Ecommerce Conversations

For $60, Bob DeMars’s company, Blind Barrel, will ship a package of four craft-distilled whiskey samples, unmarked, with a tasting glass. Recipients can then try them and guess the whiskey type, age, and proof. It’s a game using Blind Barrel’s app, preferably with friends. Participants can purchase entire bottles at discounted prices. Bob launched the business in 2021 from his base in California. ...

Weston Jon Bouchér is a California-based menswear brand and the name of its founder. He launched the company in 2019 after a decade as a full-time apparel and lifestyle model. He initially sought a white-label supplier with like-minded quality standards. Unsuccessful, he opted instead for “cut-and-sew manufacturing.” The result is a network of global manufacturers, all producing apparel to Jon’s d...

Mehtab Bhogal is the co-founder of Karta Ventures, a Canada-based acquirer of troubled ecommerce businesses. The firm seeks companies with "issues," such as unpaid taxes, regulatory problems, and founder disputes. He says buying distressed companies is like salvaging a crashed car. "What are the parts worth?" he asks. In this episode, he addresses identifying hidden value, turn...

Josh Durham launched Aligned Growth Management, an influencer marketing agency, in 2020. He says the influencer industry has evolved from the halcyon days a decade ago when affiliate-based creators could generate 5x returns. Influencer marketing circa 2025, according to Josh, is a long-term play. Success depends on quality products, engaged creator audiences, and content that supports multiple cha...

This episode continues my masterclass series on ecommerce entrepreneurship. Thus far in 2025 I've addressed branding and profitability . For this installment, I'll focus on hiring, specifically for marketing, operations, and product personnel. I launched Beadbrand over a decade ago and have hired plenty of employees. Mistakes can be hugely expensive. I now apply eight steps to ensure the...

Ryan Rouse has a formula for scaling physical retail sales. First penetrate niche markets, he says, then leverage that success into mainstream chains. He does that with MALK Organics, an Austin, Texas-based plant milk provider. Ryan is MALK's president, having launched and exited a meal-delivery business and served in executive roles of other consumer brands. He speaks with host Eric Bandholz...

Host Eric Bandholz continues his masterclass series on entrepreneurship. Last week he addressed tactics to increase ecommerce profits amid a slump for many businesses. This week he focuses on branding. He says most people think of branding as logos or design elements. But those items are components, not the essence. A brand is synonymous with a company — its mission, values, and purpose. Eric shar...

Many ecommerce businesses are struggling. Profit margins are thin; cash is low. As the host of "Ecommerce Conversations," entrepreneur Eric Bandholz typically interviews other owners and executives. But he departs in this episode, sharing lessons from running Beardbrand, his company, for over a decade. What follows are Eric's tips for adding margins to an ecommerce business. He addr...

Montana Knife Company launched in 2020 in a two-car garage near Missoula. One co-founder is a certified “Master Bladesmith” who has produced handmade knives since he was 11. The other, Brandon Horoho, is a seasoned digital marketer and ecommerce pro. Combined, the entrepreneurs prove the value of craftsmanship at scale marketed directly to consumers. Business is booming, and the company will soon...

Andrew Youderian launched eCommerceFuel in 2013 after stints in corporate finance and online selling. The vetted community consists of ecommerce owners whose businesses have $1 million or more in annual revenue. He says ecommerce in 2025 has matured. "Brands that adapt," he stated, "will survive in the next five to seven years." Host Eric Bandholz is a member of eCommerceFuel....

In 2023 Mathias Schrøder was stressed, burned out, and perplexed. He had scaled revenue on his Denmark-based clothing company, but bloated overhead meant little profit and even less free time. "I felt lost, unable to fix our predicament," he said, "until I realized I was trying to solve the wrong problem." His solution was to scale down . He fired employees, lowered warehouse c...

Matthew Gattozzi realizes creativity and efficiency often conflict. His firm, Goodo Studios, produces commercial content that attracts visitors and converts them into customers. It's a creative process with time and budget constraints. "It's a balancing act," he stated. "On the one hand, you need efficiency. On the other, creativity requires time and space to flourish.&quo...

Jesse Hanley is a self-taught developer and marketer from Australia who lives in Japan. He launched Bento, an email service provider, in 2018 after managing campaigns from his marketing agency. He says Bento is an artisanal provider, akin to a high-end coffee shop. He aims for self-funded growth and quality customers who seek excellent email deliverability. He addresses those goals and more — auto...

