Underdog Ecom Podcast

This week, we dive deep into the power of collabs—brand, creator, and retail—and how they can drive growth without relying solely on paid ads. From custom merch drops to brand partnerships, they unpack their own wins, misses, and lessons learned trying to make collabs actually work. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening! Leave a review on your favorite podcast platform and share it with fel...

Jack and David pull back the curtain on how they actually use email marketing inside their brands—what's working, what's not, and all the stuff they’ve stopped wasting time on. From flows and pop-ups to why copy matters more than design, it’s a real convo about figuring email out without overcomplicating it. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening! Leave a review on your favorite podcast plat...

In this episode, Jack and David dive into the financial ups and downs of running an ecom brand — from battling cash flow crunches and navigating debt traps to rethinking channel dependencies like wholesale. David shares his candid story of turning things around with a strategic line of credit, while both hosts explore emerging traffic sources and the real potential (and pitfalls) of TikTok Shop an...

In this episode, we dive into our recent experiments with Facebook bid caps—what’s working, what’s not, and all the frustrating in-betweens. From campaign structures to profitability tradeoffs and whether small brands like ours can really thrive with cost-controlled ad strategies, we break down what it’s really like trying to make Meta ads work when every dollar counts. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Tha...

In Episode 12, Jack and David dive deep into the gritty reality of shipping—comparing in-house fulfillment vs. 3PLs. They unpack their personal setups, the hidden costs, control trade-offs, horror stories, and why neither path is as simple as it seems. Whether you're taping boxes in your garage or ready to outsource, this convo hits home. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening! Leave a revie...

In this episode, we dive into the "Profit First" mindset; what it is, why it’s hard to implement in the unpredictable cash-hungry world of ecom, and how it’s helped us along the way. From frozen Amex cards to tax surprises, we explore how to manage cash flow when inventory eats your capital, and what it takes to build a business that funds itself - without chasing vanity revenue. 📢 Enjoyed the ep...

In this episode, we unpack why product—not just ads—is at the heart of everything. From launch cadence and customer feedback to staying on-brand (or not), we share what’s been working, what hasn’t, and how we’re both thinking about product development heading into the next stage of our brands. A practical, honest chat from two founders still figuring it out. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for list...

I​​n Episode 9 (wow, how did we get here already!), we’re getting real about Meta ads: the good, the bad, and the painfully expensive. We talk through what’s working (finally), what’s not, and all the messy lessons we’ve learned running our own ad accounts without big budgets or fancy agencies. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening! Leave a review on your favorite podcast platform and share...

In this episode, Jack and David go deep on the real behind-the-scenes of product design, sourcing, and packaging—when you don’t have a big team or massive budgets. From hiring designers to leveraging suppliers, and from poly mailers to box regrets, this one’s packed with practical tips for scrappy founders figuring it out as they go. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening! Leave a review on...

From pro tennis tours to Pacific Northwest pop-ups—Jack and David share how they stumbled into the world of e-commerce and built their brands from scratch. In this episode, they dive into the unexpected twists, early mistakes, and the wins that shaped their journeys, all while keeping it real about what it actually takes to build something from nothing. 📢 Enjoyed the episode? Thanks for listening...

In this episode, Jack picks David’s brain on all things B2B and wholesale—from getting stocked in REI and airport gift shops to building a Shopify-powered wholesale channel from scratch. They dive into tools like Faire, SparkLayer, and Trunk, discuss margins, outreach tactics, and what makes wholesale a viable (and sometimes brutal) growth lever for DTC brands. Plus, a quick detour into how new AI...

In this one, David breaks down how he pulled off a mystery box sale to move excess inventory—VA hacks, ops chaos, and way better ROAS than expected. Jack’s deep in stockouts throughout a sale, wrestling with whether to open up pre-orders… We get into the real trade-offs of crowdfunding, cash flow pressure, and why sometimes it’s better to just wait—even when customers are begging to buy. 📢 Enjoye...

In this episode, we open up about the very real challenges of juggling fixed costs — from surprise fulfillment bills and tariff headaches to stacking revenue-based loans. We discuss how we’re purging unnecessary apps, negotiating SaaS pricing, and finding creative ways to turn fixed costs into opportunities. If you’re navigating tight margins and trying to stretch every dollar, this one’s for you....

This isn’t another e-commerce podcast filled with gurus telling you how rich they are. We’re in the trenches, running our own brands, and sharing the real ups and downs of building an ecom business in 2025. This week, we (David & Jack) are getting real about the challenges we’re facing right now in our businesses—along with some cool experiments we’ve tried (fundraiser, anyone?). Plus, we’re s...

This isn’t another e-commerce podcast filled with gurus telling you how rich they are. We’re in the trenches, running our own brands, and sharing the real ups and downs of building an ecom business in 2025. In true Underdog Ecom style, we’re diving deep into the Shopify apps we’re paying for—what’s worth it, what’s not, and how much we’re actually spending. No app shilling here—just two operators...

This isn’t another e-commerce podcast filled with gurus telling you how rich they are. We’re in the trenches, running our own brands, and sharing the real ups and downs of building an ecom business in 2025. In this first episode, we (Jack & David) introduce ourselves, why we started this podcast, and what you can expect. Spoiler: We’re keeping it raw, unfiltered, and packed with actual insight...