Shopify Masters How Ridge Used AI to Double Revenue & Surpass $100M Revenue
13 snips
Oct 28, 2025 Sean Frank, CEO of Ridge, shares insights on how his D2C accessories brand soared past $100M in revenue. He discusses leveraging AI across operations, from customer service to data analysis, which helped them scale efficiently. Sean reveals the importance of a marketing-first strategy and innovative product positioning in the $10B wallet market. He also dives into their unique approach to product expansion, aggressive testing for new SKUs, and adapting their marketing mix beyond Meta. Learn how Ridge maintains high revenue per employee while embracing AI's potential.
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Be First-Purchase Profitable
- Spend on channels only when you can measure first-purchase profitability and clear ROI.
- Be first-purchase profitable before scaling ad spend to survive rising CPMs and higher acquisition costs.
Humble Kickstarter Origin Story
- Ridge began when a college student made a better wallet after a disappointing Kickstarter purchase.
- Sean joined later, merged his ad agency into Ridge, and scaled it from $5M/year to much larger revenue.
Marketing Is Exponential
- Marketing drives exponential growth while operations give linear improvements.
- Invest heavily in marketing early; operational efficiencies matter later as the business matures.