Retail Summits

𝘐𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘱𝘴.

More than a summit, the Austin eCommerce Summit is the city’s community of retailers, brands, merchants, and solution providers under one roof, exchanging ideas and connections to fuel growth 🌞

And the afternoon at this year's summit delivered bold strategies and fresh perspectives.

Josip Begic (Lebesgue) opened with a behavioral science-inspired playbook for combining AI and psychology to drive conversions 🚀

Richard Tapia (Houston Astros) brought sports passion into retail, showing how the team builds lifelong loyalty with engagement strategies fans can’t get enough of ⚾ ✨

Roundtables kept the conversations rolling: from marketing and operational spend with BILL Spend & Expense, to rethinking accessibility in eCommerce with Merrell Guzman (TestParty). Participants sparked meaningful dialogue on scaling smarter and building inclusively.

The day reached its peak with the CEO & Founder Panel, moderated by Barbara Cavness ((un)Common Logic). Leaders Chip Malt (Made In), Eric Bandholz (Beardbrand), Hudson Davis-Ross (Plant People), Jon Ricketts (EKOM AI), and Ryan Kent (Mizzen+Main) went deep on the realities of building and scaling brands. They shared hard-won lessons on timing capital raises, defining brand DNA early, and making tough trade-offs between speed and staying true to values. They reminded us how teams “permissionless” freedom keeps creativity alive and leaves room for innovation 🌿 ⚙️

Thank you to ALL participants for building the kind of community connections that last long after the day ends 🍸🤝

𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘎𝘗𝘛 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨? 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘻𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴?

We discussed these topics and more yesterday morning in Salt Lake City ☀️ The local eCommerce community came together for a full day of insights, strategies, and networking.

The conversations started strong with Exploring the Future of eCommerce 🔮 From AI to personalization, experts shared how data, automation, and the right partners are shaping what’s next: Jon Ricketts (EKOM AI) moderated a dynamic discussion with Blane B. (Base.com), Cam Jensen (Breeze Airways™), Merril Longmore (ZAGG, Inc.), and Stephanie Hileman (1-800 CONTACTS). Themes ranged from AI as a “micro-tasker” for data and compliance, to balancing operational efficiency with customer experience, and new approaches to digital discoverability.

Craig Smith (OuterBox) walked through actionable SEO and conversion strategies that brands can integrate immediately to drive real results ⚡

Leaders from Level Home (Beau Hennings), BGZ brands™ (Dain Hodson), Owlet Baby Care (David A. Kizer), and The Synergy Company™ (Howard Silverman) — moderated by Greg Matney (ShipSigma) — shared how inventory management, automation, and even AI tools like demand planning are transforming supply chain efficiency 🚚

Bringing leaders together in Salt Lake City showed that the real competitive edge comes from shared knowledge, collaboration, and smart technology adoption.

Next week, Blake Brown 💭, Creative Director at KURU Footwear, will take the stage at the Salt Lake City eCommerce Summit for the "Omnichannel & Digital Marketing Strategies" panel.

💡 Find out which combination of digital and offline strategies create powerful and consistent brand experiences across all touchpoints and amplify your brand’s reach!

📍 Register here for the Salt Lake City Summit
https://retailsummits.com/events/salt-lake-city-ecommerce-summit/�

📩 Contact Logan Pastor at [email protected] for more info

1 week to go! The Salt Lake City eCommerce Summit is almost here.

Expect a powerhouse lineup of speakers from leading brands including:

✈️ Breeze Airways
🎧 Skullcandy
👶 Owlet Baby Care
💜 Purple
🍪 Crumbl
👓 1-800 CONTACTS
📱 ZAGG

…and more!

