Beyond The Now

Reese Witherspoon's name may open the door, but product, storytelling and customer loyalty are what have made Draper James last.In this episode of Beyond the Now, Liam Millward sits down with Piper Parsley, VP of Marketing & eCommerce at Draper James, to unpack how the brand turns a founder's vision into a business customers keep coming back to.They cover how Draper James carries one clear story across eCommerce, social, email and retail, why retention is the new CAC, what makes a brand collaboration work, and how marketers can use AI without giving up the human judgment that makes a brand distinctive.You will learn:Why celebrity attention cannot replace a strong productHow customer feedback shapes product and category expansionHow storytelling changes across the customer journeyWhy repeat purchases are central to durable growthHow to choose collaborations that work for both brandsHow AI can free teams to spend more time on strategy and creative workSubscribe for more conversations with the people shaping the future of eCommerce.

Muscle Republic started with Vic Gigliotti cutting the sleeves off T-shirts for a bodybuilding competition.Today, it is a global activewear brand built around community, resilience, and heart.In this episode of Beyond the Now, Liam Millward sits down with Vic Gigliotti, Founder of Muscle Republic, to unpack the personal and business journey behind the brand, from hitting rock bottom and starting with almost nothing to building a team and community with global reach.They cover:- How Vic turned his own transformation into the idea for Muscle Republic- Why community became the foundation of the brand- The setbacks and hard decisions that shaped the business- How fitness influenced Vic's approach to discipline, leadership, and long-term growth- What comes next for Muscle RepublicIf you are building a brand, leading a team, or working through a difficult chapter, this is an honest conversation about creating something that lasts.

Most eCommerce brands optimize for revenue and reported ROAS.Jordan Craig optimizes for profit.In this episode of Beyond the Now, Liam Millward sits down with Rob Varon, VP of Digital at Jordan Craig, to unpack how a fully bootstrapped streetwear brand thinks about incrementality, lifecycle marketing, personalization, and practical AI.They cover:Why profit should be the North Star for every growth decisionWhy platform-reported ROAS can hide what is truly incrementalHow email, SMS, and push work together across the customer journeyHow Jordan Craig uses AI for pricing, campaign planning, and competitor monitoringWhy marketers will become managers of agents instead of being replaced by themIf you lead eCommerce, growth, retention, or digital, this conversation is a practical guide to building a more profitable and AI-native business.

Most eCommerce brands treat customer experience like a support function.The best ones use it as an early-warning system for the entire business.In this episode of Beyond the Now, Liam Millward sits down with Jennifer Villalba, Director of Customer Experience at 32 Degrees, to unpack how her team turns customer conversations into better products, faster decisions, and stronger loyalty, while introducing AI without losing the human touch.We get into:How CX caught a product issue before return data didWhy response speed builds trust for value-priced brandsHow 32 Degrees scales a 20-person team to 60 during Q4The invisible VIP framework that empowers agents to make exceptionsWhere AI can reduce repetitive work and enable proactive CXIf you lead eCommerce, operations, retention, or customer experience, this conversation is a practical playbook for turning CX from a cost center into a growth engine.

In this episode of Beyond the Now, Louis Monoyudis, Harvard mythology graduate and 5x CMO, sits down with Liam Millward to break down why the brands winning long-term aren't competing on features, price, or even creative. They're competing on belief.They dive into:Why leading with features and benefits is a race to the bottomWhat Liquid Death, Hermes, and Apple understand that most brands don'tHow to build emotional connection at scale without losing profitabilityWhy discounting is a sugar spike and what to focus on insteadHow AI is reshaping brand strategy and what every marketer should be doing nowIf you're an ecommerce marketer trying to build something that actually lasts, this one's for you.Follow Beyond the Now for more conversations with the operators shaping what's next in ecommerce.