further, faster, and with less risk.Key Takeaways:Equitable Outcomes Drive Partner Engagement Larry points out that vendors and partners tend to run on two different kinds of economics: vendors describe value in narrative terms, while partners operate more on feel, things they sense but can't always put into words. When those two are out of sync, engagement suffers. He shares a real example of a vendor whose partners weren't engaging, only to find the vendor was "playing defense," making it too hard to capture even modest benefits, and the fix was building genuine equilibrium rather than identical treatment.Partners Earn Only When They Perform Larry breaks down why channel economics work the way they do: a direct salesperson has to be paid, trained, and supported whether or not they close deals, while a partner only earns when they deliver. He notes that a channel sale runs roughly 10 to 15% more economically than a direct one, largely because partners are mining the white space already sitting inside their own install base.Quoting Speed Decides the Sale Drawing on Channelnomics' own research, Larry shares that a third of partners are waiting three to five weeks for a quote, at a time when customers, conditioned by Amazon-style buying, expect answers instantly. He points to vendors managing a quarter million SKUs or custom-built hardware as examples of how quickly complexity can turn a quoting process into a lost sale.Probability Models Replace Guesswork With Strategy Larry describes a recent project where a global vendor was deciding how to restructure a regional partnership, and Channelnomics ran the options through a probability model that scored four different configurations by likelihood of success, one coming in at 85%. Rather than replacing judgment, the model gave the vendor a clearer set of trade-offs to weigh, which lined up with their budget and capabilities.The Channel Keeps Evolving Into Trusted Advisors Larry pushes back on "save the channel" narratives, pointing to a partner ecosystem that's larger than ever, with more than 600,000 partners in Microsoft's network alone and roughly 1.2 million worldwide. His view is that the channel's role keeps shifting, from selling boxes to clouds to now selling outcomes, with partners becoming the connective tissue between what vendors promise and what customers actually experience._________________________Learn more about Channext

Today, I'm joined by Danny Yeung, CEO of IM8. Pivoting from diagnostics, parent company Prenetics has scaled its science-backed supplement brand co-founded with David Beckham to a $400M+ market cap with just two core SKUs. In this episode, we discuss building IM8 from the ashes of a billion-dollar collapse. We also cover: From billion-dollar IPO to $50M valuation in 18 months Simple products, simple messaging General Catalyst's revenue-based financing   Subscribe to the podcast → insider.fitt.co/podcast  Subscribe to our newsletter → insider.fitt.co/subscribe  Follow us on LinkedIn → linkedin.com/company/fittinsider    IM8 Website: https://im8health.com/  IM8 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/im8health/    The Fitt Insider Podcast is brought to you by EGYM. Visit EGYM.com to learn more about its smart fitness ecosystem for fitness and health facilities.   Fitt Talent: https://talent.fitt.co/  Consulting: https://consulting.fitt.co/  Investments: https://capital.fitt.co/    (00:00) Introduction (01:31) Danny's background (01:50) Prenetics diagnostics journey (02:09) COVID testing boom and collapse (06:03) Meeting David Beckham (02:09) From $1B to $50M (08:58) Prenetics to IM8 pivot (12:28) Organizational strategy (16:22) Product development approach (27:58) Retention and data focus (25:55) Marketing and messaging (29:39) Scaling challenges (30:30) General Catalyst financing model (34:55) Product roadmap (38:11) Where to follow (39:35) Conclusion

Anisa Casalino, Amie's TikTok Shop ECommerce and Operations Manager that works 1:1 with Amie's Sephora and Ulta Beauty brands to make sure their Shop is set up for success before you even send out samples to creators.Highlight Bullets:Strategies for growing sales on TikTok ShopImportance of shop operations managementUse of virtual bundles to increase average order value (AOV)Role of affiliate marketing in driving salesCustomer outreach techniques on TikTok ShopMonitoring and maintaining shop performance scoresChallenges and common pitfalls in shop operationsHandling violations and appeals on the platformEssential team roles for successful TikTok Shop managementLeveraging TikTok's CRM tools and coupons for customer engagementIn this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Anisa Casalino, TikTok Shop Operations Manager for Amie's Sephora and Ulta Beauty brands. Anisa shares strategies for scaling sales on TikTok Shop, including creating virtual bundles to increase average order value, leveraging affiliate marketing, and utilizing TikTok's built-in CRM tools for customer outreach. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining a strong shop performance score and establishing solid operational foundations before launching creator campaigns. Anisa also highlights key team roles needed for success and recommends understanding consumer psychology to drive effective social commerce growth.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Use Virtual Bundles to Increase AOV Bundle complementary products together, promote them through affiliates, and highlight them as TikTok Shop exclusives to increase average order value and profitability.Monitor Your Shop Performance Score Daily Keep fulfillment, customer service, reviews, and cancellations in check. A high Shop Performance Score unlocks more TikTok features, incentives, and long-term growth. Leverage TikTok's Built-in CRM Tools Use customer outreach, follower coupons, review incentives, and targeted messages to drive repeat purchases, increase positive reviews, and strengthen customer loyalty.Timestamps:00:00:00 The Importance of Shop Performance ScoreAnisa explains how a strong shop performance score, covering product satisfaction, fulfillment, and customer service, is crucial for success.00:00:42 Podcast and Guest IntroductionThe podcast is introduced, followed by host Josh Hadley, who then introduces the guest, Anisa Castellano, a TikTok Shop manager.00:02:39 Anisa's Role as Operations ManagerAnisa details her day-to-day responsibilities, which include optimizing listings, managing inventory, creating promotions, and monitoring shop performance.00:04:23 Leveraging Virtual BundlesAnisa identifies virtual bundles as a key strategy to increase average order value (AOV) and support hero product strategies.00:05:05 Setting Up and Promoting BundlesDiscussion on how bundles are created as standalone products, promoted with stickers, and highlighted in the shop's design.00:06:29 Affiliate Strategy for BundlesAnisa explains that affiliates are a crucial part of promoting virtual bundles, working closely with the affiliate manager.00:08:05 Customer Outreach StrategiesAnisa describes using TikTok's built-in tools to send customized messages about new bundles and promotions to various customer segments.00:10:32 Positioning Bundles on TikTok ShopAnisa clarifies that virtual bundles are created as standalone SKUs rather than variations of existing products to maintain performance metrics.00:12:45 The Benefits of Virtual BundlesJosh and Anisa discuss how bundles improve unit economics for brands and increase commission potential for creators and affiliates.00:15:22 Key Analytics and Shop PerformanceAnisa emphasizes that the shop performance score is the most important metric, as it impacts eligibility for platform incentives.00:17:27 Common Shop Score IssuesAnisa outlines common problems that hurt a shop's score, such as delayed shipments, high cancellation rates, and negative reviews.00:19:18 Handling TikTok Shop ViolationsAnisa shares her experience resolving violations, noting that integration issues between Shopify and TikTok can cause high cancellation rates.00:21:23 Working with TikTok SupportThe challenges of getting appeals approved are discussed, highlighting the need for persistence and escalating issues to account managers.00:23:13 Misconceptions About TikTok ShopAnisa explains that TikTok Shop is a living ecosystem that requires daily management, unlike other e-commerce platforms.00:25:03 Communicating with Account ManagersAnisa confirms she is the main point of contact with TikTok account managers, which is crucial for troubleshooting issues.00:26:29 The Importance of an Ecosystem ApproachAnisa stresses that success requires an ecosystem where operations, affiliates, and paid media work together, starting with a strong operational foundation.00:29:30 Leveraging CRM Tools and CouponsAnisa suggests using follower coupons and review incentives to nurture existing customers and encourage repeat purchases and engagement.00:30:28 Three Actionable TakeawaysJosh summarizes the key takeaways: implement virtual bundles, use customer outreach tools, and maintain a high shop performance score.00:33:43 Most Influential BookAnisa shares that "The Psychology of Persuasion" is influential because the core principles of why people buy remain consistent.00:34:46 Favorite AI ToolsAnisa discusses using TikTok's built-in AI for SEO optimization and smart modules in the shop design for personalization.00:35:49 Who to Follow in E-commerceAnisa finds inspiration from the talented people she works with daily rather than one specific public figure.Links and Mentions:Tools and Websites  "TikTok Shop": "00:00:00"  "Shopify": "00:20:14"  "Base": "00:20:36"  "Seller Central": "00:34:52"  Books  "The E-Myth by Michael E. Gerber": "00:01:19"  "The Psychology of Persuasion": "00:33:51"  Strategies and Metrics  "Virtual Bundles": "00:04:23"  "Customer Outreach": "00:08:37"  "Shop Performance Score": "00:16:39"Episode Sponsor:This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures. I started my business in 2015 and grew it to an eight-figure brand in seven years.I made mistakes along the way that made the path to eight figures longer. At times I doubted whether our business could even survive and become a real brand. I wish I would have had a guide to help me grow faster and avoid the stumbling blocks.If you've hit a plateau and want to know the next steps to take your business to the next level, then email me at jo...

I looked at my bank statement and thought, "WTF am I paying for all of this?" Editing apps I forgot I signed up for. A JotForm plan that ballooned to $90 a month. Slack at $137. A pile of Zapier automations quietly duct-taping five different platforms together, and every time one broke, it cost me time I didn't have. None of it felt like a big expense in the moment. All of it added up to something embarrassing.This episode isn't a framework or a three-step plan. It's me walking you through exactly where money was quietly leaking out of my business, what I changed, and why now, before Q4, is the time to do your own audit. I also get into a hiring shift I made instead of adding a new position, a retail line I'm swapping out after years of loyalty to bigger brands, and a genuinely big personal win I almost didn't let myself celebrate.In this episode:Why I finally consolidated five-plus software subscriptions into one platform, and how much that patchwork of tools was actually costing me in money and timeWhy I built content creation directly into my assistant's job description instead of hiring or outsourcing it, and how that decision is paying for itself multiple times overThe honest reasoning behind switching our retail line, including what's really happened to margins and manufacturer relationships with the bigger brandsWhy I'm cutting down the number of SKUs we carry per category, and the buyer-behavior shift behind that decisionSwitching to Mangomint:I finally made the switch after years of jimmy-rigging Zapier and Square to work for a hybrid salon. If you're curious whether it'd work better for your salon, grab your first month free with my link: https://www.mangomint.com/referral/lexi/Salon Visibility: The training that builds your digital footprint so new clients can actually find you, on Google, on AI search, everywhere they're looking. This is the foundation everything else gets built on. Learn more: https://www.salonmindsmastermind.com/salon-visibility

If you spend the next 30 minutes here, you stop wasting ad dollars on TikTok Shop for products that do not belong in the feed. Most Amazon sellers assume a high FBA rank translates to TikTok success. It does not. Marketplace Pulse matched ten thousand seller names on each platform and found only four hundred ninety eight appear on both. That is a massive disconnect. Amazon is where people buy things. TikTok is where people want things. These are two different engines. of The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast, I break down why your Amazon FBA rank buys you almost nothing in the TikTok feed. I share the 2021 leggings case study where TikTok videos drove search volume to Amazon without a single product link. That is the inheritance model. I then give you the exact framework to split your catalog into filmable versus search only SKUs. You will learn which items get TikTok Shop spend and which ones get zero. This is not theory. This is how I manage a thirty brand portfolio. You will get three concrete moves to audit your inventory today. First, label every active SKU as filmable or search only. Second, cut TikTok Shop spend on search only items immediately. Third, redirect that budget to the filmable winners. This is how you protect your margins and stop bleeding cash on the wrong platform. If you are an Amazon seller trying to expand into TikTok Shop, this is the reality check you need. Listen now to align your ad strategy with how each platform actually works. Visit voltagedm.com to see Caiman Data AI in action. It is the operating system behind these calls. Say Caiman AI if you want the short version. Come back tomorrow for the next daily episode. Implement with us. Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep386

If you spend the next 30 minutes with me, you stop treating TikTok Shop as a novelty and start seeing it as a structural shift in product discovery. TikTok Shop just passed Target in US online sales. That is not a fluke. It is a signal that Amazon-style content fails when copied into TikTok. Most sellers are leaving money on the table because they do not understand where discovery moved. I break down why volume does not fix broken fundamentals. I use Ashley's story as proof. She stalled at eight thousand dollars a month because she bought into the wrong growth model. We fix that. You will learn to spot the exact margin leak in your top three SKUs. You will build a content strategy that actually converts on TikTok Shop Ads. You will stop juggling tabs and start running a coherent system. This is for sellers at every level. Whether you are at zero to five thousand dollars a month or scaling a multi-brand portfolio, the mechanics are the same. You need to pull Amazon data for your top three items. You need a shortlist ready for testing. You need to understand that chaos is not inevitable. It is a symptom of missing structure. I share the exact three moves I use with my members. These are not theoretical. They are operator-tested. You will walk away with a clear path to diversify without drowning in complexity. The market is moving. Target is behind. TikTok is ahead. If you are not on that platform yet, you are watching the future from the sidelines. Listen now. Grab your top three SKUs. Pull the data. Start the test. This is how you build a brand that survives platform shifts. The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast is where operators get the real play. No fluff. No hype. Just the work. See your Amazon numbers in one place and protect your margins with Caiman AI at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep384&learn_mcp=1

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Lauren Livak Gilbert, Executive Director of the Digital Shelf Institute, part of Salsify.Follow Lauren on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenlivak/Follow the Digital Shelf Institute online at: https://www.digitalshelfinstitute.org/Listen to "Unpacking the Digital Shelf" podcast on Apple at: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unpacking-the-digital-shelf/id1483944522Listen to "Unpacking the Digital Shelf" podcast on Spotify at: https://open.spotify.com/show/1Qme24wjJjUnqrztQyMkUE?si=b6a0a46a58774fd7Learn about the Digital Shelf Summit here: https://www.digitalshelfsummit.com/Lauren answers these questions:How is generative AI changing the way shoppers actually discover and evaluate products online — and is “search” even the right word anymore?With AI-powered shopping assistants and chat-based commerce emerging, how should brands rethink product content that's optimized for an AI intermediary rather than a human scrolling a page?What does “digital shelf readiness” mean in an AI-driven world compared to five years ago?Are retailers' own AI tools (like retail media search and generative product Q&A) creating new data or visibility gaps that brands need to manage?How is AI changing the economics and workflow of content creation — copy, imagery, A+ content — at scale across thousands of SKUs?What early use cases of AI in digital shelf analytics have actually moved the needle on sales or share, versus ones that are still more hype than results?How should brand and eCommerce teams be restructuring roles or skill sets as AI takes over more manual digital shelf tasks?What are the biggest risks — misinformation, hallucinated product claims, brand voice drift — as AI generates more customer-facing content, and how are brands guarding against them?How is AI reshaping competitive intelligence and price/promotion monitoring on the digital shelf?Where do you see agentic AI — bots that shop, compare, and even purchase on a consumer's behalf — heading, and how prepared is the CPG industry for that shift?What's a common mistake you see brands make when they adopt AI tools for digital shelf management too quickly or without a strategy?Looking two to three years out, what's the single biggest way AI will change how brands compete for shelf space and share of search?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comSheCOMMERCE Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/Rhea Raj's Website: http://rhearaj.comLara Raj in Katseye: https://www.katseye.world/DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual's use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.

US livestream shopping surges, Amazon updates seller insurance rules, and Helium 10 launches powerful new MCP tools for Walmart, ads, keyword research, and more. We're back with another episode of the Weekly Buzz with Helium 10's VP of Education and Strategy, Bradley Sutton. Every week, we cover the latest breaking news in the Amazon, TikTok Shop, Walmart, and E-commerce space, talk about Helium 10's newest features, and provide a training tip for the week for serious sellers of any level.   Livestream shopping is gaining steam in the U.S., thanks to apps like TikTok and Whatnot https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/01/tiktok-whatnot-livestream-shopping.html   New Commercial Liability Insurance Requirements effective November 2, 2026 https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHOVI1Q0hRUUNWSlc5VjNE   Your Account Health Rating now rewards great customer service https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHUzJDVzlXWjM0NTJDVVpY   Prime Big Deal Days deals deadline extended https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHN1dWUE5RN0dBSkUzTkNF   New Amazon MCP Features Helium 10's Amazon MCP now analyzes ad budget usage, reveals Frequently Bought Together history, tracks CPC bids, Search Frequency Rank, and keyword sales trends, and lets sellers activate Alerts across multiple SKUs at once—all through Claude or ChatGPT.   Create Amazon coupons faster with fewer steps https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHVFZOODhGUEM1VktETkw5 TikTok Shop opens cross-border sales between EU and UK https://ecommercenews.eu/tiktok-shop-opens-cross-border-sales-between-eu-and-uk/   (Timestamps) -  In episode 553 of the AM/PM Podcast and Weekly Buzz, Bradley covers: 00:00 - Introduction 00:44 - Is Live Shopping Finally Taking Off? 02:44 - New Amazon Insurance Requirements 04:47 - Walmart and Ads Updates 07:15 - Amazon Account Health Update 08:43 - How to do Keyword Research On Amazon Website 10:52 - Prime Big Deal Day Deadlines Extended 11:23 - New Amazon MCP Features 15:39 - Amazon Coupon Creation Simplification 16:40 - TikTok Shop UK Update

