Ep 622: How Outway Runs Canada and the US as Two Separate Businesses
DTC Podcast · with Taylor Fraser · June 22, 2026 · 42 min
Summary
Outway, a performance sock brand, discovered that treating US and Canadian markets as distinct businesses is crucial for successful cross-border expansion. This episode reveals how they adapted their growth strategy, marketing (including dropping Meta retargeting), and promotional tactics to align with consumer behavior in each region, offering a blueprint for brands expanding internationally.
Key takeaways
Treat each country your DTC operates in as a separate business with distinct front-end and back-end operations, recognizing unique customer behaviors and preferences (e.g., Canadian vs. US buyer differences).
For sub-eight-figure brands, prioritize broader growth strategies like increasing ad spend and creative volume over intensive website CRO efforts.
Leverage existing, external sales moments (like Mother's Day or Prime Day) instead of trying to manufacture your own sales events to capitalize on established consumer intent.
Simplify promotional offers (e.g., store-wide discounts) over complex ones like BOGO, and consider "mystery pair" or similar tactics for driving attachment and engagement.
Embrace AI for daily operational tasks such as reporting, data pulls, and creating custom dashboards to enhance efficiency and data-driven decision-making.
Most brands expand into the US and treat it like the same business with a different shipping label. Outway learned it is not.Taylor Fraser is the Chief Growth Officer at Outway, the Canadian performance sock brand. In this episode he breaks down why Outway now runs Canada and the US as two distinct businesses, why he dropped retargeting on Meta entirely, and why a sub eight-figure brand cannot optimize its website to growth.What you'll learn:Why Outway swapped the CMO role for a Chief Growth Officer and split growth into performance, retention, and e-commerceWhy Canadian and US customers buy so differently, and how Outway split the two businesses on the backend and frontendWhy the team runs no retargeting and lets the algorithm handle itWhy simple store-wide discounts beat clever BOGO offers, and why the mystery pair became a "golden handcuffs" attachWhy you cannot CRO your way to growth under a certain revenue line, and what to do insteadWhy Outway rides external moments like Mother's Day and Prime Day instead of manufacturing its own salesHow the team uses AI daily for reporting, data pulls, and custom dashboardsWho this is for: DTC operators, growth and performance marketers, and founders selling across more than one country.What to steal: the two-businesses framework for cross-border selling, and the decision to stop manufacturing fake sales and ride moments customers already care about.Timestamps:00:00 Meta Doesn't Need Retargeting Campaigns13:06 How Andromeda Changed Meta Ads18:11 The Creative Volume Debate21:08 Why Scaling in the U.S. Is Harder Than Canada35:20 Why More Ads Beat CRO for GrowthSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/sig
Treat each country your DTC operates in as a separate business with distinct front-end and back-end operations, recognizing unique customer behaviors and preferences (e.g., Canadian vs. US buyer differences).
What does this episode say about paid acquisition?
For sub-eight-figure brands, prioritize broader growth strategies like increasing ad spend and creative volume over intensive website CRO efforts.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Leverage existing, external sales moments (like Mother's Day or Prime Day) instead of trying to manufacture your own sales events to capitalize on established consumer intent.
What does this episode say about ai & automation?
Simplify promotional offers (e.g., store-wide discounts) over complex ones like BOGO, and consider "mystery pair" or similar tactics for driving attachment and engagement.
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Embrace AI for daily operational tasks such as reporting, data pulls, and creating custom dashboards to enhance efficiency and data-driven decision-making.
