The Orita Podcast

Aaron Schwartz
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Each week, I'm sitting down with the most interesting people in eCommerce - founders, investors, marketers, and agency leaders who are actually doing the work. We're skipping past the highlight reels and getting into the real stories that shaped their success.

  1. SEP 9

    Fighting Fraud and Fueling Loyalty: Lessons in Trust, Community Building, and Durable Growth

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Jordan Shamir (Co-Founder & CEO of Yofi) and Malc Miller (Co-Founder & CEO of Wage) join Aaron Schwartz for a conversation that zig-zags from Ohio State vs. Michigan trash talk to the hardest truths about building DTC startups.Jordan breaks down how Yofi grew from sneaker resale frustrations into an AI-powered fraud and abuse prevention platform trusted by major brands. Malc shares lessons from neuroscience and his time at Lululemon, now channelled into Wage—a gamified finance app that rethinks how communities learn, play, and invest.They tackle:• 🛑 Fraud isn’t just lost revenue — it wrecks CX, trust, and downstream data.• 🎮 Gamification, neuroscience, and why sparring with peers beats theory every time.• 🛠 The founder toolkit: slowing down to speed up, modular product design, and why being wrong (a lot) is part of the job.Stick around for why losing a Lululemon contract turned into the best thing that ever happened to Yofi.👥 Meet the guestsJordan Shamir, Co-Founder & CEO, YofiMalc Miller, Co-Founder & CEO, WageHosted by Aaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai🎧 Chapters[00:00] Buckeyes vs. Wolverines - setting the tone [01:46] Malc’s path - neuroscience, soccer, systems thinking [05:00] Jordan’s origin story - schemer to startup operator [06:48] Yofi’s pivot - from sneaker chaos to CX-first fraud defense [08:52] Enterprise reality check - when no one owns fraud [12:07] The Lulu loss that leveled up Yofi [17:02] Inside future experiences at Lululemon - spotting patterns early [18:54] Wage 101 - pickup-game finance and learning by doing [21:33] Gamification that matters - win, lose, learn [23:56] Data you can trust - stop learning from dirty signals [31:55] Founder truths - assume you’re wrong, move anyway [34:34] Slow down to speed up - modular product over platform pitch [36:35] Team cadence - three outcomes per meeting, always [39:54] Hiring for ownership - problem finders vs. problem solvers [42:47] Build it, don’t debate it - design first, align fast [48:31] Where to find Malc and Jordan (and Wage’s waitlist) [49:45] Parting shots - momentum is manufactured [50:45] Sign-off - don’t do startups alone 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when.🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    49 min

  2. SEP 9

    The New Standard in Retention: How a Next-Gen Agency is Rewriting the Rules of Loyalty

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz chats with two retention heavyweights from New Standard Co., Marina Carroll and co-founder Eric Rausch, to find out how top brands prepare for BFCM and scale smarter with email, SMS, and push. From testing frameworks to “send less, earn more,” they share what works across fast-moving DTC and subscription brands alike. They discuss: • BFCM prep that pays – testing hero vs. long emails, pop-ups, welcome series, and frequency • List strategy, not list “cleaning” – optimizing engagement tiers without torching revenue • Flows that convert – cross-channel trigger logic for email, SMS, and push (and what to skip) • Personalization, debunked – why “best product + best landing page” beats rabbit-hole segments • Content calendars that move inventory – using click maps and product sell-through to plan • KPI “love languages” – aligning goals (LTV, repurchase rate, churn) so teams row the same way • Escaping the AM/PM treadmill – frequency tests that trade short-term blasts for durable growth • Agency vs. in-house – when speed and bandwidth matter more than another standing meeting Plus: Marina explains the “test fast, then go wide” BFCM play, Eric confesses his hatred of over-personalized welcome flows, and Aaron lobbies for inbox placement over deliverability vanity metrics. 📨 👥 Meet the guestsMarina Carroll, Retention & Lifecycle Lead at New StandardEric Rausch, Co-founder at New StandardHost: Aaron Schwartz — Co-founder & Co-CEO, Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters[00:00] Meet New Standard: Who We Are & Why We Win[02:57] Retention, Reloaded: What’s Changed (and What Still Works)[05:49] Weird Roads to DTC Glory: How We All Got Here[08:27] The Gap We Saw—and Built New Standard To Fill[11:15] First 30 Minutes: Read the Room, Then Move[14:20] Hiring Killers: How We Build a Team That Ships[17:09] BFCM Warm-Up: What to Start Testing Now[20:12] Test Smarter: Subject Lines, Timing, and “Shorter Wins”[22:53] Send Wide, Not Wild: Engagement Tiers for BFCM[26:15] List “Cleaning”? Nah. List Optimization That Prints Money[30:37] The BFCM Playbook: Who Gets What, When[36:00] Flow State: Email + SMS (+ Push) That Actually Sync[40:10] KPIs as Love Languages: Align, Then Scale[47:04] Agency or In-House? Choose Speed, Not Ego 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when. 🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai 🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    53 min

