In this episode, the host interviews Kelcey Lehrich, founder of 365 Holdings and co-founder of the HoldCo Conference. Kelcey shares her journey from traditional business to e-commerce, the growth of 365 Holdings, and the challenges of acquiring and integrating multiple brands. He discusses the purpose of the Holdco Conference for multi-business entrepreneurs, strategies for stable acquisitions, and the realities of shared services. The episode offers practical advice on self-awareness, focusing on key business levers, and learning from experience in scaling and managing holding companies.
Chapters:
Introduction to Kelcey Lehrich and Holdco Conference (00:00:00)
Kelsey introduces himself and explains the origin and purpose of the Holdco Conference for multi-business entrepreneurs.
Kelcey's Journey into E-commerce and 365 Holdings (00:02:22)
Kelcey shares how he and his partner entered e-commerce, acquired their first businesses, and built 365 Holdings.
365 Holdings’ Structure and Focus (00:03:30)
Discussion of 365 Holdings’ current scale, vertical integration, and future focus on food, baby, and consumable brands.
Growth Strategies: Product Launches and Acquisitions (00:04:28)
Comparison of launching new products versus acquiring businesses, and the importance of consistent experimentation.
What to Avoid When Acquiring Businesses (00:05:52)
Kelcey outlines lessons learned and what to avoid when evaluating acquisition opportunities.
365 Holdings’ Core Strengths and Incremental Improvements (00:07:04)
Exploration of the company’s strengths, vertical integration, and focus on small, compounding operational improvements.
The Reality of Shared Services in a Holdco (00:09:54)
Kelcey discusses the challenges and realities of sharing services across multiple brands in a holding company.
Three Actionable Takeaways for Entrepreneurs (00:11:44)
Host summarizes three key lessons: self-awareness, vision and action, and learning through experience in M&A.
Kelcey’s Book Recommendation (00:14:03)
Kelcey recommends "The Hard Thing About Hard Things" by Ben Horowitz for entrepreneurs managing growing teams.
Favorite Productivity Tool (00:14:40)
Kelcey shares Superhuman as his favorite email productivity tool.
Influential Figures in E-commerce (00:15:25)
Kelcey discusses the many people who have influenced him, mentioning Gary Vee, Roland Frazier, and others.
How to Connect with Kelcey and Learn More (00:16:59)
Kelcey provides ways to connect with him and learn more about Holdco Conference and 365 Holdings.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Resources
Superhuman
Websites
Holdco Conference
365 Holdings
Books
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz on Amazon
Influential Figures
Gary Vaynerchuk (Gary Vee)
Roland Frasier
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I'm super excited to introduce you to Kelcey Lehrich. Welcome to the podcast, Kelcey.
Kelcey 00:00:05 Thank you for having me. Great to be here.
Josh 00:00:06 Kelcey I attended Holdco conference. You did a fantastic job. That was your first ever Holdco conference. Tell our guests a little bit more about this Holdco conference, because I think it's really unique. And you're kind of one of the first to kind of come up with this type of holding company conference.
Kelcey 00:00:24 Yeah. So I appreciate your kind words and glad you could come. And we'll see you there next year. date's coming soon. so I have a friend in town named John Wilson. you can find him on the internet. He's pretty public. he and I met, and we both have, 50 to 100 employees, multiple tens of millions of revenue, and we have multiple businesses. And we knew a few other people that had similar circumstances. And there really was no event, no conference, no, kind of home base or hangout place for people like us.
Kelcey 00:00:56 And one day I'm like, hey, like, why don't we go ahead and we'll host the party. and so John and I partnered on that project, and, from January, when it was kind of hatched with the tweet to July, it was a bit of a wild ride, but it was a lot of fun. We're really proud of the first year. And, yeah, it's meant to be the place that multi business entrepreneurs called the holding company, meet, learn, scale and grow. But the kind of niche there is that if you're in software and you're venture backed, there's a conference for you. If you are in real estate, there's a conference for you. If you are in insert any industry, sales, metal stamping, mobile home parks, whatever it is, there's a conference for you. If you're a Holdco entrepreneur, there really wasn't a place to call your own. And our vision for Holdco is to be kind of that home base for people like us.
Josh 00:01:43 Yeah, I love that.
Josh 00:01:44 I love what you guys have started there. And I think we'll dive into that a little bit in more detail later in this podcast. But Kelcey, you've got a vast experience in e-commerce. Obviously you have a holding company that has multiple brands. You've acquired multiple e-commerce brands, you've grown them, you've scaled them. So you have a wealth of knowledge. And for our listeners that have established businesses, they're looking to take things to the next level. I think they're going to be able to learn a lot from you. So why don't we rewind the tapes a little bit? Kelcey? And why don't you tell us a little bit about how you got into the e-commerce world to begin with, and then what led to the formation of 365 holdings?
Kelcey 00:02:22 So six years ago, my partner and I, his name is Justin. I'm kind of the ideas guy, and he's kind of the executor. She's familiar with iOS. I've got the kind of visionary CEO role and he's kind of the integrator or CFO, and he and I have worked there for a long time.
Kelcey 00:02:37 And prior to e-commerce, it was kind of like, the same idea. However, instead of ideas and strategy and like execution, it was like I was the sales guy and he was like the ops guy and all of our prior businesses, but we weren't online. We've never, never run ads, never shipped products. But we had sold a business for just enough money to make a down payment on an SBA loan. We had sold a business for $100,000, which was a lot of money. We did not hold any of it aside for taxes. We put all 100 grand down on the $900,000 loan to buy the million dollar first business. That was how we got started. 60 days later, we drained the checking account and maxed out the line of credit and bought another one. And thus begins the compounding. So, Yeah, six years ago. by by two that that, spring and summer, we had always had a vision of back to the old topic, wanting to run many businesses. We wanted to have diversity.
Kelcey 00:03:30 I guess that's like, hey, what if you focused? What if you just did one thing? Could it be bigger? And my answer is like, I don't know, probably. But this is the business I want to have. I want to do many things. one of the things financially from a diversification perspective. two, I think it's fun. It's like what I want. So like, yes, this is what I'm doing. I'm sure it's like slightly less optimal than, I don't know. but six years have elapsed and today we've got 80 some employees. Six brands. we're in Akron, Ohio, and heavily vertically integrated. So we do in-house customer service, in-house ...
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley conducts a live strategy audit with eCommerce brand owner Charlie Mckenzie. They discuss advanced Amazon sales strategies, including keyword optimization, targeted PPC and product targeting ads, and leveraging Google Ads to custom Amazon Store pages for higher conversions. Josh emphasizes the importance of product innovation, catalog expansion, and understanding customer intent. Charlie receives actionable advice on improving ad efficiency, refining product listings, and sourcing new product ideas from platforms like Etsy. The episode offers practical tips for boosting Amazon performance and sustainable brand growth.
Chapters:
Introduction and Brand Overview (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Charlie and outlines the brand’s focus on a single main product with size variations.
Keyword Research and Organic Ranking (00:01:05)
Discussion on keyword research, current rankings, and strategies to move up to top organic positions.
Amazon PPC and Product Targeting Ads (00:02:07)
Advice on using PPC, especially exact match campaigns and product targeting ads against same-color competitors.
Leveraging Google Ads and Storefront Landing Pages (00:03:11)
Strategy for using Google Ads to drive traffic to custom Amazon store landing pages to improve conversions.
Reducing Competitor Distraction and Conversion Optimization (00:04:41)
Importance of removing competitor distractions on landing pages to increase conversion rates from external traffic.
Charlie’s Takeaways and Action Items (00:05:40)
Charlie shares his main takeaways, including storefront creation and renewed focus on product targeting campaigns.
Testing and Optimizing Product Targeting (00:06:51)
Guidance on setting rules for product targeting ads and turning off underperforming campaigns.
Product Innovation and Brand Expansion (00:07:34)
Discussion on the importance of ongoing product launches and not relying solely on “home run” products.
Marketplace Research and Arbitrage Opportunities (00:09:49)
Charlie discusses using marketplace research and arbitrage to identify new product opportunities.
Finding Trends Outside Amazon (00:10:48)
Advice to look for trending products on other platforms (Etsy, DTC sites) and bring them to Amazon.
Keyword Research and Listing Optimization (00:12:06)
Charlie emphasizes his focus on keyword analytics and listing optimization for organic ranking.
Focusing on Customer Needs in Sales Copy (00:12:53)
Advice to highlight the root problem the product solves, not just compare features with competitors.
Actionable Strategies Recap (00:13:46)
Summary of key strategies: product innovation, customer-focused sales copy, and price testing for profit.
