Schedule a Call here to build and Scale your Ecommerce Brand → https://www.ecomcapital.com/demo/schedule

In this brutally honest episode, Sasha and Hamen break down the harsh realities they've observed across nearly two decades of building and scaling ecommerce businesses. These aren't feel-good motivational talks. These are the specific mistakes that keep founders broke, stuck, and struggling for years longer than they need to. From time allocation to ignoring problems, from over-investing in stock to chasing shiny objects, this episode pulls back the curtain on what's actually killing your business. Some of these realities might sting. But understanding them could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars and years of your life. Listen carefully—especially the last one about retention.

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Connect with Sasha:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The.Real.Sasha.Karabut/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/

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Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro: 8 Harsh Realities That Keep You Broke
0:55 - Reality #1: Time & Attention Allocation (The Foundation)
2:57 - Why Founders Know What to Do But Don't Do It
3:26 - The Finite Resource Problem
5:44 - Consistency in Allocation (The Game Changer)
6:45 - The Branding Trap (Excuse to Not Measure)
7:56 - Reality #2: Reactive vs. Proactive Problem-Solving
9:57 - The 7-Month Problem (Real Example)
11:43 - The Cost of Ignoring Problems
13:52 - Reality #3: Never Scale a Leaky Bucket
15:29 - Fix Micro First, Then Scale
17:05 - Reality #4: Scaling is Ugly (By Design)
19:23 - What Scaling Feels Like (And Why It's Normal)
20:51 - The Discovery Phase at Every Scale
21:45 - Reality #5: Over-Investment in Stock
23:13 - The Cost of Capital Concept
25:08 - Apple's Pre-Order Model (The Smart Approach)
25:40 - Reality #6: Over-Investment in Websites
27:22 - Website Investment: The Wrong Priority
28:10 - Reality #7: Ignoring the Creator-First Economy
29:39 - Why Stock Images Don't Work Anymore
31:56 - The Harsh Truth About Creatives
33:00 - Reality #8: Ignore Customer, Expect to Be Poor
34:05 - Amazon's Customer-Obsessed Philosophy
35:51 - Retention Over Acquisition (Billionaire Lesson)
36:30 - How Email Revenue Scales ($100 → $10,000)
37:15 - The Closing Message

About This Podcast:
About Ecom Capital Podcast: eCom Capital Podcast is a show about scaling e-commerce businesses. The host Sasha Karabut talks to successful founders, industry experts and shares strategies on how to build, grow and scale profitable eCommerce brands.

#ecommerce #ecom #harsh #reality #founder #business #scaling #profitability #cashflow #marketing #creatives #customer #retention #strategy #entrepreneurship #mistakes #lessons #growth #ecomcapital #truth

Ready to take your business to the next level?

Follow Sasha below:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SashaEcomCapital/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfVhWUtWBs_Hm-FrQJot8-Q

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/

Schedule a Call here to build and Scale your Ecommerce Brand → https://www.ecomcapital.com/demo/schedule

If you have $5,000, 90 days, and 15 hours per week, which strategy would you choose to build a profitable brand? In this head-to-head debate, Sasha and Hamen reveal the exact frameworks they would personally use to start from absolute zero in 2026—and they don't agree. This isn't theoretical.

Both have done this. Both have success stories. Both are breaking down the real, tactical, day-by-day decisions.

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Connect with Sasha :

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The.Real.Sasha.Karabut/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/

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Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro: $5K, 90 Days, 15 Hours/Week Challenge
2:12 - Sasha's Real-World Experience ($480K Loss, Survival Mode)
5:18 - The Reality of Being Broke (Credit Cards, Bills, Desperation)
6:20 - Pain Forces Clarity (And It's Real Clarity)
7:57 - Why Most People Listen But Don't Act
9:55 - You Can't Have Zero Time AND Zero Money
12:53 - Setting the Guardrails (Rules of the Game)
14:45 - Sasha's Strategy: The Community-First Approach
15:53 - Why Sasha Goes Opposite to AI Trends
16:46 - Finding Your Problem (Real Experience)
18:56 - Building a Community Around Your Problem
20:41 - The Math: Extracting Data from 100+ People
22:27 - Pre-Sale Strategy (Google Form + Stripe)
25:00 - Getting 30-50 Pre-Sales at 50% Discount
27:20 - Why This Strategy Offsets Risk Completely
31:52 - The Result: Doubled Money ($10K) in 6 Weeks
33:55 - Paid Ads Only Amplify What's Already Working
35:48 - Hamen's Strategy: The Data-First Approach
37:52 - Finding Affinity + High-Volume Categories
39:26 - Analyzing Competition with AI + Meta Ad Library
41:17 - Running 10 Product Tests at $500 Each
43:43 - Real Client Example (Paul: $0 to $200K+)
45:18 - No Skills Required (AI Does Everything)
46:49 - Which Strategy Wins? (The Debate)
47:47 - The Real Truth: Both Can Work