Maciej is the CEO of Base.com in the United States, where he's leading the charge in helping brands remove operational bottlenecks and scale across multiple sales channels more efficiently.Before this, he was with Amazon—so he understands both sides of the ecosystem—and brings a unique perspective on what it actually takes to go from a successful Amazon business to a truly scalable, multi-channel brand.Originally from Poland and now based in Seattle, Maciej is driven by a simple but powerful mission: eliminating the hidden friction and self-imposed constraints that slow down e-commerce entrepreneurs.In today's conversation, we're diving into how to build a true business operating system for your brand—and how to successfully expand beyond Amazon into new sales channels without breaking your operations.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. Importance of a strong operational backbone for scaling e-commerce brands.Strategies for expanding beyond Amazon to multiple sales channels.Necessity of mastering Amazon operations before diversifying.Recommended marketplaces for expansion: Walmart, Target Plus, Etsy, eBay, TikTok Shop, and Shopify.Challenges and considerations for entering Target Plus and other curated marketplaces.Role of inventory management and supply chain in multi-channel growth.Impact of AI on e-commerce operations and its limitations.Need for effective delegation and avoiding operational fragmentation.Importance of documenting processes for leveraging AI effectively.Emphasis on methodical scaling and execution over chasing trends.In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley speaks with Maciej Stanski, CEO of Base Com, about scaling e-commerce brands beyond Amazon. They outline a strategic sequence for expansion, covering marketplaces like Walmart, Target Plus, and TikTok Shop, followed by Shopify, international markets, and wholesale. Both emphasize that operational excellence, including strong inventory management, fulfillment systems, and documented processes, is the foundation for sustainable multi-channel growth. They also discuss AI's role, agreeing it enhances solid operations rather than replacing them. The core message: master your fundamentals before chasing new channels.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Build your operational backbone firstCentralize SKUs, automate inventory syncing, and document SOPs—operations (not ads) become your main competitive edge when scaling.Expand channels one at a time (with small tests)Start with 1–2 marketplaces, launch limited SKUs, validate demand + fulfillment, then scale—avoid “shiny object syndrome.”Use AI to scale proven systems, not fix chaosDocument workflows first, then automate repetitive tasks—AI amplifies what already works (or breaks faster if it doesn't).Timestamps:00:00:36 Introduction to the Ecomm Breakthrough PodcastThe podcast introduces its mission to help seven-figure e-commerce business owners unlock their full potential and scale to the next level.00:01:00 Meet Maciej StanskiHost Josh Hadley introduces guest Maciej Stanski, CEO of Base Com, highlighting his background at Amazon and his mission.00:04:03 The Importance of an Operational BackboneMaciej explains why a strong operational system is crucial for brands to scale beyond Amazon in the current competitive e-commerce environment.00:06:58 A Step-by-Step Scaling StrategyJosh outlines his recommended strategy for Amazon sellers: first, systematize Amazon operations, then expand to other marketplaces using existing FBA inventory.00:11:31 Why Marketplaces Are the Easiest Next StepMaciej agrees with Josh's strategy, emphasizing the importance of delegating, avoiding fragmentation, and using MCF to experiment on new channels.00:16:00 Which Marketplaces to Expand ToMaciej discusses potential marketplaces like Walmart and Target Plus, stressing that the right choice depends on the product and business readiness.00:19:46 The Six Phases of Scaling Beyond AmazonJosh details a six-phase scaling path: master Amazon, expand to marketplaces, international expansion, TikTok Shop, Shopify, and finally, wholesale/retail.00:25:21 A Different Perspective on Scaling SequenceMaciej offers a different view, cautioning against premature international expansion and suggesting that wholesale relationships should be started early on.00:33:11 The Role of AI in E-commerceMaciej shares his perspective on AI, stating it's a powerful tool but requires strong operational fundamentals to be effective.00:38:59 Three Actionable TakeawaysJosh summarizes the key takeaways: prioritize operations, scale methodically to avoid shiny object syndrome, and focus on your supply chain.00:42:03 Maciej's Final RecommendationsMaciej shares his most influential book, favorite AI tool (ElevenLabs), and respected figures in the e-commerce space.Resources mentioned in this episode:Josh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTools and Software  "Base": "00:02:11"  "Amazon Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF)": "00:10:08"  "ElevenLabs": "00:42:49"  Books  "Thinking, Fast and Slow": "00:42:09"  Websites and Platforms  "Etsy": "00:09:50"  "

If you spend the next thirty minutes with me, you'll learn how to protect your margins from Amazon's new shipping costs. Amazon just introduced Sub-Same-Day shipping, and many operators are opting in without crunching the numbers. This isn't a free upgrade; it's a line item that can eat into your profits. I recently spoke with a member making mid five figures a month on a home goods brand who thought faster delivery would boost sales. He opted in and quickly realized it was a mistake. I'll share three actionable moves you can make today. First, audit your top ten SKUs. If your net profit per unit is under fifteen percent, skip the Sub-Same-Day shipping fee. Second, analyze your shipping costs versus sales data. Finally, streamline your decision-making process to avoid drowning in endless tabs. The clock is ticking, and every decision counts. Tune in to learn how to safeguard your business against unnecessary costs. Don't let Amazon's latest move catch you off guard. Listen now to stay ahead. Search phrases: Amazon shipping costs, FBA seller margins, Sub-Same-Day shipping impact. Implement with us. Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep378

Send us Fan MailA 40% Amazon margin can shrink to almost nothing once the real costs start stacking up.In this episode of the Mad Growth podcast, Noah Wickham sits down with David Schomer, CEO of Build Grow Scale, to talk about the numbers behind profitability, smarter product choices, and lessons from launching nearly 3,000 SKUs.The conversation covers why some products fall apart after fees, why harder-to-ship products may be worth the trouble, and where AI fits into e-commerce in 2026.David Schomer and Build Grow Scale share more on Shopify and brand growth:https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-schomer-b08a0a41/Get help from My Amazon Guy to grow Amazon sales:https://bit.ly/4jMZtxu#AmazonFBA #AmazonSeller #Ecommerce #AmazonPPC #ArtificialIntelligenceWant free resources? Dowload our Free Amazon guides here:Your $1M Roadmap is here!: https://bit.ly/3SBO7VkDownload the 2026 Amazon AI Operating Manual: https://bit.ly/3SLmusPAmazon Receiving Delay Guide: https://hubs.ly/Q04cdD4c0Amazon Catalog Spring Cleaning: https://hubs.ly/Q046BVfp0Amazon Proft Margin Defense 2026: https://hubs.ly/Q042trRH0Amazon SEO Toolkit 2026: https://bit.ly/4oC2ClTAmazon Seller Strategy Report 2026: https://bit.ly/3YN1RME2026 Ecommerce Website & SEO Readiness Checklist: https://hubs.ly/Q04btghf0Amazon 2026 PPC guide: https://bit.ly/4lF0OYXTimestamps00:45 - David Shommer's Journey from M&A to E-Commerce04:49 - Why Revenue Can Mislead E-Commerce Sellers07:29 - The “Fail on Paper” Exercise for Product Launches11:29 - Why Sellers Should Stop Launching “Me Too” Products13:01 - Opportunities in Oversized and Custom Products18:12 - How AI Is Changing E-Commerce in 202621:41 - AI Content vs. Real Human Content23:51 - Will AI Replace People in E-Commerce?26:56 - Why E-Commerce Is Just Getting Started-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow us:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28605816/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stevenpopemag/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/myamazonguys/Twitter: https://twitter.com/myamazonguySubscribe to the My Amazon Guy podcast: https://podcast.myamazonguy.comApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/my-amazon-guy/id1501974229Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4A5ASHGGfr6s4wWNQIqyVwSupport the show

Shawn Singh was managing 40–50 people at a fintech by day and building a copper drinkware brand between 5pm and 7pm every night. Then Valentine's Day 2025 hit,250 orders landed over a single weekend, and he and his wife packed every one of them on the living room floor, with 10 pallets of stock stacked in the garagebehind them.In this episode, Shawn joins Ryan Martin (Host and Founder of Remarkable Digital) to unpack how Copper Culture went froman off-the-shelf Shopify theme to a multi-market brand selling into Australia,the US and 17 duty-free markets, and why he'd rather be the best copper drinkware brand outside India than the biggest.It's an honest one: the money lost learning Meta, the 51% jump in the copper price over 12 months, and a live teardown of a supplier sample that scored "7.5 out of 10" and still got rejected.WHAT WE COVER• Why a lunch-and-learn from the Arms of Eve founders was the final push to quit the day job• Building to a few million in lifetime sales on a default Shopify theme• Google first, Meta second: why it took 18–24 months to tame the beast, and what it cost along the way• The Valentine's gift set that changed everything, no discount, just better packaging and a message flip from "you need a copper bottle" to "give your loved ones a copper bottle"• The UGC engine: triggering review requests 48 hours after delivery (not 14 or 21 days) and offering a coupon to upgrade a text review to video• The real science of copper: antimicrobial to 99%+ within three hours, plus the copper toxicity warning Shawn puts on every box• Copper up 51% in 12 months, 300g in a bottle and up to a kilo in a dispenser, how Copper Culture protected margin without passing on the full increase• Manufacturing in India's copper cottage industry: why a supplier that tripled output still can't keep up with a business that grew 6x• Testing new markets and SKUs: 200-300 unit runs, six-week sell-through rules, and why Moscow mule mugs fly in Australia but not the US• Why a real-time profit dashboard is the first thing Shawn checks every morning (and the mate who did $25k in revenue for $800 profit)CHAPTERS00:00 – Cold open01:27 – Welcome: Shawn Singh, Copper Culture01:57 – Rebuilding the site with Clever Conversions02:11 – The first website his wife designed, and the millions it carried04:42 – Fintech by day, ecommerce by night05:36 – The Arms of Eve lunch-and-learn that changed everything06:00 – Google traction first, then 18–24 months learning Meta07:20 – Valentine's Day 2025: 250 orders packed in the living room10:22 – The copper pitch — and the toxicity warning11:47 – How to actually use a copper bottle day to day12:50 – Hammered vs polished, and why hammering matters13:37 – Indian grandparents, an Ayurvedic practitioner, and terrible Amazon bottles15:32 – The Valentine's gift set and the AOV unlock16:49 – Demand capture on Google vs demand generation on Meta18:01 – In-house, offshore, then Swann Studio19:46 – The UGC machine: the 48-hour post-delivery review trigger23:19 – Copper up 51%: margins, pricing and a lower CAC26:11 – Live sample teardown: what a 7.5/10 looks like30:28 – How a copper jug is actually made, from Chilean copper up31:46 – Supplier at 3x, business at 6x: pre-orders and air freight33:46 – Australia, the US, and 17 duty-free markets (Dubai and Saudi next)34:56 – Expanding the range: 200–300 unit tests and fast-moving SKUs36:13 – Real-time profit, channel decisions and a creative backlogLINKSCopper Culture: https://copperculture.com.auClever Conversions (Ilan Hurwitz): [https://cleverconversions.com.au/]Swann Studio: https://swan.studio/BeProfit: https://beprofit.coEnjoyed this one? Follow the eCommerce Aus Podcast and leave a review it helps more Aussie founders find the show.

What if the fastest way to grow was walking away from $15 million in sales?  In this episode of The Story of a Brand Show, host Rose Hamilton sits down with Jason Burke, Founder and CEO of New Primal. Jason shares his incredible evolution from Googling "how to make beef jerky" without any food manufacturing background to building a CPG powerhouse.  Together, they deliver a masterclass on commercial discipline, detailing how New Primal cut 36 products down to a focused core, shifted from an impulse snack to a high-velocity lunchbox staple, and learned that revenue without healthy margins is just noise. In this episode, we cover: * The $15 Million Cut: How eliminating profitable yet complex SKUs and categories actually unlocked faster overall growth. * The Hidden Tax of Complexity: Why adding "one more SKU" taxes management bandwidth, operations, and capital far more than founders realize. * Top-Line Vanity vs. Enterprise Value: Shifting away from chasing rapid top-line revenue to building a sustainable, margin-accretive business model. * Listening to Consumer Behavior: How feedback from parents led to pivoting into mini meat sticks and capturing the expanding kids' lunchbox market. * The Retailer Reality Check: What a brand truly owes the shelf after getting authorized, and why distribution without demand is a dangerous trap. * Founder Discipline: Why the hardest part of scaling is learning to stop inventing new products and start mastering the core. Join us in listening to this episode! For more on New Primal visit: https://newprimal.com/ If you enjoyed this episode, please leave The Story of a Brand Show a rating and review.  Plus, don't forget to follow us on Apple and Spotify.  Your support helps us bring you more content like this!

Daniela from Mindful Goods joins the podcast to explore how New York State's new AI image regulations are impacting Amazon sellers and forcing brands to adopt greater creative transparency. As consumer sensitivity to "AI slop" grows, brands are encountering false negatives where overly polished human photography is mistaken for AI, making human split-testing and data-driven creative execution essential. While nimble solo founders leverage one-click AI tools for quick design wins, established 7-to-9-figure brands are using AI strategically to scale catalog design templates across thousands of SKUs and bridge visual gaps in costly photoshoots. To maximize conversion and overcome these creative challenges, Daniela outlines the importance of single-message visual hierarchy and leveraging internal databases to pre-test Main Images and A+ Content before launching.   Episode Notes: 00:00 - Introduction to Daniela and Mindful Goods 01:02 - New York State AI Regulations & Amazon Disclaimers 03:18 - Compliance Fines & The Shift Toward Creative Transparency 04:49 - How AI Raised the Creative Baseline for Entry-Level Sellers 06:34 - Consumer Sensitivity & "Over-Perfection" False Negatives 09:06 - How Enterprise Brands Strategically Use AI vs. Solo Founders 11:59 - Scaling Massive SKU Catalogs from Months Down to Minutes 13:38 - Leveraging 1,000+ PickFu Split Tests for Creative Strategy 17:38 - Live Amazon Listing Audit: Buzzed Honey & Premium A+ Content 22:55 - The #2 Factor in Amazon Conversion 26:45 - Daniela's Design Proof Substack & Free Split-Testing Playbooks   Related Post: AI Visibility for Amazon Products: Are ChatGPT and Rufus Recommending You? How to Reach Daniela: Substack: Design Proof Website: mindfulgoods.co LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dbolzmann Scott's Links: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/scott-needham-a8b39813 X: @itsScottNeedham Instagram: @smartestseller YouTube: www.youtube.com/@smartestamazonseller2371 Newsletter: https://www.smartscout.com/newsletter-sign-up Blog: https://www.smartscout.com/blog

FreightWaves Today hits the road for a special episode live from ShipStation Global headquarters in Austin, Texas, as Craig Fuller and Zach Strickland break down the latest forces shaping freight, logistics and the broader economy. The show opens with a look at the current freight and economic environment, including rising transportation and warehousing costs, inventory management challenges and the growing gap between truckload and intermodal pricing. Craig and Zach discuss why shippers are becoming more selective with inventory and SKUs, how uncertainty around demand and interest rates is influencing supply chain decisions, and what elevated costs could mean for the remainder of the year. They also dive into the extraordinary investment surrounding AI and data centers. With corporate profits climbing and massive infrastructure projects driving industrial activity, Craig and Zach examine how the AI boom is affecting railroads, construction, manufacturing and blue-collar employment. They also discuss the growing community backlash against hyperscale data centers and why the technology industry's messaging around AI could become an increasingly important part of the conversation. Then, ShipStation Global CEO Tom Madine joins the show to discuss the combination of ShipStation and Worldwide Express and what the newly integrated company is building for shippers. Madine explains how ShipStation Global is bringing together ShipStation's e-commerce shipping technology with Worldwide Express' transportation and freight expertise to create a more unified logistics platform. The goal is to give small and midsized businesses the ability to manage more of their supply chain from a single place instead of jumping between different providers and systems. A major focus is ShipStation's newly launched LTL offering. Madine explains why LTL was one of the most requested additions from ShipStation customers and how integrating freight directly into the platform can simplify inbound inventory movements, middle-mile transportation and other shipping needs that previously required merchants to leave the ShipStation ecosystem. The conversation also explores why transportation decisions can't simply come down to finding the cheapest rate. Service reliability, damage risk, estimated arrival times, carrier selection and the consequences of a failed shipment can all dramatically change what "best" means for an individual shipper. Craig, Zach and Madine discuss how data and intelligence can help businesses make better transportation decisions, particularly for smaller companies that don't have dedicated logistics teams or the resources to constantly monitor freight market cycles. Madine also lays out ShipStation Global's larger vision: bringing parcel, LTL, truckload, final mile and potentially additional transportation modes together into a more unified experience. He explains why simplifying logistics could be especially valuable for entrepreneurs and SMBs already balancing everything from finance and accounting to marketing, inventory and product development. Finally, the conversation turns global. Madine discusses ShipStation's presence across North America, Europe and Australia, the company's hundreds of parcel-carrier API connections and its ambition to become a truly global shipping technology platform. Topics include: • ShipStation Global's new LTL offering • The ShipStation and Worldwide Express combination • Bringing parcel, LTL and truckload together• Freight market cyclicality and SMB shippers • Using data to improve carrier and shipping decisions • Why the lowest freight rate isn't always the best option • Rising transportation and warehousing costs • Inventory management and changing shipper behavior • Truckload versus intermodal economics • AI, data centers and industrial freight demand • Corporate efficiency and the AI investment boom • The growing economic importance of hyperscale data centers • ShipStation Global's international expansion • The future of multimodal shipping technology FreightWaves Today brings together the latest freight market intelligence, transportation news and conversations with the leaders shaping global supply chains. Subscribe to FreightWaves for more interviews, market analysis and breaking news from across trucking, logistics, technology and the global supply chain. ⁠Follow the FreightWaves Today Podcast⁠ ⁠Other FreightWaves Shows⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FreightWaves Today hits the road for a special episode live from ShipStation Global headquarters in Austin, Texas, as Craig Fuller and Zach Strickland break down the latest forces shaping freight, logistics and the broader economy. The show opens with a look at the current freight and economic environment, including rising transportation and warehousing costs, inventory management challenges and the growing gap between truckload and intermodal pricing. Craig and Zach discuss why shippers are becoming more selective with inventory and SKUs, how uncertainty around demand and interest rates is influencing supply chain decisions, and what elevated costs could mean for the remainder of the year. They also dive into the extraordinary investment surrounding AI and data centers. With corporate profits climbing and massive infrastructure projects driving industrial activity, Craig and Zach examine how the AI boom is affecting railroads, construction, manufacturing and blue-collar employment. They also discuss the growing community backlash against hyperscale data centers and why the technology industry's messaging around AI could become an increasingly important part of the conversation. Then, ShipStation Global CEO Tom Madine joins the show to discuss the combination of ShipStation and Worldwide Express and what the newly integrated company is building for shippers. Madine explains how ShipStation Global is bringing together ShipStation's e-commerce shipping technology with Worldwide Express' transportation and freight expertise to create a more unified logistics platform. The goal is to give small and midsized businesses the ability to manage more of their supply chain from a single place instead of jumping between different providers and systems. A major focus is ShipStation's newly launched LTL offering. Madine explains why LTL was one of the most requested additions from ShipStation customers and how integrating freight directly into the platform can simplify inbound inventory movements, middle-mile transportation and other shipping needs that previously required merchants to leave the ShipStation ecosystem. The conversation also explores why transportation decisions can't simply come down to finding the cheapest rate. Service reliability, damage risk, estimated arrival times, carrier selection and the consequences of a failed shipment can all dramatically change what "best" means for an individual shipper. Craig, Zach and Madine discuss how data and intelligence can help businesses make better transportation decisions, particularly for smaller companies that don't have dedicated logistics teams or the resources to constantly monitor freight market cycles. Madine also lays out ShipStation Global's larger vision: bringing parcel, LTL, truckload, final mile and potentially additional transportation modes together into a more unified experience. He explains why simplifying logistics could be especially valuable for entrepreneurs and SMBs already balancing everything from finance and accounting to marketing, inventory and product development. Finally, the conversation turns global. Madine discusses ShipStation's presence across North America, Europe and Australia, the company's hundreds of parcel-carrier API connections and its ambition to become a truly global shipping technology platform. Topics include: • ShipStation Global's new LTL offering • The ShipStation and Worldwide Express combination • Bringing parcel, LTL and truckload together• Freight market cyclicality and SMB shippers • Using data to improve carrier and shipping decisions • Why the lowest freight rate isn't always the best option • Rising transportation and warehousing costs • Inventory management and changing shipper behavior • Truckload versus intermodal economics • AI, data centers and industrial freight demand • Corporate efficiency and the AI investment boom • The growing economic importance of hyperscale data centers • ShipStation Global's international expansion • The future of multimodal shipping technology FreightWaves Today brings together the latest freight market intelligence, transportation news and conversations with the leaders shaping global supply chains. Subscribe to FreightWaves for more interviews, market analysis and breaking news from across trucking, logistics, technology and the global supply chain. Follow the FreightWaves Today Podcast Other FreightWaves Shows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Want to get your product featured in holiday gift guides, product roundups, and online publications?In this episode, PR coach Gloria Chou breaks down how small business owners and product-based brands can pitch journalists and land organic PR features without a PR agency or industry connections.You'll learn:• The different types of gift guides your products can fit into, from price and recipient to lifestyle, occasion, and product category• How to use Perplexity and AI to uncover relevant gift guide angles, consumer trends, and the products most likely to get featured• How to choose the right products or SKUs to pitch instead of overwhelming journalists with your entire catalog• Where to find journalists actively looking for products and expert sources• What to include in a product PR pitch, including samples, shipping information, pricing, photos, affiliate links, and where your product is sold• When to pitch print vs. digital holiday gift guides and why it may not be too late to get featured• How organic PR features can help your brand become more visible and recommended across Google and AI search platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and ClaudeWhether you sell on Etsy, Amazon, your own website, or in retail stores, you'll walk away knowing how to make your products easier for journalists to discover, feature, and recommend.Want to get your products featured in gift guides, roundups, and the media?In my free PR & AI Visibility Masterclass, I'll show you how to find the right PR angles, pitch journalists, and earn organic media features without hiring a PR agency — so your business can get discovered in Google and AI search and become a brand AI recommends.

