The Orita Podcast

Aaron Schwartz
  • 5.0 (3)
  • MARKETING
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

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. FEB 26

    Family Threads: How The Normal Brand Blends Legacy, Loyalty, and Leading-Edge Tech

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Jimmy Sansone and Conrad Sansone, co-owners of The Normal Brand, to unpack how a personal product need turned into a real omnichannel apparel business built the old-school way: action first, learn fast, and stay obsessive about contribution margin. They break down: • Growing up as two of ten kids and why a “team mindset” shaped how they lead • The early days shipping orders from a basement and learning the hard parts (tech packs, MOQs, wholesale) the messy way • Why they went omnichannel by necessity: wholesale first, retail later, ecommerce always• How they think about stores: human experience, brand immersion, and the details you can’t replicate online • The lens they use to vet new tech: incrementality, contribution margin, and partners who speak their language• What they’re focused on now: first-to-second purchase velocity, flow optimization, and creative that moves across Meta, PDPs, and CRM • Why they’re bullish on “software-enabled agencies” that blend outcomes, tooling, and real operator supportThis one is packed with founder honesty, tactical lessons, and a refreshingly grounded view on scaling without chasing hype. 👥 Meet the guestsJimmy Sansone: Co-Owner at The Normal BrandConrad Sansone: Co-Owner at The Normal Brand 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Meet The Normal Brand: Brothers, Builders, Operators [02:00] Raised Entrepreneurial: 10 Kids, One Team Mentality [05:33] Basement-to-Brand: The Messy Mistakes That Made Them Better [10:44] How Two Brothers Split Leadership Without Stepping On Toes [12:38] Omnichannel on Purpose: Retail + Wholesale + DTC, Done Right [20:44] Wholesale as a Growth Engine: Retailers as Partners, Not Channels [22:11] Why They Send Less Email and Make More Money [26:42] From First Buy to Repeat: The 60-Day Retention Playbook [36:00] What They’re Building Next: New Product, Bigger Bets, Same Discipline 🌐 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

    43 min

  2. FEB 20

    Designing E-Commerce Success: John Surdakowski's Journey from Freelancer to Founder

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with John Surdakowski, Founder & CEO of Avex, to talk about what happens after a brand “wins” acquisition, then realizes the site, stack, and customer journey aren’t built to sustain the next stage. John built Avex into one of the most trusted Shopify agencies for mid-market and enterprise brands, and he has a rare ability to cut through ecommerce noise. Together, they discuss: • Why most fast-growing brands hit $50–100M on duct tape (and what breaks next) • Stabilization before optimization: fixing the tech stack so teams can move again • Testing culture as a growth engine: roadmaps, hypotheses, and why losing tests still win • Omnichannel reality: when Shopify becomes the hub for DTC + B2B + retail • AI in ecommerce: where it’s already making teams faster (and where it’s still just noise) • Agentic commerce + AI discovery: what to watch, and what not to obsess over yet • The headless lesson: why 99% of brands shouldn’t over-engineer their way into pain If you’re scaling a Shopify brand and feeling the gap between “we’re growing” and “we’re set up to keep growing,” this one is for you. 👥 Meet the guestJohn Surdakowski, Founder & CEO, Avex 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Who Avex Is Built For (and Why “Mid-Market” Isn’t a Revenue Number)[04:02] What Great Agencies Do Not Do (and How Partnerships Should Work)[06:50] Redesigns Don’t Fail Because of Design, They Fail Without Exec Buy-In[09:30] Unified Commerce Isn’t a Buzzword, It’s the Only Way Retail Scales[12:14] Shopify Drops 50 New Things a Year: Here’s How to Tell What Matters[15:04] AI Didn’t Change the Goal, It Changed the Speed (and the Bar)[17:44] The Brands That Win Don’t Guess, They Test (Relentlessly)[20:46] CRO Tool Stack: What’s Worth Using to Test, Personalize, and Learn[23:25] All-in-One vs Best-in-Class: The Real Reason Brands Consolidate[26:07] $100M Brand Problem: When Your Site Is Held Together With Duct Tape[29:00] Retention Isn’t Email, It’s the Whole Post-Purchase Relationship[31:27] Agentic Commerce: Are We Building for Humans… or Bots?[34:08] Don’t Turn Your Brand Into a Tech Company (Learn From Headless) 🌐 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

