My eCommerce journey truly started back in 2009, during what seemed to be a rather inconsequential conversation. I was the GM of a large cinema in Melbourne and one of my team members happened to mention that she was generating a side income from buying trainers, event tickets etc and selling them for a profit on eBay. At the time this was quite a novel idea and it got me thinking about the opportunities within eCommerce.
As with many of these ideas, it sat at the back of my mind whilst I continued with a more ‘conventional’ career, however fulfilling my interest in entrepreneurship by completing my MBA at the same time.
In 2015, a good friend and I attempted to launch an online menswear business, developing a partnership with a top quality supplier in Italy, however lack of funds prevented us from launching in the end.
Fast forward to 2017, a Facebook video ad caught my attention. It was a high energy, uber charismatic Gold Coast based Aussie, Adam Hudson, spruiking his start-up education business ‘Reliable Education’- teaching people how to be successful sellers on Amazon. This type of ad would usually have me scrolling on within a few seconds, however somehow this one seemed different and I was convinced enough to drop the $3.5k required to complete the course.
Adam quoted that only 1% of people who open up an Amazon Seller account actually go live with a product. I didn’t want to be part of the 99%. Over the next few years I dipped in and out of the course, most of my time being taken up with sleepless nights and hectic days from the arrival of our two children, now 2 and 4 years old. During this time I finally white labelled a product out of China and went live on Amazon US. Over the following years, my wife and I dabbled with private label selling on Amazon, and quickly realised that small relatively unknown brands could compete against complacent sellers (even some of the most well known brands) and win.
I started looking at the Amazon listings of other companies with new eyes, immediately identifying who was doing well and who had a significant opportunity to do better, and I wanted to help. The rest is history, I have always wanted to work for myself and have wanted to be in the eComm space for the past 12 years. Now living on Sydney’s Northern Beaches with my better half Jo and two little rascals Sienna and Finn, it felt like the right time to do something special for the family.
I’m passionate about the power of eCommerce, its impact on consumer behaviour, its ability to accelerate brand sales and open up international opportunities. I’m now working with a number of amazing innovative brands to do just that. I’m finally doing what I love and can’t wait to see where it takes me and my family..