https://directtoconsumer.typeform.com/DTC-Brand?utm_source=podcast-641&utm_medium=podcastTo Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signuppilothouse.coDTC Twitter has spent the last few months arguing about volume versus strategy. Aves from Pilothouse thinks both camps are answering the wrong question. Eric brings her back for an all killer no filler on creative coverage: what it means now, how she decides what to make next, and the system she spent her summer building.For anyone who briefs creative, buys media, or signs off on either.What you get:Why a thousand Grok ads in a month spikes CPMs and stops finding your audience, and why one precious video every two weeks fails for the opposite reason.The three layers of coverage that matter now: right people, right product, right angles. Sizes and placements should be second nature by now.Persona coverage past your bread and butter. If the answer is always "a woman in her twenties," you are not covering the audience you need in order to grow.Product coverage, the layer most teams skip. Cross-referencing which SKUs bring people in cheapest against which ones are most efficient to ship, then testing returning-customer-only products at top of funnel to find margin nobody was looking for.Diagnosing by problem rather than format. Heavy cart abandonment usually means a trust gap, which points to whitelisting first and conversion-friction statics behind it. Creator-handle delivery ran 70% more efficient than the same creative from the brand.Selling the cloud when the economy tightens. Aspirational is outperforming pure problem agitation right now.Hyper relevancy. The echo chambers have gotten small enough that a meme Aves sees every third video is one you've never heard of, so the ad has to match the exact font, the audio they've been hearing, even the camera angle. She ran "kinda chic" in ads without ever learning what it means.Nobody is watching. Most people are lurking, and most of them are half-watching from the toilet or a waiting room. Aves watched a woman scroll Instagram through the entire Odyssey.Creative is the new targeting, five years of everyone saying it, and the spaghetti metaphor that finally explains it.Landing pages as the insurance policy on all of it. Spend two thousand dollars on a t-shirt and it still looks bad wrinkled.Ad copy. Aves writes hers first, before any visual, and uses no AI for it. One emoji-only ad carried by copy alone did over six figures in a weekend.Who this is for: creative strategists, media buyers, and founders heading into Q4 wondering why more ads stopped working.What to steal: the product coverage audit, the cart-abandonment-means-trust diagnosis, and starting your brief with copy instead of a visual idea.Timestamps:00:03:00 Creative Volume vs. Strategy00:05:00 Building Better Creative Coverage00:10:00 Creative for Full-Funnel Performance00:20:00 Why Creative Is the New Targeting00:28:00 Why Ad Copy Matters More Than EverSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF641Follow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

In "Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands", Joe Lynch speaks with President and CEO of the Americas region of GEODIS, Laura Ritchey, about how emerging brands can navigate trade volatility, manage inventory, and build scalable, resilient supply chains. About Laura Ritchey Laura Ritchey joined GEODIS in July 2025 as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Americas region. Laura is responsible for overseeing the region's freight forwarding, contract logistics and transportation business units along with engineering and technology, IT, ProVenture (U.S.-based subsidiary of GEODIS focusing on industrial real estate) and Material Handling Resources (one of the country's leading material handling distributors owned by GEODIS). In total, Laura oversees GEODIS Americas' expansive operations including nearly 20,000 employees and more than 230 sites across eight countries. Laura brings over 30 years of experience to GEODIS, with 15 focused on supply chain management in both retail and third-party logistics. Laura began her career in finance before transitioning to supply chain operations, including sourcing, distribution and strategic transformation. Prior to her current role, Laura was most recently CEO at Radial, Inc., a leader in e-commerce fulfillment solutions, where she drove revenue growth and profitability through operational excellence. At Radial, she led the North American P&L for a $1.4B e-commerce logistics division, responsible for relationships with over 170 clients across four service lines. Before joining Radial, she held leadership positions at L Brands, FullBeauty Brands and Centric Brands. Laura is on the Dean's Advisory Council at Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University and is an active board member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Nashville Branch. Additionally, she is actively involved with C200 whose mission is to inspire, educate, support and advance current and future women leaders. Laura earned her J.D., MBA and bachelor's degree from The Ohio State University. Additionally, Laura is accredited as a certified public accountant and admitted to the bar in Ohio. About GEODIS GEODIS is a leading global logistics provider acknowledged for its expertise across all aspects of the supply chain. As a growth partner to its clients, GEODIS specializes in four lines of business: Global Freight Forwarding, Global Contract Logistics, Distribution & Express Transport, and European Road Network. The Group operates a global network spanning nearly 170 countries and 48,000 employees. In 2025, GEODIS generated €10.6 billion in revenue. GEODIS is a company owned by SNCF group. Key Takeaways: Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands Beware the "10K Order Trap" During Rapid Growth: Scaling operations from 1,000 to 10,000 monthly orders often breaks a business before demand stalls. Emerging brands must build strong foundational supply chain building blocks early—such as maintaining clean master data (accurate dimensions and weights) and choosing a 3PL capable of global growth—to avoid costly operational failures when reaching inflection points. Adopt a Hybrid Inventory Strategy to Balance JIT and JIC: Shifting strictly between "Just in Time" (JIT) and "Just in Case" (JIC) risks either stockouts or trapped working capital. A balanced, hybrid approach—keeping adequate stock of fast-moving core basics while tightly controlling slow-moving seasonal items—helps protect cash flow without sacrificing availability. Re-evaluate the "Amazon Effect" and Recommerce to Protect Margins: High-speed, free shipping creates an illusion of necessity that drives up last-mile costs. Brands should focus on order delivery certainty over pure speed while implementing circular economy strategies (recommerce) to rehabilitate and resell returned apparel, which often recovers up to 95% of inventory value. Mitigate Sourcing Risks Beyond Single-Factory Bets: Diversifying supply chains requires going all the way back to raw material inputs rather than simply relocating assembly plants. Navigating evolving global tariffs requires nearshoring flexibility, dual-sourcing critical SKUs, and re-orchestrating supply chain flows across regional hubs. Understand True Landed Costs to Avoid Margin Shock: Delegating freight forwarding and customs clearance entirely to overseas manufacturers often leads to hidden markups and supply chain delays. Leveraging an end-to-end global provider with licensed customs brokerage capabilities ensures clear visibility into total landed costs and regulatory compliance. Leverage Global Scale with Curated, End-to-End Execution: Supported by a global network spanning nearly 170 countries, over 48,000 employees, and €10.6 billion (USD $12.35 billion) in revenue (2025), GEODIS provides emerging and established brands with an agile, end-to-end "launchpad for global growth" across contract logistics, freight forwarding, and transportation. Avoid the "Set It and Forget It" Supply Chain Mindset: Ongoing volatility, regulatory shifts, and geopolitical friction require continuous evaluation of supply chain networks. Taking a cautious, practical approach to emerging technologies like AI (for labor forecasting and route planning) ensures operational stability while safeguarding proprietary data. Learn More About Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands Laura Ritchey | Linkedin GEODIS | Linkedin GEODIS The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn, Overcast Check out The Logistics of Logistics on Youtube

What does it take to thrive in B2B sales when margins are thin and the stakes are high? Brian Rooney, President of Callas Kingsley Electrical Sales, has built his career on a simple but powerful premise: B2B is really P2P — person to person.In this episode, Brian explains why the manufacturers' rep model is uniquely positioned amid the current AI technology race, and how the surge in data center infrastructure is creating a gold rush moment for the electrical industry. As major tech companies race to expand AI data centers and electricity demand hits unprecedented levels, Brian sees the electrical industry as the picks and shovels of this generation's resource rush.Brian pulls back the curtain on how the rep model actually works, why distributors rely on reps for specialized product expertise across thousands of SKUs, and how Callas Kingsley approaches long-term relationships with both manufacturers and distributors. It's a model built entirely on trust, and Brian makes a compelling case for why that's more valuable now than ever.

Manu Mehra is Head of AMER Industries Strategic Deal Pricing at Databricks, with more than 12 years of experience across pricing, product, cloud, and AI, including Google Cloud and Thermo Fisher Scientific. He brings a practical perspective on how AI is changing the way companies think about outcomes, value, platforms, and pricing models. In this episode, Manu explains why traditional pricing models don't neatly fit AI, why outcome-based pricing is compelling but difficult to standardize, and how companies can turn platforms into solutions around specific business problems.  Mark challenges him throughout the conversation, especially on the attribution problem: if AI creates the value, how do you know AI actually caused it?   Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn why AI is pushing pricing toward outcomes. Discover how platforms become solutions customers will pay more for. Understand the attribution and standardization challenges behind AI pricing.   "Pricing cannot be an afterthought. It has to be integrated within the product roadmap." — Manu Mehra   Topics Covered: 01:15 – How an accidental pricing analytics role led Manu to a career spanning product, cloud, AI, sales, finance, and strategic deal pricing. 03:30 – Why Pricing Has to Start With the Product. Why integrating pricing into the product roadmap can create value before launch instead of scrambling for cost-plus pricing afterward. 05:30 – Why AI Breaks Traditional Pricing Models. Why subscription, license, and consumption models don't fully fit AI when thousands of customers can pursue completely different outcomes 08:00 – The Hardest Problem With Outcome-Based Pricing. Why AI outcomes are difficult to standardize across billing, finance, legal, and revenue recognition—and why 10,000 customers could mean 10,000 different outcomes 11:00 – What Actually Counts as an AI Outcome? Manu uses a QBR example where AI can automate 95% of the SQL work, turning hours and effort saved into a measurable form of value. 13:30 – The Attribution Problem: Did AI Really Create the Value? Mark and Manu debate how to determine whether AI actually caused increased revenue, lower costs, or other gains—or simply helped the business get there faster. 16:00 – Platform vs. Solution: What Are You Really Selling? Why a broad platform can have wildly different value depending on the customer's use case—and how platforms can become solutions by solving specific business problems. 19:00 – How to Turn Products Into Business Solutions. Manu explains how compute, data, and AI layers can be combined into packaged solutions instead of being sold as isolated products. 21:30 – How Customer Segmentation Makes AI Pricing Scalable. Why identifying recurring customer patterns can help companies map different business problems to repeatable combinations of SKUs instead of creating a custom solution for every customer. 24:00 – Why AI Companies Use Credits. How credits can create cost predictability, manage backend costs, and give customers flexibility across different AI capabilities. 27:00 – When Credits Make Sense—and When They Don't. Why platform customers may value the flexibility of credits while digital-native customers who already know exactly what they want may have less need for them. 30:00 – The Pricing Advice Manu Wants Leaders to Hear. Why pricing should never be an afterthought and why the industry is moving from cost-plus toward value-based and outcome-based pricing.   Key Takeaways: "The reason is, even though you might be a platform organization or you're selling a platform, but end of the day, you're still trying to solve a customer problem." — Manu Mehra "The tricky thing with outcome is it's very hard to standardize it." — Manu Mehra "Pricing needs to be integrated during the product roadmap." — Manu Mehra   Connect with Manu Mehra: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manumehra1/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com  