    40 min

  3. FEB 18

    Inbox Alchemy: Turning EMEA Email Programs into Predictable Revenue

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Daniel Höhnke, General Manager of EMEA at Andzen, for a candid conversation about what it really takes to scale ecommerce across borders. From launching one of Germany’s earliest online furniture experiments to leading CRM strategy across global brands, Daniel shares what he’s learned moving from merchant to agency life and why international growth is far more nuanced than most U.S. brands expect. Together, they unpack: • Why Germany, France, Spain, and the UK behave like completely different markets, not one region • The biggest mistake U.S. brands make when expanding to Europe (hint: English isn’t enough) • How GDPR changed the game and why it’s no longer the real barrier • Why personalization maturity in the UK still outpaces much of mainland Europe • The hidden complexity of Shopify Markets + Klaviyo in multi-country setups (and what finally got easier) • What an “AI-first” CRM agency really looks like internally and how that mindset compounds client results • How empathy, segmentation, and regional nuance unlock real growth across EMEA This episode is a masterclass in international expansion, CRM strategy, and why deep customer understanding still beats tool obsession. If you’re a U.S. brand eyeing Europe, or a European brand scaling globally, this one will sharpen your thinking fast. 👥 Meet the guest Daniel Höhnke, GM EMEA at Andzen 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Meet Daniel Höhnke: From Magento 0.6 to Global CRM Leader[02:34] Why I Left the Brand Side for Agency Life (No Regrets)[04:59] The German Ecommerce Bubble and Why It Stayed Closed[07:37] AI-First Ecommerce: What That Actually Means in 2026[10:11] Martech Overload: How Brands Choose the Wrong Tools[12:47] Europe Is Not a Market (And That’s Your Advantage)[15:25] US Brands Expanding to Europe: Do This First[17:41] GDPR Panic vs. Reality: What Actually Matters Now[20:29] The International Playbook: Scaling Smart Across EMEA 🌐 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

    24 min

  4. FEB 13

    Beyond CRO: The Growth Experiment Mindset

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Drew Marconi, Co-Founder & CEO of Intelligems, to talk about the most under-discussed lever in ecommerce: how you price, promote, and merchandise profit on purpose, not by vibes. Drew built dynamic pricing systems in ride share, then brought that same experimentation mindset to Shopify brands. The result: a platform (and a philosophy) that treats your storefront like a living sales machine and forces teams to stop making “local” decisions that quietly fight each other. Together, they dive into: • Why “the right price” isn’t a number, it’s a strategy that changes with timing and cohorts • How to test pricing without freaking out your customers (or your support team) • The hidden truth: your site has a dozen “pricing” levers beyond the product price • Why most brands test too small and how to build a roadmap that breaks real constraints • The segmentation starting point that matters most: new vs returning (then source) • Shipping thresholds, discounts, and offers: why you can’t optimize them in isolation • Personalization that rhymes: matching the promise in the email/ad to the on-site experience • How the best brands think in LTV first and won’t debate decisions without it • The role agencies play in making experimentation real (and scalable) • What’s next: APIs, MCP-style building blocks, and storefronts that get more dynamic fast If you’ve ever watched your team argue over pricing, CRO, shipping, and promos like they’re separate worlds, then this one will make those dots connect. 👥 Meet the guestDrew Marconi, Co-Founder & CEO at Intelligems 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] From McKinsey to Ride Share to Shopify: Why Drew Built Intelligems[03:07] “Cost-Plus Is a Lie”: The New Rules of Pricing[07:43] Price Testing Without Starting a Customer Riot[09:58] Personalization That Pays (Not Just “Hi {FirstName}”)[13:09] Your Site Is Frankensteined: Making Offers, Shipping, and UX Work Together[14:58] Retention Math: Stop Optimizing Orders, Start Optimizing LTV[17:24] The Shift Back to Growth, But With Guardrails[19:57] CRO Isn’t Enough: Test the Business Model, Not Button Colors[22:54] The Only Segmentation Question That Matters First[25:56] Find Your “Money Segments” Before You Overcomplicate Everything[29:40] How to Build a Real Experimentation Culture (Without Getting Fired)[33:29] A Brand Went Full Mad Scientist and It Worked[36:58] Why Agencies Win: The Secret Growth Engine Behind the Best Tests[40:43] What Intelligems Is Building Next: Dynamic Storefronts + APIs + AI 🌐 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

