0:00

So you want to launch a subscription box and don't know where to start, girl, you are in the right place. I'm Julie ball and I'm Renee Gonzalez, your host here at subscription box basics, a podcast for new and aspiring subscription box entrepreneurs wanting to avoid overwhelm. So grab a coffee, some pen and paper, and let's have some fun.

Julie: 0:22

Hey everybody. And welcome back to subscription box basics. I'm Julie Ball, your head coach here. And today I'm joined by one of my friends. I've known him for forever. Probably seven years now. His name is Paul Chambers. He is a multi passionate entrepreneur and one of the founders of sub summit. Welcome back to the podcast.

Paul: 0:43

I wish I had my soundboard in here that played the applause sound. Cause thanks. Yeah. Also it's, I think it sounds cooler when we say we've known each other for almost a decade now.

Julie: 0:56

Okay. We'll say it that way.

Paul: 0:57

Yeah. So long. That's a long time, but it's great. It's like, I love our friendship. I love every year when you show up at some summit, it's like, Julie's here, Julie, Renee, like the whole crew comes rolling in and you guys are awesome.

Julie: 1:09

We're going to be talking, obviously, we're going to be talking about SubSummit today. But before we start, I have to tell you how I met Paul and the crew from SubSummit. I had been watching from afar. The SubSummit was first in Detroit, and then I think, what, it was in Denver. The next year

Paul: 1:23

to Austin and then Denver,

Julie: 1:25

Austin, then Denver. So the first time I went was in Denver and these guys didn't know me yet. But that was about to change. I straight up cold called the sub summit office to introduce myself and let them know that I was interested in being a part of sub summit more than just a participant. And I remember Paul, I think it was you that I talked with that. You called me back and I was sitting in like a CVS parking lot or something talking to you. And I'm like, this is the most important call of my life right now because I was such a newbie sub box entrepreneur. So here we are having this conversation and I knew it was really important to be in the room there to get connected with the sub summit team and be a part of this. Just because that's who I am. Like I wanted to be a part of it. And so I remember My way in was I said that I would be willing to give all of your female speakers a Sparkle Hustle grow box as their speaker gift. And you guys were like, cool. Yeah, that works.

Paul: 2:31

Yeah. So it's so funny. I remember that now as you, as you expand on that story a little bit, I remember that, that moment. And, I didn't realize your side of the story and what's, you know, I, on my side, I was like, guys, like, I'm about to call Julie Ball back. Julie Ball, like this, like, I don't want to screw this up. Can you just like, be here with me? I had a whole room filled with people and they're there coaching and they're like, give me thumbs up or thumbs down as I was saying things. So I'm glad it worked out.

Julie: 2:58

Yeah. Oh, I'm glad it worked out to it. Here we are now. You've let me speak on the stage multiple times and we've just had this great banter about subscription boxes. And I appreciate that because you keep it real. Like you've started a box in the past. You've sold it. And now you and the crew put on this amazing event. Let's talk about let's tell everyone about this event because It was a couple months ago that Jen came on and told us all about SubSummit, but I'm constantly chattering about it. So just, just tell them the details, what it is, where it is, and when it is.

Paul: 3:29

Yep. Well, I'll get the basics done first. SubSummit find a lot at subsummit. com, but it's in Dallas, June 17 to 19, coming up here 2024. And it is a multi day event honoring and, and people. in helping build some of the best subscription membership recurring revenue brands in the world. So anything you subscribe to in your life, those are the brands that are there from subscription boxes to subscribe and save to a lot of stream providers, different things. And what's fun about that is we're all in the same trench together. You know, working hard to help build amazing customer relationships and provide amazing value. And so the, these, these, these, Conversations happen all throughout the event. You get to go to sessions. We have a huge expo hall. We have an award ceremony. We have a pitch competition. And while we're approaching 2000 attendees this year, we really work hard to make sure it still has that sort of like family environment, that sort of environment, and it really, really holds true really well. And admittedly, like we started the conference a little selfishly. We were running the subscription box that we had ourselves at the time. And we wanted to meet other subscription box owners. And so we launched the event and it worked. Like we learned a ton, like we learned directly from Michael Birkham from FabFitFun like some strategies and things like that. And so that same thing still happens today at SubSummit. And it's, it's very cool to, to see.