According to Salesforce’s State of Sales Report, sales teams use an average of 10 tools to close a deal, which then leaves 66% of reps to say that they’re overwhelmed by the sheer number of platforms they’re expected to juggle in their day-to-day. So when an enablement team goes to roll out new tools, reps more than likely just stop listening because it feels like it’s just another login that they’ll slowly stop opening over time. So how do you introduce something new without asking reps to change how they already work? Riley Rogers: Welcome to the Win/Win Podcast. I’m your host, Riley Rogers. Join us as we dive into changing trends in the workplace and how to navigate them successfully. Here to discuss this topic is Ryan Costello, go-to-market senior enablement tools specialist at Enverus. Ryan, thank you so much for joining us today. I’m super excited to have you here. As we’re jumping into this topic, and a little bit of a loaded one, could you kick us off just by telling us a little bit about yourself, your background, and your role? Ryan Costello: Thanks for having me, Riley. So I’m Ryan Costello, coming to you from Indianapolis, Indiana. I started my professional career as a high school English teacher. I taught for 18 years, and then I left the classroom. I spent a couple years as a learning consultant at Lessonly and Seismic, and for the last two or three years, I’ve been working at Enverus. We’re an energy technology company, and I’ve been on our sales success team, helping our reps use the tools they’re asked to use more efficiently. So I manage our content and learning management systems, as well as our call recording and social selling softwares. That’s the quick version of me. RR: So sounds like you’re the right person to talk to when it comes to tool adoption and long-term tool adoption. As we’re thinking about how you’re making that happen in the specific environment that you’re working in, I’d love to get a little bit of background on the challenges that you’re coming up against. So what is it that makes your go-to-market motion complex, and how are you trying to solve these challenges or simplify these challenges with tools? RC: Enverus is a company that helps all fields in the energy industry. So that means that we are helping solar companies, oil and gas companies. We’re helping people that are investing in new energy technologies. And so there are so many different fields within the energy industry, and we have hundreds of products and SKUs that sometimes overlap with those various segments, that it can become a real challenge to get all of that information to the right reps. And so what we’re trying to do when it comes to helping them leverage tools is making sure that as we continue to offer more and more for our customers, we want to make sure that as that haystack grows, their ability to find the needle, to find the piece of content they need, or the training to get better at selling, doesn’t take away from their time with customers. That’s really what we’re ultimately focused on. RR: As you’re, again, helping reps find the needle in the ever-expanding haystack, it does sound like there are many avenues through which your sellers, your sales managers, anybody who’s looking for information can go try to access it from the bajillion platforms that we all have. So where do your teams today work from? RC: First and foremost, we’ve had Highspot for years, and our organization is really comfortable with it. The reps understand its value, but they’re often in other platforms. So one example I’ll use is, they’re in Salesforce a lot. And so for a while now, we have incorporated a Highspot widget in Salesforce so that they can search for content from that platform, and many of them have grown accustomed to it because they just, for whatever reason, live in Salesforce more. But like everybody else right now, companies, including ours, are starting to give them access to AI platforms. And so our entire go-to-market organization right now is in ChatGPT, and then our sales leaders and marketing, my team, is also in Claude. So when I’m primarily serving the reps, the main need that we found was that the reps are being told, “Use ChatGPT.” And so what we found was they were spending more time in a platform like ChatGPT. So to have an option where Highspot could essentially follow them there, any opportunity we have for Highspot to be where they’re naturally at is something that we’re interested in. When they were spending more and more time in ChatGPT, we needed something that let them more easily get to Highspot without having to travel there, basically. RR: So since you’ve started using the Highspot MCP Server to, like you said, bring Highspot along with you wherever your teams are working, whether that is Claude, whether that’s ChatGPT, what kind of use cases are you seeing sellers using that for? And maybe what kind of use cases were they trying to use these tools for previously that were kind of difficult because they didn’t have enough context to really deliver them? RC: One thing that they’ve really enjoyed within the platform is that now you can use the search bar and ask it a question, and it’ll give you an AI-generated response, and you can have that conversational experience. They were still saying, “Yeah, but I need to combine the information on our products that we have in Highspot with the information that I’m getting from a call transcript with a customer or some information in email correspondence that I’ve had with them.” And so what we’ve started to see with the Highspot MCP and ChatGPT is the ability to combine the information in Highspot with the capabilities that exist outside of the platform. But by having Highspot present in ChatGPT through the MCP connector, they’re able to do things without jumping around and having to manually synthesize it themselves. RR: I know you spent a lot of time testing it yourself before you launched it out to the field to make sure this was something valuable, something they would use, something that fit into their workflow. Can you walk me through what the process of evaluating this looked like? RC: When it became available, we met with our Highspot CSM and a Highspot TAM to talk through what the MCP was designed to do. And before I wanted to have our reps try it out, I wanted to make sure that it would serve their needs. And so the Highspot team gave me a whole set of sample scenarios. Here are the types of questions that we think reps would be served by. And I took quite a bit of time. I tested every sample prompt, every scenario that Highspot gave me. So I took the time to see, are the prompts and scenarios that Highspot has designed this MCP to help with, are they landing with the content that we happen to have? That was a really important process because I certainly identified some prompts and scenarios that just because of the nature of our business, didn’t quite land. So that was the first step, was let me try these out and see what lands and what doesn’t land, so that I could identify what to unveil this with to ensure that the first time a user tries it, it hits. So that testing allowed me to prepare resources that would lead with what it’s best at and give some troubleshooting right off the bat so that if they stub their toe, they had a quick solution. So that was all just the testing phase to then get to resources so that I could create a how-to video and a how-to guide so that they could step by step set it up and try it out. RR: To the point at the top, you launch a tool, it sounds scary, nobody uses it. If you can make it easy, or at least feel digestible, you give yourself a little bit of an edge. So I’d be curious, in addition to the resources that you built and the thoughtfulness with which you approached what works, I’d love to know a little bit more about what the rollout to your teams looked like. RC: So after I had tested everything, we did what I would consider a soft launch. We let all of our Highspot users know that it was available, and we designed those resources so that whether they were using ChatGPT or Claude, the resources focused more on what the Highspot MCP could do regardless of the platform. All the information was essentially the same so that we didn’t have to create two different versions of everything. But once we had tested and had those general resources, we let everybody know via email and our Teams channels, “This is now available. Try it out.” And that probably lasted a month and a half. And while that was happening, I was asking, “If anybody’s trying this and you’re having success or not, let me know.” Because before we did a full rollout, I needed to know the real-world application and value of the MCP, which I just can’t do myself because I’m not a rep and I’m not talking to customers. And so during that soft launch, our reps who were always up to try something new, they were our guinea pigs, so that when we did a full launch about a month and a half later, I could have more specific use cases. And so the full launch had resources that were more specific to us, and I was just more aggressive. So we again fully launched through email and Teams channel communication. And then every week, I would provide specific examples from our guinea pigs earlier, knowing that it had genuinely helped them, and that would ultimately give this more credence. And so for the last month and a half or so, that’s what’s been happening. Every week, I post new updates, I continue to ask for feedback. It’s amazing the motivation a ten dollar Starbucks card will get in people responding to surveys. And during all that time I’ve been able to continue to fine-tune the resources we have to make sure that we’re helping them avoid frustration and continuing to point out all the time it’s saving by eliminating some of the context and tool switching that takes up way too much of their day. RR: I’d be really curious too, when you were in those conversations with your early, we’ll call them champions, but also guinea pigs, what were some of the things that were coming up that were exciting, some of the use cases that they were enthusiastic about? RC: I would say the number one example that I was seeing was being able to use the MCP connector to combine insights they were getting from customers with the resources available. So something as simple as, “Here are the calls I’ve had with the customer so far. What resources would speak to their pain points or challenges?” But in addition to that, we have a lot of information in Highspot, and not all of it is going to hit in every moment of the sales cycle. And so the MCP connector would give us recommendations not only on what to share, but when to share it. For example, we would have a user say, “Here are the last three calls I’ve had with the customer. What should I share with them from Highspot?” And it would respond with maybe six pieces of content, but then it would say, “I recommend sharing pieces one, two and four right now. These other resources may be helpful as follow-up.” The other use cases that I’ve seen pretty often are more on the marketing and product side of things, where they too are looking at customer call recordings and trying to make sure that our content speaks to the actual concerns and ever-evolving needs that our customers have. And they too have been using the MCP server to make sure the content we have speaks to today’s concerns. This allows them, again, in a place like ChatGPT, where they are doing some more sophisticated synthesis of information from various resources, to not have to jump back to Highspot and look through the information we currently have published, which has been really helpful. And then the third one that I’ll mention, I would say this is starting to come up more often. I have had some users that have said, “I really like that I can use the MCP connector in ChatGPT to generate an initial pitch link.” So if they ask through the MCP what resources would help this customer, and it says these three, they can generate that pitch link with those three pieces of content right there in that same conversation. I think that’s been really helpful. RR: And then it kind of expedites the time from strategy all the way through to action, where you know exactly what you need to do, you have great suggestions, and then you can, boom, from the place that you’re working in, send it out the door. That’s huge. But I’m curious, you did all of this testing, all of this evaluation, did this go the way you expected, or are people using this in ways that you had never imagined? RC: I think it’s going as expected because of the time that we took to test it first. With a lot of other tools that are being rolled out, sometimes everyone’s so eager to get people exploring and trying that they give them access and say, “Let us know what’s working and what’s not.” And that just increases the likelihood that more people are going to stub their toe, and I think that hurts adoption. I get to benefit from being on a team where my role allows me to slow things down a little bit and test. And because of that, I was pretty confident that when we rolled this out, we would be leading with what was most likely to work, and frustration would be minimal. And that’s certainly what we’ve found. During the soft launch when we just said, “It’s available. Here are some basic instructions,” I did look at some stats, and at least on the ChatGPT side, the Highspot MCP connector was being used a few hundred times a month. And then once we did the full rollout that had the specific examples from, you call them champions, I call them guinea pigs, when we had those more specific examples, last month it was about 1,000 uses of that connector. So we saw that increase, and what did not increase was people reaching out to me saying, “This is broken,” and, “This isn’t working.” So it went as I expected, and that’s because we had the luxury that I know not everyone has. RR: And I think that takes me well into the next question, which is that all of this is very new, whether it’s to the teams building it or the teams that are being asked to use it. So when you’re trying to roll out a workflow that is either a new AI tool itself or a connector to an AI tool, anything that feels unfamiliar and foggy, why do you think that change management is so important, and why did you invest so heavily in that? RC: Change management is important, first of all, because that’s the reality of the world we live in now, that we’re constantly being asked and then sometimes required to use these new technologies. And I think a big part of my responsibility on our sales success and enablement team is to make sure that any new tool speeds them up, it doesn’t slow them down. It makes them better at their job, and it doesn’t make them worse. If they don’t know how to efficiently leverage that tool, it’ll take them longer than it should, it’ll frustrate them, and in some cases it may cause them to make mistakes. And so making sure that you approach change management with a focus on minimizing disruption and decreasing the chance of them making a mistake or running into a wall, I think is time well spent. Because otherwise, you’re making it much more likely that their first experience with this new tool is not going to make them faster or better, therefore they’re not going to adopt it. If it doesn’t do those things, it’s not worth their time, and it’s not worth whatever money we’re spending on it. If you want to make sure that money’s well spent, you’ve got to make sure that rollout is setting them up for quick success. RR: I like the principle you laid out there, of any new tool, what is it meant to do? Sure, we have broader goals, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t slow them down, doesn’t make them worse. Okay, so you’re a couple months into the rollout. You have more than just a handful of folks using it now. With Highspot MCP Server and these connectors between all of the AI tools that you’re using live now, what early signals are you seeing that are telling you, “This actually was a good use of our time, and not only that, it is impacting how our sellers behave, perform, execute”? RC: I would say two things. These AI platforms are fairly limited in the stats that you can find right now, but I do at the very least know that the connector is being used way more often now than it was the month before, than it was the month before. So there are some basic numbers that I think prove that this is being successful. The other thing, too, is more anecdotal, and that is just people reaching out or sharing with their colleagues when the Highspot MCP connector fit into their established workflows. So what we’re seeing more often is in team sessions, when they’re talking about deals, they’re referencing, “This was the point when I used the connector to do this or that.” And in turn, what’s happening is that information is allowing our team, when training our new users for some of these platforms, to lead with that. For example, when I’m training our new hires on Highspot, generally speaking, I’m now adding a section that talks about not just finding Highspot content in Highspot, but finding it in ChatGPT, because I know that their managers are telling them to do a lot of other things there, because there are all these other agents that are being built in that place. And then vice versa, I mentioned earlier that the most common use we’re finding is combining customer call transcripts with Highspot content. So when I’m training them on our call recording software, I’m also mentioning the Highspot MCP, because that’s starting to settle into those workflows of how do I quickly get insights on the conversation I just had? But now they are learning that part of that process can also involve Highspot through the MCP. So the numbers are telling us it’s being used more, so I think that’s good. But then just anecdotally, people are sharing when in the real world of my day did it actually help? And that helps us in turn set everybody up for that success by pointing out those moments. RR: Do you have a success story that a seller brought to you and said, “In this specific deal, this worked out really well and enabled me to achieve X”? Anything like that, that you were like, “Yes, this is the win I was looking for.” RC: There have certainly been examples where someone reached out to me, and typically it was because of a clock running. And so they would say, for example, “The call finished. As soon as it processed, I was able to immediately give ChatGPT the call transcript, ask it what I should share in Highspot, do a quick check to make sure it was legit,” and then they were able to share that content in their follow-up with the customer. Whereas previously, that might have taken another day. And so the example was the Highspot MCP allowed me to more quickly follow up with the customer with relevant content. The other example that I would use is more on our new hires. I’ve talked a lot about how the Highspot MCP is helping us better access the content that’s designed for our customers. The new hires are also finding it helpful learning about our products for their own sake and how to level up. For example, asking what training exists in Highspot that can help me deal with objections. The Highspot MCP has been a quicker process, so I think that them improving their own sales skills is something that this connector speaks to as well. RR: I love that use case, the self-serve onboarding workflow almost of I’m coming into the company, I’m confused, but I know that any answer I’m looking for lives here, and I can ask it in really natural, sometimes confused language questions that will give me the right answer without needing to have the level of detail that you might otherwise. We kind of glossed over a question I wanted to ask earlier. What is the pie-in-the-sky vision of the kind of usage that you’re looking to eventually drive as this rollout continues on? RC: I think the ultimate goal is to make sure that when the Highspot MCP adds genuine value, it saves them time in a common moment of their day, that we’re able to reference that in all the other training that we do. As use increases, as we continue to get feedback on when it helped them, making sure that we go back to our training and resources on that part of the sales process, and making sure we’re calling out the value of the connector in that moment. So what we want to do is make sure that in all of our training, when it would be helpful in their day-to-day workflows, that we are calling it out, that we are giving them the information they need to use it effectively, because that is going to speed up their day. That is going to make them more successful. So it’s less about Highspot MCP-only resources, and more about sprinkling it into all of the sales skill training that we do. RR: Because it works best when it’s quiet. It’s one of those things that your sellers don’t need to know the tools that they’re using like the back of their hand the way you do. They just need to trust that they’ll deliver for them in the way they expect. Okay, last question for you. For anyone tuning in that’s thinking about tackling a rollout, whether it is of we’re just trying to get ChatGPT or Claude or any sort of AI tool out into the world, or we’re trying to bring our tools into it, what’s one thing about your approach that you’ve laid out here that you would say, “Please do not skip this”? RC: Don’t skip testing. I know that people higher up in the organization are maybe a little more eager to roll things out and gain value in things, but if you skip testing, you’re less likely to realize that value. So anything you can do to give yourself time to test means it will be less painful, less embarrassing, less deflating to identify issues. A rushed rollout is going to take more time in the long run because you’re going to have to clean it up in public, and that creates a whole new host of challenges. If you have the time to test, don’t skip it. If you’re struggling to gain that time to test, all I can say is to try and advocate by pointing out that reality. That is going to, in the long run, create a quicker time to value. RR: The challenge with some of this is that the advice is sometimes frustrating because you know you need it, you know you need time, you know you need patience. The enthusiasm needs to be dulled a little bit before you can take it out into the world, and it’s hard, I think, especially because there’s so much pressure on a lot of folks that are doing the building, and there’s just a lot of excitement on, “I’ve spent two and a half weeks, three weeks, two months, whatever the case may be, building this. I want to bring it to life.” So I appreciate the measured advice to take a breath, take a breather, slow down to go fast. And I appreciate the time broadly. It has been really wonderful to hear what you’ve been working on and all of the work it has taken to get to this point, so thank you for coming on and joining us. RC: Appreciate it. RR: To our audience, thank you for listening to this episode of the Win/Win Podcast. Be sure to tune in next time for more insights on how you can maximize go-to-market success with Highspot.

https://directtoconsumer.typeform.com/DTC-Brand?utm_source=podcast-639&utm_medium=podcastTo Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupMedia owns the traffic. Brand owns the site. The page in between belongs to nobody, and it's been sitting in a Notion doc called landing page priorities Q3 since 2022.Eric brings Daniel from Pilothouse back for an all killer no filler on the post-click experience: why it stayed generic for a decade, what changed in the last twelve months, and what the team is seeing in its pilots with Black Crow AI.For media buyers, creative strategists, and founders whose ads are working and whose conversion rate isn't.What you get:The middle child problem. Media assumes brand is loving the page, brand assumes media is, and nobody has touched it since 2022.Why this was never a priority question. Personalizing creative is cheap. Personalizing destinations used to mean five pages through design, dev, QA, and deploy, which took literal months. So teams built one page, pointed everything at it, and updated it once a year.The 65-inch OLED analogy. You walk into a store, tell the salesperson exactly what you want, and they hand you the catalog. That's what a generic PDP does to someone who just clicked a very specific ad.The creative is the brief. The ad unit becomes the input for the storefront: the copy, the image, the targeting, the interests, all of it read and matched.What the pilots are showing: roughly 20 to 21% lift in conversion rates, on storefronts now taking about half the budget rather than one test ad set off in the corner.Where Black Crow adds something a general purpose model doesn't. Persistent ID across sessions means the page knows you're back and can serve a different experience.The technical prerequisites that actually gate this: Shopify, and enough Meta budget to test a difference. Brand and creative prerequisites matter less.Brand safety. These aren't fully dynamic pages. You can lock images and titles and adjust on the fly.Which brands it suits so far: a few concentrated top SKUs rather than a long tail catalog.The third party cookie, revisited. Daniel's verdict on the biggest talking point of 2022: what a nothing burger.Why the strategist now owns this. No IT ticket, no web team queue. That's the difference between now and twelve months ago.Who this is for: performance marketers and DTC founders who have solved pre-click and never touched what happens after.What to steal: treating your best ad as the brief for its own landing page, and the Shopify plus testable budget prerequisite check before you invest in any of this.Timestamps:00:03:00 Why the post-click experience matters00:07:00 Personalized landing pages lift conversion rates00:10:00 AI-powered landing page personalization00:15:00 Matching landing pages to ad creative00:21:00 Using ad creative as the landing page briefSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF639Follow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

Thirteen years in business. Nearly 700 wholesale accounts. And the biggest shift Rachel O'Neill of Loftipop made this year was admitting her wholesale business was being run like a D2C channel.If you started in direct-to-consumer and layered wholesale on top, this episode will feel familiar. Rachel came into Paper Camp with a thriving business at Loftipop and left with major enhancements: separate pricing logic, a leaner product line, and a strategy built around the retailers she already has.In this episode, you'll learn:Why wholesale is not an extension of your D2C business — it's a separate model with its own pricing, margins, and rulesHow Loftipop added 60 accounts in the 6 months after Paper Camp, growing from 690 to about 750Why Rachel discontinued SKUs that were still selling — and why she felt "so much lighter" afterwardHow to run channel-by-channel margin math before keeping a product in your wholesale catalogWhat it looks like to nurture current retailers — email outreach, direct mail, and consistent touchpoints — instead of only chasing new accountsHow staying open to change, 13 years in, became the shift that moved her whole business forwardFrom the episode:"The biggest takeaway is that your wholesale business is not D2C. We came into wholesale thinking it was just an extension of our D2C... it's actually a whole separate business model and strategy." — Rachel O'Neill"If you're serious about wholesale, it's 100% worth the investment. In terms of numbers, we've already made our money back and more." — Rachel O'NeillPaper Camp is currently open for enrollment, which only happens twice a year!SIGN UP FOR PAPER CAMP NOWYou can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/456Quick Links:Free Wholesale Audio SeriesFree Resources LibraryFree Email Marketing for Product MakersPTP LABSPaper CampMentioned in this episode:Paper Camp is now open for enrollment!Enroll now in our next round of Paper Camp: http://prooftoproduct.com/papercamp