    50 min

  5. FEB 11

    Entertain to Retain: Humor, AI & Customer Loyalty

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Zach Scheimer, Senior Retention Marketing Manager at Criquet Shirts, for a masterclass in modern retention, where data meets brand, and CRM is more than just sending emails. Zach’s path to retention isn’t typical. From NFL mascot to stand-up comic to deeply technical email architect, he brings a rare blend of analytics, humor, and systems thinking to the craft. And it shows. Together, they unpack: • From mascot to marketer, how an unconventional background shaped Zach’s retention mindset • Data over opinions, why “the numbers are telling you something” is his core philosophy • Beyond email, how retention now spans SMS, direct mail, onsite experience, loyalty, and returns • The micro vs. macro lens, why customer service and retention are solving the same problem • Creative as the overlap, how brand voice fuels both performance and retention • Loyalty & exclusivity, why your best customers want to feel “in the club” • AI on-site, how product comparison agents could reshape customer experience • SMS & RCS, why richer mobile messaging is the next unlock • The hidden risk of over sending, and how channel fatigue quietly kills long-term value If you care about customer lifetime value, cross-channel alignment, or building a retention engine that actually respects the customer, this one’s for you. 👥 Meet the guestZach Scheimer, Senior Retention Marketing Manager at Criquet Shirts 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [05:32] Retention’s Secret Weapon: Technical Skills Most Marketers Don’t Have[08:24] Why Your Emails “Underperform”[11:11] The Naming System That Turns Your CRM Into a Money Dashboard[14:00] How Criquet’s Brand Voice Makes Customers Feel Like Insiders[16:46] Personalization Without Being Creepy: The Line Every Brand Crosses[17:40] Retention Isn’t Email Anymore: The New Tool Stack (and New Rules)[20:29] Loyalty That Works: Exclusivity vs. Points[22:11] The Customer Journey Isn’t Linear: Here’s How Criquet Designs It[24:48] Performance vs. Retention Is a False War (Creative Is the Bridge)[27:42] Stop Retargeting Recent Buyers: The Simple Fix Most Brands Miss[30:41] Gmail AI Summaries + RCS: The Next Wave Coming for CRM[34:34] Marketing + CX: The Teams That Don’t Talk Are Bleeding Revenue[37:03] AI on Your Site: The Shopping Assistant That Could Replace “Where Do I Click?” 🌐 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

  6. FEB 10

    Founders Who Deliver: The Package That Sparked a Unicorn

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz talks to Itamar Zur, Co-Founder & CEO of Veho, to unpack why delivery isn’t just logistics: it’s brand, loyalty, and growth hiding in plain sight. Ita didn’t set out to build a logistics company. He set out to fix broken customer experiences. From bad doorstep deliveries to stolen packages, Veho was born from a simple obsession: make the post-purchase experience feel as intentional as the product itself. That obsession took Veho from an MBA idea to a nationwide network powering last-mile delivery for brands like Sephora and Lululemon. Together, they dive into: • Why customer experience, not speed alone, is the real last-mile advantage • How Veho scaled from zero to unicorn without copying UPS or FedEx • The co-founder breakup that almost killed the company and what saved it • Building culture and principles that scale past the founding team • Hiring mistakes, leadership evolution, and when to trust your gut • Why last-mile delivery directly impacts LTV, conversion, and repeat purchase • How AI is reshaping logistics, decision-making, and internal leverage • Veho’s vision to own the entire post-purchase journey, not just delivery 👥 Meet the guestItamar Zur, Co-Founder & CEO at Veho 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] From Lawyer to Logistics Founder[07:47] Zero to “This Might Work”: Building Veho from Nothing[10:39] Co-Founder Breakups, Hard Pivots, and Finding the Right Partner[13:31] Scaling Whiplash: How Leadership Has to Change[16:10] Hiring Without Regrets: The Rules (and Mistakes) That Matter[19:27] How You Build a Customer-Obsessed Company (on Purpose)[30:23] Why “If It’s Not Written, It’s Not Decided” Wins[32:39] AI as a Force Multiplier: Where It’s Already Paying Off[37:21] Culture That Scales: Principles Over Heroics[41:50] What Veho Borrowed (and Didn’t) from UPS, FedEx, Amazon, Uber[45:16] Delivery = Brand: The Hidden Driver of LTV[49:49] Beyond the Box: The Post-Purchase Platform Future 🌐 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