Julie: 4:50

And I remember very specifically at past events, feeling a little starstruck saying, Oh my gosh, I'm, I was on stage one time interviewing one of the girls from FabFitFun. I was like, never and never would I. ever be able to queue this up on my own if there wasn't a subscription event. I remember meeting the founders of different softwares that I've used in the past and I got to shake their hand and say, Hey, thanks because what you built changed my life. And it was just really, really cool. And One of the things that Renee and I love the most is just the, is getting to know the people in the industry. And I've never been in an industry that the people have been so kind and generous with their knowledge. So many people in that room, in the entire sub summit, went to see you succeed. And that's partly why they're there. And I think that's just, you've created an amazing environment for that.

Paul: 5:43

Well, thank you. Yeah. It's, it's been so fun to, to watch it evolve and grow. And I'll tell you a little bit of a secret that we, I don't think we talk about a ton, but I'll never forget this moment when, when Michael from FabFitFun, he came to the event. First of all, we're like, Oh my gosh, we got Michael, the co founder of FabFitFun, which is like one of the fastest growing, biggest subscription boxes at the time, still really big. And they do some amazing things. We're like, Oh my gosh, he's going to be here. He shows up. He's like, guys, like. Thanks so much for having me, but I'm going to be honest, I'm starstruck with Liz Cadman. He wanted to meet somebody there and we're like, we wanted to meet you and then you want to meet somebody else like this. Unbelievable. Liz Cadman was running my subscription addiction at the time and they were growing fast, giving them tons of business. And he's just like, so enthralled with wanting to meet her. And, you know, so it's all very circular and, and, you know, you're right. Everybody's so helpful to each other. And we hear this sometimes, you know People talk about like share a wallet and fighting for like customers and, but that's not the feeling you get in that room. Right. And you know, we're at that level where we're like not too big of a conference, but we're big enough where you get like good variety and meet a lot of great people. And you still have that. Intimacy, I think so. It's very, very fun.

Julie: 6:53

Yeah. And we, before we started recording, we were talking about the value of being in the room. So let's talk about that now. So we were just talking about being starstruck, but it's not really necessarily about that. It's about learning from them. So many people will go on your stages and share about their wins, but they'll also share about their losses, their mistakes. So not only does that validate me or, or all your other attendees saying, okay, you're not the only one who makes mistakes, but we can learn from them as well. We're shaking hands with people who are, you know, at our level, maybe a couple of steps ahead or maybe 10 steps ahead. And there's just so much to gain from those relationships and being in the room with those people.

Paul: 7:35

Yeah. Yeah. I emailed people. I linked to message people a lot trying to share the, the message of sub summit. And when I see the response come back, like, Hey, yeah, I appreciate the invite. I'm heads down in the business right now. I really want to like stay in it, stay focused on like, ah, they only knew and sometimes I write back, I'm like, listen, I totally understand and respect that and agree with that mentality to some extent. But let me tell you, like, being in the room sometimes, like that one serendipitous moment, that one interaction you might have could change the course of your business, can change the course of life. And this isn't just like sub summit. I'm coming from that standpoint. I think just those. In person interactions in a lot of ways, the benefit of sub summit is everybody's in that same boat together. You're going to have those conversations that are much more meaningful. But like those in person conversations, I think, Amir from Prella last year and shared with me is like, we had one interaction in the hallway passing by somebody that paid for our next like 10 years of being at sub summit. Wow. And, and he's like, it just, You just happen to find those, those bump into moments. And we do a lot of things to curate those, those moments too, you know, from like the welcome reception to the way we position our stages, the way we position like our, our expo hall and how you walk through it, the way the front porch is laid out. We spend money, you know, the cube awards is a loss leader for us. We spend significantly more on producing the keyboards than the sponsorship even covers. if I were to tell you the real numbers, it would blow your mind. And, but it's like such a fun experience. It's a great interaction and it, and it makes it, so it creates so many moments for people, whether it be in the cocktail hour beforehand or walking the red carpet, or, you know, as you're waiting to, to grab a table or the after party, that's part of it. Those moments where you get to talk to somebody. And like you said, the more, Oftentimes I say to individuals, especially like our speakers, because it's a lot of my focus is the more you can share, the more sort of vulnerable that you'll be, the more you'll get back. I don't know if you found this, Julie, like, like I've found in my business travels when I, somebody will ask me like, how's this business going to be like, well, it's either going to be amazing or it's going to be terrible. Let me tell you why I think it's going to be terrible. And just like giving them all like the trials and tribulations because. As a growing entrepreneur myself, and I don't want to say like when I was younger, like, cause I'm always younger. There's always somebody I admire doing more than me and feel like, oh gosh, I should be doing more. But when earlier in my, my career, when I would like talk to entrepreneurs and they would be like, yeah, no, everything's great and business is good. That didn't feed me as much. It didn't feed what I needed. I love understanding all aspects of it. Yeah. And, and hearing that. And so like when you give that like you get that back too, and it's super, super valuable.

