The AI Holding Pattern is Killing 7-Figure Brands

JUST IN CASE WE HAVEN’T MET YET

We're Parker Burr and Graham Welter, and we've got one goal:

share the insights, learnings, and stories that help you build a bigger, better, stronger business.

Between the two of us, we audit and power hundreds of the best brands in the industry each year. We see what's working, what's failing, and—more importantly—what's coming next before most people catch on.

48,000+ founders and their teams from top Shopify brands read this newsletter because we don't sugarcoat anything. No fluff, no recycled advice from 2019. Just real insights from the brands actually winning right now.

What you get every week: The strategies, frameworks, and tactical moves that are working today. The mistakes to avoid. The opportunities most people are missing. All delivered straight, no fluff.

THIS WEEK'S MUST-READS

🚀 The "AI Holding Pattern" is quietly killing 7-figure brands

CFOs think they're being smart by freezing key hires to wait for AI. They're actually bleeding revenue and burning out their best people. Here's the smart middle ground that's saving millions.

What this means for you: Stop waiting for perfect AI. Start using fractional experts to bridge the gap.

💀 Why 69% of shoppers abandon cart (and it's not what you think)

Your product pages feel like dead ends from 2010. While you're optimizing button colors, your customers want to heart, share, and connect. The brands fixing this first will dominate.

What this means for you: Add one social element to your PDPs this week. Test wishlist hearts or "send to friend" functionality.

⚔️ The DTC vs. Legacy war is over (and everyone missed who really won)

Kroger just launched 80 protein SKUs in one week. Goodles recalled products nationwide. The battlefield has completely shifted, and most brands are fighting the wrong enemy.

What this means for you: Execution is everything. Your supply chain IS your brand promise.

🧠 The career capital framework that predicts who wins in their 40s

Your 20s aren't for making money. Your 30s aren't for exploration. And your 40s aren't for hustling. Get the decades wrong, and you'll compound nothing.

What this means for you: Audit which "decade" your business is in. Are you still exploring when you should be leveraging?

💰 From "growth at all costs" to growth that actually lasts

DTC 1.0 is dead (RIP Casper, Allbirds). DTC 2.0 is here, and the playbook is completely different. Five pillars every durable brand is building on.

What this means for you: Community > CAC optimization. Start there.

Connected insight: Notice the pattern? Everyone's stuck between yesterday's playbook and tomorrow's possibilities. While most brands are waiting, the smart ones are moving with these frameworks.

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This Week's Bottom Line

The brands winning right now aren't the ones with the biggest budgets or the flashiest AI demos. They're the ones moving strategically while everyone else is paralyzed by possibility.

Your move: Pick one framework from this week's articles. Implement it in the next 7 days. Report back.

What resonated most with you this week? Hit reply and let me know—I read every response.

Building the future of commerce,
Parker & Graham