Closing Remarks (00:15:47)
Final thanks and well wishes as the episode concludes.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites
Amazon PPC (Pay-Per-Click Advertising)
Google Ads
Amazon Store Builder
Data Dive
Podcast Episodes
Tyler Gregg of Ampd on LinkedIn
Transcripts:
Josh 00:00:00 Welcome to the Econ Breakthrough Podcast. I'm your host, Josh Hadley, where I interview the top business leaders in ecommerce. Today I'm speaking with Charlie Mckenzie, and we have recorded a live strategy audit session for you today. Charlie, welcome to the podcast. Thank you very much for having me on, Josh. I'm excited to be here. Awesome. At this point with Charlie Charlie's brand, he's got one skew. Well, he's got multiple skews because he's got some size variations in there, but he's got one product that is generating the sales for this brand. One of the first things that we looked at, for your brand, Charlie, was keyword research. And you're doing a great job of implementing the right search terms in your product title. In fact, you're crushing, you know, the competition in terms of the exact match keywords that you've got implemented in your title, and therefore you're actually ranked on the first page for many of those keywords. However, you're not in the top five positions right on most of those keywords.
Josh 00:01:05 And so we then went through and discussed. All right. So what are some strategies that we can employ to. You've already got traction. You're obviously indexed for some of these big keywords. How do you move them up into that 1 to 5. You know organic ranking position? One of the things that we talked about was PPC. And Charlie, you know, you've started dipping your toes in the PPC waters. Initially we talked actually a couple of months ago, and you were not running ads on Amazon. And, you know, I told you like, hey, you should definitely start running some ads on Amazon because it is going to impact your organic ranking. You've been dabbling a little bit in that. My recommendation to you from our session was that, you know, create some exact match, keyword campaigns for those keywords that you're trying to rank for number one. But then number two, one of the things that we've found a lot of success with in our business is product targeting ads on Amazon.
Josh 00:02:07 And so rather than just throwing it up against because with your particular product, there's there's other competitors that have different design variations, right. And so rather than just saying, hey, mine's beige, I'm going to go advertise on this pink one or this blue one. You the customer that's looking for a pink, product. They have a specific thought in mind. Right. Same thing. If somebody's looking for blue, like there's a reason why they clicked on the blue listing. So when it comes to setting up your product targeting ad campaigns, one of the things I would definitely recommend is only targeting those competitors that have the exact same color that you have, and you're going to get better performance that way. And what Amazon loves to see is if you can steal sales from those competitor listings, you will shoot ahead of them, on the organic ranking side, and that will allow you to increase your ranking a little bit faster there. In addition to that, we talked about some external marketing that you could be using and that is Google Ads.
Josh 00:03:11 I know you've tested this in the past, had about a 200% ACOs there, which isn't great, obviously, but we talked about an additional tactic that you could use that could increase that performance because Amazon is definitely rewarding external traffic, right? in my prior one of the prior podcast episodes, we had Tyler Gregg of Amped on the episode, and he shared some fantastic strategies of how to create Google ads and the best way to maximize, you know, the return on investment on those. One of the big takeaways from that episode is that rather than just driving traffic to your current Amazon detail page, it's going to be better to create a store landing page for yourself. But in that store landing page, you recreate almost the exact way that your detail page looks on Amazon, and there's a specific section on the store builder page that allows you to basically recreate that detail page. That's exactly what you're going to want to do. And the beauty of driving that traffic to your store landing page that is literally identical to your detail page, is that you're able to remove all of your competitors because one of the tips, or I guess, one of the statistics that Tyler shared ...
In this episode, host Josh interviews Rafael, founder of Share It Studio and a 3x Telly Award-winning Amazon marketing expert. Rafael shares strategies for building a successful brand on Amazon, emphasizing the importance of understanding your target audience, leveraging Amazon’s brand analytics, and creating high-quality, authentic content. The discussion covers Amazon’s evolving brand-building tools, including A+ content, brand stores, and social features like Posts and Live. Rafael offers actionable tips for optimizing listings and highlights the value of investing in content to boost trust and sales. Listeners also receive a special discount on Share It Studio services.
Chapters:
Introduction & Rafael’s Background (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Rafael, his achievements, and Share It Studio’s success with Amazon listings.
Mentorship & Entering Amazon Marketing (00:00:38)
Rafael discusses the value of mentorship and how he transitioned into Amazon marketing.
The Importance of Brand Building (00:02:36)
Josh highlights Rafael's results and asks where sellers should start with brand building and content.
Identifying Your Amazon Audience (00:03:09)
Rafael explains the need to analyze data and understand the differences between Amazon and other e-commerce audiences.
Using Amazon’s Brand Tools (00:04:02)
Discussion on Amazon’s brand analytics, content tools, and the importance of creating a brand experience.
Amazon’s Social Features & Custom Content (00:05:22)
Rafael emphasizes using Amazon’s social features (Posts, Live, Follow) and creating custom content for holidays and trends.
Three Actionable Takeaways for Sellers (00:06:57)
Josh summarizes three key actions: analyze data, update content based on findings, and prioritize/testing content types.
Content Quality Reflects Product Quality (00:10:03)
Rafael stresses that high-quality, authentic content signals product quality to buyers, especially for sensitive categories.
Final Thoughts & Influences (00:11:17)
Rafael shares his admiration for Gary Vee and Carlos, and the importance of helping others in the e-commerce space.
How to Connect with Share It Studio (00:12:55)
Rafael provides contact info, offers a complimentary consultation, and a special discount for podcast listeners.
Closing Remarks & Bonus Offer (00:14:00)
Josh and Rafael wrap up, highlighting the 15% discount for listeners who mention the podcast.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites:
Share It Studio
Amazon Brand Registry
Amazon Live Videos
Instagram
Contact Information:
Email: hello@shareitstudio.com
Influential Figures:
Gary Vaynerchuk (Gary Vee) on LinkedIn
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I am super excited to introduce you to Rafael. Rafael is the founder of Share It Studio. He is A3X Telly Award winning entrepreneur in marketing and film. He has 13 plus years of marketing experience, five of which are specialized in Amazon marketing. Sherritt studio sets itself apart as a boutique agency with a high level, data driven approach and bespoke full package services. The studio boasts 500 plus successful Amazon listings, with an average sales increase of 77% within the first month of launching. So welcome to the show, Rafael.
Rafael 00:00:38 Josh, thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it. What you were saying about finding somebody to help you. it's the best way I found out. I did the exact same thing with my mentors. Is Josh Nelson right here? Okay, so what you're offering is actually very, very, very good. I highly recommend that anybody that's, you know, listen to this. I met Josh in person. Super cool guy. you should definitely at least talk to him.
Rafael 00:01:02 maybe you're not ready, but maybe within a month, you know you'll hit the target and you'll be ready to to to, you know, reach out to Josh and he can help you scale your business. But if if somebody has a blueprint, why would you want to, like, go sideways if somebody knows what it's going to happen? He's going to tell you, like, hey, you might run into this and this is what you have to do instead of you bouncing your head against the wall, you know?
Josh 00:01:27 So true. Rafael, I guess I need to pay you that $100 now. Slide that under the table there.
Rafael 00:01:33 No, this is not paid advertising. In no way whatsoever. It's just that I really I was I was super I am so stubborn that I, when I had my company, I was working for Nickelodeon at the time, and, I was, coordinator for post-production for Latin America. And I'm like, you know, at that time, my ego was just stupid.
Rafael 00:01:55 and I was like, no, I don't need anybody's help with this. I can do myself, blah, blah, blah, blah. I'm just gonna apply for all the awards. I'm just gonna get all the awards and, you know, blah, blah, blah blah. And at some point I was like, oh my God, I'm really struggling, I need help. And a friend told me, a friend who's very much more successful than me with an agency. He's like, hey, man, I reached my million dollar mark, but I can't. I can't grow anymore. I don't seem to be growing. And he does completely different marketing. He does marketing for cleaning companies. I met this dude, and I really think you should meet him, and, you know, yada yada, yada. And Josh is the the the one of the reason why I went into the Amazon space.
Josh 00:02:36 Well, Rafael, you've got a lot of experience obviously, in marketing. I mean, the statistics that you shared that, you know, as you've worked with over 500 different Amazon listings, you've been able to increase sales by 77%.
Josh 00:02:50 That's a large amount. What should an Amazon seller or just an e-commerce seller? They're on the on board with you in terms of like they know they need to build a brand, but where do they even begin right to in terms of building out their content? They believe that brands are important. So like where do you start with all of this?
Rafael 00:03:09 yes. That's a great question. It's a great, great question. it depends on the at what stage of your Amazon journey you're at. but if, let's say you're a seven figure seller, so you definitely have some, some, some data. even if you're selling an e-commerce or Shopify, you have data there. social media, which are your top followers? The tricky thing is that the the people who buy off of Amazon are not the exact same people who buy somewhere else. So even though you kind of simulate, some of my clients actually have a complete buyer persona on Shopify, then they have on Amazon.
Josh 00:03:46 Interesting.
Rafael 00:03:47 Yeah, it's super interesting.
Rafael 00:03:48 Interesting. So if you have a seven figure seller on Amazon, you definitely have brand registry, which gives you brand analytics. Now let's understand the actual consumer. Who's the consumer who's buying from you. is it is it a male or is it a female?