Julie: 10:28

Yeah. It reminds me of that book from, I don't know, you probably didn't read this, but Jenna Kutcher wrote a book, How Are You Really? And it's like when you ask people like, Hey, how are you? And they're like, Oh, I'm good. How are you? Good. You know, it's such a surface level conversation and she takes it down deeper and she's like, no, I'm good. How are you really, like, how are you really doing? And that's, that almost feels like what you could talk about at sub summit. You can talk about the challenges of being in the trenches. You can talk about, okay. Hey, what's working for you with acquisition right now? Hey, I need some help in this area. And whether there is someone that you meet, you can talk about that with, whether it is a track or a session that like specifically covers it or Or these new table talks. I wanted to ask you if you could expand on the whole table talk concept that you guys are implementing this year.

Paul: 11:20

Yeah, that's another thing we're doing that we're spending a ton of money on. Because we feel it'll deliver a ton of value. to everybody. So I've participated in table talks in a variety of different fashions. I've gone to like a Zora event where, we're talking and I did one at like a recharge event one time. Anyway, we, this is the first year we're rolling it out at sub summit. And the way table talks work is you will sign up for a specific topic. So let's say it's on acquisition. Let's say it's about AI or about operations and fulfillment. You'll show up at the table and at the table, you'll be algorithmically matched with like minded individuals and similar sized businesses, and to sit there and talk about that particular topic that you signed up for. And on the table will be a little card that says the topic and a couple like thought starter questions. So like three to four like thought starter questions. So let's say it's about like the table talk will be about acquisition. We'll say what acquisition channels are most successful for you right now. How are you expanding in those acquisition channels? And we know like that's a huge challenge right now in the space. And so you'll be, We're talking with five to six different peers at this table about those particular topics. And it's a great way to learn from each other because it's almost like it's almost forcing the conversation where you make it, you'll get those bump into moments, but this is producing that conversation like right there for you at that moment.

Julie: 12:37

Yeah. It's full of intent. Like everyone's there with the same intention to learn from each other. So how do they become a part of the table talks? Is that something you sign up for on site or is that in advance?

Paul: 12:46

It'll be in advance. So when you register you'll get. Sign up as part of the process for like all of SubSummit. If you're going through the Hosted Merchant Program, you know, every, everything goes through the app and through the software that we use.

Julie: 12:59

Okay.

Paul: 13:00

And I think it's about three to four weeks, three weeks ahead of the event, you'll start to fill out a little bit more details on your profile. You'll start to elect for if you want to do table talks, express the topics you're interested in participating in. Okay. And then we the software works the magic from there.

Julie: 13:16

That is so cool. I cannot wait to see that in action.

Paul: 13:20

Yeah.

Julie: 13:20

Will that be in, where will that be at the event?

Paul: 13:23

So that'll be on day two. So Tuesday morning, it'll be before the event kicks off that day. Okay. We'll have some food down there as you come down, fill your belly. Have some amazing conversation, and that'll be up in our, our main room, I believe.

Julie: 13:37

Okay. Wherever it

Paul: 13:37

is, somebody will direct you.

Julie: 13:38

It'll be there, yeah. And you guys always have so many people, like, helping, like, air traffic control, pointing you to, if you're looking for something. So, you always have such a great setup. So let's talk about hosted meetings. You mentioned that earlier and I have had a few questions about those. People asking me, you know, is that how you go for free? Like, what are the hosted meetings and why would I want to do those? Tell me, let's talk about that because I think that's a huge opportunity and it's, it's not a huge commitment.