  3. SEP 9

    Borrowed Brains, Big Wins: Why Fractional Talent is the New DTC Growth Hack

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with two operators who’ve seen inside dozens of Shopify brands: Dov Quint (OpenStore, ran storefronts for ~50 brands) and Caleb Madsen (Fractional CMO). Together they cut through AI hype, agency roulette, and bloated tech stacks to show what really moves the needle.They discuss:• Founder obsession is better than shiny tools — why focus beats feature creep every time• Fractional done right — when to bring in help, when you just need a great media buyer• “Chaperoning” your stack — how to vet vendors, negotiate, and stop paying for apps you don’t use• Managed service vs. self-serve — why software still needs humans to unlock value• Practical AI wins — using fewer tools to 1.3x output without 10 new platformsPlus: Dov explains why you shouldn’t try to learn every AI tool at once, and Caleb makes the surprisingly profitable case for being “boringly excellent” at the basics.👥 Meet the guests• Dov Quint — E-commerce operator; Storefronts at OpenStore• Caleb Madsen — Fractional CMO, Madhouse Consulting• Host: Aaron Schwartz — Co-founder & CEO, Orita.ai🎧 Chapters[00:00] Meet the Operators: From Polaroid to 50 Shopify Brands[06:15] From Support Tickets to Ad Spend: Caleb’s Leap to Marketing[09:57] Founder Obsession: The One Moat You Can’t Outsource[15:45] Fractional CMO, Real Talk: When You Need One (and When You Don’t)[21:13] E-commerce Reality Check: What Actually Moves the Needle[26:44] Relationships are greater than Tactics: How “Chaperones” Save Your P&L[27:53] Tech Stack Triage: Cut the Bloat, Keep the Winners[29:22] Tool Picking 101: Vendor Vetting Without the Hype[31:47] Stack Optimization: Turn Subscriptions Into ROI[33:32] Stop the Agency Roulette: Finding Fits That Actually Perform[36:17] AI Without the Buzzwords: One Tool, 30% More Output[44:28] Dear Founders: Simple, Profitable, Boring (Why That Wins)[49:15] The Wrap: Where to Find Dov & Caleb🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when.🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    51 min

  4. AUG 22

    Direct Mail = BFCM Game-Changer: Uncover Untapped Buys and Boost Holiday Revenue

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with three leaders rewriting the playbook for direct mail: Ben Walter (CEO of PostPilot), Jess Chan (Founder of Longplay), and Ben Semmar (GM of Direct Mail at Orita). Together they unpack how brands can turn an “old-school” channel into a modern profit engine for BFCM and beyond.They discuss:• Direct mail myths – why it’s not just for lapsed customers, and how it lifts all channels• Precision beats spray – segmentation, timing, and why thoughtful targeting wins in a channel with higher stakes• Building the right process – testing cadence, creative learnings, and avoiding cookie-cutter playbooks• ROI you can’t ignore – 2–3x LTV lifts, inbox deliverability boosts, and how Direct Mail + email/SMS compoundPlus: Jess explains why “one segment, one offer, one test” beats template-chasing every time, and Aaron tries to convince everyone that snail mail is the original push notification. 📬👥 Meet the guestsBen Semmar, GM of Direct Mail at Orita.aiJess Chan, Founder of Longplay BrandsBen Walter, Partnerships at PostPilotHosted by Aaron Schwartz, Co-founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai🎧 Chapters[02:31] Busting the Biggest Direct Mail Myths[15:52] Why LTV Is the Real KPI[21:36] Direct Mail: Your BFCM Cheat Code[25:01] Plays That Actually Win with Direct Mail[31:48] How to Test Without Burning Cash[41:16] From Postcards to Catalogs: Picking Your Weapon[46:03] Quick Wins to Nail Direct Mail Fast🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when.🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade segmentation intel

