Josh Krepon from Steve Madden discusses navigating the evolving ecommerce landscape, emphasizing unified P&L for faster decisions. He shares candid insights on TikTok Shop's discovery value vs. ownership, the constant tariff calculus, and how "agentic commerce" driven by AI is transforming vendor selection and strategic partnerships like Google Universal Checkout and DoorDash. This episode provides a pragmatic view of how a large multi-brand D2C business adapts to new commerce paradigms.
Key takeaways
Embrace a unified P&L for stores, e-commerce, and marketing to accelerate decision-making, as Steve Madden does across its multi-brand portfolio.
Leverage platforms like TikTok Shop primarily for discovery rather than direct customer ownership, understanding the economics of low AOVs and creator commissions.
Continuously evaluate and adapt sourcing strategies and margin absorption to mitigate the impact of tariffs, as global supply chain costs are highly dynamic.
Adopt an 'agentic commerce' mindset by prioritizing short pilot programs over lengthy RFPs, using AI to rapidly identify and integrate innovative tech partners.
Focus on new commerce channels for their discovery potential rather than just autonomous checkout, as brand visibility remains a key prize for growth.
Recorded live from NRF Nexus, Jason and Scot sit down with Josh Krepon, President of U.S. D2C and Global Digital at Steve Madden. Josh shares his path through Ralph Lauren, Victoria's Secret, Tory Burch and Cole Haan, and what it takes to operate inside founder-led companies. At Steve Madden, a $3 billion business with an in-house sample factory and brands including Dolce Vita, Betsey Johnson and Kurt Geiger, his remit covers stores, e-commerce and marketing under one P&L. He makes the case that this alignment moves decisions faster than siloed org charts allow. The conversation turns to social and TikTok Shop. Josh is candid that its real value is discovery, and digs into the economics of low AOVs, creator commissions and not owning the customer. Brands that can hold full price at higher price points have a structural advantage there. On tariffs, he describes a constant calculus of what to pass through, what margin to absorb and where to cut cost, and how quickly the sourcing math keeps flipping. The back half goes deep on agentic commerce. Steve Madden is live on Google's Universal Checkout, a partnership Google name-checked on its own earnings call, and recently launched two brands on DoorDash. Josh explains how AI has upended vendor selection, where a long operating history can now signal legacy technology, and why short pilots have replaced long RFPs. He closes on where this lands: discovery, not autonomous checkout, is the real prize for a brand like his.
Embrace a unified P&L for stores, e-commerce, and marketing to accelerate decision-making, as Steve Madden does across its multi-brand portfolio.
What does this episode say about amazon & marketplaces?
Leverage platforms like TikTok Shop primarily for discovery rather than direct customer ownership, understanding the economics of low AOVs and creator commissions.
What does this episode say about supply chain & operations?
Continuously evaluate and adapt sourcing strategies and margin absorption to mitigate the impact of tariffs, as global supply chain costs are highly dynamic.
What does this episode say about ai & automation?
Adopt an 'agentic commerce' mindset by prioritizing short pilot programs over lengthy RFPs, using AI to rapidly identify and integrate innovative tech partners.
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Focus on new commerce channels for their discovery potential rather than just autonomous checkout, as brand visibility remains a key prize for growth.