Before Brexit, merchants could sell cross-border into the U.K. and mainland Europe with relative ease. Both belonged to the E.U. It's now more complex and expensive, with separate customs and taxes for each region — unless the shipments come from Northern Ireland. Through a Brexit exception, fulfillment companies (and merchants) in Northern Ireland can ship to the U.K. and the E.U. with fewer...

According to Will Nitze, founder and CEO of IQBAR, success in a competitive market requires finding its uncompetitive niches. He did that with his flagship protein bar, which is plant-based, low-sugar, and plainly labeled. That was seven years ago when he launched the company with a $75,000 Kickstarter campaign. Fast forward to 2025, and IQBAR also makes IQMIX (hydration) and IQJOE (coffee). All p...

Kurt Elster launched his ecommerce agency in 2009 and his first Shopify store in 2011. His “Unofficial Shopify Podcast,” which he started in 2014, is now required listening for that community of merchants, developers, and vendors. He and I recently discussed the state of Shopify — themes, upgrades, user engagement, and the overall ecosystem. For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded aud...

Jeff Sheldon is a designer turned entrepreneur. He started Ugmonk, a Pennsylvania-based direct-to-consumer brand, in 2008 as a seller of graphic-inspired t-shirts. His desktop organizers, which he added in 2020, are seemingly unrelated until realizing he designed both — the t-shirt graphics and the desk tools. Jeff first appeared on the podcast in 2020. He had just moved t-shirt fulfillment in-hou...

This episode first aired in July 2024. Barry Hott is a longtime Facebook advertising consultant. He says first reactions to an ad largely determine its performance. He advises merchants to create ugly ads, those that people won't skip over. "I'm the Ugly Ads Guy," he stated. In this episode, Hott addresses key Facebook ad metrics, budgeting, testing, and, yes, ugly creative. Fo...

Jeff Oxford's initial attempt at ecommerce was selling dropshipped beer pong tables in 2013. The business, he says, didn't survive, but his love for optimizing organic search traffic did. Thus began his SEO career and the launch of 180 Marketing, his agency. Fast forward to 2024, and Jeff is an ecommerce SEO authority. Link building was on his mind when he appeared on the podcast in 2022...

Roman Zrazhevskiy is a survivalist of a sort. His company, Mira Safety, sells protective gear for seemingly existential events such as nuclear attacks or chemical warfare. He calls the threat of such events "red alerts," when geopolitical crises prompt fear into consumers.  Zrazhevskiy first appeared on the podcast in 2021. In this episode, he shares the evolution of Mira Safety, staffin...

Lawmakers worldwide are recognizing the medicinal benefits of natural compounds, such as those in cannabis and mushrooms. Once considered dangerous "drugs," both are now widely legal. And both are the focus of entrepreneur Alex Wolfe. He co-founded a cannabis business in 2017, built a 650,000 sq. ft. growing facility, and took the company public. He now runs a mushroom-based nutritional...

Host Eric Bandholz occasionally focuses an "Ecommerce Conversations" episode on Beardbrand, his business. He does that not to promote the company but to share challenges and successes in the hopes of helping others. In 2024 alone, he has addressed last year's sales decline , continued hurdles , and the hassle of changing fulfillment providers . He also interviewed Beardbrand's...

Brendan Marquardt knows the effect of entrepreneurship on a marriage. He's the co-owner of Lori Beds, a direct-to-consumer seller of Murphy beds, those that fold into a wall, and the now-divorced father of two children in grade school. Unlike most divorced entrepreneurs, Marquardt chooses to publicly share his experience in the hopes of helping others. He did that in this episode (his second...

Kevin Dahlstrom once paid cash for a $211,000 Porsche. He was in his 30s, living in Texas, holding down high-powered corporate marketing jobs, such as with Mr. Cooper, a mortgage services company, and Elevate, a credit solutions firm. He says the Porsche created more stress than joy and started his practice of minimalism — letting go of material things. So in his 40s he chucked it all, moved his f...

Dean Brennan says a diet of beer, pizza, and fast food led to his ulcerative colitis. His doctors diagnosed it years ago in his twenties and told him he'd need medications for life. But Brennan decided otherwise. "I didn't want to take lifelong medication," he states. "It sparked my passion for health and led me to want to help others." Fast forward to 2024, and Brenn...