About This Podcast:
About Ecom Capital Podcast: eCom Capital Podcast is a show about scaling e-commerce businesses. The host Sasha Karabut talks to successful founders, industry experts and shares strategies on how to build, grow and scale profitable eCommerce brands.


#ecommerce #ecom #startup #entrepreneurship #2026 #zerotohero #businessstrategy #cashflow #prelaunch #aimarketing #communitybuilding #salesstrategy #founder #sidehustle #validation #productmarket #growth #scaling #bootstrapped #constraints

Ready to take your business to the next level?

Follow Sasha below:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SashaEcomCapital/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfVhWUtWBs_Hm-FrQJot8-Q

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/

Schedule a Call here to build and Scale your Ecommerce Brand → https://www.ecomcapital.com/demo/schedule

In this power-packed episode, Sasha and Hamen break down the 25 most critical lessons they've learned and observed in 2025—lessons that cost some founders hundreds of thousands (and others millions) when ignored. These aren't theoretical concepts; they're tactical, specific, detail-oriented principles pulled directly from working with thousands of eCommerce brands across all sectors.

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Connect with Sasha & Hamen:

Sasha Karabut:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The.Real.Sasha.Karabut/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/

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Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro: 25 Lessons That Cost Millions
1:42 - Lesson #1: Attention is Currency
3:04 - The 3-Second Hook & Content-First Thinking
5:02 - Lesson #2: Systems Thinking
6:40 - Why Automation Matters (Free Up Your Attention)
9:00 - Lesson #3: The Offer is King
10:00 - Bad Offers Kill Good Products
12:00 - Lesson #4: Radical Clarity (3 Levels)
15:00 - Why Communication Breaks Down
18:00 - Lesson #5: Cash Flow Over Everything
20:00 - The Cash Flow Trap
22:00 - Lesson #6: Know Your Break-Even ROAS
24:00 - Lesson #7: Product Quality at Scale
26:00 - Lesson #8: Positioning > Product
28:00 - Lesson #9: Creative Fatigue Cycle
30:00 - Lesson #10: Team Development
33:00 - Lesson #11: Customer Service Signals
35:00 - Lesson #12: Consistent Measurement
37:00 - Lesson #13: Simplicity Wins
39:00 - Lesson #14: Attention Allocation Strategy
41:00 - Lesson #15: Quick Pivots Matter
43:00 - Lesson #16: The Power of Mentorship
45:00 - Lesson #17: Consistency When Winning
47:00 - Lesson #18: Communication is Strategy
49:00 - Lesson #19: Pain = Growth
51:00 - Lesson #20: Leverage Through Delegation
53:00 - Lesson #21: Math Doesn't Lie
55:00 - Lesson #22: Customer Obsession
57:00 - Lesson #23: Systems Beat Hustle
59:00 - Lesson #24: Know Your Margins
01:01:00 - Lesson #25: Logic + Pain + Consistency
01:07:00 - Implement, Don't Just Listen

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About This Podcast:
Real lessons from real experience. We break down what actually works in eCommerce, what doesn't, and why. No theory, just practical frameworks you can implement immediately.

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Hashtags:
#ecommerce #ecom #lessons #2025 #strategy #scaling #founder #business #shopify #advertising #cashflow #entrepreneurship #breakeven #roas #creatives #systems #mentorship #growth #automation #consistency

Ready to take your business to the next level?

Follow Sasha below:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sasha_karabut/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SashaEcomCapital/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfVhWUtWBs_Hm-FrQJot8-Q

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashakarabut/