From Market Stall to 7-Figure Brand: How Mademoiselle Macaron Made eCommerce Work

eCommerce MasterPlan · with Rachel Hanretty · 31 min

Summary

Rachel Hanretty, founder of Mademoiselle Macaron, shares her journey of scaling a luxury macaron business from a market stall to a 7-figure e-commerce powerhouse. Learn how strategic pivots, innovative fulfillment solutions, and smart agency management enabled her to build a successful multi-channel brand (DTC, B2B, marketplaces) despite significant challenges like skyrocketing rent and Shopify setup mistakes.

Key takeaways

• Embrace multi-channel selling (DTC, B2B, marketplaces) to diversify revenue streams and reach a wider customer base, as Mademoiselle Macaron achieved 40% B2B turnover.
• Innovate fulfillment methods for perishable goods, like freezing macarons, to unlock wider distribution and scale, enabling 7-figure operations.
• Proactively pursue sales rather than passively waiting for orders to significantly accelerate business growth.
• Optimize your Shopify setup diligently to avoid backend issues that can hinder scalability and operational efficiency.
• Critically evaluate agency partnerships; be prepared to break up with underperforming agencies to find better strategic fits.

Themes

Topics covered

Episode description

Rachel Hanretty is the founder and CEO at Mademoiselle Macaron, sellers of handmade luxury French macarons. Rachel’s grown the business from a market stall in 2013 to a 7-figure business. They now sell via their Shopify store to both DTC and B2B customers, via marketplaces like Not on the High Street, and about 40% of turnover is B2B sales. Hit PLAY to hear: Why skyrocketing rent pushed Rachel to shut her shop—and scale faster The Shopify setup mistake that nearly broke their backend How freezing macarons unlocked 7-figure fulfillment The agency breakup that every ecommerce founder should learn from What finally pushed them to stop waiting and start selling proactively How French flair (and flavor) became their brand’s superpower Key timestamps to dive straight in: [03:51] Shift from Storefront to Online Sales [07:54] Customizable Macaron Packaging Options [12:48] Consolidating Services Led to Conflict [16:19] Testing Separate Agency Strategies [20:09] Embracing French Roots in Business [21:55] Listen to Rachel’s Top Tips! Full episode notes here: https://ecmp.info/542Try out RevLifter for FREE for 90 days >>&amp

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• From Fairs to Big Retailers: How to Scale Your Craft — Shopify Masters
• Progressive Shopify Brands Know The Future Of Retail Marketing Is Omnichannel — eCommerce Fastlane
• B2B eCommerce and Amazon tips in this eCommerce Expert Mashup episode — eCommerce MasterPlan
• How to Expand Your Brand Outside a Small Market — Shopify Masters

Frequently asked about this episode

What does this episode say about brand building?

Embrace multi-channel selling (DTC, B2B, marketplaces) to diversify revenue streams and reach a wider customer base, as Mademoiselle Macaron achieved 40% B2B turnover.

What does this episode say about e-commerce growth?

Innovate fulfillment methods for perishable goods, like freezing macarons, to unlock wider distribution and scale, enabling 7-figure operations.

What does this episode say about multi-channel strategy?

Proactively pursue sales rather than passively waiting for orders to significantly accelerate business growth.

What does this episode say about operational excellence?

Optimize your Shopify setup diligently to avoid backend issues that can hinder scalability and operational efficiency.

What does this episode say about brand building?

Critically evaluate agency partnerships; be prepared to break up with underperforming agencies to find better strategic fits.

Listen

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