Recorded live on the show floor at SIAL Canada 2026 in Montreal, this Food Professor summer bonus episode features Cloé Helmond, Co-Founder of Les Brutes du Soya, fresh off a first-place win in the Start-up Scale CPG category of SIAL Canada's seventh annual Startup Pitch Competition. Michael LeBlanc and Dr. Sylvain Charlebois catch her still holding the hardware — and still slightly stunned, since the Scale category is built for companies four to six years old and Les Brutes is barely two. The origin story is pure Quebec agri-food. Les Brutes grew out of a family soy farm in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, in the Montérégie, launched with co-founder Marie-Pier Gélineau and her brother. Cloé, a social worker by training, spotted the paradox: Quebec grows an enormous soy crop and ships most of it overseas, while Canadian shoppers buy imported textured vegetable protein (TVP). Les Brutes closes that loop, processing soy at its own facility and in Saskatoon into shelf-stable TVP. Cloé walks the hosts through the line — plain, Mexican-style and Greek-style TVP, plus two new SKUs debuting at SIAL: soy curls and bacon bites. The bacon bites are plant-based, gluten-free, dairy-free, 50 per cent protein and 21 per cent fibre, seasoned with paprika, maple syrup and tamari, with no artificial ingredients (Michael's on-mic crunch test does not disappoint). The value math is the real story: a 100-gram pouch rehydrates to 200 grams in about ten minutes with water or broth, delivering roughly two cups of ground-meat substitute for about six dollars, with a two-year shelf life. That economics pitch shapes the retail conversation. Les Brutes sits in IGA, Metro, Rachelle-Béry and Avril, usually in the health food or gluten-free set — and the hosts press on whether the "healthy aisle" default is the right home for a product aimed at flexitarians and budget-conscious families rather than committed vegans. SIAL also opened foodservice doors, including a conversation with Air Canada about a shelf-stable vegetarian option. Then the reveal. At taping, Cloé's appearance on Dans l'œil du dragon — Quebec's Dragons' Den on Radio-Canada — was still under embargo, and she shared the outcome off the record. It has since aired in Season 15: Les Brutes asked for $50,000 for 10 per cent, drew two offers, and closed a deal with dragon David Côté, co-founder of LOOP Mission, Rise Kombucha and Crudessence, at $50,000 for 10 per cent plus a fifty-cent royalty on every unit sold. She also recounts the dragons challenging whether a family business should give up equity at all. Looking ahead, Cloé eyes SIAL Paris, European soy perceptions and the export runway beyond Quebec. A fast, fun conversation about local crops, smart pricing and plant protein that earns its shelf space. About UsDr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Visiting Professor in Food Policy and Distribution at McGill University and a Professor in Food Distribution and Policy in the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University in Halifax. He is also the Senior Director of the Agri-food Analytics Lab, also located at Dalhousie University.Known as “The Food Professor”, his current research interest lies in the broad area of food distribution, security and safety. He is one of the world's most cited scholars in food supply chain management, food value chains and traceability with over 775 published peer-reviewed journal articles. Dr. Charlebois is also an editor for the prestigious Trends in Food Science Technology journal. He co-hosts The Food Professor podcast, discussing issues in the food, foodservice, grocery and restaurant industries and which is the most listened Canadian management podcast in Canada. Every year since 2012, he has published the now highly anticipated Canadian Food Price Report, which provides an overview of food price trends for the coming year. Furthermore, his research has been featured in several newspapers and media groups, nationally as well as internationally. He has testified on several occasions before parliamentary committees on food policy-related issues as an expert witness. He has been asked to act as an advisor on food and agricultural policies in many Canadian provinces and other countries.With extensive experience collaborating with businesses, governments, and NGOs, Dr. Charlebois combines academic rigor with practical expertise, making him one of the most influential voices in the global agri-food landscape. His work continues to advance the understanding of food systems, fostering innovation and resilience in a rapidly evolving industry. In 2025, he received the prestigious Charles III medal recognizing his tremendous work in informing Canadians about food issues. Michael LeBlanc is a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions hosted senior retail executive on-stage in 1:1 interviews worldwide. Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including The Remarkable Retail Podcast, The Voice of Retail, The Food Professor, The FEED powered by Loblaw and the Global eCommerce Leaders podcast. He has been recognized by the National Retail Federation (NRF) as a global Top Retail Voice for 2025 and 2025, and continues to be a ReThink Retail Top Retail Expert for the fifth year in a row.

"My business is too young for this." If you've ever said that about wholesale, this episode is for you. Sherry Lam joined Paper Camp with fewer than 20 SKUs, a handful of inconsistent accounts, a full-time day job, and a brand-new baby — and decided that was exactly the right moment to build her wholesale foundation. She went from 3 shaky accounts to more than 50. This is her story, in her own words.In this episode, you'll learn:Why Sherry started wholesale with fewer than 20 SKUs — and how starting early with the right foundation paid offHow she grew from 3 inconsistent accounts to more than 50 while working a day job and raising a babyHow doing wholesale correctly early on turned a "maybe this is a hobby" question into a real revenue streamHow to vet whether Paper Camp is right for you: free resources, the podcast archive, and talking to alumni before you investWhy she came back and took Paper Camp a second time — and what had changed, from Faire's growing role to new outreach normsWhat the alumni community looks like after the course ends, especially for solo foundersAbout Sherry:Sherry Lam is the founder of Sherry's Palette, where she designs greeting cards, enamel pins, art prints, and more. She built her wholesale business from 3 accounts to over 50 while working a full-time day job — and she's offered to be a resource for anyone on the fence about Paper Camp.Paper Camp is currently open for enrollment, which only happens twice a year!SIGN UP FOR PAPER CAMP NOWYou can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/455Quick Links:Free Wholesale Audio SeriesFree Resources LibraryFree Email Marketing for Product MakersPTP LABSPaper CampMentioned in this episode:Paper Camp is now open for enrollment!Enroll now in our next round of Paper Camp: http://prooftoproduct.com/papercamp

You look really successful on the outside. Your bank account says something else.If revenue keeps climbing but profit feels like it's standing still, this episode is your next step. So many wholesale brands miscalculate their profitability, and it's not because you're bad at math. It's because most founders stop at product level margin instead of looking at the real cost of fulfilling every wholesale order.In this chat, I'm breaking down the full profitability formula, the three profitability traps I see over and over inside my client work, and exactly how to diagnose (and fix) a margin problem without panicking or slashing your prices overnight.WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:- Why "my product margin is 80%" doesn't actually tell you if you're profitable- The full formula for calculating your real profit per wholesale order, not just gross margin- Every hidden cost quietly eating your margin that you're probably not tracking- The story behind my most profitable looking holiday season that almost broke me- The 3 profitability traps I see constantly with wholesale brands- Why your opening order minimum might be costing you money- How having too many SKUs hurts your bottom line, even when customers love the variety- The right way to think about raising your wholesale pricing without losing accounts- A simple framework for diagnosing exactly where your margin is leakingEnjoy the chat! Join me live on September 17, 2026 for the FREE Faire Success Blueprint Workshop (updated with brand new content for 2026), where I'm walking you through exactly how top performing brands set up their entire Faire presence, page, pricing, buyer outreach, and email automations, all on top of the profitability foundation from this episode.Reserve Your Free Seat HEREGROW YOUR WHOLESALE BUSINESS:Retail Pitching

What happens when adult learning, government regulation, product shortages, and real-world retail experience collide?Kirk's Western Canada road trip continues through Alberta and British Columbia.At Spiritleaf in Sherwood Park, AB, Kamryn explains how working as a budtender turned her curiosity about cannabis into a passion for learning. Her self-directed learning includes researching terpenes, cannabinoids, the endocannabinoid system, the entourage effect, cannabis products, and cultivation. This hands-on learning helps her better understand what customers are asking about.Kirk returns to Marlee's Den in Hope, British Columbia, where Lorraine describes the retail fallout from a British Columbia cannabis strike, including inventory shortages, direct-delivery complications, competition between independent and corporate retailers, and the challenges facing local growers. She also explains her experience with cannabis SKU's and why popular flower, pre-rolls, and infused products can disappear overnight from store shelves.This is a ground-level view of Canadian cannabis retail dilemmas, budtender education, government regulations, and those who are navigating legalization one customer, and one SKU, at a time.Listen now for cannabis stories you rarely hear from behind the counter.Spirit Leaf Sherwood Park - websiteMarlee's Den - websiteAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion - desireedorion.comMarc Clement - facebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Most Amazon operators are unknowingly losing money to AI-driven fraud, and it's not just a scare tactic. Neil Twa dives into the alarming thirty-three percent rise in AI-fueled attacks, a structural shift that's reshaping the ecommerce landscape. This isn't just about security; it's a direct hit to your cash flow. Neil breaks down a real-world example from a home goods brand in his portfolio, illustrating how these attacks target specific SKUs rather than spreading evenly across your account. Discover the three strategic moves you need to make: mapping refund and return rates by ASIN, identifying targeted listings, and tightening your cash flow management. This episode is a wake-up call for sellers at every level, from those just launching their first product to seasoned operators managing million-dollar brands. Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep356 Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep356

https://directtoconsumer.typeform.com/DTC-Brand?utm_source=podcast-638&utm_medium=podcastSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdam Gillman co-founded Hiya Health (hiyahealth.com), the kids' vitamin brand that launched in March 2020, stayed bootstrapped, and sold to USANA at the end of 2024 at a reported $260M valuation. He and his co-founder Darren still run it, and 2026 is the year Hiya finally hit retail shelves at Target.If you're a founder or operator building a subscription DTC brand, this episode is a start-to-exit walkthrough from someone who did it without a single VC check.What's inside:The "single SKU phase": why Hiya sold one multivitamin for 2.5 years before launching anything else, and what had to be true before product twoAttacking gummies head-on: porous form factors that kill vitamin content, and sugar as "candy in disguise"How new SKUs stayed accretive instead of cannibalistic as the catalog grewWhy influencer was the backbone of a channel mix that hit 25% month-over-month growth in stretches from 2023 to 2025, including creators Hiya has worked with for 3 to 4 years"We want this to sit on your counter, not inside of your cabinet": the packaging and sticker-pack decision that quietly built enterprise valueDisney, Barbie, and Marvel collabs done properly: rebuilding the entire customer experience per license, to the point that existing subscribers repurchased product they already hadThe exit itself: open bidding process, why he can't imagine doing it without an investment bank, and the leverage of not needing to sellLightning round: the metric founders obsess over too much (revenue growth), the one they ignore (gross margin to CAC), and the e-commerce trend he thinks has peaked (creative velocity for its own sake)Who this is for: subscription DTC founders, operators fighting rising CACs, and anyone who wants to see what a bootstrapped nine-figure exit actually looks like from the inside.What to steal: Adam's channel discipline. Under $20M in revenue, put the majority of your effort into making one channel work before touching the next one.Follow Adam: @AdamGillman on X | hiyahealth.comTimestamps:00:00 Building Hiya From a Single SKU08:00 Expanding Products Through Customer Trust18:00 Why Brand Building Creates Enterprise Value23:00 Scaling Growth With Influencer Marketing35:00 Creative Velocity, CAC and Sustainable GrowthSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://dtcnews.link/pilothouseFollow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

TikTok Shop is on track to hit one hundred billion dollars in gross merchandise value by 2026, driven by U.S. sales. Yet, many FBA operators are still on the sidelines, debating whether to jump in. Neil Twa, host of The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast, breaks down this massive opportunity and what it means for your brand. He shares insights from a mid-sized home goods brand already seeing success on TikTok Shop, and offers three actionable moves for sellers at any level. Audit your top SKUs for TikTok viability, focus on visual products, and don't miss out on this growing marketplace. Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=epNone Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep-draft

Send us Fan MailNate Littlewood, founder of Future Ready CFO, joins Noah Wickham on the MAG Growth Podcast to explain why profitable Amazon and e-commerce brands can still run short on cash. They cover the difference between profit and cash flow, how inventory can drain working capital, and why fast growth can create financial pressure. Nate also shares how founders can use ROI math, bottleneck analysis, and team skills to choose better growth projects. The conversation also looks at the 80/20 rule, underperforming SKUs, product catalog growth, and why adding more Amazon products does not always lead to more sales. Amazon sellers, CPG brands, and e-commerce founders can use these ideas to make better financial decisions and focus on profitable growth.If cash flow, inventory costs, or profit margins are holding the brand back, book a call with us to figure out what needs fixing first. https://bit.ly/4jMZtxu #AmazonSeller #Ecommerce #CashFlow #AmazonFBA #Entrepreneurship Want free resources? Dowload our Free Amazon guides here:Download the 2026 Amazon AI Operating Manual: https://bit.ly/3SLmusPAmazon Receiving Delay Guide: https://hubs.ly/Q04cdD4c0Amazon Catalog Spring Cleaning: https://hubs.ly/Q046BVfp0Amazon Proft Margin Defense 2026: https://hubs.ly/Q042trRH0Amazon SEO Toolkit 2026: https://bit.ly/4oC2ClTAmazon Seller Strategy Report 2026: https://bit.ly/3YN1RME2026 Ecommerce Website & SEO Readiness Checklist: https://hubs.ly/Q04btghf0Amazon 2026 PPC guide: https://bit.ly/4lF0OYX Timestamps00:00 - Pricing, Margin, and Ecommerce Growth01:50 - Nate Littlewood and Future Ready CFO03:54 - Why Founders Are Data Rich but Decision Poor06:51 - Knowing When a Business Is Ready to Grow08:37 - Using ROI to Pick Growth Projects09:45 - Finding Bottlenecks in an Ecommerce Business11:14 - Matching Growth Plans to Team Skills13:53 - Why Profitable Brands Can Have No Cash15:34 - How Fast-Growing Brands Grow Broke17:14 - The 80/20 Rule for Amazon Products18:05 - Calculating the Real Cost of Each SKU20:12 - The Jam Study and Too Much Product Choice21:24 - When More Amazon SKUs Hurt the Business23:43 - New Products vs Product Variations-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow us:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28605816/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stevenpopemag/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/myamazonguys/Twitter: https://twitter.com/myamazonguySubscribe to the My Amazon Guy podcast: https://podcast.myamazonguy.comApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/my-amazon-guy/id1501974229Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4A5ASHGGfr6s4wWNQIqyVwSupport the show

Chris and Jake Yap were two weeks from shutting down. A billion-dollar retailer had copied every product they launched and sold them for one tenth the price, then put it in the news - buy this coffee table from us for $499, or from them for $49. They'd burned their business savings, their personal savings, and taken out personal guarantee loans chasing speed. Jake was telling his wife he wasn't sure he could make rent. Then in those two weeks they made one switch that changed everything: instead of testing designs, they started testing problems. Little Lively launched last October, grew 30% compounding month on month, went worldwide in the same month it launched, and now spends around $600,000 a month on Meta. In this interview, Chris and Jake break down the exact testing framework that found their winning product, why they killed 700 SKUs to bet everything on one, and how they built an internal AI agent that runs across their entire company. What you'll learn in this interview: • The switch from testing designs to testing problems - and why it saved the business in two weeks • How they turned $10 wireless chargers off Alibaba into $300K cash in their first year • The Abundance Framework: testing up to 1,000 designs a week before ever committing to production • Why fast-fashion-style furniture drops became a vicious discount cycle that nearly killed them • How suppliers with 60-day payment terms effectively became their investors - and the relationship approach behind it • The 60 ROAS launch: what happens when you actually solve a real problem • Why they now welcome copycats - and how being 4-5 years ahead on the roadmap makes competitors into free marketing • Why they launched worldwide in the same month instead of proving one market first • "Australia is small and hard, the US is big and easy" - the contrarian take on market selection • Caesar: the company-wide AI agent living in their Slack that their team used to build an entire ERP system from scratch If you're running a DTC brand, drowning in SKUs and discounts, or trying to figure out how to find the one product worth betting everything on, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about focus, product testing, and what it takes to come back from the brink. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH LIFELY Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/lifelyhome/ LinkedIn →https://www.linkedin.com/company/lifelyhome/ Website → https://lifely.com.au/ CONNECT WITH JAKE YAP LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-yap/ CONNECT WITH CHRIS YAP LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-yap-185964198/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Our playbook to $100K a month is free, and it comes with an AI tool that builds a plan for you: ► The $100K Playbook: https://capitalism.com/100K Dr. Benjamin Hardy is the co-author of the books, "10x Is Easier Than 2x" and "Who Not How" with Dan Sullivan. I read his new one, "The Science of Scaling," and then I couldn't sleep. Step one is to set a goal so big you don't believe you can hit it, and I got stuck there, so instead of interviewing Ben about his framework I asked him to run it on me live. He pulled my own goal three years forward and made me say out loud what would have to go, which is when it clicked: the goal is not a prediction, it's a tool for deciding what you cut. Mentioned on the podcast: ► The $100K Playbook: https://capitalism.com/100K ► Bootcamp waitlist: https://capitalism.com/bootcamp ► The Science of Scaling by Dr. Benjamin Hardy ► 10x Is Easier Than 2x by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy ► Who Not How by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy (0:00) Very talented entrepreneurs could be getting 100X the results they are (0:38) Step one of the book: set an impossible goal (1:02) My challenge to you before we start, and the number I want you to aim at (2:21) "I have a bone to pick with you." The book that cost me a night of sleep (3:10) How Ben made his money, and the coaching company he sold (4:15) Why he walked away from social media, masterminds, and his old business (6:27) Most people think scale means doing twice as many things (8:03) High-rep, low-rep, and Joseph Nguyen's "no-rep" learning (9:59) Five pathways that were all decent, and not one of them powerful (11:09) I got stuck on chapter one with seven goals that all seemed related (14:20) Using time as a tool: shorten the window, filter out the seven-figure decisions (15:53) "How blunt do you want me to be?" Ben moves my 2030 goal to 2027 (16:53) The first thing that falls apart is a role we manage instead of hire well (18:29) Acquire bigger brands, or install better operators (19:20) The honest answer for why I never just changed the timeline (20:44) Nobody is monitoring your goal, which is exactly what makes it a tool (23:30) Your impossible goal does not have to be a billion dollars (24:46) What happens after $100 million, and why a billion feels unclear (26:05) My seven goals out loud, and the four I had already forgotten (27:20) The Cleveland Guardians, and the goal I stopped believing in (30:34) Your goal and the company's goal are two different goals (32:20) The Bain Capital founder who could not answer "how do you choose the right goal?" (33:39) "Just choose" versus optimizing for the wrong thing (36:02) The purpose of the goal is whatever it forces you to face (37:58) Physician's Choice cut profitable SKUs to build a $100 million company (39:55) Why every event and every scroll hands you four more goals (41:47) Alicia Alt went from 10 customers to 8,000 in one week (43:20) The power law, and why a great one is worth 10,000 average ones (45:20) Margin for error: what a superstar does for everyone else on the floor (46:03) "The who often comes with the pathway" (48:15) Tom Brady and Odell Beckham Jr. had the same game and different goals (52:43) José Ramírez took $100 million below market to be the greatest Cleveland player ever (53:37) How many goals Ben actually has (54:48) The Logan Paul problem, and what Musk is really optimizing for (57:41) You are not sacrificing the other six goals, you are sacrificing them for now (1:00:37) Raising the floor is the conscious choice to let things go (1:04:07) "I'm not capable of that." Why belief is not required at the start (1:08:44) Hidden commitments: the $31 million founder avoiding his father's collapse (1:12:45) Big visions and a life you actually enjoy DISCLAIMER: The information contained on this Podcast Channel and the resources available for download/viewing through this Podcast Channel are for educational and informational purposes only.

