Shopify President Harley Finkelstein is having a fun time catching up with entrepreneurs from Washington, D.C. as a part of his job. In a recent tweet, he heaped praise on founders of local businesses like SOMEWHERE, Quavaro and Arcay Chocolates, adding how his perspective changed after meeting them.
“One of the best parts of my job as the President of @Shopify is getting to meet entrepreneurs. They are the most resilient and inspiring people on the planet, period,” Finkelstein said in a tweet along with three pictures from the meetup.
In the same Twitter thread, he explained who all he met on Thursday: “Today, I got to meet the founders behind DC local businesses @somewheredc, Quavaro, and Arcay Chocolates. Feeling super inspired. Get out and meet your local entrepreneurs – it’ll change your perspective.”
Today, I got to meet the founders behind DC local businesses @somewheredc, Quavaro, and Arcay Chocolates. Feeling super inspired.
— Harley Finkelstein (@harleyf) September 22, 2022
Get out and meet your local entrepreneurs – it’ll change your perspective.
What Are These Brands?
SOMEWHERE is a clothing and footwear brand, while Quavaro and Arcay Chocolates deal in leather goods and chocolates respectively.
Dennis Hegstad, who protects DTC brands from coupon leaks and injections at Vigilance, asked Finkelstein in a reply: “did you take home a fresh pair of kicks?”
did you take home a fresh pair of kicks?
— dennis hegstad (@dennishegstad) September 22, 2022
Finkelstein: The Entrepreneur Himself
An investor Jacoline Loewen joined the thread, praising Finkelstein: “Right back at you – an entrepreneur who is resilient and inspiring – describes you.”
Right back at you – an entrepreneur who is resilient and inspiring – describes you.
— JacolineLoewen (@JacolineLoewen) September 22, 2022
President at Shopify, Finkelstein is also a pound entrepreneur with sustainable beverages store FireBelly Tea. In a LinkedIn post, Shopify President had explained how the idea started six years ago and took shape during the coronavirus pandemic.
“When I wanted to stock up my own tea collection, we looked at the market and saw that artificial flavourings and un-listed preservatives were pervasive in most of the tea brands available. AKA = there was a gap in the market for high-quality tea. It was time to start a business,” Finkelstein said.
On its Shopify store, Firebelly Tea claims to feature products made of 100 percent real ingredients with no artificial sweeteners, flavouring or sugar. Talking about sustainable packaging, Firebelly Tea uses resealable pouches that are home-compostable within one year.
Shopify’s Commitment
Shopify values entrepreneurs like no other e-commerce platform. It allows them funds, tools and right guidance to set up online store and sell products across the globe. In Australia, the Canadian e-commerce giant launched Shopify Capital, giving quick access to funding to Australian merchants selling on its retail platform. Now small business owners in Australia can access up to $2.5 million AUD, after evaluation of sales data and its balance sheet.
Recently, Shopify also launched Shopify Markets Pro and Shopify Translate & Adapt to help local business owners capture international selling market. While the new Shopify Markets Pro, based on enormous success of Shopify Markets, help merchants expand business across over 150 countries, Shopify Translate & Adapt app localizes the customer journey to boost international selling chances.
Thanks to its ecosystem comprising merchants, app developers, agencies, designers, freelancers and affiliate marketers, Shopify made a revenue of $32 billion in 2021. It was Finkelstein who revealed how Shopify Partners helped Shopify make huge profits.
“$32 billion. That’s how much revenue the @ShopifyPartners ecosystem generated in 2021. That’s up 45% from 2020 and nearly 7x Shopify’s 2021 revenue – and we’re proud of their success,” Finkelstein tweeted.
$32 billion.
— Harley Finkelstein (@harleyf) August 26, 2022
That’s how much revenue the @ShopifyPartners ecosystem generated in 2021. That’s up 45% from 2020 and nearly 7x Shopify’s 2021 revenue – and we’re proud of their success.
On September 15, the company hosted four-hour Shopify Commerce Day 2022 SEA & India event. It allowed entrepreneurs and merchants get together and learn new ways of customer engagement. With all such initiatives, Shopify wants small business owners boost sales in the upcoming Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) 2022 and India’s festive shopping season.