  7. FEB 6

    Crossing Borders, Cracking Logistics: Inside the Shipping Wars

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Alex Yancher, Co-Founder & CEO of Passport, to go deep on the part of ecommerce most people underestimate until it breaks: international expansion. Alex has seen it all...investment banking during the financial crisis, early Facebook, building and selling companies, and then spending the last decade living in the messy reality of cross-border logistics. He shares what it really takes to help brands unlock global growth, why Passport leaned into M&A as a strategic weapon, and how the next wave of commerce will be defined by who can move fast across operations, regulation, and customer experience. Together, they dive into: • Alex’s path from Morgan Stanley to Facebook to entrepreneurship • The early “warehouse in Delaware” era that taught him cross-border the hard way • Why Passport made two key acquisitions and how to integrate without breaking the org • When brands should stay cross-border vs. go in-country with local inventory • The hidden complexity: importer of record, compliance, taxes, labeling, and marketplaces • Why TikTok Shop and marketplace rules are forcing new global playbooks • How Passport reduces “Where’s my package?” pain by owning the tracking and support layer • What AI is changing inside Passport from call recording culture to semantic search and analytics • Why international is a growth lever and a risk hedge for brands too dependent on the US 👥 Meet the guestAlex Yancher, Co-Founder & CEO at Passport 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Meet Alex Yancher: The “Build + Buy” Playbook Behind Passport[05:40] From Wall Street to Startups: The Skills That Still Pay Off[09:54] Why Most Founders Ignore M&A (And Why Alex Didn’t)[15:32] How to Buy Companies Without Breaking Yours: Lessons From the Trenches[20:11] Going In-Country: The Hidden Mess Behind “Local Fulfillment”[25:33] When You Become the Buyer Everyone Calls: Passport’s M&A Flywheel[31:57] Why Brands Pick Passport: The Real Differentiator (It’s Not Just Shipping)[38:39] How Passport Uses AI: Internal Leverage, Faster Decisions, Better Ops[44:09] Scaling to 230 People: CEO Lessons, Bottlenecks, and Staying Aligned 🌐 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

  8. FEB 3

    Killing the Popup: What 2,000+ Shopify Brands Taught Me About Conversion

    In this episode of The Orita Podcast, Aaron Schwartz sits down with Shaan Arora, Co-Founder & CEO of Alia, to unpack how a scrappy team of college friends turned a simple idea, making ecommerce popups work better, into one of the fastest-growing tools in the Shopify ecosystem. Shaan shares why “ownership” has been his north star since day one, how the founding team built trust (and staying power) early, and the unconventional growth moves, building in public, betting on partners, and obsessing over support, that helped Alia scale to real momentum. Together, they dive into: • Why Shaan cared more about ownership than a traditional career path (and how his parents shaped that mindset) • How Alia’s founding team formed and the “hot dog stand” promise that kept them locked in through pivots • The real competitive edge: shameless scrappiness, relentless ops, and world-class technical execution • Shaan’s boldest sales story and why “doing the most” can win the deal • What Alia does differently: smarter timing, smarter testing, and popups personalized by shopper behavior • Why “data moat + speed” is the formula for beating incumbents • Building in public as a free growth channel and why revenue posts work (even when they feel weird) • The underrated growth lever: elite support + customer success as reputation engine • Shaan’s take on SaaS: beware companies that market harder than they build • Founder lessons on focus, letting fires burn, and not becoming the bottleneck as you scale 👥 Meet the guestShaan Arora, Co-Founder & CEO at Alia 🎙 Hosted byAaron Schwartz, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Orita.ai 🎧 Chapters [00:00] Meet Shaan: From CS Kid to Shopify Power Player[02:47] Why Ownership Beat the “Safe Job” Path[05:32] Co-Founders: The Real Moat Nobody Talks About[08:24] How to Build a Team That Doesn’t Need Hand-Holding[10:52] “Be Shameless”: The Sales Moves That Close Deals[13:40] Hiring Filters That Save You From Bad Fits[16:19] The Startup Test: Are You Obsessed Enough?[19:10] What Alia Does (And Why Popups Are Still Underrated)[21:58] Popups, But Smarter: Timing, Targeting, and Auto A/B Tests[24:34] Building in Public: The Free Growth Channel That Works[27:21] Posting Revenue: Why It Converts (And When It Backfires)[30:04] Customer Success = The Flywheel (Not a Department)[32:38] SaaS Advice: Don’t Buy Hype, Buy Proof[35:25] Leadership Level-Up: Stop Being the Bottleneck 🌐 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

    43 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

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
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    62
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Aaron Schwartz
  • Show Website
    The Orita Podcast