    51 min

  5. AUG 4

    Laughs, Data & Denim: Inside The Perfect Jean's DTC Playbook

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Ovadia Labaton (co‑founder of The Perfect Jean) and Sammy Tran (founder of BMO Media) break down how they mix data discipline with a brand voice that never plays it safe. From cash‑flow math to irreverent copy, they show why great denim + great data still beats blitz‑scaling every time. They tackle: Unit‑economics first, always – breakeven ROAS, cash‑turn cycles, and building a “fortress” balance sheet  CX as a profit lever – refunds, radical honesty, and the small service touches that turn one‑timers into evangelists Email that entertains and converts – pacing vs. batching, timing vs. templates, and why engagement is a curve, not a switch Scaling past $10 M – team dynamics, profit targets, and resetting the goalposts from scale-at-all-costs to durable, cash‑flow growth Stick around for when Aaron’s “Spanish castle” tour gets factchecked. 🏰🤔 👥 Meet the guests Ovadia Labaton, Co-Founder, The Perfect Jean Sammy Tran, Founder, BMO Media Hosted by Aaron Schwartz, Co-founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [01:51] From BlackRock to Bootstrapped: a Wall‑Street escape plan [06:43] Birth of The Perfect Jean: stretch denim meets savage copy [09:16] Cash‑Flow or Bust: unit‑econ rules you never break [11:14] CX That Sticks: turning one‑time buyers into brand lifers [16:08] Inbox Stand‑Up: writing emails people want to open [22:07] Right Message, Right Minute: timing beats discounting [25:35] Let the Robots Segment: automations that print money [29:07] Tech‑Stack Chess: picking partners, not plug‑ins [30:40] Build‑With > Build‑For: inside a vendor love story [34:58] Loyalty 2.0: memberships, points, and repeat magic [37:36] Small Crew, Big Output: culture that keeps jeans flying [40:16] Founder Playbook: three things to stop doing today [42:54] Success That Counts: cash beats vanity metrics [46:40] Fresh Eyes on Email: why diversity trumps “best practices” 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team.  Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when. 🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    52 min

  6. AUG 1

    Hard Calls, Clear Advice: Why Tina Bou-Saba is a Founder's "First Call" for Strategic Shifts

    When Tina Bou‑Saba talks consumer strategy, the smartest founders start taking notes. In this episode of The Orita Podcast, we talk with Bou-Saba about how she helps founders navigate high-stakes decisions, from product pivots to capital strategy. We also dig into the biggest opportunities in consumer, the trends shaping where capital is flowing next, and the lessons she’s carried from Harvard to Wall Street to today’s boardrooms.  They tackle: The one trait every breakout founder shares (spoiler: it’s not an MBA) Brand versus product: why “cool” is useless without a value‑capture engine A back‑of‑the‑napkin framework for knowing if your pricing (or fundraising) math actually works If you’re building, funding, or obsessing over consumer brands, hit play and let the strategy session begin. 👀 Stick around to the end—Aaron gets some skincare advice. 👥 Meet the guest Tina Henry Bou-Saba Consumer Investor | Founder at CXT Investments Hosted by Aaron Schwartz, Co-founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Intro & why Tina’s been stalking consumer behavior since the Abercrombie era [04:43] Brand love vs. product lust—how to build both [09:18] The one Harvard list every entrepreneur should tattoo on their laptop [14:26] B2B vs. B2C founders: different planet, different playbook [24:37] Credibility hacks: signals that make retailers (and investors) swipe right [27:31] Public‑facing founders + ops pros = the modern power duo [30:38] Saying “no” to the 500‑door rollout (and sleeping at night) [35:57] Beauty’s knife fight: saturated, profitable, still worth it—if… [39:48] Wellness, women’s health, longevity clinics: the next growth galaxy [48:26] Tina’s north‑star advice: sell products or it’s just an art project 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when. 🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    54 min

