Hi Reader,

Our third Amsterdam event is approaching fast, and I'm excited to share our fireside chat speakers — three Venice originals who've been with us since day one:

• Kasper Brandi Petersen (LABFRESH): Led LABFRESH from a Kickstarter project to one of Europe’s fastest growing sustainable clothing brands.
• Micha Medendorp (Marie-Stella-Maris): Super experienced eCom leader, helped Ritual scale across the globe. Now scaling Marie-Stella-Maris towards nine-figures in revenue.
• Leonardo Caracas (Jump Ventures): Managing a portfolio of 11+ companies with aggregate revenues exceeding nine-figures.

Each brings a different perspective on eCommerce and retail growth. During the chat, they'll pull back the curtain on what's actually working in 2025, what's not, and how they’re thinking about growth both in the short and long term.

After the fireside chat, we’ll also have plenty of time for some drinks and a walking dinner.

This one’s not to be missed!

The Details:

• When: Wednesday, July 9th, 5-8pm CET
• Where: Soho House Amsterdam

Want to join? RSVP here. (We’re close to capacity, so be quick!)

Best,
Patrick

P.S. We’ve got a busy few weeks ahead: All Hands calls, Kevin Indig's Drop In session (taking place on Tuesday June 24 at 4pm CEST / 3pm BST, register here), another event announcement, new website launch, and more. Feels like we're hitting our stride.

01. Around the Community 💬

• To celebrate 100k orders, Alcanside wrapped a Mercedes SLS AMG in Alcantara — the material the brand uses to make iPhone cases, iPad covers, mouse pads, and more. What’s next? Willem is currently thinking about what to do with the car (aside from some ad creatives. Send him any ideas on Slack.
• Franziska went deep on microplastics.
• Former rugby star Ugo Monye stopped by Batch LDN.
• The fourfive team hit the streets handing out samples as part of Holland & Barrett’s Wellness Day.

02. Inspo 💭

• 11SKIN showcased its Repair Serum around London by giving out samples from repair vans.
• VanMoof just dropped a short film for the VanMoof S6.
• Huel turned 10. The brand's CEO shared a snap of Huel’s first ever pouch.
• UK-based performancewear brand Reflo became an Official Licensee of The Open and dropped The Giants Collection ahead of the event month.
• Phizz has been seeding samples of its electrolytes out to offices, saunas, and tennis clubs.

03. Tactics, Trends, and Tools 📈

• After his LinkedIn post went viral last week, Kasper shared a report on retail expansion and how it can impact eCommerce growth. Check out #venice-newsletter in Slack to discuss it more.
• Mighty Slice’s Emily Tout shared some reflections on CPG trends in the US vs UK. Some takeaways: US consumers prefer protein versions of well-known foods — Magic Spoon cereal, Legendary Foods cinnamon rolls, and GOODLES mac & cheese. Fresh protein snacks are booming (Midday Squares, Perfect Bar) often merchandised near produce for health-conscious shoppers, while zero-sugar chocolate is going mainstream with brands like Reese's. More brands are also starting to highlight “aspartame-free” formulations, opting for sweeteners like sucralose and stevia.
• Gen Z is ditching alcohol and turning to drinks like kefir, kombucha, matcha tea and mushroom coffee.
• Following on from Gen Z ditching alcohol, Deliveroo alumni Tom Peters shared a breakdown of the UK functional beverage market.
• It’s wild what you can produce with AI now. I love these designs from Dann petty (he also shares how to recreate them using Midjourney + ChatGPT + Figma + Premiere Pro).

04. Market Moves 🌍

• Planet B launched a crowdfunding campaign and has raised €750k from 200 investors.
• Nike has delayed its co-branded launch with Skims. Bloomberg reports the brand is dealing with production issues.
• Plans for the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street were put into motion this week.
• An interesting look at the UK tech flywheel and how successful startups lead to more businesses being founded. Thirty-three startups have been founded by Revolut alumni alone. I’d love to see this happening more in eCom too.
• Frasers Group has pulled out of the process to acquire Revolution Beauty (which has seen a 70% slump in share price in the last year).
• Pizza oven brand Gozney is launching a crowdfunding campaign soon.

Supporters

The Venice newsletter is supported by Portless:

Struggling with tariffs? Unsure about upcoming changes? With Portless, you only pay tariffs after your customers pay you, so your cash always moves faster than your costs. Get the details here.

Let me know what you’re working on! If you ever want to chat / get a second opinion - just let me know. If I don’t have the answer I’ll connect you to someone who will :)

​