Josh 00:04:02 The first step is for you to identify who this audience is, right? Like who is the buyer for this particular product, because then that's going to change the way that you're merchandising your product, right? The images that you're creating. And then you also kind of dove into, you know, utilizing those tools, that Amazon has now done, I think, over the last two years, like Amazon has been...
In this episode, host Josh interviews Aaron Hovivian, CEO of The Collab Team, about scaling operations for entrepreneurs and solopreneurs. Aaron shares his journey from retail and corporate project management to founding his own operations consultancy. The discussion covers the importance of identifying strengths, implementing operating systems like EOS, and documenting SOPs to streamline growth from seven to eight figures. Aaron offers practical advice for overcoming operational bottlenecks and introduces his Ops Experts Club resource hub. The episode provides actionable steps for business owners looking to delegate effectively and build scalable, efficient operations.
Chapters:
Introduction & Aaron’s Background (00:00:00)
Aaron shares his entrepreneurial roots, early jobs, and inspiration from his father’s business journey.
Discovering a Passion for Operations (00:00:49)
Aaron describes his natural inclination for improving systems and his transition from retail to project management.
First Entrepreneurial Leap & Founding The Collab Team (00:01:35)
Aaron recounts leaving a stable job to help a friend’s business, marking the start of The Collab Team.
Systems Thinking & Early Genius (00:02:54)
Discussion about always thinking in systems and the importance of operating in one’s zone of genius.
Complexity in Growth & The Value of Operations (00:03:31)
Aaron explains how business growth brings complexity and the need to streamline through operations.
The Power of Delegation & Operating Systems (00:03:48)
Aaron introduces the concept of “Delegate and Elevate” from EOS and the importance of SOPs.
Why Operations Matter for Scaling (00:04:37)
Aaron discusses why operations are crucial for entrepreneurs aiming to scale from seven to eight figures.
Visionaries vs. Operators: Identifying Strengths (00:05:02)
Aaron explains the difference between visionary entrepreneurs and those skilled in operations.
Common Pitfalls in Delegation & Team Structure (00:06:17)
Challenges entrepreneurs face when delegating without clear processes or team roles.
Intentionality & Backward Planning (00:07:06)
The importance of planning from the end goal backward to reduce daily frustrations.
Operations as a Business Pillar (00:07:33)
Josh compares operations to a three-legged stool, emphasizing its equal importance with sales and vision.
Implementing Operating Systems & Frameworks (00:08:02)
Josh shares his experience implementing operating systems and frameworks like EOS and Scalable.
Entrepreneurial Profiles & The Kolbe Assessment (00:08:56)
Discussion about the Kolbe assessment and how most entrepreneurs are high quick starts, not high follow-through.
Three Actionable Takeaways for Entrepreneurs (00:09:33)
Josh summarizes three steps: set your goal, do a time study/gap analysis, and document SOPs for delegation.
Aaron’s Additional Advice: Start with the Highest Burn (00:11:15)
Aaron advises tackling the most painful or draining tasks first to maximize relief and ROI.
Ops Experts Club Gift & Resources (00:12:27)
Aaron introduces the Ops Experts Club, offering free access and tools like the Gap Analyzer for listeners.
Closing Remarks & Gratitude (00:14:31)
Josh and Aaron wrap up, expressing appreciation and encouraging entrepreneurs to leverage operations for growth.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites
Ops Experts Club on Facebook
Gap Analyzer
Books
Traction by Gino Wickman on Amazon
Assessments
Kolbe Assessment
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I'm super excited to introduce you to Aaron Hovivian, the CEO and Project Lead at the Collaborative Team Management, or AKA the Collab Team. So welcome to the podcast, Aaron.
Aaron 00:00:11 Hey Josh, thanks for having me man. So good to be here.
Josh 00:00:13 Aaron, you've got a lot of experience. As we can see in operations, you've helped grow solopreneurs into multifaceted eight figure brands and helping scale people beyond that. Aaron, let's back things up and tell me, like, how did you even get started in operations? Why is that your specialty?
Aaron 00:00:31 Yeah, I you know, so growing up, my dad was an entrepreneur. My dad was entrepreneurial, you know, and I saw him going out there starting his own business. For him, it was construction for him. He, you know, he had been working for some big guys doing construction in Southern California, you know, for his whole career. And at the age of 40, you know, he said, hey, I'm going to go out and do this on my own.
Aaron 00:00:49 He was able to build this empire for himself. You know, of 85 people doing, you know, high rise construction ceilings in LA in Orange County. And I think inspired by his journey, I think is what inspired me. But I noticed me all growing up, you know, from my earliest jobs. I started working in skateboard snowboard shops as a kid, you know, but even there I did a lot of retail just starting out. A lot of kids do, you know. But I noticed about me is that I'm always pulling apart systems. Like, I'm always wondering, how could we tweak that? How could we make that better? Rolling into businesses that don't have training manuals and building train training manuals, you know, looking at their POS system to see how they're dealing with point of sale, like wondering how the customer journey is going to be and just compliment to you, Josh, even just the sequencing of your automations, of sending the invite to this just to be on this podcast, I was like, that guy gets it.
Aaron 00:01:35 Like, let's make the customer journey easy. Like, let's take out of the way the encumbrances or the stumbling blocks. And so I think that's been my journey all the way through. right before I started the Colab team, I was doing project management for a large credit union here in our area in southern Oregon. And I was doing a lot with construction, project management, but also project management within the organization and helping with new platforms, coming online and managing teams and I had my first entrepreneur knock on my door and say, hey, he had been a friend of mine for a lot of years. His name is Keith Yaki. He's got a great brand out there. He did real estate for a lot of years, and now he's leaning into something he calls the married game. But Keith Yaki knocked on my door and he said, hey, what would you think about leaving the credit union and coming out and doing this thing with me? I need somebody that just gets operations. You know, they were doing a big bus tours, fix and flip education brand, and he was like, I, I've got all the knowledge, I've got all the education.
Aaron 00:02:25 I've laid out the whole program. I know it's going to work, but I'm super nervous about the details. What would you think about taking a step with me in this? And so that became my first client for the Colab team, and I left something super stable and kind of like my dad, you know, this, this corporate gig that, you know, had been around for 50 years. They'll be around for 50 more. They loved me being there. I loved them as people. But I just saw that desire in my heart of, I want more than that. I want to be entrepreneurial. I want to get out there and get out onto my own brand, on my own two feet and take things to the next level. And so that's kind of what started me down the journey.
Josh 00:02:54 I love that, I love that, you know, from an early age, you were always kind of like pulling things apart. Trying to figure ...
John is the Brand Evangelist at PickFu and Founder and CEO of Aspy, he helps businesses make data-driven decisions to optimize their product listings and marketing strategies on Amazon.
Highlight Bullets
> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews John Aspinall, brand evangelist at Pickfu and CEO of ASPY. They discuss the critical importance of optimizing main images for Amazon product listings to boost click-through rates (CTR). John emphasizes that a compelling hero image is crucial for attracting clicks, likening it to the exterior of a house. He shares insights into consumer behavior, stressing the need for data-driven decisions and continuous testing. The episode concludes with actionable takeaways for improving CTR and sales, highlighting the role of visual elements and the impact of tariffs on product costs.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to ...
In this episode, Chad Franzen interviews Josh and Becca Hadley about their journey working together as a married couple. They share insights into balancing business and family life, setting boundaries, and defining clear roles. The Hadleys discuss the joys and challenges of entrepreneurship as partners, offer advice for couples considering a joint venture, and highlight the importance of communication, shared vision, and prioritizing their relationship. Personal anecdotes reveal their daily routines, family priorities, and fun facts about each other, providing an honest look at blending marriage and business.
Chapters:
Introduction and Guest Welcome (00:00:00)
Chad Frandsen is introduced as the interviewer; Becca and Josh Hadley are welcomed to the podcast.
Working with Your Spouse: Initial Thoughts (00:00:21)
Becca and Josh share their experiences and feelings about working together as a married couple.
Early Days of the Business (00:01:54)
Josh describes how they started working together, their routines, and the excitement of building the business.
Balancing Roles and Avoiding Friction (00:03:29)
Discussion on the importance of clarifying roles and responsibilities to prevent conflicts.
Work-Life Boundaries and Daily Routines (00:04:46)
Chad asks about setting workday boundaries; Becca and Josh explain their flexible approach and daily schedules.
Family Priorities and Involvement (00:07:01)
Josh emphasizes prioritizing family, coaching kids’ sports, and the importance of being present as parents.
Advice Received About Working Together (00:08:24)
Becca and Josh recall advice they received about working as a couple and the importance of maintaining balance.
Advice for Couples Considering Business Together (00:10:23)
Josh and Becca offer advice to couples thinking about starting a business together, stressing clear roles and shared vision.
Working from Home: Pros and Cons (00:12:39)
They discuss working from home, its benefits, challenges, and how it affects their work-life transition.
Personal Insights: About Each Other (00:13:43)
Chad asks Becca and Josh to share something listeners wouldn’t know about the other, revealing personal and fun facts.
Closing Remarks (00:15:52)
Chad wraps up the interview, thanks the guests, and offers best wishes.