Getting a massive retail PO can feel like the breakthrough your CPG brand has been waiting for. But what if saying “yes” actually puts you out of business?In this episode of CPG Insiders, Dr. Mark Young and Justin are joined by CPA and fractional CFO Scotty Palmer to break down one of the biggest challenges facing growing consumer brands: managing cash while scaling.Scotty shares real-world examples of brands that looked profitable on paper but were nearly out of cash, companies trapped by expensive receivables factoring, and founders who landed major retail opportunities only to discover they couldn't afford to fulfill them.They also unpack why your best-selling SKU isn't necessarily your most profitable, how rapid retail expansion can create a cash-flow crisis, and why looking backward at financial statements isn't enough when your business is growing forward.In this episode:The difference between profitability and cash flowWhy a big retail PO can actually hurt your businessThe hidden cost of receivables factoringHow to model cash needs before entering more storesWhy more SKUs don't always mean more profitHow to identify your most profitable products and channelsThe difference between a bookkeeper, controller, and CFOWhy growing brands need a forward-looking financial strategyIf you're building a CPG brand and preparing to scale into brick-and-mortar retail, this episode will help you understand the numbers behind sustainable growth.Learn more about CPG Insiders: https://cpginsiders.com/Connect with Scotty Palmer / Take the financial quiz: https://palmersadvisers.com/Get your copy of The 27 Unbreakable Rules: https://a.co/d/0bUR3OHeSubscribe for more conversations about building, scaling, and growing successful consumer brands.#CPG #CPGBrands #CashFlow #RetailStrategy #businessgrowth #CPGInsiders

https://directtoconsumer.typeform.com/DTC-Brand?utm_source=podcast-636&utm_medium=podcastSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupFifteen videos in a shoot day. A writer's room where creators cross-edit each other's scripts. Hair, makeup, and wardrobe walkthroughs before anyone hits record. This is what organic content looks like at Kiyoko Beauty (kiyoko.ca), the curated Asian beauty retailer that hit 8 figures in 5 years, bootstrapped, while all three co-founders kept their full-time jobs.Gillian Liu walks through the whole machine, from a part-time student's 3M-view TikTok to a production calendar planned a month out.If you run content, growth, or a retail business on thin margins, this episode is worth a notebook.What's inside:The full production process: concepts and formats planned a month ahead, scripting against a reference hook library, a writer's room because "sometimes you're in it too much by yourself," script read-throughs with talent, then batch shoot days. "It's not vibes at all."Her comparison for why the pros post consistently: comedians who have joke-writing down to a science.The hiring filter for content roles: "What's your screen time? Show me." Her most recent hire clocks 8 hours a day. Gillian's reaction: "That's it?"Where it started: a student with 1,000 followers, found via Instagram DM, told to post three times a week with no direction. Three months in, one video hit 3M views on a niche product only Kiyoko carried, and site sessions 10x'd overnight.Platform roles: TikTok reaches strangers, Instagram converts them through stories and community, YouTube Shorts reposts overperform, and Red Note gets Gillian recognized on the street by the Chinese Canadian community.The math forcing all of this: retailer margins. A Meta top-of-funnel ad runs ~$10 CPM; organic works out to under a dollar. Paid has been bottom-of-funnel Google only for five years.The curation model itself: pay brand premium on COGS, then harvest demand created by other people's marketing budgets.Merchandising by data: Amazon US/Canada volume, Korea's top sellers, brand heads-ups on strategic SKUs, and Shopify's "search queries with no results" report.Brands as partners: one runs a 50/50 ad split with Kiyoko, others commission content monthly and pay in inventory value.The early jank: a $2,000 first order, a free Shopify theme, shipping from a co-founder's basement, and buying out-of-stock items from the Asian grocery store down the street.Why three co-founders kept their 9 to 5s (cash flow first, risk second), plus two warehouse moves in five months and the new California fulfillment center.Who this is for: content leads and founders doing organic at scale, and any operator whose margins can't support paid top of funnel.What to steal: her writer's room. Have creators cross-edit each other's scripts before anything gets shot.Visit the brand: kiyoko.caTimestamps:00:00 Building an Eight-Figure Brand While Working Full-Time06:10 The Organic Content Strategy That Changed Everything10:02 How Kiyoko Produces Viral Content at Scale17:07 Merchandising and Choosing Winning Products28:03 Why Organic Beats Paid for Customer AcquisitionSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://dtcnews.link/pilothouseFollow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

Today, we are joined by the amazing Maryna from the Ad Badger team. If you have ever wondered why your Amazon PPC performance suddenly dropped, even when your bids, keywords, and competitor pricing look perfect this episode is for you.Maryna shares her brilliant workflow for managing massive Amazon accounts that juggle thousands of SKUs. We discuss how to combine three essential Amazon reports into one master spreadsheet to accurately track your inventory levels. But the real magic happens next: we explore how to feed that data into AI chatbots, like Claude or Gemini, to instantly generate beautiful, actionable dashboards.We'll see you in The PPC Den!

In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast, host Josh Hadley tackles what he calls the "silent killer" of e-commerce businesses: inventory mismanagement. Drawing on his experience scaling brands to eight figures, Josh explains how poor inventory forecasting, ordering too much or too little, can devastate cash flow and lead to bankruptcy. He shares cautionary examples, practical frameworks, and key strategies, including SKU-level forecasting, maintaining 90-120 days of inventory, using pre-orders to validate demand, and having liquidation plans ready. Josh emphasizes that protecting cash flow is ultimately more critical than maintaining perfect stock availability.Bullet Points:Importance of effective inventory management in e-commerce.Consequences of poor inventory forecasting on cash flow and profitability.Risks associated with overstocking and understocking inventory.Strategies for accurate inventory forecasting at the SKU level.Guidelines for managing inventory levels and turnover ratios.The impact of temporary demand spikes on inventory planning.Necessity of having a liquidation plan for excess inventory.Benefits of using pre-order pages to gauge demand and improve cash flow.Emphasis on prioritizing cash flow over maintaining perfect stock levels.Lessons learned from cautionary examples of inventory mismanagement.Timestamps:00:00:00 Introduction: The Silent Killer of E-commerceThe host introduces the number one reason e-commerce brands fail and go bankrupt, which he calls the "silent killer."00:00:54 Inventory: The Kryptonite of E-commerceInventory is compared to Superman's Kryptonite, a silent threat that drains a business's power and can sneak up unexpectedly.00:02:00 The Dangers of Inventory ForecastingThe host explains that inventory forecasting is never 100% accurate and discusses the asymmetrical risks of ordering too much versus too little.00:04:48 The Compounding Problems of OverstockingOver-ordering inventory creates a chain reaction of problems, including cash flow issues, debt, compressed margins, and increased storage costs.00:08:01 The Manageable Downsides of UnderstockingOrdering too little inventory has downsides like lost sales, but also upsides like liquid cash and the opportunity to raise prices.00:10:53 Case Study: The Thrasio BankruptcyThe host uses the Amazon aggregator Thrasio as an example of how poor inventory processes can lead a major company to bankruptcy.00:12:55 Key Lessons from Thrasio's FailureLessons include not assuming demand spikes are permanent and the critical importance of forecasting at the individual SKU level.00:14:51 Four Major Inventory RulesThe host shares four core rules for inventory management, including when to kill SKUs and targeting 90-120 days of inventory.00:15:46 Understanding Inventory Turnover RatioA healthy inventory turnover ratio is explained, with a target of 4-6, depending on manufacturer lead times and supply chain.00:17:43 Managing Highly Seasonal ProductsA strategy for seasonal products is to under-forecast and plan to sell out just after the peak demand week.00:21:21 Forecasting for Trendy ProductsFor products based on trends, designs, or sayings, it's wise to forecast a 20% decline in sales year-over-year.00:23:07 The Importance of a Liquidation PlanBrands should build a liquidation plan and establish relationships with partners before they ever face an urgent need to sell excess stock.00:24:09 Managing Inventory for Product LaunchesThe risks of being overly optimistic with new product launches and the importance of placing smaller initial test orders are discussed.00:27:04 The Pre-Order Page StrategyUsing pre-order pages on Shopify is presented as a key strategy to gauge demand and improve cash flow significantly.00:29:00 Improving Your Cash Conversion CycleThe host emphasizes how pre-orders can create a negative cash conversion cycle, which is the key to scaling infinitely.00:31:04 Summary: 10 Key Takeaways for Inventory ManagementA distilled summary of the top ten rules and frameworks for effective inventory management to protect your business and cash flow.00:34:04The Ultimate Goal: Distributable CashThe primary metric for a business owner should be distributable cash, which indicates a healthy, profitable, and sustainable operation.Links and Mentions:Tools and Websites  "Shopify": "00:27:00"  "TikTok": "00:23:07"  "Cash Conversion Cycle Podcast": "00:30:06"  Key Concepts and Strategies  "Pre-order Pages": "00:27:04"  "Liquidation Plan": "00:23:07"  "SKU Level Forecasting": "00:31:04"  "Inventory Turnover Ratio": "00:16:48"  Important Metrics  "Distributable Cash": "00:34:04"  Recommendations  "Download Slides": "00:35:00"Transcript:Josh Hadley 00:00:00  Today I'm going to be talking about the silent killer that kills e-commerce brands when an e-commerce brand goes to die. This is primarily the number one reason as to why they go extinct, and why they potentially even go bankrupt. Today, I'm going to be diving into what that silent killer is and how to defend against it so that it doesn't become the silent killer for your business. Welcome to the Econ Breakthrough podcast. I'm Josh Hadley. I've scaled my own ecommerce brand from 0 to 8 figures, and I'm actively building towards nine figures in sales. This podcast is where I document that journey and share the systems, the strategies, and the lessons learned in real time so that you can learn what actually matters and scale your own business. Who am I? My name is Josh Hadley. First and foremost, I'm a man of faith. I'm a husband to a beautiful wife and a father of four children. I've been selling in the e-commerce space for over a decade, doing over $20 million in annual revenue and selling multi-millionaires on Amazon, Shopify and TikTok shop.Josh Hadley 00:00:54  And I am also the host of the number one business strategy podcast for ecommerce entrepreneurs, E-comm Breakthrough. Those of you who watched either the movie or read the comics of Superman recall that Kryptonite was the one thing that could bring Superman to his knees. He almost had invincible power, but when it came to Kryptonite, it was made him almost powerless. It didn't kill him outright. It slowly drained every power that he had. He couldn't fly. He couldn't use his strength. He couldn't see through walls or outrun a bullet. But he was still breathing. Still alive, but completely powerless. The most dangerous part is that he genuinely never saw it coming until it was too late. So how does that apply to business? And what is this silent killer that is the Kryptonite of ecommerce brands. Well, that is inventory. Inventory truly is e-commerce Kryptonite because it is the most dangerous aspect of scaling your business, because it is one of those things that can sneak up on you. And before it's too late, you have already put yourself in a really bad position and effectively made your brand powerless.Josh Hadley 00:02:00  So if we understand that inventory is the Kryptonite for ecommerce brands, what are we supposed to do about that? How do we defend against it? And how do we make sure that i...

Is your Amazon brand falling behind because you're not using AI? The uncomfortable truth is, probably yes. Neil Twa dives into the widening gap between those who are using AI and those who aren't on The High Voltage Business Builders Podcast. As Neil breaks down, AI isn't a future problem; it's a present necessity. He shares insights from generative AI news coverage, pointing out what many articles miss: the real-world impact on ecommerce brands. Neil highlights a pattern seen across brands in the $15,000 to $40,000 monthly revenue range, emphasizing the urgency of integrating AI into your operations. This episode is packed with actionable moves, like running an AI complaint audit on your worst-reviewed SKUs. If you're still making decisions based on gut feelings and disconnected data, Neil offers a solution tailored for you. Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep336 See your Amazon numbers in one place and protect your margins with Caiman Data at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep336&learn_mcp=1

How does an $8 Amazon product stay highly profitable? Today's guest reveals his wholesale strategy, European sourcing advantages, AI workflows, and resilient multichannel growth.   ► Watch The Podcasts On Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Helium10SeriousSellersPodcast?sub_confirmation=1 ► Instagram: instagram.com/serioussellerspodcast ► Free Amazon Seller Chrome Extension: https://h10.me/extension ► Sign Up For Helium 10: https://h10.me/signup  (Use SSP10 To Save 10% For Life) ► Learn How To Sell on Amazon: https://h10.me/ft   Can an Amazon seller build a profitable business around products priced under $10? In this episode of the Serious Sellers Podcast, Bradley Sutton sits down with Ivan Komashinsky, the entrepreneur behind the U.S. distribution of Pedag Insoles and the Meltonian shoe-care brand. Ivan shares how he went from working at Microsoft to acquiring an established seven-figure e-commerce business—and eventually tripling its revenue. While Amazon remains Ivan's largest channel, his company has built a much broader operation through its own websites, independent retailers, regional distributors, Walmart, eBay, TikTok Shop, and Faire. Ivan explains how wholesale volume, strong supplier relationships, and European manufacturing allow Meltonian to maintain healthy margins on products selling for as little as $7.99. He also breaks down why managing inventory in-house makes sense for a business carrying thousands of SKUs across multiple sales channels. Ivan also reveals how his team uses Helium 10 tools such as Cerebro and Magnet to rank for valuable non-branded keywords and develop new products based on customer demand, competitor gaps, and search behavior. More recently, he has been using the Helium 10 MCP through Claude to investigate declining product sales, analyze trends, and explore profitability, traffic, conversion rates, keyword rankings, and advertising performance through natural-language conversations. From building authority on Reddit to getting started with wholesale through Faire, trade shows, and industry associations, Ivan offers a practical roadmap for creating a more resilient e-commerce business. His story shows that success does not always require expensive products or a business built entirely around Amazon. With the right sourcing, volume, distribution strategy, pricing policies, and willingness to adapt, even a traditional brand can unlock new growth opportunities. In episode 758 of the Serious Sellers Podcast, Bradley and Ivan discuss: 00:00 - Introduction 03:27 - Buying An Established Seven-Figure Online Business 06:22 - Growing Pedag And Acquiring Meltonian 07:33 - Building A Diversified Multichannel Sales Business 09:59 - Expanding A Traditional Brand Into Sneakers 11:05 - Finding New Products Through Market Demand 12:25 - Making An Eight-Dollar Product Highly Profitable 15:29 - European Sourcing And In-House Inventory Management 20:01 - Ranking For Valuable Non-Branded Amazon Keywords 22:26 - Using Helium 10 Tools And MCP 27:00 - Building Brand Authority Through Reddit 28:26 - Expanding Into Wholesale Through Faire 31:24 - Protecting Retail Margins With MAP Pricing 32:38 - Live Meltonian Sneaker-Cleaning Product Demonstration

Jasim Eisa is the founder and CEO of Voadera, a global e-commerce partner helping brands win on Amazon and other online marketplaces. He built the company from selling used books at 15 into a 150-person operation managing over 30,000 SKUs and driving $100M+ in sales. Through Voadera's Marketplace Accelerator, he helps brands fix broken listings, eliminate unauthorized sellers, and scale profitably with full-service marketplace execution. He is on a mission to help great products achieve the dominance they deserve online.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. Challenges of margin compression on Amazon and strategies for adaptation.Importance of operational efficiencies and cost savings for scaling e-commerce businesses.Tactics for reducing operating expenses, particularly in supply chain management.The significance of procurement strategies and direct sourcing from manufacturers.Shipping cost optimization through density and packaging strategies.Fulfillment strategies, including the use of FBA versus third-party logistics.Marketing efficiencies focused on organic ranking and conversion rate optimization.Increasing customer lifetime value (LTV) through various promotional strategies.The role of AI in enhancing operational capacity and workflow efficiency.Key performance indicators (KPIs) for tracking business metrics and ensuring team alignment.In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast, host Josh Hadley sits down with Jasim Eisa, founder and CEO of Voadera, to discuss scaling e-commerce businesses profitably on Amazon. Jasim shares how his team achieved nearly $820,000 in operational savings through supply chain optimization, smarter procurement, and shipping density improvements. The conversation also covers marketing efficiencies, coupon strategies to boost customer lifetime value, reimbursement recovery, and practical AI applications. Jasim emphasizes that as brands scale, small per-unit savings compound significantly, making operational efficiency as important as growth.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Stack Small Wins Relentlessly Audit every step of your operations and implement micro-improvements (e.g., packaging, shipping, processes). Small savings per unit compound into massive annual gains. Optimize for Profit, Not Just Growth Regularly review SKU-level profitability, Amazon fees, and inventory levels. Shift focus to efficiency as you scale—margin control is the new growth lever. Use Data to Drive Conversions & LTV Double down on high-converting keywords, continuously test PDPs and coupons, and implement strategies like Subscribe & Save and bundling to increase repeat purchases.Timestamps:00:00:00 Introduction & Cost-Saving InitiativeJasim discusses a major initiative to cut $1 million in operational expenses, focusing on supply chain efficiencies.00:00:24 Podcast Introduction & Guest BackgroundHost introduces the podcast, Jasim Eisa, and his experience scaling an e-commerce business to $100M+ in revenue.00:01:43 Managing Large-Scale Amazon OperationsDiscussion on managing 30,000 SKUs and the complexities of large-scale Amazon selling.00:02:07 Amazon's Evolving Marketplace & Margin CompressionExploring margin compression, Amazon's profit-maximizing changes, and how brands must adapt to new fee structures.00:04:26 When to Focus on Growth vs. Operational OptimizationAdvice for brands on prioritizing top-line growth versus operational cost optimization, depending on business maturity.00:07:30 Leverage in Cost Savings: High-Volume ProductsHow optimizing costs on high-volume SKUs yields significant savings, and the importance of leverage as brands scale.00:08:37 Operational Savings Strategies OverviewJasim outlines the philosophy of achieving savings through many small improvements rather than one big change.00:09:03 Procurement & Cost of Goods OptimizationTactics for reducing product costs by eliminating middlemen and running RFPs to manufacturers.00:10:40 Shipping & Supply Chain OptimizationStrategies for shipping cost reduction, including RFPs for freight, optimizing packaging density, and leveraging Amazon programs.00:13:43 Shipping & 3PL Strategy RecommendationsHigh-level recommendations for shipping from China and choosing between Amazon's logistics and 3PLs.00:15:17 Optimizing FBA Fees & Inventory ManagementBest practices for managing FBA storage, inbound placement fees, and maintaining optimal stock levels.00:17:01 Freight Forwarders vs. AGL RatesComparison of AGL and freight forwarder rates, and when to use each based on business size and shipment volume.00:17:53 Marketing Efficiency: Organic Ranking & ConversionHow aligning SEO, creative, and marketing teams to target high-converting keywords saves money and boosts organic ranking.00:21:39 AOV & LTV Strategies on AmazonIncreasing average order value and lifetime value through coupons, multi-basket analysis, and subscribe & save tactics.00:24:47 Stackable Coupons & Tactical PromotionsUsing stackable and visible coupons to increase conversions, with caveats for premium brands.00:26:02 Ships-in-Product-Packaging & ReimbursementsCost savings from shipping in product packaging and maximizing Amazon/Walmart reimbursements and recovery.00:28:39 KPIs & Data Tracking for Operational EfficiencyKey metrics tracked at leadership and departmental levels to ensure efficiency and profitability.00:30:59 Counter Metrics & Avoiding Operational PitfallsImportance of pairing KPIs (e.g., revenue vs. profit, in-stock rate vs. months on hand) to avoid unintended consequences.00:32:43 Team Structure & KPI ManagementHow leadership and teams use KPIs, Google Sheets, and the Traction framework to manage performance.00:34:33 AI in E-commerce OperationsCurrent state of AI in e-commerce, realistic expectations, and how AI is integrated into specific workflows.00:35:54 AI Use Cases: Creative, SEO, and Product DevelopmentExamples of AI increasing creative output, improving SEO, and aiding product development through contextual prompts.00:39:27 AI vs. Human Labor: Cost-Benefit AnalysisDiscussion on when AI automation is cost-effective versus when human or VA labor is preferable.00:41:08 Final Takeaways & Action ItemsThree actionable takeaways: focus on high-impact savings, optimize high-volume SKUs, and leverage AOV/LTV strategies on Amazon.00:44:04 Book, AI Tool, and Influencer RecommendationsJasim shares his most influential books, favorite AI tool use cases, and respected figures in the e-commerce space.00:46:08 Contact Information & Episode Wrap-UpHow to connect with Jasim Eisa and closing remarks from the host.Resources mentioned in this episode:Josh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTools and Websites  "Voadera": "00:01:43"  "AGL (Amazon Global Logistics)": "00:11:17"&nb...

