Nobody at Beanstalk was winning on Meta ads.
Kurt spent a day at Beanstalk, an invite-only ecommerce conference at Industry City in Brooklyn, recording 15-minute conversations with founders under a tent. Seven made it to tape. Every guest is on Shopify. Not one of them led with paid ads. A media buyer who spends about a billion dollars a year on Meta explains why: the platform works, your process doesn't. Then a bathhouse founder, the Nugget couch people, Redbubble's CEO, a luxury sneaker brand, and Glossier's former CMO who launched a kids' drink and chose not to turn on paid.
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Zipify - Build high-converting sales funnels: zipify.com/KURT
In this episode:
1. Matt Butcher, Adam's Polishes: why a curated conference is worth the trip
2. Jay Wright, Ecommerce Equation: "if you media buy like pre-2023, you're completely cooked"
3. Maria Lopez-May, Nugget: the lottery, the dupes, and what comes after a pandemic hit
4. Vivek Kumar, Articore: Redbubble and TeePublic's $20M turnaround and a new Shopify integration
5. NJ Falk, APL: $400 sneakers, Magento to Plus in a week, and the Sidekick detail Kurt missed
6. Robbie Bent, Othership: from a horse trough to $15M bathhouses, marketed through the local dentist
7. Ali Weiss, NoBiggie: what a Glossier CMO had to unlearn to sell juice to kids
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
2:34 Matt Butcher, Adam's Polishes
4:27 Jay Wright, Ecommerce Equation
8:44 Maria Lopez-May, Nugget
12:17 Vivek Kumar, Articore
15:09 NJ Falk, APL
17:59 Robbie Bent, Othership
22:09 Ali Weiss, NoBiggie
27:21 Kurt and Paul: everyone was talking about Meta
28:38 Kurt's first agentic purchase
GUEST LINKS
Adam's Polishes: https://adamspolishes.com
Ecommerce Equation: https://ecommerceequation.com
Nugget: https://nuggetcomfort.com
Articore Group: https://articore.com
APL: https://athleticpropulsionlabs.com
Othership: https://othership.us
NoBiggie: https://nobiggieplease.com
WORK WITH KURT
Apply for Shopify Help: ethercycle.com/apply
See Our Results: ethercycle.com/work
Free Newsletter: kurtelster.com
The Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.