Links and Mentions:
Company/Tool:
Rise 25
Book/Quote:
No success in the world can compensate for failure in the home
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I'm excited to introduce to you. I have two special guests with me. We have my wife, Becca Hadley, and then we have Chad Franzen here of rise 25, who has done hundreds of interviews with successful entrepreneurs and CEOs. We have flipped the script, and he is going to be interviewing Becca and I today. So welcome to the podcast, Chad.
Chad 00:00:21 Hey, thanks so much, Josh. Great to be here with both of you. So, Becca, what is it like working with your spouse?
Becca 00:00:28 Yeah, I love it. I know almost every single person I talk to always says, I don't know how you do that, or that didn't work for me or were divorced or whatever it is. We I think it's been one of the best things for us. I think we had a strong foundation before we began working with each other, and it kind of started off slow. And Josh was working in corporate America. We were working together at night, but for us, it's been it's been fun.
Becca 00:00:51 It's been our hobby, I think since both of us are doing what we love, it's very fulfilling and then even more fulfilling to do it together. I think one of my favorite things is just the opportunity to, like, travel together to different conferences like we've had so many like couples trips that are business trips. and it's been so fun. We've seen so many places together. I think we're also learning new things together at the conferences we go to and the things that we listen to, the podcast, everything that we do together. So I think it takes our relationship even to the next level, which is really fun. Now, that's not to say that it's always easy. We definitely have our frustrations or our arguments or sometimes, like when we're on a date. In my head, I'm like, stop talking about the business, let's be on a date. So it's just finding a balance and making sure that, like in our relationship that we have like family time specifically and date nights and business time.
Becca 00:01:41 And for us, honestly, it has been an incredible blessing. I've loved every minute of it.
Chad 00:01:45 So great. Yeah. Why don't we get back to that in just a minute? Kind of the the boundaries or whatever, like work and home or whatever. But, Josh, what are your thoughts on working with your wife?
Josh 00:01:54 Yeah, I think that it's been an amazing experience. And I think that, like Becca talked about, it's Is important for us. I think it like has actually brought us closer together because we've been working on like a similar vision. Like I would say, like kids brings you together, right? You and your spouse together on like a similar vision of like, we want our children to to succeed, but also with the business. We want our business to succeed. And so it's been fun. Like I like Becca mentioned, like it was what was it literally a year after we had been married or like, yeah, it was one year after we had been married was when we kind of like got started into the business and working together.
Josh 00:02:36 And it was fun. You know, we didn't have kids at the time. We had a child on the way at the time, but for us, it our kind of life looked like this. I would come home from work at American Airlines, and then we would sit down together at night. And at the time I could have a TV show on in the background and be all right with that. But we would put on something fun, and then we would just be working together and we would be chatting and saying, hey, look at this cool thing I found. You know, hey, you know, and at the time, we were working with custom wedding invitations and brides. And so it was always like whenever we got to sell or somebody paid their deposit or they got booked on the calendar, it was like this big win. And I'd go run over and tell them, it's like, we got another one. And it was just like an exciting time for us. And, you know, we would stay up late into the evenings until like one, two in the morning, just working on the business together.
Josh 00:03:29 But we loved it and that's what our life revolved around. And and now as we have children because of the, you know, hard work, I think that we put forth early on, it's paying dividends in terms of us being able to be more present at their sporting events and having more flexibility in our schedule. But to Becca's point as well, like, it hasn't just been all rainbows and unicorns, not necessarily like there's there's friction at times. Right. And that friction, a lot of it comes down to, you know, are we on the same page in terms of like the vision and where we're going with the business, but also like in clarifying our roles? I think that's been one of the most important things, like if Becca were trying to be the CEO as well and she were like super possessive of like, this is my business, I have to be the CEO. Then that could cause a lot of friction. And I feel like that's what happens a lot of times is you've got a husband and wife and they don't necessarily clarify the roles.
Josh 00:04:27 They're like, I want to be the leader. I want to be the leader. And then they both start stepping on each other's toes. But because Becca does so well a...
Josh started his career at American Airlines (AA) and spent 5 years in their MBA leadership development program. Josh’s experience at AA further refined his leadership abilities and strategic decision making skills. While employed at AA Josh and his wife Becca started Hadley Designs. As the CEO of Hadley Designs, Josh led the business to gross $100,000+ in revenue within it’s first year and in 2022 Hadley Designs crossed the eight figure mark, grossing over $10,000,000 in revenue.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this podcast episode, the speaker, an experienced entrepreneur and host of the "Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast," shares a detailed seven-step process for hiring management-level staff using AI tools. The speaker emphasizes the importance of conducting a time study to allocate hiring resources effectively, creating detailed role profiles and scorecards, and leveraging AI tools like ChatGPT for efficiency. They discuss innovative techniques such as group interviews and AI-driven resume screening to streamline the hiring process. By implementing rigorous vetting processes and thorough reference checks, the speaker provides actionable insights for scaling businesses to eight figures and beyond.
Here are 3 short, actionable takeaways from the podcast summary:
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Josh Hadley 00:00:00 Today, I'm going to be walking through how we're going to be leveraging AI to hire management level staff anywhere in the world. Okay. And I'm going to be showing you guys kind of the filters, everything that we've set up. There's a lot to dissect in 20 minutes. So we're going to be flying through all of this. But the good news is Jim and Mimi, those two things that you talked about AI and hiring leaders, like, that's exactly what I'm talking about today. All right. So this is the easy way to use AI to find incredible management level contractors overseas. as Bryce mentioned. Who am I? So first and foremost, father of four, husband to a beautiful wife. We had a baby six months ago. Five months ago. His name is Harvey and Harper. She's the one here. She's a she's my second and she's six years old. So happy to have her with us. And then we started our brand on Amazon back in 2016. We've been an eight figure brand on Amazon for three years straight now and then.
Josh Hadley 00:00:49 I'm also the host of the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast, where I share strategies to scale from 7 to 8 figures and beyond in the e-commerce world. All right. So first up, I want to share a story. So all of us have heard the amazing opportunity to go higher $3 an hour. Filipinos that can revolutionize our business, right? Everybody's talked about that. Okay, so this was me back in 2017 being like, oh, everybody's hiri...
In this Throwback episode, host Josh interviews patent attorney Rich Goldstein about the importance of intellectual property (IP) protection for businesses, especially e-commerce sellers. Rich explains the differences between copyrights, design patents, utility patents, and trademarks, highlighting why registering trademarks in China is crucial for those sourcing products there. They discuss how IP protection helps prevent copycats, increases business value, and is essential for a successful exit. Rich also shares actionable tips for building an IP strategy and recommends resources for further learning. The episode concludes with advice on connecting with top experts in the Amazon and e-commerce space.
Chapters:
Introduction to Rich Goldstein and His Background (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Rich Goldstein, his experience, and his role in helping businesses obtain patent protection.
Josh’s IP Mistake and the Importance of Early Protection (00:01:39)
Josh shares his mistake of not getting IP protection early and discusses the risks of product copying on Amazon.
Copyrights vs. Design Patents for Product Protection (00:02:56)
Rich explains the difference between copyrights and design patents, and when each is applicable for product protection.
The Importance of Registering Trademarks in China (00:04:33)
Discussion about the risks of not registering trademarks in China and the potential consequences for e-commerce sellers.
Understanding Utility Patents (00:06:16)
Rich explains what utility patents are, what they protect, and how they differ from design patents.
Three Actionable IP Takeaways for Entrepreneurs (00:08:44)
Josh summarizes three key IP action items: trademarks, patents, and the value of IP for business exits.
The Value of an IP Budget and Learning About IP (00:10:25)
Rich emphasizes budgeting for IP as a business grows and the importance of entrepreneurs educating themselves about IP.
Recommended Thought Leaders in E-commerce (00:12:06)
Rich shares names of influential people and groups in the e-commerce and Amazon seller space.
Where to Find Rich Goldstein and His Resources (00:14:32)
Rich provides information on where listeners can find his website, book, podcast, and event updates.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites
Goldstein Patent Law
Books
The ABA Consumer Guide to Obtaining a Patent
Podcasts
Innovations and Breakthroughs Podcast
Notable Individuals and Groups
Kevin King
Brandon Young
Titan Group
Norm Farrar
Danny McMillan
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today, I'm excited to introduce to you Rich Goldstein, who is on a mission to connect, protect, and educate. He helps small businesses, startups, and in e-commerce and digital marketers and inventors in their quest to obtain patent protection. Along with his team of attorneys. He counsels individual inventors and startups regarding the best steps to take for patent protection and when patent protection is available. Over the past 28 years, he has obtained more than £2,000 for his clients. And Rich is the host of the Innovations and Breakthroughs podcast and is the author of The Consumer Guide to Obtaining a Patent, published by the American Bar Association. So Rich, welcome to the podcast.
Rich 00:00:46 Thanks so much, Josh. Thanks. Thanks for the warm introduction. And and really great to be on your podcast.
