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No. 762: Smart Moves

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The DTC Power List | Updated: October 11

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Recent Memos

Memo: Squid Game Effect

Netflix’s Squid Game is the platform’s newest hit: the show, which premiered mid-September, is on track to outpace Bridgerton and The Witcher to become its most-sampled original series. The show debuted on Netflix on September 17 and by October 1, it was parodied on Black Twitter with an hilarious rendition: If Black People were in Squid Game. And, well, that meant that… Continue reading →

October 11, 2021

Web Smith

Memo: Two Sides of The Algorithm

That 15 minute delivery of shampoo and kombucha may come with a deepening divide between the classes. You are happy with your service and the service person may be happy with the opportunity but what does it mean for the role of algorithms in society? The digital has long overflowed into the physical world (your… Continue reading →

October 4, 2021October 4, 2021

Web Smith

Memo: The Intuit of DTC

When Assembly, the eCommerce software and data platform, announced a strategic investment from Advent International and PSG last week, it made little noise in the news. Neither did its more than $1 billion valuation, five acquisitions, 30-plus product launches, or the $55 billion in gross merchandise value that the SaaS company helped its users earn… Continue reading →

September 27, 2021September 27, 2021

Web Smith

Memo: New York, Los Angeles, and Columbus

One line from a book written 130 years ago would influence marketing and branding for ages to come. In his novel Five Hundred Dollars, Horatio Alger writes: “I don’t know but I can wait two or three weeks,” he said slowly, “if you are sure we shall play at Peoria.” This line gave the advertising… Continue reading →

September 12, 2021September 14, 2021

Web Smith

Linear Commerce, Metaverse, Web3, Economics, and Polymaths

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Recent Member Briefs

Member Brief: CLUB EBITDA

Retail is an EBITDA sport. In 2019, at Shopify Plus’s New York conference, a relatively unknown, foreign brand espoused the importance of healthy growth and profitability. American brands received all of the attention back then, but it was Daily Paper founder and CEO Hussein Suleiman that won over a crowd of fawning American entrepreneurs. He… Continue reading →

October 15, 2021October 15, 2021

Web Smith

Member Brief: Digitally Native Vertical Brands

Andy Dunn is quiet these days. But one of the most important essays written in the short history of the direct-to-consumer industry was written by him. It’s time that we revisit the meaning of vertical. We have lost sight of what it means to build a digitally native vertical brand. This essay covers why more… Continue reading →

October 8, 2021October 8, 2021

Web Smith

Member Practical: BFCM Tips

David Herrmann is one of the most trusted and respected thinkers and operators in paid acquisition. So much so that the New York Times just consulted him about the recent Facebook outage and how it impacted ad spend and ROAs for direct-to-consumer brands (a number of which rely on his team for success). This… Continue reading →

October 6, 2021October 6, 2021

Web Smith

Member Recap: No Stock For Chrismukkah

A series conclusion. As early as September 12, artificial Christmas trees, decorations, and all of the trimmings were for sale at your neighborhood Lowe’s, on display in front of the Halloween and Thanksgiving decor. The early turn for the holiday season isn’t exclusive to hardware stores. A recent report by AdAge cited similar behavior by… Continue reading →

October 1, 2021October 1, 2021

Web Smith

The Monday letter. Join your colleagues.

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