Unboxing Ecommerce: Operations Behind Online Brands
In each episode, we order a product from the same brand, meticulously analyzing both the front and back end of placing an order. We then reverse engineer the storage, logistics, and packaging details to evaluate every step of its journey right to our doorsteps. And if we return a package, we'll dive into that process as well.
Welcome to Unboxing Ecommerce, the brainchild of two longtime friends and entrepreneurs, James Marks and Jennifer Yates. We met over 20 years ago while running our own brick-and-mortar businesses, and today, we're combining our expertise to dissect and understand the online shopping and shipping experience.
Join us for a comprehensive, 360-degree view of ecommerce. Whether you're an industry professional, an ecomm enthusiast, or just curious about what happens behind the scenes, we've got you covered.
Episodes drop every other Tuesday. Let's get to that box!
Unboxing Ecommerce: Operations Behind Online Brands
Bloomingdale's / Macy's with Maia Benson
James and Jennifer order from Bloomingdale's and guest Maia Benson (ex-Shopify) gets free shipping from Bangalore, India.
Why Bloomingdale's / Macy's? Our first guest ever Maia Benson talks about nostalgia, experiencing something “special”, and the desire to tap a certain use case in her online shopping.
Research included these sources:
- Bloomingdale’s: https://www.bloomingdales.com/b/about-us/history/
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloomingdale%27s
- Classic New York History: https://classicnewyorkhistory.com/history-of-new-yorks-bloomingdales-department-store/
- Macy’s: https://www.macys.com/s/brand-heritage/history/
Technology List
- Tealium, https://tealium.com/
- DoubleClick, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DoubleClick
- bambuser, https://bambuser.com/
- Clinch, https://clinch.co/
- Full Story, https://www.fullstory.com/
Also mentioned
- Macy’s Net: https://macysnet.com/
- Campus Sutra: https://campussutra.com/
- Malls and Gen Z: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-01-19/gen-z-leads-the-charge-in-revitalizing-the-mall-experience
- TRADE FACILITATION AND TRADE ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 2015: https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/644/text
- $200 in 1930 has the same purchasing power as $2,838.53 in 2015: https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm
- Explainer on Section 321: https://www.easyship.com/blog/us-duty-free-threshold-increases-takeaways-you-must-know
Extended Tech List, not mentioned on the episode:
- Akamai mPulse: https://www.akamai.com/products/mpulse-real-user-monitoring
- WERCSmart: https://www.ulwercsmart.com/
- SmarterHQ: (now Wunderkind Audiences), https://www.wunderkind.co/
Special Guest: Maia Benson
_______________
Have a brand/shopping experience you want us to review? Send us a message at unboxingecomm@gmail.com
Connect with James Marks:
www.linkedin.com/in/jameslmarks
www.withtrivial.com
Connect with Jennifer Yates:
www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferayates
www.workwithroux.com
_______________
Coverart imagined and designed by our friend, Melissa Dettloff
www.melissadettloff.com