Geometry of Growth, Issue #71

Howdy y’all 🤠

I can’t believe it’s already Thursday — this week has been nuts! I’ve been bopping around SXSW events since Saturday, and I can confidently say that this is one of the most inspiring conferences when it comes to advertising & brand activations. Personal favorites have included the Mionetto Prosecco Salone, the Rivian Electric Roadhouse, and the Whataburger Museum of Art. Extremely cool experiential marketing at work.

Shoptalk is coming up in less than two weeks, which means we’re gearing up for some big eventing ourselves!

If you’re heading to Shoptalk, we’d love to see you at one of the events we’re co-hosting. Check out the info below:

Ooh - and one more thing! If you’re into all things AI, I highly recommend you join us next Thursday (3/20) for Triple Whale’s AI for the Modern Marketer webinar. I’ll be sharing tried & tested strategies for leveraging AI in your customer acquisition process. As always, make sure to RSVP here even if you can’t make it live — that way you’ll get the recording after!

Onto this week’s newsie, featuring: Ten Little’s personalized shopping flow, skincare for tweens, how to turn your customers into your best marketers, and more.

Hope to see you at an upcoming event (or webinar) soon!

Cheers,
Lex 💚

Super stoked to feature this cute brand for kiddos this week. Ten Little was launched in 2020, and they offer a range of products including children’s shoes, apparel, and accessories. The brand’s mission is to simplify shopping for parents by providing personalized, healthy products and resources tailored to each child’s developmental stage. Because of this mission, they’ve got some really unique elements in their shopping experience.

Here’s a quick breakdown of some of my favorite elements:

This is really just the tip of the iceberg; Ten Little has a lot of very smart product recommendations & personalization elements built in. I highly recommend you explore their website — especially if your brand offers giftable products!

👶 Check out Ten Little’s shop for tots here.

Big shoutout to Tara Tersigni, founder of YAWN, for reaching out & sharing her super cool brand with me! YAWN is a clean beauty brand designed for little ones and tweens. Their products are safe, non-toxic, and designed to be both age-appropriate and accessible for families.

The YAWN Kit is the perfect introduction to beauty and skincare, including a Body Balm, a Lip Balm, and a Lip + Cheek Stick. In addition to the starter kit, they also offer deodorant sticks, lip gloss, eye shadow, nail color, and more.

YAWN’s mission is to create products that “build confidence, spark joy, and encourage self-expression”. I especially love that they donate at least 1% of their annual sales to environmental organizations, truly investing in making the world a better place for future generations.

🧴 Shop YAWN’s kid-friendly skincare kit here.

Okay, I'm about to get a little nostalgic on you this week. Remember spending hours building the perfect virtual home in The Sims? (Did anyone else remove the pool ladder to see what would happen, or was that just me? 😂)

This fascinating piece explores how this iconic game has shaped creative industries over its 25-year run. Beyond just being an addictive life simulator, it turns out The Sims has quietly been influencing everything from architecture and interior design to advertising campaigns and fashion.

This article’s a really rad breakdown of how the game's distinctive visual style shows up in modern design work. The article highlights the 2024 Airbnb "Get an Airbnb" campaign, where the design director (a self-proclaimed Sims fanatic) created those cozy, detailed spaces that made social media audiences drool.

Even if you're not in the design world, this read offers a fresh perspective on how digital play spaces can spark real-world creativity. And for e-commerce brands, there are some interesting takeaways about creating immersive, detailed product environments that customers connect with emotionally.

Whether you played The Sims religiously or just appreciate how video games shape culture, this one's worth checking out.

🎮 Read the full article (in English, not Simlish) here.

This is an absolute gem of a podcast! This week’s Honest Ecommerce podcast featured Brandon Horoho, the Co-Founder, VP, and CMO of Montana Knife Company (MKC). And wow—if you're looking for a masterclass in building a cult-following brand without traditional advertising, this is it.

MKC has scaled to a multi-million dollar brand primarily through community-driven marketing and a scarcity model that has customers literally setting alarms for their product drops. No massive ad spend, just pure brand magic.

Brandon breaks down exactly how they've created a VIP program that turns customers into passionate advocates (their return customer rate is insane!) and how they've leveraged Instagram to build brand recognition in an incredibly authentic way. He also explains how their counterintuitive anti-preorder approach has actually built more trust with their audience and created genuine excitement around their launches.

If you're struggling with customer acquisition costs or looking for ways to build genuine community around your brand, you absolutely need to hear Brandon's strategies for turning happy customers into your best marketing channel.

👂 Listen to Brandon break down MKC's community-driven growth strategy here.

I was fortunate enough to attend LTX Studio’s SXSW event this week, and I was genuinely blown away by this technology!

LTX Studio was launched about 6 months ago by Lightricks — the folks behind FaceTune and Popular Pays. For e-commerce teams (or agencies) struggling with creative bottlenecks, this tool could seriously be a game-changer.

What stands out is how quickly you can go from conceptualization to visualization. The Storyboard feature transforms your briefs into comprehensive visual narratives in seconds - something that would typically take days with traditional design tools. Then you can use the Cast feature to develop and modify characters that perfectly embody your brand message, watching as your entire storyboard updates automatically with each change.

The Style control is particularly impressive for e-commerce brands with established visual guidelines. You can either experiment with various aesthetic styles or upload your own reference images to maintain brand consistency. When you adjust the style, the platform instantly applies those changes across your entire campaign.

I was also blown away by how the platform handles iterations. Make a change to lighting, weather, location, or ambiance in one frame, and you can apply those updates across your entire storyboard with a click. This kind of flexibility eliminates those painful revision cycles that often slow down creative launches.

When it's time to present your concepts, LTX Studio has a one-click export feature that generates a polished pitch deck complete with all your visual assets, color palettes, and character details.

Their team was generous enough to offer Geometry of Growth subscribers 50% off their first month. Make sure to click the link below to redeem; the offer expires April 1!

🤖 Get 50% off your first month of LTX Studio here.

👉 PS: Want to secure your spot on the guest list for future FERMÀT events in your city? Add your name to the VIP guest list here.

March 20 // Virtual

 If you want to take your marketing strategy to the next level in 2025, you need to be on board with AI! For this virtual event, we’re joining experts from top ecommerce brands to share their insight on how AI can help you automate personalization, retargeting, and customer insights for a next-level marketing strategy. Even if you can’t make it live, make sure to RSVP so you can get the recording after!

March 25 & March 26 // Las Vegas, NV

Step into the ultimate VIP penthouse experience at Shoptalk 2025—where luxury, relaxation, and once-in-a-lifetime moments collide. Mingle with the Mike Tyson & snap a pic, sip a signature cocktail, unwind with a pro massage, and try your luck at our claw machine packed with insane prizes. Escape the chaos of the conference floor and join PostPilot, Postscript, Nift & more for two days of pure Vegas magic. Space is limited—lock in your spot now! 🎉

March 25 // Las Vegas, NV

Calling all brand founders and operators - we’d love to have you join us this Shoptalk for a private dining experience at the world-famous Cipriani! Incredible food, drinks, and company will be flowing all night 🥂 For confirmed attendees, round-trip limousine transportation will be provided to the venue. And in true Las Vegas fashion, stay tuned for a very special guest appearance.

March 26 // Las Vegas, NV

Need a break from the panels and pitches at Shoptalk? Join FERMÀT, Tinuiti, and Disco for cocktails and bites at the Eyecandy Lounge — right in the heart of the Mandalay Bay! Space is limited - please request a spot as soon as you can to secure your RSVP!