E-Commerce Masterclass: How to Build, Scale & Win in 2026

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In this episode, I sit down with Sean Frank, CEO of Ridge, for a deep dive into the systems behind one of the most profitable e-commerce brands operating today. Sean breaks down how Ridge confidently spends $100K/day on ads, why simplicity beats cleverness in performance creative, and the disciplined frameworks that allow Ridge to scale without outside capital. He also shares something he rarely talks about publicly: Ridge’s biggest weakness — and why it’s actually the one unfair advantage smaller brands still have in 2026.

We unpack Ridge’s entire performance machine: producing 200+ ad variations every month, hiring creators with editing instincts, building agency-less teams, and treating ad economics with ruthless clarity. Sean explains why most brands fail before they even have a product worth selling, what founders still misunderstand about Meta, and how operational discipline is becoming the new moat in e-commerce. This conversation is a masterclass in scaling, creative iteration, and building lean teams that win — even as the landscape gets harder.

00:00:00 Trailer
00:01:33 What is Ridge’s Marketing Mix Today?
00:06:22 Breakdown of Ridge's Massive Content Machine
00:09:14 What Have You Seen Work The Best on Ridge's Ad Account?
00:14:01 Do You Believe in Top of Funnel Marketing?
00:15:42 What Type of Tools Do You Use For Content?
00:17:13 "The Next Best Dollar" Concept
00:22:49 Meta's New Ad Engine: Andromeda
00:24:35 Even More Godly Marketing Principles
00:31:51 What Are The Key Metrics You Obsess Over?
00:42:43 Are Partner Ads Better?
00:43:55 How is Your Whitelisting System?
00:48:57 What is Your Influencer Strategy?
00:55:40 How Does The Partnership with MKBHD Work?
01:01:45 Any Other YouTube Partnerships That Was A Huge Win?
01:04:54 What's Your Thoughts on Twitter?
01:09:57 Raising Money and Using Debt
01:12:29 Debt Masterclass
01:15:08 When Should Founders Exit?
01:31:03 Product and Supply Chain
01:34:49 What Are Some of Ridge's Biggest Mistakes?
01:42:56 What Are The Biggest Margin Killers?
01:46:15 International Expansion
01:55:28 Rapid Fire

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???? Guest: Sean Frank, CEO of RIDGE
Twitter: https://x.com/SeanEcom
Website: https://ridge.com/

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