Paul: 14:07

No, it's really not. And what's cool about it, so this is the same, we use the same software that ShopTalk uses and Grocery Shop and FinTech Meetup. A lot of events use this software because it's super smart in the way it works and brings people together. So you can apply for the program. You go to subsummit. com and see free tickets and travel. And if you have If you have at least half a million in annual revenue, so not just not like mother recurring, just total annual revenue, you'll qualify no problem. If you're below that, then we have a certain number of seats available for that. So if you're just starting up, that's okay. Still apply because we do have some seats available if you're below that threshold. And the way it works is you'll then fill out your profile and say you know, tell us about your business and, and different things like that. And you say the solutions that you're interested in learning more about. So if you're interested in looking for a new shipping partner, if you want to learn more about, you know, logistics, if you want to learn more about marketing, and then on the other side of that, there are the solution providers and they fill out the types of companies are interested in meeting with and who they want to help share their solutions with. Then the, again, that magic algorithm goes to work just before Subs Summit, and it'll mutually match you with people who are interested in meeting with you and you're interested in meeting with. And then on site, during Subs summit, there's a select two hour window where you'll be scheduled for some meetings. Okay. You sit down and take six, six to eight meetings while you're on site, sometimes less than that. And then you'll get a free ticket to Subs Summit, and then you'll get up to$750 in travel and hotel reimbursement.

Julie: 15:35

That's amazing. It's a way for

Paul: 15:35

everybody.

Julie: 15:36

You're like spoon feeding the people and softwares and vendors that they need, as well as a ticket and some reimbursement. It's just such a no brainer.

Paul: 15:46

Yeah, it's a, it's a win for everybody because you're right. Like the vendors get to meet the prospects that they're most interested in talking to. The, the merchants get to meet the solutions providers that they're most interested in learning about. And, and if they find great ways to work together, then that's really, that's really cool. I've actually participated on the merchant side at ShopTalk before I went as one of the brands that we, we have. And got to meet some great people and actually was able to, to meet some solutions providers that we still work with today. Oh, how cool. So it works. It does. Absolutely. And look, there are times where like, you'll be meeting with the wrong person, like, you know, something doesn't match up perfectly, but you know, that's part of the, you know, part of the, part of the process, but generally it all matches up pretty well.

Julie: 16:28

It's like match. com. I just got lucky that my first match turned out to be my husband.

Paul: 16:34

That's amazing. Those are your first match? Oh my gosh.

Julie: 16:39

Back in 2007. Yeah, we, the first month that I joined, I filled out my survey and at the time, I don't know if it's the same now, but I got an email with a, it was literally a grid of men that matched my profile and what percent that they matched up. And so Kenny was in that first email and I winked at him. Because that's the way it was in Match. com. If you showed interest, you know, like swipe right or swipe left. Basically, if you're interested, you could wink at them. So I sent him a virtual wink and it's all history from there.

Paul: 17:16

That is so funny. That's amazing. Fun fact. Kenny, Kenny is pretty cute. I'm going to wink at him. That's so

Julie: 17:23

awesome. Okay, so we clearly got off track. Let's finish up with the hosted meetings program. So real quick they can go to subsummit. com. That's awesome. And learn some more about how and apply online. How long did you did you say the meetings typically are

Paul: 17:39

meetings are only 15 minutes a piece. And then there's a dedicated block at sub summit for for that time frame.

Julie: 17:46

Perfect. So you're not going to be missing. Yeah.

Paul: 17:49

No, you're not going to be missing content. The only thing that we produce throughout the entire event this year is our studio stage sponsored by bold commerce. There are a new sponsor on that. So I'm very cool. I love Jay Myers, by the way, like shout outs. I can I met

Julie: 18:01

him at the cube awards reception a couple of years ago. He's a riot.

Paul: 18:05

He's, he's a model Canadian. Like he, like Like you, you meet him, you'd be like, you're Canadian. You're way too nice.

Julie: 18:13

Yeah. Well, and he turned around and gave me his business card while we were standing in line for drinks.

Paul: 18:17

Oh, that's great. I love Jay. So the studio stage is produced through the entire event where we had that in our expo hall last year, this year we're moving it upstairs. So you're going to pass it and we're doing podcasts throughout the entire event, which you're going to be doing. Yes. Renee

Julie: 18:33

and I will be doing a live podcast.

Paul: 18:34

Yep, we're doing a live, we're doing two live episodes of Texas Heat, which is a new show we started producing here in house, where we eat brisket covered in like hot sauce. And it gets like similar to hot ones. It gets hotter as it goes on. So you're going to watch some people meltdown live. Okay,

Julie: 18:50

whose hot sauce do you use?

Paul: 18:52

So we've demoed a couple here. We tried to do Texas based hot sauce. I talked to Ma Dukes the other day. They're going to be shipping some in. I'm trying to get the Gas Monkey Garage guys to send us some hot sauces. Do you have any other recommendations?