  7. JUL 28

    AI, But Make It Profitable: Octane AI's Ben Parr on Turning Data Into Dollars

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Ben Parr—Mashable alum, best‑selling author of Captivology, co‑founder of Octane AI, and now investor at Theory Forge—for a founder‑to‑founder reality check on how commerce tech is moving (hint: faster than your Monday stand‑up). Together, they unpack: The $$$ unsubscribe—how to show the C‑suite that every send is either compounding value…or torching it Zero‑party data, real‑party money—how quizzes became Octane AI’s unfair advantage Investor X‑ray vision—the scoring prompts Ben runs through GPT‑4o before wiring a pre‑seed check Founders, don’t die—Ben’s surprisingly simple rule for surviving platform cliffs, cash crunches, and chatbot scandals Building 10M ARR in a weekend—and other tales from the AI frontier you can’t ignore If you’re a DTC operator, tech founder, or anyone still calling ChatGPT “the robot,” this convo will either supercharge your roadmap or light it on fire. Either way, time to move. 👥 Meet the guest Ben Parr, Co-founder at Octane AI Hosted by Aaron Schwartz, Co-founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [03:55] Octane AI glow‑up: from chatbots to checkout mind‑readers [07:48] Betting on silicon brains: how I pick AI winners [12:37] Let the algorithms argue—then I sign the check [16:24] Brand flex: real‑world AI wins you can steal [20:27] Tomorrow’s checkout: voice, vision, zero‑friction everything [24:18] Founder survival kit: grit, group chat, radical transparency [27:51] Parting shot: build with empathy or get automated 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when. 🚀 Get your free email audit from Orita – turn segments into superpowers: https://orita.ai 🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple 📩 Subscribe for more founder‑grade retention intel

    42 min

  8. JUL 24

    Make Your List (And Warm It Twice): Your BFCM Email Retention Plan Starts This Summer

    If your idea of a holiday prep strategy is “we’ll figure it out in October,” we need to have a talk. On this episode of The Orita Podcast, Diana Zheng sits down with Meaghan Langston (Go Fish Digital) and Caren Carrasco (Mandate) to talk about email marketing, AI, collaboration—and why “set it and forget it” is a crime against your customer journey. Together, they unpack: • Why every email you send is a chance to unsubscribe (make it count) • How to turn dusty automations into delightful, on-brand experiences • Why cross-channel collaboration isn’t optional—it’s survival • Dark mode, deliverability, and other things your ESP quietly hates you for ignoring • How to rewarm your dormant list now so Black Friday doesn’t destroy your open rates Plus: Caren shares the trick to getting C-suite buy-in with cold, hard unsubscribe math. Meaghan drops the mindset shift that changes how you write every campaign.  If you’re an email marketer, ecom lead, or retention nerd gearing up for Q4—you’ll want this in your ears before your next send. 👥 Meet the guests Caren Carrasco, Co-Founder & CEO at Mandate [LinkedIn] Meaghan Langston, Director of Email Marketing at Go Fish / Agital [LinkedIn] Hosted by Diana Zheng Partnerships Manager at Orita.ai [LinkedIn] 🎧 Chapters [03:40] – Own your email or someone else will (badly). [08:22] – Retention isn’t optional anymore—ask your CAC. [12:17] – Why marketing silos are killing your vibe (and revenue). [15:59] – Email: still the unsung hero of your brand strategy. [20:18] – Your email program needs a glow-up, not a glow-down. [24:33] – AI, accessibility, and emails that don’t get deleted on sight. [28:44] – Black Friday is coming—don’t wait for the panic sprint. [32:55] – Last licks: tools, tips, and tactical takeaways you’ll actually use. 🌐 Check out Orita.ai for more episodes of The Orita Podcast—where we sit down with the most interesting operators, marketers, and founders in e-commerce to talk about what’s working right now. Hosted by the Orita team. Orita uses machine learning to help brands send smarter, more profitable marketing—by figuring out who actually wants to hear from you and when.

    46 min
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About

Each week, I'm sitting down with the most interesting people in eCommerce - founders, investors, marketers, and agency leaders who are actually doing the work. We're skipping past the highlight reels and getting into the real stories that shaped their success.

Information

  • Creator
    Aaron Schwartz
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Aaron Schwartz
  • Show Website
    The Orita Podcast