Josh 00:00:51 Rich, I'm happy to say that we are a part of that number of 2000 plus, you know, patent successful patterns that you've been able to obtain and counting. Right.
Rich 00:01:03 And counting.
Josh 00:01:03 Yep. So thank you for your help and helping us get some of those design patterns that we've received for our business.
Josh 00:01:10 So rich. Absolutely is the man.
Rich 00:01:12 Absolutely. My pleasure. It's really exciting to see kind of what we're creating there in your company in terms of, asset value and protection, you know, against competitors. So, it's really cool. And someday we'll, we'll do a, you know, a Harvard business case study of some kind, to, you know, to take a look at what we've created here. I think it's pretty awesome.
Josh 00:01:39 Well, I think that's the hope for both you and I that we're creating some significant value in the long run. Now, Rich, I shared this on previous podcast episodes as I shared some of the mistakes that I've made along my journey. One of those mistakes that I've made was not getting IP protection whatsoever for many of our products for four years, right? We literally went for in our business for four years before, you know, you and I fortunately met. And you're like, dude, you've got to start doing something here. And we had a great conversation.
Josh 00:02:13 And now that we started getting copyrights issued for all of our products and then design design patents for some of our products, it's allowed us to actually protect more of our products, because prior to that, as many sellers know, as soon as you launch a product on Amazon, it's months, you know, sometimes as quick as a month later, sometimes 3 to 6 months later, you've got somebody copying your idea and being able to have something to protect yourself and even potentially get some of those other people knocked off or, you know, shut down their listings, I think is essential, especially as Amazon and e-commerce in general becomes more and more competitive. Would you agree with that, Rich?
Rich 00:02:56 Yeah, absolutely I agree, and it's funny you mentioned that, like, you, you could put something up there for a month and then you'll find the competition and it's, it's almost as if. Well, I mean, it is as if there are tools that say, you know, copy this or copy that.
Rich 00:03:10 There are analytics tools that, that, that point people in the direction of you when you're doing well. And so it's it's almost as if you're the software telling people, copy this guy, you know, and and so it really is, important to create as much of a moat as possible around, around what you're doing to prevent other people from, from copying you. and, you know, it's interesting to, like, in your case, like, a lot of your products are kind of content oriented, that copyrights are an option. for a lot of product ideas, copyrights are not really an option. They don't really provide, you know, covers don't provide protection for ideas. They provide protection for content type expression and then design patents, which you mentioned. Two are for the ornamental appearance for a product. The the look of a product. and I'd say the design patents are an issue for a lot are not an issue or an option for a lot of, sellers. Like if you have a product that has a unique look to it, then design patents are a good way to prevent other people from knocking you off by making a product that looks just like yours.
Rich 00:04:24 So, you know, they're both effective tools, for protecting you on Amazon. So, yeah, I agree with all of that.<...
Andrew co-founded Reason Automation after years at Amazon, working on their retail and vendor businesses. There, he learned data wasn’t just a resource—it was the backbone of every decision being made. To be successful, you had to dive into the numbers yourself, without a team of analysts to rely on. That hands-on experience shaped his approach to data and inspired him to create a company that helps other businesses tap into the power of their own analytics.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Andrew Hamada, co-founder of Recent Automation. They discuss two pivotal factors for scaling e-commerce businesses: effective data analytics and task prioritization. Andrew, leveraging his experience at Amazon, emphasizes the importance of transforming data into actionable insights without getting overwhelmed. He advises entrepreneurs to focus on key tasks that drive growth and to understand product-level profitability. The episode also highlights the necessity of regular monitoring and the value of constructive feedback in leadership. This conversation offers invaluable guidance for scaling seven-figure brands to eight figures and beyond.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Here are the mentions with timestamps arranged by topic:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Josh Hadley 00:00:00 Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast. I'm your host, Josh Hadley, where I interview the top business leaders in e-commerce. Past guests include Kevin King, Aaron Cordovez, and Michael E Gerber, author of the E-myth. Today I am speaking with Andrew Hamada, and today we are going to be talking about the two things that are going to set you and your business apart from the competition and allow your brand to be able to scale and win in today's competitive environment. This episode is brought to you by Ecomm Breakthrough, where I specialize in investing in and scaling seven figure ecommerce brands to eight figures and beyond. If you're an ambitious e-commerce entrepreneur looking for a partner or coach who can help take your business to the next level, reach out to me at Ecomm Breakthrough. Com. That's ecom with two ends and let's turn your dreams into reality. Today I am excited to introduce you all to Andrew Hamada. Andrew co-founded Recent Automation after years at Amazon working on their retail and vendor businesses. There, he learned data wasn't just a resource, it was the backbone of every decision being made.
Josh Hadley 00:00:52&nbs...
In this Throwback episode, host Josh interviews Steven Pope from My Amazon Guy about advanced strategies for Amazon sellers, especially those with mature or seven-figure brands. Steven details the importance of focusing on SEO, PPC, merchandising, and design, and explains why SEO should be continuously optimized. He shares a case study on using Amazon’s search query performance report to find untapped keywords, and discusses practical tactics like updating product images and A/B testing. The episode wraps up with Steven’s favorite business resources and advice to take action and keep improving your Amazon business.
Chapters:
Introduction & Episode Overview (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Steven Pope and sets up the discussion on advanced Amazon content strategies for mature brands.
The Four Pillars of Amazon Success (00:00:40)
Steven outlines the four key areas: SEO, PPC, merchandising, and design, emphasizing their importance for traffic and conversion.
Challenges Facing Amazon Sellers (00:02:10)
Discussion of increased competition, shrinking margins, and the need to focus on fundamentals instead of hacks or blackhat tactics.
Deep Dive: SEO is Not Set-and-Forget (00:03:51)
Steven explains his multi-phase SEO approach and stresses the importance of continuous optimization.
Case Study: Using Search Query Performance Report (00:04:12)
Steven introduces the ICAP marketing funnel and demonstrates how to use Amazon’s search query performance report to find valuable keywords.
Market Share Growth Example (00:06:18)
Steven shares a real-world example of tripling market share for a previously overlooked keyword using data-driven SEO.
Image Optimization & A/B Testing (00:08:15)
Discussion on improving product images (e.g., adding age ranges) and the impact on click-through rates, with a live example.
Implementing Data-Driven Content Changes (00:09:59)
How to use search data to inform content updates, including A/B testing and targeting specific demographics.
Three Actionable Takeaways (00:11:30)
Josh summarizes key steps: analyze search query data, implement keyword-driven content changes, and A/B test main images and A+ content.
Favorite Business Book (00:13:17)
Steven shares his most influential book, "The Road Less Stupid," and its impact on his decision-making.
Favorite Productivity Tool (00:13:48)
Steven discusses his upcoming productivity tool, Hybrid, and mentions the value of tools like Calendly.
Recommended Ecommerce Influencer (00:14:33)
Steven recommends following Harry Joiner for unique ecommerce insights and strategy frameworks.
Final Words of Wisdom (00:15:18)
Steven encourages listeners to take action and shares his contact info for feedback and stories.
Podcast Closing (00:15:41)
Josh thanks Steven for joining the podcast and wraps up the episode.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Resources
Seller Central
Pickfu
Calendly
Books
The Road Less Stupid
Traction
Scaling Up
People to Follow
Harry Joiner on LinkedIn
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I'm speaking with Steven Pope of my Amazon guy, and we will be talking a lot about content, strategies and how to uplevel your game on Amazon to capture more traffic and drive more revenue. We talked about this prior to recording Hitting the record button on this podcast, but I want to learn from you. And our audience is going to be interested, Steven, to learn. What would you recommend? Seven figure sellers and those that are maybe experienced on Amazon? They have a mature brand, so to speak. What should they be focusing on? Amazon, especially knowing where, you know, kind of the puck is going in the future with Amazon where things are going. What strategies would you recommend sellers be implementing right now?
Steven 00:00:40 Anything that generates traffic and improves conversion rates. Full stop. That's it. That's all you got to focus on those two basic parameters. Now I can break those two down one layer deeper. Yep. Under traffic there's PPC and SEO and under conversion there's merchandising and design. So those four pillars make up E-commerce on Amazon.
Steven 00:01:01 And so as we continue to go down even a layer further. Content production is the most underrated, easiest thing to do. As an Amazon seller that is being abandoned. Now, obviously there's a lot of cardinal rules of Amazon. Like never go out of stock. That's cardinal rule number one. And cardinal rule number two is kind of like cardinal rule number one. Don't go out of stock. Right. And so like those are important concepts. But when we look down to the very basics of how to sell more products to more people, more often for more money, it comes back to those four pillars SEO, PPC, design and merchandising. And if you were ignoring 1 or 2, maybe even three of those protocols, you're in a world of hurt right now. You are losing to the Chinese who are hacking your accounts and your listings. You are losing to Amazon's policies, who are clamping down and making it harder to be on the platform. You are losing to your Are competitors who are in a death spiral with margin problems, but are still lowering their prices because consumer demand is down and inflation is like 27%, despite what the government claims.