Julie: 19:05

I do. I will send you some recommendations. I am not Like, I'm not spicy. I don't do the heat thing.

Paul: 19:12

You're spicy. I might be spicy,

Julie: 19:14

but I don't do the heat thing. I've got a student that does a hot sauce business who's, who is leaning into the subscription model. So I'll connect with you offline about that. We've got to get that queued up.

Paul: 19:27

Yes, absolutely. We'd love to. It's, it's such a fun show. And I'm not a, I'm not a spicy guy either. But I will, I will suffer through it for the sake of good content.

Julie: 19:38

Oh, man.

Paul: 19:39

So we'll see.

Julie: 19:40

I'll be watching that one live. That's for sure.

Paul: 19:42

Yes. That'll be fun. We currently have it slotted just before it's supposed to go, like, do opening remarks on main stage. I'm like, Lauren, we need to move this because I can't be like going on stage, like, as a ball of sweat and like, my mouth is on fire. I'm not going to be able to talk. You like, cause when it gets hot, it's almost like you're drunk, you know, you're like. You lose. Makes you dizzy. Yeah, and you're just like talking for the sake of talking.

Julie: 20:05

My tongue goes numb if something's too spicy.

Paul: 20:07

Right.

Julie: 20:08

How am I supposed to talk if my tongue is numb?

Paul: 20:10

Yeah, right. It's just a disaster. So we're going to move that time slot so it's like later in the show. So yeah, the studio stages on that main level right by the hosted meetings. You'll see all those there. And then down below we've got the expo hall and then our track stages are down there. And then upstairs is the Chargeby Theater where we do all of our main content too. Cool. So I just gave you a tour of SubSummit.

Julie: 20:30

Yeah, basically. So if you haven't been to a sub summit too, and he keeps saying expo hall. So think of it as like, you can walk through the aisles and all the vendors are there to talk to you. Now you don't have to talk to anyone. I love walking through and just seeing what's available and having conversations. And so I would recommend that you carve out sometime, if you're going to sub summit. Summit, carve out some time to actually walk the expo hall because you never know who you're gonna meet there. I remember one year I met Janine from Share Sale and we still keep in touch and in fact, I have a call with her next week just to dive deeper into Share Sale as I learn more about affiliate partnerships. And so it's, it's just a really great place to see what's, you don't know what you don't know.

Paul: 21:17

Right.

Julie: 21:17

You know what I mean? I love that line.

Paul: 21:19

And it's, you know, a lot of times too, if you're working with these companies, it's good to get FaceTime with them. It's good to meet that person in person and talk to them. And because that could have its advantages down the line. Let's say you have a challenge with, with shipping with something. And the fact that you've gotten that FaceTime with that person. It's going to help you. It's going to be, you know, or if you haven't had a chance to meet them yet, you've been talking to them about using their solution. And, you know, you get a chance to like, finally, like, see like, okay, there's a real company, real person. I don't know. I like that, that human connection. And I think both you and I are, introvert extroverts, where are we like, I call us

Julie: 21:54

ambiverts.

Paul: 21:55

Ambiverts. Yes. That's the term too. Where we like, we're good with interacting with people. We also need that recharge time.

Julie: 22:01

Yep. And

Paul: 22:01

so a lot of times, like if I find myself walking through that expo hall in any expo hall for that sake, you know, you can do your heads down thing, but sometimes I'll, you know, say, hi, hope you're having a good day. I'm not a good. Fit to talk right now or I'm on a mission right now and we'll catch up later. You know, it's, it's a low, it doesn't need to be anything that has any friction to it either.

Julie: 22:22

Agreed. A hundred percent. So we've talked about the hosted meetings. We've talked about the expo hall, live podcasting. We've talked about table talks. What's something that you're really looking forward to?