Don’t miss this massive SMB partner shift! Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://theultimatepartner.com/ebook-subscribe/ Check Out UPX: https://theultimatepartner.com/experience/ In this pivotal episode, we sit down with Jose Gomez Cueto, Microsoft’s SMB leader for the Americas, to uncover the monumental shifts happening within the partner ecosystem and the $20 billion cloud opportunity currently on the table. The discussion dives deep into Microsoft’s commitment to the CSP channel, the explosion of AI agents, and why shifting from traditional headcount growth to outcome-based results is critical for survival. From navigating the complexities of the marketplace to the urgency of becoming “Customer Zero” with AI tools, this conversation provides the roadmap every MSP needs to thrive in the new era of technology. https://youtu.be/QE-1w7GeyPM Key Takeaways Microsoft operates a $20 billion cloud revenue business in the Americas alone, with 80% driven by the channel. The Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program is now Microsoft’s primary hero motion for the fourth region. The currency of SMB growth is shifting away from headcount and moving directly toward AI-driven outcomes. MSPs must transition from traditional IT outsourcing to strategic business process consulting to survive. Failing to proactively adopt and secure AI tools creates massive liability and shadow AI risks for organizations. IT providers are urged to become “Customer Zero” by deploying and testing Copilot and autonomous agents internally before selling them. If you're ready to lead through change, elevate your business, and achieve extraordinary outcomes through the power of partnership—this is your community. At Ultimate Partner® we want leaders like you to join us in the Ultimate Partner Experience – where transformation begins. Key Tags CSP, Agent 365, SMB cloud revenue, outcome-based selling, Copilot for business, Defender for business, shadow AI risks, AI agent deployment, Purview data security, Marketplace API integration, autonomous agents, Customer Zero, Microsoft Americas segment Transcript Jose Gomez Cueto AUDIO PODCAST [00:00:00] Jose Gomez Cueto: And, and you know, if I might say something that is confidential, avid Vince, uh, to be quite honest, please, please, uh, by definition, a marketplace is eliminating intermediaries. [00:00:11] Vince Menzione: You can feel it happening. [00:00:13] Vince Menzione: The ecosystem is shifting beneath us. The way Hyperscalers are partnering, how AI is remaking the channel and what it means to win in 2026. [00:00:23] Vince Menzione: Welcome to the Ultimate Partner Podcast. I’m Vince Menzi, own your host. And each week I sit down with leaders at the intersection of technology, partnerships and outcomes. The voices shaping how ecosystems actually work. We talk about what’s real, what’s changing, and what it takes to lead in this era where the partner channel isn’t just part of the strategy. [00:00:45] Vince Menzione: It is the strategy because being in the room changes everything. Let’s start. [00:00:55] Vince Menzione: I am absolutely thrilled for our, our next guest. Um, some of you heard me talk about this maybe earlier or in various pockets of conversation. Um, I believe both the SMB market is an, is an incredible opportunity. We’ve called it the Acre of Diamonds at Ultimate Partner at previous events. And then the MSP community, which I want to thank so many of you to for coming, coming on board now. [00:01:25] Vince Menzione: ’cause we’ve had some MSPs that have come to all our events. And doubled, tripled, quadruple the sizes of their business. From what they’ve learned in these rooms. And so we invited our next guest to come. Oh, Jose, come on up. Jose Gomez Cuerto is the leader of Microsoft’s SMB business for the Americas. Come on. [00:01:43] Vince Menzione: Come on over. Come on over. Sit down with me. And I was so thrilled to get this gentleman to come join us. His team is doing incredible work. I got to meet some of his team actually earlier this year. And we know each other for many years ago. [00:01:56] Jose Gomez Cueto: We do. [00:01:56] Vince Menzione: When I was at Microsoft, right? Yeah. So, so great to see you again. [00:01:59] Jose Gomez Cueto: It’s a pleasure to be here. Uh, thanks for the invitation. I’m thrilled to be here. And thank you all for making time, uh, or traveling here. Uh, this is the best time. To be in the industry. [00:02:10] Vince Menzione: It’s an incredible time. [00:02:11] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah, [00:02:11] Vince Menzione: it’s an incredible time. So sit down. Yeah, sit down. Let’s, yeah. So let’s talk about you and your organization. [00:02:17] Vince Menzione: Um, let’s talk, well, I, I, I wanna bring this up because it was like, the noise I heard in the room when I was, I went to Interven earlier this year. Yeah. Is, does Microsoft Care about this market? And, um, I was at Microsoft many years, we worked together when I was a, a gm. And, uh, it was run differently back in the day. [00:02:37] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And there’s been a lot of changes to what we call the SME and C business now. Mm-hmm. Uh, and the SMB business, which you run. So let’s talk a little bit about your organization, where you sit in the organization, and then I want to kind of dive in a little bit about what’s changed. ’cause a lot has changed for the better. [00:02:54] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah, it’s a great question and I think that that’s what a lot of people think about, uh, SMB and, and who’s SMB and, and who’s at Microsoft and who do I talk to. So, [00:03:02] Vince Menzione: yes. [00:03:02] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, even though I know a lot of, uh, friendly faces in the room, I think it’s a great, uh, starting point. Vince, so. Basically, uh, I am responsible for what we call the small and medium business, uh, segment. [00:03:15] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, we can also call it small and medium enterprises. Uh, I would say that it is not a monolith. Uh, we do have, uh, subsegmentation, I think that our friend Jay was talking about up to 20 subsegmentation. Uh, we think about it for simplifi simplification purposes on three. Uh, so we have, uh, the smaller organizations, the medium-sized organizations. [00:03:36] Jose Gomez Cueto: And then what we call top point manage, which is basically large enterprise that we simply don’t have an account management team, uh, assigned to. And we are the happy recipients of many of those, uh, every year. Uh, so I would say that, uh, a best definition would be also anything that is unmanaged and is primarily driven through the channel. [00:03:54] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, we run in the Americas approximately more than $20 billion of revenue, uh, on cloud. Uh, that’s [00:04:01] Vince Menzione: crazy. [00:04:01] Jose Gomez Cueto: So, and 80% of that is done. Through companies that are here, [00:04:05] Vince Menzione: $20 billion of business. [00:04:07] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. So, um, the, the Americas region that I’m, uh, representing and under my responsibility includes basically three sales units, the United States, Canada, and Latin America. [00:04:18] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yes. Latin America is more fragmented because we have multi-country and multi, uh, subsidiary, uh, structure. Just to recap a little bit of what you asked me rewinding on what has happened in the last two or three years. Yeah. We brought basically, uh, probably something that you might remember from you were there. [00:04:36] Jose Gomez Cueto: I, yes. Uh, which is bringing the segment, uh, with the channel together. So, uh, I think that, um, uh. Earlier in the morning, uh, Steven was, uh, talking about it, what we call S-M-U-N-C, which is, uh, this segment with the channel. And the main reason is to drive, uh, that synergy, uh, and making, uh, a very bold statement that many of you might remember in the last two years, uh, Judson and Ralph, uh, heter or, or new, uh, president for this, uh, fourth region. [00:05:05] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, ’cause we call it fourth region. Yeah. ’cause the other one is our enterprises. [00:05:08] Vince Menzione: Yeah. So Asia, Americas Exactly. And, and EMEA. Then you’re the fourth region. [00:05:13] Jose Gomez Cueto: We’re the fourth region. So, so, um, making CSP, uh, our hero motion, and that is fantastic news. I, I started, uh, part of my journey, uh, in, in the channel, uh, way earlier in distribution in the year 2000. [00:05:30] Vince Menzione: Yep. [00:05:30] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, and fast forward, I would say 2011, we were launching the first commercial SaaS offering, which was Office 365. Um, I had the privilege to be, uh, leading the launch globally for that. Uh, but then we, the first thing we did was build a channel, and that was called syndication. And basically the precursor of that, uh, became CSP, basically putting, uh, the partner or customer in the middle, the partner around it for the, not only the, the opportunity, but also the responsibility to serve the customer. [00:06:04] Jose Gomez Cueto: 360 from, uh, presales all the way to, uh, uh. Upsell cross sell, and in between deployment, uh, things, uh, around, um, servicing, bundling offers, uh, troubleshooting and support, et cetera. So, uh, back to your question was, this is a very important thing because we’re basically, uh, making our channel the scale and, and the vision that we have is, is that we are gonna be continuing to scale through the channel. [00:06:33] Jose Gomez Cueto: So, um, one last thing I say, uh, in terms of the organization that I think is important for everyone to understand, and I’m gonna go a little bit into more org structure, is that we, we have these three sales units that are geographic. But, uh, what we’ve done this year is to have, uh, more depth on the solution area. [00:06:50] Jose Gomez Cueto: So you might remember that, uh, we’ve simplified them, uh, same as we used to have 8, 13, 13 areas. Now we have only three Oh yeah, same, same, uh, in the solution area. So we have, uh, the AI business solutions. Uh, cloud and AI platforms. And then, uh, security and my team basically mirrors that structure. And we have, uh, team members, uh, primarily, um, our partner, solutions specialists that are, their job is to work with companies like you. [00:07:17] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, some few we do, uh, direct in others. What we do is work with, uh, our top distributors, and I think we have, uh, in the room many of those. I think Google is gonna follow up, uh, for PAX eight, and that’s, uh, how we’re going to market now. [00:07:31] Vince Menzione: So just a little bit of context too for me. ’cause I, I, I had heard this at another event. [00:07:36] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And I just wanted to share this. Um, when I was at Microsoft, we, we did not put the right emphasis and energy and resources in the s and b market when I was there, or, or it was fragmented. Every group did it differently. You remember those days too, right? Well, with public sector, we didn’t necessarily have a team focused, and every business did it a little bit differently. [00:08:00] Vince Menzione: Mm-hmm. And I think one of the contexts you, you mentioned Ralph and being in Ralph’s organization. Yeah. Pulling that all together and creating the fourth region created a lot of focus that didn’t exist. And consistency in terms of execution. I think that’s what you’re talking about here. Right? And then also the fact that like, we didn’t, I don’t think we had a sep, an SMB leader back in, back in the day. [00:08:22] Vince Menzione: Like we didn’t have somebody that we can go to to think about the MSP community the way we do today. Mm-hmm. Right. We were just, they were just almost like unmanaged entities out there. Yeah. Was that, would you, would you agree with that? [00:08:32] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah, I, we went through several iterations that, uh, you might argue, uh, were painful or not. [00:08:38] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, ultimately what we’re committed is to simplify the partner experience. And make that the same for the customers. But what we have is now one center of gravity, uh, a global SMB organization. We have three area leaders. And uh, and that helps us, uh, to be quite honest and in confidence. And you and I talked about it, Jose, this is a forum for, uh. [00:08:58] Jose Gomez Cueto: Speaking the truth. Uh, we, we, we have to fight the gravitational force of the managed space. The company has a big enterprise footprint, so, uh, many of us have become, uh, the chief agitators, uh, to fight the good fight, uh, for SMB. Uh, try to under unpack, uh, in every single conversation with senior Execut. [00:09:17] Jose Gomez Cueto: What is an MSP? And no, it’s not data consulting or one of the large, uh, global design. Uh, and then we explain what they do and then what is a two tier channel, how do distributors work? And, uh, and what about this and what about that? So I think that that has been, uh, a great, uh, progress and a lot of that can be reflected, uh, into how we’re, hopefully everyone in the room is seeing it in how we’re going to market. [00:09:40] Jose Gomez Cueto: I’ll give you two examples. [00:09:41] Guest: Yes. [00:09:42] Jose Gomez Cueto: Um, for, for quite some time. We, we have very limited, uh. Product truth. That’s what the lingo that we use internally, uh, related to offer that were targeted to SMB. And I would say that, uh, business premium, uh, for M 365, uh, was the fact to offer. But now we’ve been able to in, uh, increase, uh, the not so not only commitment, uh, but also the investment that we’re doing as a company into launching offers. [00:10:08] Jose Gomez Cueto: So we have a co compiler for business that is. At a lower price point that has, uh, the same capabilities at the enterprise, uh, that we’re, uh, doing that we also have some security, uh, offers, uh, that are now unattached to business premium, which is our hero motion for sub 300 space. So you start to see, uh, an important trend and it’s great to have jobson at a CEO, uh, of the commercial business capacity because, uh, we’re making things happen. [00:10:34] Jose Gomez Cueto: So what I would say is that I love coming here to these forums. A lot of my team members are here. We’re here to learn. We’re the learner. All we, we, we don’t know much. We need to learn more. Uh, and, and just keeping us honest in terms of bringing that, uh, ethos of, of the customer that most of you are serving and, and, and things that we can improve to get better to deliver value. [00:10:58] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And the speed at which you’re moving has been pretty fast. It’s been very nimble. Like I, I, I’ve been watching this progression. It’s really like you, you’re really leaning in. I was actually hoping because I could ask you a bunch of questions. Yeah. But we have such a great audience and for the first time we really have opened it up to a lot of MSPs in the room. [00:11:18] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And I know you, you wanna get some interaction with some of these folks as well. I thought maybe we would open if you’re okay with this. Yeah, absolutely. I’d rather than I go off script a little bit. I’d rather open it up to some of the MSPs in the room. We’re sitting here eager to learn how and, and what Microsoft is going to do to help. [00:11:35] Vince Menzione: Because I think the opportunity, I personally think the opportunity is huge right [00:11:38] Jose Gomez Cueto: now. Yeah. Let’s do that and well, we get, uh, warmed up. I would say that. [00:11:43] Vince Menzione: So we need some mics. Yeah. [00:11:43] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, something that I’m, that I’m seeing, uh, Vince, and, and, and a question that many of you might have is why now? And, and why this an, an exciting, an exciting time. [00:11:54] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:11:54] Jose Gomez Cueto: Um, and I would say that, uh. Right now we’re seeing, obviously Jay talked about it and, and the big transformation, but it’s a once in a generation or one in a lifetime. Yeah. Uh, shift of the entire platform. Uh, and, and a lot of the scenarios are even maybe scary, but what we see is huge opportunity. And from an SMB perspective, uh, the biggest thing that excites me is moving from, um, something that was. [00:12:23] Jose Gomez Cueto: More related to size, and now we’re moving to outcomes. So, so think about the future of SMBs, uh, with agents and things being measured on outcomes. And, and what this leads to is, uh, Jay talked about it as well, and sorry Jay, it’s such a good job that I keep quoting you. Um, we do that a lot. Uh. You got it. [00:12:49] Jose Gomez Cueto: So you talked about, uh, I noticed that Bill Gates when he said, you know, uh, uh, a pc, uh, in every desk and what we see is every human empowered with agents. Yeah. Especially in work. And what does that mean, that the currency changes being, because what you’re gonna be able to, to envision. Not in the, in the, in the near future, but now is an agentic explosion where then, uh, the currency is outcomes? [00:13:14] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yes. So if you think of an SMB growing, it’s not growing on, on, on full-time employees or headcount. It’s growing on the ability to do more through agents. So, so I think that’s an important thing and, and that’s something that we’re working very closely with our all, all our channel and the offerings that we’re launching to market as well. [00:13:32] Vince Menzione: I also think about the MSPs as being perfectly positioned because what you described, the new, the new model, the future customer and the outcomes is gonna require hands on the steering wheel at all times. [00:13:44] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yes. Yeah. So on that one, and still waiting for some, uh. Someone that is not shy to ask questions, but we’ll, we’ll keep going in the meantime. [00:13:52] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, I, I think that, uh, we are learning, all the [00:13:55] Vince Menzione: MSPs are lined up over here. I’m marching them all. [00:13:57] Jose Gomez Cueto: We, and, and I almost know by name all everyone in the first two rows. Yes. Uh, so, so, uh, I might pick on them. Uh, they’re too shy, but, but we’re learning together. Uh, Vince, uh, the important thing is, is the transformation, uh, and the opportunity, but also the risk of, uh, not acting. [00:14:17] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, what we were seeing, uh, for the first, uh, year or two was kicking tires, people testing, uh, ai. And now what we’ve seen is basically, uh, a full adoption. Uh, of the agentic technology, not even adoption of the tools, but embracing the technology. So I, I want to give you, uh, two specific, uh, examples or data points we have, uh, just in the Americas, more than almost 9 million, uh, people using copilot chat. [00:14:49] Vince Menzione: Wow, that’s amazing. [00:14:50] Jose Gomez Cueto: So imagine, uh, the, the potential that is there for people that are actively using the tool. Yeah. Uh, to en enable new scenarios of doing things. Uh, another example, and I think I have, uh, someone in my team here, is Amber in the room. Amber Kinney? No, she left. Okay. So Amber runs, uh, cloud and ai, uh, uh, or Azure platform. [00:15:12] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, her team has deployed, uh, more than, uh, 11 agents internally for our partner solution specialist, uh, from. Simple agents that will, uh, tell is if a specific deal is eligible for a pre-sales or post-sales program. And comparing all the complexity of our programs, oh my [00:15:29] Vince Menzione: goodness. [00:15:30] Jose Gomez Cueto: All the way to, to, to managing a pipe more effectively of opportunities. [00:15:34] Jose Gomez Cueto: So what we’re seeing is real. This is not something that people are just kicking the tires. It’s like this is the opportunity. So back to, to the point of m ms. P uh, is, is about learning together on how to transition. To, uh, a model that is gonna be based on outcomes. And, and we were discussing, uh, I was with some of our distributors, uh, many of them in the last two months in, in a specific partner advisory, uh, councils and, and some people were just sharing their experiences. [00:16:04] Jose Gomez Cueto: Oh, I decided to charge X amount for an agent. And how do you come up with that number? I don’t know. We’re just testing. Okay. And what about their current revenue? Uh, and, but what about the tokens? What if, uh, the agents start to consume and they’re gonna do the metering? So, so I think that we’re learning together in this space. [00:16:22] Jose Gomez Cueto: Um, but what it is important is just to think about the important, the, the, the critical role that the MSPs are gonna have in leading. And the biggest challenge that we’re seeing and, and we see it over and over and over is, uh, the part about scaling. [00:16:38] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:16:39] Jose Gomez Cueto: The skilling is not, uh, about learning how to use the copilot tool or to do, uh, some, uh, you know, tuning and that, because thankfully our, at least our, our technology as a platform, uh, pretty much carries the same, uh, security, uh, and compliance configurations that you have in your Microsoft 365 tenant. [00:17:00] Jose Gomez Cueto: But it is more the, the, the skilling about understanding how to do. Customer outcome conversation. What is your AI strategy? What [00:17:08] Vince Menzione: that’s scaling? Yes. [00:17:09] Jose Gomez Cueto: What really matters? Not [00:17:10] Vince Menzione: the technical skill. It’s, it’s really the approach that they’re taking. [00:17:14] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. [00:17:14] Vince Menzione: With the organization. I, it seems that MSPs for many years were down in the weeds. [00:17:20] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. [00:17:20] Vince Menzione: They were turning the, the wrench, so to speak, in the organization, and yet now it seems like this. Kevin Piker, your old boss used to use this term. The, the CIO. The CEO is the new CIO. In other words, you need to be selling upstream. You need, you need to be having the conversations in the organization that are strategic [00:17:40] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. [00:17:40] Vince Menzione: To that organization. [00:17:41] Jose Gomez Cueto: So, two, two twofold on, on that, uh, point, which is very important. One is, uh, not our, a lot of our MSPs are equipped right now. [00:17:49] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:17:49] Jose Gomez Cueto: To have a, a conversation about business strategy. Because traditionally has been more outsource it. [00:17:56] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:17:56] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, we started with, you know, managing the networks, then adding services, support tickets, et cetera. [00:18:03] Jose Gomez Cueto: So being able to have that conversation is important. Uh, we, we see through a lot of our tooling that, uh, the shadow AI is everywhere. And what I always tell in any MSP conversation that I have is risk security. You’re on the hook if something happens. That’s right. So if you’re not acting. Uh, then it is a liability. [00:18:22] Vince Menzione: You’re letting things take off in your own organization. Yeah. People are using [00:18:25] Jose Gomez Cueto: philanthropic on their own. The company can go, uh, bankrupt or get sued or get, uh, if they’re in a regulated industry, they can be taken out, et cetera. So, so that’s an important point, uh, related to, to that transformation. Uh, and, and the other part of the skilling that you mentioned that is super important is being in the weeds. [00:18:45] Jose Gomez Cueto: That is where the innovation is happening. Yeah. The later research that we have is being in the front line because it’s all about, uh, reinventing those processes. So I think that it’s a, it’s a good combination that if we have the MSPs, um, and we’re working, uh, not only internally but with our distributors to develop the right skilling around those other type of, uh, consulting skills. [00:19:07] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, data skills, uh, business process, uh, redesign and flows. Uh, that is where, where we see the big opportunity. [00:19:14] Vince Menzione: So it’s balancing out the technical skills with the business process skills, the consulting skills. Yeah, exactly. I think we have a question over here. Yeah. [00:19:22] Guest: Good afternoon, Vince. Good. Sorry. Thanks for the great content. [00:19:26] Guest: The question is around small medium businesses and the cost around cybersecurity. So. Basically, as new tools are coming up that are AI based, such as co-pilot for security, defender for AI, are also consumption based, is there a risk that SMEs will be left out under that cybersecurity poverty line? [00:19:52] Jose Gomez Cueto: I don’t think, uh, it is, uh, a risk to being left out, uh, in the country that the, the SMBs, I would say are more help is needed. And, and the way we think about it from a perspective of, of ai and specifically I’m want to talk about agents, uh, it was mentioned by Steven in, uh, in the morning, and I’m gonna talk a little bit high level and then I’m gonna try to bring it down to, to more tangible is this concept of intelligent and trust. [00:20:19] Jose Gomez Cueto: So on the intelligence, what, what we’re, what we’re trying to say here is that your AI is not just generic stuff that you just prompt and you get like anything that is on the web, but there’s contextual. Data, and, and that’s what we do, uh, with what you might be familiar with, which is the iq. Uh, so we have, um, iq, uh, also in Foundry and on our different data products. [00:20:40] Jose Gomez Cueto: So basically bringing the context of your work, of your contacts, of the people you interact, uh, of the meetings of, of the emails, of the SharePoint files, but also important connectors that are in line of business applications that you can bring to copilot. And then. That intelligence, uh, is relevant and that that basically increases innovation. [00:21:01] Jose Gomez Cueto: And the part about trust, uh, uh, not exactly in cybersecurity, but, but related is basically, uh, agent 365. Uh, can I see, show of hands, who’s aware of Agent 365? Maybe like [00:21:14] Vince Menzione: in the front two rows, [00:21:15] Jose Gomez Cueto: 20%? Yeah. So, um, that is basically, uh, an, an amazing opportunity for our MSP channel because it gives you opportunity to. [00:21:25] Jose Gomez Cueto: Basically observe, uh, govern and apply security to the, the agent activity that is happening. So we think in the context of ai, I think that that’s a, a, a super important, uh, aspect to mitigate any risk of, of what can happen if there’s not, uh, the right, uh, posture. Uh, and then, uh, on, on, on the other part of security, I would say that something, I mentioned something about offers. [00:21:51] Jose Gomez Cueto: We brought the capabilities of the enterprise, uh, SKUs and solutions into these add-ons to N 365. So I would say that with, uh, defender for business, uh, plan two, and sorry to go into the SKU language, uh, it, it is important to, to understand that you have those advanced capabilities. And then another one that we’re pushing, uh, hard and, and is had great receptionist, um, uh, purview, uh, and purview. [00:22:15] Jose Gomez Cueto: What allows you is just to really do everything related to data. Data security policies of what data should be prompted by the model, what information to stay or, or, or not stay. Uh, and I think that’s, that’s also a good opportunity that we’re seeing to bring those, uh, advanced capabilities into the SMBs. [00:22:33] Jose Gomez Cueto: The challenge that we have is how do we get them faster, uh, to everyone, especially when there’s, uh, you know, competing, uh, so solutions around it. [00:22:44] Vince Menzione: We have one more question, and I think we’re probably gonna have to break after that. I know we’re over time already and you’ve got a busy rest of your day. I got, well, we got one back there and we’ve got a mic up here, so, so we have two questions. [00:22:57] Vince Menzione: Yeah. We’ll do Tim first and then we’ll get the [00:22:59] Vince Menzione: mic up. I’ll go for the first 30 minutes and we’ll go from there. Yes. Long time listener. Great to see you again. Jose. Um, business premium, we did E seven. We talked about getting a voice from the MSP space. To build out a business premium, like additional offering. [00:23:13] Vince Menzione: Is there any context to that you have any vision in your crystal ball for October? [00:23:17] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, I cannot say or, or deny. Uh, but yeah, I think that what, what you I love it in, in all seriousness team. Uh, thanks for the question. Uh, I think that what you should expect is, uh, I call it product truth, uh, more, uh, SMB built purpose built for solutions. [00:23:35] Jose Gomez Cueto: So an equivalent of, of any seven as well. Yeah. [00:23:40] Vince Menzione: You still have, we have another question in the back? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. [00:23:43] Guest: Yeah. Uh, Jeremy here with Integral, um, there’s this kind of idea going around that while CSP has been very successful for many of us as MSPs and, and since the beginning, it’s been a great program that was focused on s and b and it’s come up now. [00:23:57] Guest: There’s this kind of shift saying, and CSPs and you think about being marketplace companies where CSP is, the plumbing and marketplace is, is the lead. If that is true, or maybe you comment on that, that idea. How does marketplace strategy playing into kind of, I guess I’m plugging serials piece now from behind, but how does marketplace strategy then play into the s and b market if CSPs are focused on that marketplace mechanism? [00:24:21] Guest: Where CSPs now are and the, and the modern work and all the things that we’ve been doing really well for a long time become, maybe plumbing is too far down the stack, but really marketplace being a focus, is that a strategy piece that we should be thinking about for CS p strategy overall? [00:24:36] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah, it’s a great question and I’ll try to keep it brief. [00:24:39] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, I think you need my v The vision that we have is we’re doing both. Uh, we’re empowering, uh, and customers to find what they need. Uh, in the marketplace. Uh, zero talked about also the opportunity for resellers to get enrolled and start to add services and other things. There’s also, another part of the is, is multifacet, uh, to work with ISVs to make it easier and recruit them to bring the right offers. [00:25:03] Jose Gomez Cueto: For SMBI would say that the feedback that we need is to make sure that the right SA ISVs are the ones that serving SMV are represented. Then from another front, I would accept that yes, we have some, uh, plumbing work to do because right now, uh, some part of the billing is not really that nimble for a two tier model if you’re working through a distributor. [00:25:23] Jose Gomez Cueto: So we made some great progress. Uh, we, we, uh, have, uh, announced something and Ignite, if you missed it, I think we might talk about it, uh, soon. Uh, but we have that, that connection via APIs with, uh, the four largest, uh, global distributors. So we’re making progress towards something that will be seamless. Uh, but I think that the biggest opportunity that we have is, is to crack the code, uh, for marketplace. [00:25:46] Jose Gomez Cueto: And, and, you know, if I might say something that is confidential, avid Vince, uh, to be quite honest, please, uh, by definition a marketplace is eliminating intermediaries. So that’s the dilemma. How do you bring the channel in between to help you expand, [00:26:02] Vince Menzione: right? [00:26:03] Jose Gomez Cueto: That that is really the, the, the, the, the holy grail, if I may use those words. [00:26:07] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, but that’s something that, that we’re working towards. And I think, uh, we have a great opportunity ahead and, and you should expect, uh, more announcements as we head into the summer events on how we’re gonna make that more seamless. [00:26:19] Vince Menzione: And REO really lit up the channel Yeah. In, in a big way. ’cause that a hundred percent, that was a blocker before. [00:26:24] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. [00:26:24] Vince Menzione: Yeah. But CSP is also an incredible opportunity if it, you know, I know, I know there’s other sessions and conversations around it. And it does feel, and I’ve heard this before, like I wanna buy from my MSP because they’re the ones I trust. [00:26:37] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yes. [00:26:37] Vince Menzione: But yet I go, I have to go around the system in order to transact my Microsoft licenses. [00:26:43] Vince Menzione: Right. Yeah. And that’s, [00:26:45] Jose Gomez Cueto: I think the scenario getting the gentleman was mentioning is related to marketplace. But yeah. Vince, uh, uh, I just wanted to perhaps close, uh, please. Because I think we’re outta time, right? Yeah, we [00:26:54] Vince Menzione: are. [00:26:54] Jose Gomez Cueto: Yeah. Uh, just in terms of what to expect, uh, we are continuing to be, uh, partner centric. [00:27:01] Jose Gomez Cueto: You should expect as we go into the next fiscal year, uh, more refinement into the customer subsegmentation, we have this concept of above 300 and below 300, uh, working even closer with our distributors to help us scale and amplify the efforts that we do around recruitment, scaling, go to market, uh, co-sell, et cetera. [00:27:22] Jose Gomez Cueto: Uh, and then, uh, obviously expect, uh, we, we, a call to action that I have for everyone is become customer zero. Vince, I’m gonna put you on the spot here. How many agents did you use today? [00:27:37] Vince Menzione: None. [00:27:37] Jose Gomez Cueto: Okay. [00:27:38] Vince Menzione: I, I’ve been in the room leading the room today, [00:27:41] Jose Gomez Cueto: even with more reason. [00:27:42] Vince Menzione: No, I, in, I need to do [00:27:43] Jose Gomez Cueto: more. Put your autonomous agents. [00:27:44] Vince Menzione: I do. [00:27:45] Jose Gomez Cueto: I’m not kidding you and I didn’t, I need to be [00:27:47] Vince Menzione: more of [00:27:47] Jose Gomez Cueto: a frontier for myself. The answer I get usually is like one hand raiser, by the way. Uh, but, but, uh, jokes aside, uh, I think. Becoming customer zero is critical. We cannot be deploying and selling what we’re not using. Uh, we have, uh, great tooling for low-code scenarios, uh, in, in, in, now, I don’t wanna say like in a few months now we have no one, uh, people that have zero knowledge and coding already developing and deploying agents into a secure environment. [00:28:19] Jose Gomez Cueto: It is happening. [00:28:20] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:28:20] Jose Gomez Cueto: So, uh, then, uh. Copilot. It is not a competitor charge, GVP or cloud. It is a platform we have both included. [00:28:29] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:28:29] Jose Gomez Cueto: Do we have multimodal, we have iq. That is everything, uh, closed in terms of, uh, your intelligence. It is secure by default. Uh, and then allowing you to, to do, um, agents and then agents 365 to manage it. [00:28:41] Jose Gomez Cueto: So basically those three stages, customer zero. Uh, copilot agents and Agents 365 as your tool to, to manage them [00:28:50] Vince Menzione: and don’t go rogue and start doing your own things with anthropic and setting up your own instances because you’re gonna compromise your, your instance in your environment. [00:28:59] Jose Gomez Cueto: Well, actually, uh, if you do it in the copilot interface [00:29:02] Vince Menzione: Oh, well, I’m saying do it. [00:29:03] Vince Menzione: Yeah. I’m, I’m at RO going off, off, off, uh, [00:29:06] Jose Gomez Cueto: off. Yeah. Yeah, [00:29:07] Vince Menzione: yeah. Great. Well, thank you, sir. Appreciate you. Thank you. Thanks for listening to the Ultimate Partner Podcast. If today’s conversation resonated, share it with a partner leader in your network. Subscribe where you listen, and head over to the Ultimate partner.com for show notes related content and the resources for this episode. [00:29:29] Vince Menzione: And if you haven’t already, now’s the time to register for the Ultimate Partner Live event in Reston, Virginia, October 26th through October 28th. Until next time. Keep showing up in the rooms that matter because being in the room changes everything.