Steven 00:02:10 Whatever the government says, triple it. That's the true inflation rate. And so people's margins are shrinking. Policies are harder. Competition is steeper. Let's throw aggregators into the mix too. They're buying up all the brands and then, you know, really messing with the marketplace. And and so like all of these things make it so that Amazon is entering the maturity phase. So it was a seven figure Amazon seller. You need to get back down to the basics. Ignore all of the hacks. Do this two step URL. Everything will be fine. Yeah. Then your next hey do rebates and then all of a sudden you're you're banned right. Or or incentivized reviews. And then what happens. Right. All of these things are against policy and they are blackhat tactics. Stick to the basics SEO, PPC, design, merchandising. If you're trying to violate the basics by overcoming them with alternative options, you're going to reap alternative benefits. And those are not good benefits.
Josh 00:03:11 That's a fantastic breakdown. I love that you, you know, gave us a layer deeper there.
Josh 00:03:15 You know, you have the traffic and then the conversion. Then you gave us basically four kind of areas that seven figure sellers or anybody in general on Amazon should be focused on. So, Steven, I would love for us to dive in to each of these, you know, individually. Let's talk about SEO. What are some quick wins that we could do with SEO, PPC, you know, and then we can really dive into the merchandising and the design, because that's where I think a lot of that content strategy that you talked about is going to make a big impact. But let's start at SEO. What are some quick wins and things that we should be focused on?
Steven 00:03:51 SEO has, in my opinion, a multiple phase approach. It's not SEO is not set it and forget it. SEO is not set it and forget it. SEO is in fact the opposite of that. SEO is. Let me optimize it continuously. Therefore, if you buy that paradigm, it'll shift how you make content.
Ste...
Brandon is a seasoned Amazon entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of Innovate, and he is the driving force behind a successful Kitchenware Brand with years of experience building and scaling e-commerce businesses. Brandon brings a unique perspective, shaped by both his entrepreneurial journey and his background as an attorney. Today we're going to be diving into his business. What is he doing with the challenges we're all faced with tariffs and Amazon fees and increasing competition? He's going to be sharing his journey and his tips and strategies he's implementing in his business today.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Brandon Fuhrmann, Amazon entrepreneur and co-founder of Innovate. Brandon shares advanced strategies for scaling e-commerce brands, including optimizing pricing, ad spend, and product listings amid rising tariffs and fierce competition. He discusses leveraging international markets, building a lean team, and the importance of continuous product innovation. Brandon also offers actionable insights on legal protections, customer feedback, and multichannel expansion. Listeners gain practical, high-level tactics to drive profitability and resilience, plus an exclusive invitation to the Innovate conference for elite sellers aiming to reach 8 figures and beyond.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Play the Price–Ad Spend Game: Adjust pricing & PPC together. Drop prices to rank faster, then raise and boost ads to keep momentum.
Keep Listings Fresh: Constantly update images & copy based on split tests and customer feedback. Have backups ready to pivot fast.
Diversify or Die: Sell in multiple marketplaces (EU, CA, Walmart, Shopify) so you can shift inventory when tariffs or demand change.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
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 Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Brandon 00:00:00 When you look at profitability, there's the two biggest levers are really pricing and ad spend. Right. So you can you can price your product cheap and have lower ad spend and make the same amount as having a price that's expensive. But you've got to pump the ad spend, right. So it's kind of a fine balance between the two and kind of seeing, you know, can I lower ad spend here but keep pricing the same? Can I lower pricing and then lower AD spend to make up for that.
Host 00:00:24 Right. Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast. Are you ready to unlock the full potential and growth in your business? You've already crossed seven figures in sales, but the challenge is knowing how to take your business to the next level.
Josh 00:00:37 Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast...
In this episode, host Josh interviews Steve Simonsen, CEO of SYMO Global, about strategies for private label sellers and brands facing economic challenges like inflation, rising Amazon fees, and shrinking margins. Steve shares actionable advice on SKU-level profitability analysis, disciplined inventory management, negotiating with suppliers, and liquidating slow-moving products. He emphasizes the importance of understanding financial statements and maintaining financial discipline. The conversation offers practical tips for navigating uncertain demand and highlights the need for proactive, data-driven decision-making to thrive during tough economic times.
Chapters:
Introduction & Economic Context (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Steve Simonsen and sets the stage: inflation, rising Amazon fees, squeezed margins, and a pending recession.
State of the Economy & Inventory Focus (00:00:55)
Steve discusses the reality of the recession, economic slowdown, and the importance of managing inventory on the balance sheet.
SKU-Level Profitability & Declining Unit Sales (00:02:03)
Emphasis on granular SKU-level profitability analysis and the impact of declining unit sales despite higher top-line revenue.
Supplier Negotiations & Cost Control (00:04:04)
Strategies for negotiating with suppliers, leveraging currency shifts, and pushing back on costs to improve margins.
Inventory Valuation & Trash to Cash (00:05:58)
Advice on devaluing inventory, taking write-offs, and converting slow-moving inventory into cash.
Liquidation Strategies & Q4 Considerations (00:07:21)
How to liquidate inventory, use Q4 for retail-value sales, and categorize inventory for effective action.
Actionable Takeaways Recap (00:08:46)
Josh summarizes three actionable takeaways: SKU-level analysis, turning trash to cash, and cautious inventory forecasting.
Financial Discipline & Mindset (00:11:06)
Steve stresses the importance of understanding financials, cash flow, and developing discipline during tough economic times.
Closing Thoughts & Contact Info (00:13:44)
Final advice on mindset, encouragement for entrepreneurs, and where to follow or contact Steve.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites
Parsimony
Additional Resources
Steve Simonsen on LinkedIn
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 Today I'm speaking with Steve Simonsen, owner and CEO of SYMO Global. Steve, you've got such great experience. You have. It sounds like a great network in terms of supplier relationships. Because of your vast experience with SYMO Global, you've already got so many different contacts in those different countries as we were in a difficult economic period right now. Right. We have inflation that's been going up. Amazon fees continue to go up, right. margins are getting squeezed. And then we have this pending recession on our hands where consumers are starting to pull back on some of the consumer spending. I think we're seeing that. I want to ask what you're seeing from your perspective. And then for our audience that are established brands that want to take it to the next level. What should they be doing? What strategies should they be employing over the next little while?
Steve 00:00:55 Gosh, yeah, that's there's a lot in there. And the truth is, like we're already in a recession, right? It doesn't matter what the politicians say.
Steve 00:01:04 It matters only what the numbers say. And the numbers are very clear, right? There is a slowdown, not just a slowdown, a reduction of economic output. And that doesn't mean the world's coming to an end. It just means there are some economic, reasonable laws that have to be dealt with. Right. It's like gravity. You can't argue whether gravity exists or not. It's there and you have to deal with it. So, what that means to us is like dealing with, you know, a reducing kind of economy and an increasing level of inflation. This is the ultimate squeeze. Nobody wants to see it, but where it's upon us. So we're we're we approached this from a very disciplined mathematics perspective. Like we especially we look at the balance sheet. It's like what is the biggest thing on the balance sheet we need to manage. And for private label sellers it's all about inventory, right? There's nothing bigger on your balance sheet typically that inventory. You know, maybe you got some cash here and there.
Steve 00:02:03 But if you're a growing business, inventory is dominating that balance sheet. And that means that inventory, which, you know, may exist as a single line item on your financials, I don't know. But we get granular. We want to know every line item. We want to know every Asin, every SKU. However you refer to it and we want to know its profitability. We want to know what people are going to do when it comes to crunch time, right. If demand goes down, I'm here's a little insider secret. It's already gone down, right? Yeah. Units sold are already down the the cost or the pricing. In other words, the sell through may be higher, but that's that's a misleading stat. Yeah. Even if sales are up 8%. You got inflation units are down for sure. Correct. It's not in every category but many categories are experiencing it. So we've got to get scrutiny to level ten on every, every line item on that inventory sheet.
Josh 00:02:57 Yeah, I think that's words of wisdom right there, because we are also seeing that from our perspective.
Josh 00:03:03 You know, a lot of our products are more in the, you know, consumer discretionary items here. And so they're not essential for people. But we have also started to see year over year sales declines in the number of units that are being sold. Now our, you know, top line revenue looks good. Well, that's because we've increased prices to make up for the increase in Amazon fees and inflation and all of that. So to your point like don't just look at you know, hey, this aggregate number amount of money that's being sold or whatever, you know, Washington wants to, you know, state publicly, you know, with, oh, things are just fine. Like, look at these numbers. At the end of the day, there are fewer numbers of fewer units being sold. you know, the consumers are starting to pull back. So, Steve, what is something that you do as you work with, you know, your suppliers? Is there a way that you can reduce, you know, whether it be your Cogs or reduce like your mocks for certain products.
Josh 00:04:04 Like how do you navigate this delicate balance of like, I don't know how big of a pullback this is going to be, but I don't want to just I'm not going to order and say, hey, whatever we did in 2021, let's let's do that because that's what's going to happen.