Paul: 22:36

Let's see here. So. I don't know if we're going to pull it off or not. I think we're going to be able to off. Yes, we'll make it happen. So this year we're going to do a live from the red carpet broadcast while everybody's gathering at the cocktail hour. So, you know, we do our keyboards on the Tuesday night and we roll out the red carpet and the paparazzi are all there. It's, it's very overwhelming. Awesome. We got to walk the red carpet. But Louie and I are going to get up on the studio stage there and. Talk about what you expect for the night. We're going to talk about what people are wearing, you know, what their outfits are and then hopefully be able to do some like live interviews as well. I get excited for that. I'm excited for the amazing lineup of speakers that we have. We're so fortunate to have, you know, I'm like scrolling the webpage here, like everybody from so the Leo. Live shots from, he runs marketing over at FabFitFun, super nice guy really willing to like have some amazing conversations. Ben from, you know, one of the, the president and founders of True Classic, they've grown and scaled a huge brand. Nick Sharma is going to be there. He's always so wonderful. He's good. And these are, and these are brands that like, these are, it's a, Started like in the trenches with it. The other one that's, I'm, I'm so enthralled with Tiffany Johnson. She works at Amazon web services, AWS, but she runs the e comm house and. She, she's just so smart. I'm like, gosh, where did, like, I want to download your brain, the things she knows, the people she knows, Christina Tashi from pretty letter set there, sort of like, it's just on and on and on about, you know, some amazing speakers and talking about whole range of content and topics. And we actually have our pretty full schedule online too. So I'm excited for that. I'm excited. I don't know, Julie, it's all I'm excited for all of it. I'm sorry, I don't have a specific answer for you. That's okay.

Julie: 24:24

No, and so if you're listening and you want to see what else is on the schedule, go ahead on subsummit. com, you can see that. I remember, I think it was last year, I really loved, there was a big session, like in the big theater someone from Google was talking about data, and that sounds super boring. I remember looking at Renee, like, with wide eyes multiple times. Like, did you just hear that? That's crazy. And then maybe it was two years ago, someone in the large theater did a talk on sales psychology.

Paul: 24:54

Yeah. And

Julie: 24:56

it was just like mind blowing, like what are, like the psychology of buying and of consumer habits and stuff. And those are things that I would never just randomly find myself reading about online or like researching. But with it being one of the sessions there, we went and we were just like our jaws were hitting the floor with some of the things they were sharing.

Paul: 25:19

Wait, wait. Time out. Hang on. This is amazing. Nancy Harhut is going to be there this year. Is she? Yes. Yes. So she was supposed to be last year and she emailed me like last minute. She's like, I'm so sorry. I've never done this before. I remember that. I, I, I fell ill. And I'm like, first, Nancy's like one of the nicest people in the world. It was like, so I wasn't like mad about it. I was like, Nancy, if, If you're, if you're backing out of speaking, like something's got to be wrong with you, I hope you're going to be okay. Anyway, she's back. She's coming this year and hopefully she stays healthy. I told her to lock herself in a bubble for the weeks ahead of sub summit and she's going to be on our main stage on day one. And I'm so excited. I, I always say to like the team here, like, so when we're talking about marketing strategies and stuff, I go, what would Nancy do? Let's just open up Nancy's book and like take anything out of it. And that's like, she is. Email marketing genius. And just before her, we're about to lock this in. So I'm going to say it now. Peter Fader from Wharton is going to come up and talk, Peter. I've been, I've been talking to Peter since 2019 about coming to sub summit. He's an absolute genius when it comes to like understanding customer lifetime value. And so we're going to like kick off with him on the main stage, talking about like customer lifetime value and customer relationships. And then and the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, Nancy's gonna come up and then we're gonna do the pitch competition and it's like, it's an unbelievable day. So

Julie: 26:38

much. Yes.

Paul: 26:39

Yeah. So like, if you just come to finance alone. It's worth it. And then the next day, actually, Nancy's going to be leading some conversation during our Women's Subscription Hour.

Julie: 26:49

Yay!

Paul: 26:50

Which is going to be right behind the front porch down in the Expo Hall. So again, like, doing Q& A with Nancy, like, that alone is going to be so awesome. I think Ciara, Ciara Stocklin, was she one of your friends? Yep. She's leading a session. So there's going to be like some awesome tips on inventory. I think if you're just to come for Nancy and, and CR, like that alone will, will cover, like, you'll learn some things right there too.

Julie: 27:17

Okay. Can it just be tomorrow? Like,

Paul: 27:20

can we just

Julie: 27:20

go to Sub Summit tomorrow? I'm really getting excited. I

Paul: 27:23

know. I know.

Julie: 27:24

It's a fun event every year. I mean, you guys definitely inject fun into something that could be super boring. You know, I'm, I don't, want to go to another boring conference. And so it helps to know that you guys are behind it. So I know there's always going to be fun infused.

