This Hidden E-commerce Giant Makes BILLIONS In Plain Sight
How a six-person team with a terrible website quietly built one of the biggest eCom businesses on the internet—and what the rest of us can learn from it.

In This Episode:
There’s a whole sector of eCommerce you’ve probably never thought about—brands that sell needs, not wants. This week, John, Bart, and guest host Nate Lagos break down the wild success of RockAuto.com and how it exposes a blind spot in the DTC playbook. They also debate the current state of AI ads, what actually moves the needle with content, and how to win when you're not the "cool" brand.

Topics Include:

The story behind Rock Auto’s ugly website and beautiful business

Why most of us ignore the biggest slice of eCommerce

Demand capture vs demand creation (and why it matters)

The unsexy B2B opportunity hiding in plain sight

AI-generated ads: actually useful or just a shiny toy?

The real reason to invest more in creative

Nate’s plan to turn non–watch guys into repeat buyers

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CHAPTERS
00:00 – The $500M Brand Hiding in Plain Sight
07:00 – The Southern Hemisphere of eCom: Selling What People Need
19:00 – Working With Billion-Dollar Brands (And Why They’re Often Clueless)
33:00 – The B2B and Agency Opportunity No One’s Talking About
39:00 – AI Ads: Bad Today, But Getting Closer
59:00 – How Great Creative Actually Gets Made
1:13:00 – Nate’s Plan to Upmarket Original Grain (and a Free Consult)
1:20:00 – Final Thoughts + Watch Industry Tea

FOLLOW OUR HOSTS
John Coyle

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Nick Shackelford

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Zoe Kahn

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-kahn-5b61aa129/

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ZoeKahn

Bart Szaniewski

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bart-szaniewski-374b1141/

Twitter/X: https://x.com/TheSzef

Nate Lagos

Twitter/X: https://x.com/natelagos

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/

Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/5nULM2GckoiJp7rri3kYt1?si=91ca1f50a35d4656

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