Steve 00:04:17 Well, it is it's the ultimate question, but it's it also just goes back to the most simple, basics. It's like, you know what? Every controllable variable you better push on. Right. So currency is wildly shifted year over year between China and the US as an example. You better take advantage of that and at least understand that many times if you try to just call your supplier and go, hey, great news. There's been a 10% shift in currency. That means I get a 10% discount on my products. Now they'll go, no, no, no, we had a cost increase of labor and the cost increase of Covid. You know, there are plenty of reasons they want to they want to fight against you.
Steve 00:04:54 but I'm telling you proactively that every point, whether it is the inputs of raw materials and checking those commodity prices, whether it's currency, like every piece of that puzzle you need to push back ...
Athena is the mastermind behind the mastermind. Founder of China Magic - a 12-Day Sourcing Trip for Amazon Sellers, she helps Amazon Sellers scale to 7-8 figures through unique Events, Sourcing Trips and Masterminds to make life and business changing shifts towards more profit, prosperous relationships, and ultimate freedom.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Athena Severi, co-founder of Titan Network. Athena shares her expertise on scaling e-commerce businesses from seven to eight figures, emphasizing leadership, goal clarity, and the power of networking. Key insights include the importance of actionable steps, perseverance, and continuous learning. Athena also highlights the value of meaningful relationships and hiring the right talent. The episode provides practical advice for business owners aiming for sustainable growth, encouraging them to embrace challenges and focus on high-impact activities.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Here are the mentions with timestamps arranged by topic:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Josh Hadley 00:00:00 Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast. I'm your host, Josh Hadley, where I interview the top business leaders in e-commerce. Past guests include Kevin King, Aaron Cordovez and Michael E Gerber, author of the E-myth. Today I am speaking with Athena Severi, the co-founder of Titan Network. This episode is brought to you by Ecomm Breakthrough, where I specialize in investing and scaling seven figure ecommerce brands to eight figures and beyond. If you're an ambitious e-commerce entrepreneur looking for that coach or consultant who can help take your business to the next level, reach out to me directly at Josh at Ecomm Breakthrough. Com. That's E-comm with two M's. And let's turn your dreams into reality. Today I'm excited to introduce you all to Athena Safari. Athena is the mastermind behind the mastermind. She is the ...
In this Throwback episode, Chad Franzen interviews business leader Josh, who shares his proven framework for rapidly enhancing business performance. Josh outlines four key drivers of growth: product innovation, hiring talented people, sales and marketing, and implementing effective operational systems. Drawing from his own entrepreneurial journey, Josh provides practical examples and actionable advice for each area. He emphasizes the importance of focusing on these core levers to achieve quick, sustainable results. The episode offers valuable insights and resources for entrepreneurs looking to improve their businesses, with Josh inviting listeners to connect for further guidance.
Chapters:
Introduction and Framework Overview (00:00:00)
Josh introduces Chad as the interviewer and outlines his four-part framework for enhancing business performance.
Product Innovation (00:01:50)
Josh discusses the importance of unique product innovation, sharing an example of educational posters during COVID-19.
Hiring Smart People (00:05:29)
Josh explains why hiring talented people is crucial, with examples of improving processes through expert team members.
Sales and Marketing (00:10:54)
Josh emphasizes sales and marketing as the lifeblood of any business, necessary before scaling other areas.
Operations and Implementing an Operating System (00:11:59)
Josh details the importance of operational systems for scaling, describing their meeting structure and management processes.
Getting Started with Operating Systems (00:15:47)
Josh gives advice on how to begin implementing an operating system, recommending resources and offering help.
Conclusion and Farewell (00:17:23)
Chad and Josh wrap up the episode and say goodbye to listeners.
Links and Mentions:
Meetings and Frameworks
L10 Meeting
4-1-1 Meetings
EOS Framework
Websites
Ecomm Breakthrough
Rise25
Books
The E-Myth
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 I have Chad Franzen here of rise 25, who has done hundreds of interviews with successful entrepreneurs and CEOs. We have flipped the script and he's going to be interviewing me today. Welcome, Chad.
Chad 00:00:12 Hey, Josh, thanks. It's great to be here. today, I would love to talk about your approach to, enhancing the performance of a business in your years as a business leader. What kind of framework have you developed where you can just step in and kind of implement ways to enhance the performance of a business pretty quickly.
Josh 00:00:28 Over the last few years, I think, as our own business has continued to grow in scale, and I needed to build out a leadership team, I needed to myself write down what I felt were the biggest drivers, needle movers, biggest levers that I can pull inside the business. And so it forced me to kind of like narrow it down to like, there's a million different things that I could be working on with inside the business, right? I could be working on just HR in and of itself.
Josh 00:00:59 I could be working on marketing, social media. I could be working on, you know, accounting, finance. There's the list goes on and on and on. Right. So what I decided to do is just create like four areas where if we focus on these four areas within our business and we make strategic decisions, this should be able to make an impact if we pull this particular lever. So that's how I kind of identified these. And I have specific examples here that I'll share with you that that walk through kind of why I decided like this is a core area of the business rather than, you know, maybe accounting for example, and finance, although important, you know, these are the four core things that I can move into a business, make changes, and then be able to see growth happen real quick. Does that make sense?
Chad 00:01:50 Yeah, absolutely. So the first one that you listed, of the four was product innovation. Tell me a little bit more about you know obviously it's very important, but tell me a little bit more about your thoughts on it.
Josh 00:02:00 Yeah. In one of our earlier podcast episodes, I shared this as one of my biggest mistakes that I've made in a business, and that is kind of creating me two products or looking at the market and saying, well, they're doing well with this type of product. So obviously I should just introduce something similar and I'm going to have similar results. What I have learned from launching over 1300 different products at this point is that you need to bring something unique to the table. creating meta products is never going to serve you in the long run. If if you do stumble upon something and it works. It's going to be a short term win in my opinion. So one of the examples that I would give you is, you know, one of the products that we launched during Covid, was educational posters. Okay. So obviously with homeschool, becoming more of a thing during Covid. Back in 2020, we our business had to pivot. We looked at, you know, different home school supplies and different things that we could launch to cater to that market because it was such a it was an expanding market at the time.
Josh 00:03:11 We looked at one of the most competitive niches on Amazon itself, and we saw educational posters as one of those. What we decided to do is we decided to throw our hat in the ring, but what we noticed is that nearly all of the competitors and most of these competitors were overseas competitors, right? So what we noticed, though, is they all look very, very similar. You know, Chad, I would argue that it those posters that you saw on Amazon were probably the exact same posters that we grew up with in the classroom, you know, just kind of your standard, you know, vanilla educational poster, so to speak. And we're talking about like, ABC to, you know, all the letters of the alphabet. Counting from 1 to 100. Things like that. So what my wife decided to do, though, is she. You know, she's just so good at design. But she looked at what was trending on Etsy, what was trending on Pinterest, what was trending on Google, and what did she see on social media that teachers, how teachers were decorating their room, or how parents were decorating their homeschool rooms, so to speak.
Josh 00:04:21 And after kind of gathering all of that information, she decided to design something that I don't think anybody else has ever seen before. So number one, she has a very creative mind. But we went into an overlay like, again, if most people would look at that niche, they'd say, that's a saturated market, don't go into it. There's no way you're going to make any money. And instead what we did is we launched the product in August of 2020. We became the number t...
Brian Williams, and he leads Primal Power, a new energy bar company, the first grass fed, pasture raised beef liver energy bar that tastes amazing. He is known for using a unique tripwire sales funnel to build DTC brands and large qualified lists of buyers. Prior to Primal Power, Brian ran then exited G-Sight a firearms accessories company and has invested a lifetime career in eCommerce dating back to 1997 when he was the CMO for an early eCommerce company uBid.com.
Brian Williams, Brian is a member of the MDS (MillionDollarSellers.com) community of 7, 8 and 9 Figure eCommerce Founders. He is also an Investor Owner in Health, Wellness and Fitness CPG brands.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Brian Williams, leader of Primal Power and an e-commerce veteran since 1997. Brian shares his expertise on scaling e-commerce brands beyond Amazon using tripwire sales funnels and strategic demand generation. He emphasizes the importance of understanding customer needs, leveraging grassroots marketing, and creating compelling offers to pre-qualify leads. The discussion also highlights the benefits of subscription models for recurring revenue and the use of social media advertising to drive traffic. Brian's insights provide a roadmap for 6-7 figure business owners aiming to scale to 8 figures and beyond.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Diversify Beyond Amazon – Relying solely on Amazon is risky due to increasing competition and rising fees. Build a direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategy by focusing on demand generation and external traffic sources.
Leverage Tripwire Sales Funnels – Offer a low-cost or free product to capture leads, qualify potential customers, and upsell them to higher-value purchases, increasing overall revenue.
Implement a Subscription Model – Choose products that encourage repeat purchases and introduce a subscription option to improve customer retention and boost profitability.