Paul: 27:40

Yeah. And I think too, the other thing to think about oftentimes if you're a solopreneur and you're just getting started, it's a little intimidating to walk into it by yourself, know that you will find fast friends there. You will meet somebody, you will have that, that time. And, and. You know, even if you're walking the show floor by yourself, like, I think you'll see tons of value, but like, it's such a friendly environment that, that should really be kind of a low concern on your mind that you'll, you'll find somebody there to hang out with your, we have our welcome reception that first day. It's a great opportunity to meet amazing people. And you know, it's, it's good to just learn and grow.

Julie: 28:20

Yeah. And Renee and I will be at that welcome session helping newbies meet each other, because if this is your first time, we want to help you meet someone to do the event with, because you'll have a better time and you'll be more productive. You'll stay on task. If you actually have someone to do the, the summit with. And so, and you have 100 percent full permission to come tap me or Renee on the shoulder and introduce yourself. You know, us at least, you know what I mean? If you're a first timer and you say, I don't know anyone. Yes, you do. You know, me, you know, Renee,

Paul: 28:53

you know,

Julie: 28:54

Paul. Yeah.

Paul: 28:55

And you a thousand percent too. You might see me running through a million miles an hour. if you stop me, I will always stop and, and focus on the conversation and take the time to chat. Unless there's like something urgent blowing up. I gotta run like a flash drive to a room or something. Sometimes that happens. Or

Julie: 29:10

unless your mouth is burning from the heat, from the Texas heat show. I

Paul: 29:14

need milk right now. But I'm always happy to help. And that's the, the, the thing I like to stop and ask is, you know, how can I help? Is there anything I can be helpful with if, if you're there to meet somebody or you're hoping to meet a speaker or anything, any way that I can offer help any way that our team can offer help? Allie and Morgan, my, my 13 year old daughters are there, there are more than if you see two girls that look exactly the same that look a little bit like me they're there to help and, and Parker, would they be on

Julie: 29:42

stage? Yeah.

Paul: 29:43

They're going to be back on stage again this year at the awards. And the rule was they could start coming to Sub Summit when they turn 10 for all my kids. And so this year, today actually is Parker's birthday. He just turned 10 today. Yeah! Happy birthday, Parker! Yes. He will be at Sub Summit this year as well. So if you see a little dude that looks kind of like me or my brother, because sometimes I see my brother in Parker's face, oddly. Funny. But sub him too. He's always happy to help.

Julie: 30:09

Okay, are you going to have the t shirt cannon?

Paul: 30:12

Yes, and we will be loading it up this year, not with just t shirts, but with sub summit socks as well. So we're going to. Oh, wow. And it's really fun when you put like three pairs of socks in the t shirt cannon, it like creates like this like splattering of socks all over the place. It's awesome. Yeah, we'll invent it.

Julie: 30:29

Oh, man. Okay. This has been so fun chatting about sub summit, a little less structured conversation, and I can really appreciate that, Paul. So we're going to send everyone to subsummit. com. I know that there's a certain date that the hosted meetings program, I think ends May 3rd, right?

Paul: 30:49

Yep. Yep. Coming up.

Julie: 30:50

And I think ticket prices go up soon too. So guys, don't wait Dallas, Texas, June 17th through the 19th. We'll be there. We hope you'll be there as well. Any closing thoughts, Paul?

Paul: 31:03

No, look, I mean, I think this is a constantly evolving business. E commerce always has its. Ups and downs and challenges and successes. And I think, you know, right now times are challenging with that growing acquisition costs and things like that, but it doesn't mean that this is impossible. It doesn't mean that this isn't something that can be worked through. And I think this is a great opportunity to take that time to regroup, to learn, to grow, to talk to what other people are doing, because. I know I talked to all of our speakers. So I know there are great ways to continue to market and be successful. It's just about uncovering those little things that work best for you and work best for your business. And so sub summit is really a place where you can make that happen. And so if you can afford the time, which I'd encourage you to find a way to afford it and make the investment, it will pay for itself and it'll pay dividends. So we'd love to have you there. And honestly, If any way I can ever be helpful, message me on LinkedIn, shoot me an email, paul. chambers at subsummit. com. Always happy to help in any way possible.

Julie: 32:04

Thank you. We appreciate that. And guys, if you're listening and you, you want to ask me any questions or Renee, any questions, you know, that our DMS are open on Instagram. We love to talk shop. So let us know if you have questions, we're happy to point you in the right direction and we hope to see you at sub summit. Thanks for listening today and we'll see you in the next episode. Bye.