Topics:

→ AI-powered marketing & automation
→ Brand loyalty & protection
→ Scaling operations & supply chain resilience
→ Paid media that drives real ROI
→ Tight roundtables with COOs, founders & retail leaders

Will we see you there?

https://retailsummits.com/events/salt-lake-city-ecommerce-summit/

𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 '𝘯𝘰' 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦, 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯-𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨

The Seattle eCommerce Summit 2025 delivered fresh insights and next-level eCommerce strategy 🛍️

Kicking off the afternoon, Jaime Egan (Head of Sales, Instant) and Chesley Roberts (CMO, Lane Boots) took the stage to spotlight retention as a revenue engine, walking us through how they turned abandoned shoppers into repeat buyers.

Then Maryna Hradovich (Co-Founder, Maestra) how to tackle fragmented touchpoints by building a seamless personalization engine 🏊🏽📊

Up next was a powerful leadership session in which Karuana Gatimu (Director, Customer Advocacy – AI & Collaboration, Microsoft) shared her framework for building high-impact teams, sustaining morale, and maintaining balance while driving innovation in a fast-changing tech landscape 🚀 🧭

Participants joined together up for two targeted roundtables:

— 𝐔𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 hosted by Ashleigh McDonald (Director of Business Development, ReturnPro) - explored recommerce opportunities, resale strategy, and how to turn returns into bottom-line wins.

— 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐟𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥 𝐌𝐢𝐱 explored the growing role of TikTok Shop, CTV, affiliate marketing, and more!

We wrapped with intention and inspiration at The Power of Authenticity & Community in eCommerce Marketing 💕 led by Jacob Eckeberger (Sr Manager, MarCom – Business Development, Global Overview). Our final panel brought powerful brand storytelling to the spotlight:
— Allison Hoover (Managing Director of Marketing, Seattle Seahawks)
— Kristin Flor Perret (Head of Brand Marketing and Brand Strategy, Sur La Table)
— Leslie LaRue (Director of Product Management, ThriftBooks)
— Ryan Ngo (Vice President, North America Marketing & eCommerce, Brooks Running)
— Zach Solomon (Director of eCommerce & Owned Marketing, Bedrock Manufacturing, Filson & Shinola)

THANK YOU SEATTLE! 💚

𝘐𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 ✨

We kicked off the Seattle eCommerce Summit 2025 with energy and bold ideas!

We fast-forwarded into tomorrow with Exploring the Future of eCommerce 🚀expertly guided by Kent Lewis (Chief Evangelist, Forix). From smarter personalization tools to rethinking your Martech stack, this powerhouse panel dished up fresh perspective on the road ahead for digital commerce. On stage, we heard from:
— Anthony Potgieter (Senior Director, DTC eCommerce, Stanley 1913)
— Ashley Paige Becker (Vice President, Global eCommerce Capabilities, Kraft Heinz)
— Blane B. (Head of Partnerships and Business Development, Base.com)
— 🎯Jaime Sorgente (Enterprise GTM, Vercel)

Josh Blankenship (Director of Business Development, OuterBox) got things rolling by unpacking conversion-boosting tactics, real-world SEO strategies, and smart ways to use data for immediate gains 💪

Then came a mind-expanding session: Using AI + Psychology to Build Smarter eCommerce Marketing with Josip Begic (CEO, Lebesgue) 🧠⚡He bridged neuroscience and marketing with behavioral tactics!

We capped off the morning with Creating a Sustainable Supply Chain 🌍🔄 This forward-thinking panel spotlighted how brands are embracing eco-efficiency through smarter tech, better forecasting, and sustainable last-mile solutions:
— Corey Peet (Vice President of Sustainability, Aqua Star)
— Dan Robertson (VP of Sales, Gierd)
— Jeremy Sievert (Vice President of Operations, Crowd Cow)
— Krutartha Jathar (Head, Global Fulfillment Incident Prevention, Wayfair)
— Matthew Berk (CEO, Bean Box)
— Tessa Blumenthal (Senior Director of Operations, Global Overview)

With insights on packaging, automation, and planet-minded logistics, it was a timely conversation for teams aiming to scale responsibly.

Drop your favorite moment or takeaway in the comments 💕