Resources & Links Section
Here are the mentions with timestamps arranged by topic:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Josh 00:00:00 Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast. I'm your host, Josh Hadley, where I interview the top business leaders in e-commerce. Past guests include Kevin Keene, Aaron Cordovez and Michael E Gerber, author of the E-myth. Today I am speaking with Brian Williams, and we're going to be talking about how to scale off of Amazon using tripwires and sales funnels that are going to create a massive moat around your Amazon brand. This episode is brought to you by Ecomm Breakthrough, where I specialize in investing in and scaling seven figure companies to eight figures and beyond. If you're an a...
In this Throwback episode, Amazon brand-building expert Kevin shares advanced strategies for established sellers aiming to scale to eight figures and beyond. He emphasizes the shift from selling generic products to building authentic brands, leveraging Amazon as a distribution channel rather than the sole platform. Kevin discusses creative tactics for collecting customer data—like compelling insert cards and personalized experiences—and highlights the importance of nurturing an engaged email list. The conversation covers email marketing best practices, the challenges of today’s Amazon landscape, and actionable steps for long-term brand growth both on and off Amazon.
Chapters:
The Shift to Real Brand Building on Amazon (00:00:00)
Discussion on the end of "me-too" products and the need for genuine brand building to scale on Amazon.
What Makes a Real Brand (00:01:41)
Explains the difference between a product and a true brand, using search volume and customer recognition as benchmarks.
Owning Customer Data & Creative Inserts (00:02:37)
Importance of collecting customer data, using creative insert cards, and leveraging off-Amazon channels for customer relationships.
Pet Brand Example: Insert Offers & Birthday Campaigns (00:03:27)
Detailed example of using free sample offers, pet registration, and birthday postcards to build loyalty and collect data.
Email Marketing Challenges & Deliverability (00:07:40)
Covers issues with email engagement, deliverability, and strategies to stay out of spam folders.
Email Frequency & Value-Driven Content (00:09:18)
Best practices for email frequency, balancing value and promotions, and the importance of testing.
Testing Offers & Audience Warmth (00:10:42)
The need to test different offers and tailor messaging based on audience familiarity with the brand.
Actionable Takeaways for Amazon Sellers (00:12:01)
Summarizes three key actions: build a real brand, create an email list, and provide value to your audience.
Top Billion Dollar Seller Summit Speakers (00:13:45)
Kevin names top speakers/attendees to follow for Amazon growth insights: Brandon Young, Casey Goss, and Josh Hadley.
How to Connect with Kevin (00:16:33)
Kevin shares the best way to contact him—primarily via Facebook.
Links and Mentions:
Tools and Websites
Shopify
WooCommerce
Amazon Prime now Prime Video
TaxJar
Billion Dollar Seller Summit
Recommended Speakers
Brandon Young on LinkedIn
Transcript:
Josh 00:00:00 You talked a lot about how important brand building is on Amazon now, as our audience primarily has established Amazon businesses, they've already found success, but they're looking to go to eight figures and beyond. You know, what do you see going on in the Amazon space right now? And some of the advice and strategies that you would recommend to establish sellers right now?
Kevin 00:00:23 Yeah, that's a tough one because some of them are going to need to pivot, and it's going to be a little bit of a hard pivot because in the past on Amazon, there's a lot of people that built successful businesses and even exited successful businesses just basically finding opportunities. Sticking a name on it, you know, on a label on it and selling it, then selling that to an aggregator. But that's those days are pretty much over. I'm not going to say it doesn't happen. It could still happen here and there. And then there's a lot of people, as you know, that may have started with a small amount of money, and that's way more difficult now.
Kevin 00:00:52 Not that you can't do it, but, you know, I always say, I always hear stories that people say, yeah, I started with 500 bucks and now I got an eight figure business. And I always say, RBS, you might have started with $500. That may be true. But two weeks later, your uncle gave you ten grand. Or somebody. You got a credit card or you did something. There's just no way it did. That just flat out does not happen. from 500. There was something else along the way. It might not be the money out of your pocket, but there's something else along the way in those days are much more difficult now. And as Amazon's you know Amazon's everything is more towards rewarding brands. You know the brand registry the brand analytics the all the different you know the advertising thing. Everything is there trying to reward those brands. It's because they're trying to clean it up as well. They don't want just this hodgepodge, flea market on there. They want, you know, people.
Kevin 00:01:41 They're coming for brands. And a lot of people think they're a brand and they're really not. I say that if you don't have at least 3000 searches a month on your brand name on Amazon, on Amazon, because Amazon is so big, you're not a brand. If people are not looking for you, buy that that brand name and typing that in and you can see it in brand analytics and it's got like 3000 searches a month or more, then you're actually not a brand. You're just a product. And so that's where a lot of people get confused. And a brand is not a logo. A brand is not a name. That's part of it. But a brand is what emotion is a feeling. It's an evolution of something that people feel identity towards this or a passion towards this, or it represents something that they believe in or that they feel. And that's where a lot of big sellers are making mistakes. you know, you see all these, these, Chinese brands on Amazon, that strange brand names like Z, X, T, Y, or whatever can even pronounce a damn thing, right? That's not a brand.
Kevin 00:02:37 I mean, they're doing that because it's easy to get a trademark on that. They can. Those things can fly through, the trademark process really easy so they can get the brand registry and all that. But those aren't aren't really brand names. so I think you need to switch more toward brand and you need to switch to more towards they need to they need to own their customer lists. you know, on Amazon, you don't get that data anymore. You used to be able to download that data. And so if you're selling, FBA, FBA on Amazon, you don't get that data. If you're doing FBM, you can still get it. And there used to be a loophole like with tax jar that got, I think just recently got shut down. A lot of privacy issues there. But you need to figure out ways to actually get that data and whether that's switching over, you know, if you're selling on Shopify or WooCommerce, start using Amazon Prime. the new, ship with Prime, whatever it's called Shopify shipping.
Josh 00:03:25 Shop with Prime. Yeah.
Kevin 00:03:27 Yeah. Where the Amazon will fulfill it for you off your, Shopify store. So you get that extra customer service level. Plus you get the customer data, plus anything you're selling on Amazon. It's just a huge market. You've got to figure out ways to try to get them into your ecosystem with, creative inserts and creative marketing stuff. I mean, like, one of the things that we do with one of my brands, for example, I have a pet brand of dog treats, and whenever someone buys these dog treats off of Amazon, you know, they spend 30 bucks to buy these dog treats. We will have a really cool. It's not just like a business card, but like something that really gets their attention. into the in the package and it says, hey, get a sample of all of our treats and we'll do a zero plus free plus shipping offer. So it's like if we have, for example, if we're selling bully sti...
Ben Arneberg began his career as a US Air Force satellite engineer and member of the Air Force Parachute Team where he learned to take calculated risks that end in success. He’s a serial entrepreneur with three exits. Founder of PetHonesty, a consumer brand improving pet health. He’s an investor, passionate about disruptive technologies, education, and helping others find and live out their dreams.
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> Here’s a glimpse of what you would learn….
In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley interviews Ben Arneberg, a seasoned entrepreneur and founder of Pet Honesty. Ben shares his journey from a U.S. Air Force satellite engineer to a successful e-commerce entrepreneur with three business exits. He discusses scaling Pet Honesty from zero to $70 million in revenue in three years, emphasizing the importance of strategic hiring, cash flow management, and leveraging a strong network. Ben also highlights the value of having an advisory board and the significance of personal development and clear vision in achieving entrepreneurial success.
Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:
Focus on One Venture for Scalable Growth
Instead of spreading resources across multiple ventures, commit to one business with strong market potential. Prioritize product-market fit and allocate energy toward scaling efficiently.
Hire Strategically and Build a Strong Network
Invest in top talent early to delegate operational tasks and focus on high-level strategy. Leverage industry connections and referrals to attract skilled professionals who align with the company’s vision.
Manage Cash Flow Proactively for Sustainable Scaling
Use creative financial strategies such as leveraging credit lines and optimizing manufacturing processes to maintain liquidity. Consider local production to secure better terms and reduce working capital requirements.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Here are the mentions with timestamps arranged by topic:
Special Mention(s):
Related Episode(s):
Episode Sponsor
Sponsor for this episode...
This episode is brought to you by eComm Breakthrough Consulting where I help seven-figure e-commerce owners grow to eight figures.
I started Hadley Designs 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 go to www.EcommBreakthrough.com (that’s Ecomm with two M’s) to learn more.
Transcript Area
Josh 00:00:00 Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast. I'm your host, Josh Hadley, where I interview the top business leaders in e-commerce. Past guests include Kevin King, Aaron Cordovez and Michael Gerber, author of the E-myth. Today I am speaking with Ben Arneberg, and we're going to be talking about timeless business principles that allowed him to exit three different brands, and how he's on a journey now where he doesn't even care about money because he is focused on the intrinsic value of what he's giving back to society. I think that's everything that we all want to strive to be as entrepreneurs, and he's going to show us how he's been able to achieve that in his life. This episode is brought to you by Ecomm Breakthrough, where I specialize in investing in and scaling seven figure ecommerce brands t...