Stop losing revenue after the click! Get your free conversion audit at https://www.tiereleven.com/cro/service Are you optimizing your ads but ignoring what happens after the click? Most brands obsess over traffic acquisition while leaving massive revenue opportunities hidden inside their websites, forms, and customer journeys.In this third episode of our CRO series with Ned MacPherson, head of CRO at Tier 11, we get into why CRO is really revenue optimization and why copying a competitor's "pretty" site is a dangerous shortcut. Ned introduces the AI feature we built that scours the web every couple of hours to show high-end shoppers exactly how the price compares to the market, without them having to leave the page.We also get into something wilder: an AI agent that runs live pricing experiments across thousands of SKUs on its own. We talk about generative engine optimization (GEO) and how to structure your site so LLMs like Claude and ChatGPT actually recommend your website. In this episode:- Why conversion rate optimization is really revenue optimization- How data-driven CRO beats design-based assumptions- Optimizing landing pages, PDPs, forms, and post-click experiences- How lead generation forms create massive conversion leaks- The role of AI agents in the future of CRO strategy- Why generative engine optimization (GEO) matters for future visibility- Improving e-commerce performance with AI-powered pricing experimentsMentioned in the Episode: Previous Episodes With Ned MacPherson: https://perpetualtraffic.com/podcast/episode-796-stop-redesigning-start-diagnosing-the-cro-method-that-actually-works/https://perpetualtraffic.com/podcast/episode-797-what-a-live-cro-audit-reveals-that-your-design-agency-never-shows-you/ Listen to This Episode on Your Favorite Podcast Channel:Follow and listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/perpetual-traffic/id1022441491 Follow and listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/59lhtIWHw1XXsRmT5HBAuK Subscribe and watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@perpetual_traffic?sub_confirmation=1We Appreciate Your Support!Visit our website: https://perpetualtraffic.com/ Connect with Ralph Burns: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphburns Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ralphhburns/ Hire Tier11 - https://www.tiereleven.com/apply-now Mentioned in this episode:https://perpetualtraffic.com/advertise-with-us/