Tariffs. Tight margins. What actually works right now.

Hi team,

I’d be lying if I said things were chill right now.

My older kiddo is almost four and hates that the newborn gets all the attention, so he’s been waking up a lot. The newborn is doing what newborns do: up every few hours, no matter what else is going on.

As of March 21, we were sure we’d stay in our Philly neighborhood for at least a few more years. Match Day told us otherwise. As of April 16, we’re clear to close on a house in New Jersey.

We found a house, got a mortgage, had a baby, and are moving. All within 30 days.

And we leave for Tel Aviv for a whole month on May 10.

Things feel chaotic, but every founder I’ve talked to lately seems to carry a similar weight. The details are different, but the mood is the same. Tariffs are landing. Consumer confidence is down. CAC is up. Budgets are tighter. People are stretched.

It’s not the first hard stretch for ecommerce, and it probably won’t be the last. But this one feels slower. Less panic. More reflection.

So here’s what I’ve been sharing with folks lately. A few things I’ve learned from being in the middle of it. Some personal, some tactical. Maybe it helps you think a little more clearly through this stretch.

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Ambition, Presence, and Pressure

The past few weeks have felt like a lot. We had a baby. Our older kid is learning what it means to share attention. My wife matched at a hospital in New Jersey. We’re getting ready to move. We’re packing up one life while trying to prepare for another, and everything is happening at once.

At the same time, I’m still working. Still on calls with founders. Still helping teams think through Retention, CX, Growth, and what to focus on when things feel harder than they did a year ago.

Lately, I keep hearing from people that they feel stuck between pressure and clarity. Between trying to keep momentum and needing to pull back.

Everyone is dealing with some version of the same thing. Tariffs are squeezing margin. CAC is creeping up. Teams are smaller, but expectations haven’t changed. You want to protect your brand, your team, and your customers. At some point, something has to give.

And when you do need to cut, it isn’t always obvious where to start. Paid gets reduced. The team gets smaller. There’s confusion around what’s essential. It’s one thing to optimize. It’s another thing to let go of someone who’s been thoughtful, steady, and part of your build. That weight doesn’t show up in dashboards, but it’s real.

The past month has made me pay closer attention to how I spend my time. Not in a big reset kind of way. Just practical. If I want to show up well at work and home, I can’t be thinking about twelve things at once. So, I’m being more specific about what I show up for and what I let wait.

Presence, right now, is a filter. It’s how I decide what gets my energy and what doesn’t.

If you’re trying to make those same calls, I’m with you.

What I’ve Been Telling Founders:

Most brands are trying to hold on to growth while cutting costs. It sounds clean on paper, but the reality is messy. You’re juggling fewer people, tighter budgets, and more pressure. Oh, and consumer confidence and spending are down. 

Here’s what I’ve actually been saying when asked how to handle that:

1. Make a list of what you won’t do

It’s easy to keep everyone busy. It’s harder to admit that not all work is worth doing right now. If you’re facing tighter margins because of tariffs, you need to get specific about what’s off the table. That might mean pausing a product launch, cutting a channel that’s not pulling its weight, or shelving a rebrand. The clarity isn’t just for you, it helps your team focus as well.

2. Stop trying to squeeze performance out of unpaid strategy

I’ve seen too many brands cut their media budget but keep the same team running “organic” content or “low-cost acquisition” plays. If you’re pulling paid, that strategy needs a full reset. Not everything works without spend. Start from scratch instead of pretending you can get the same results for less.

3. You can cut vendors, but own the decision

Cutting SaaS costs makes sense, but I’ve seen brands cancel tools and lose access to workflows they don’t know how to rebuild. If you’re pulling out of a platform, make sure someone owns what happens next. Otherwise, you’re trading a monthly bill for months of confusion. Ideally, if it’s a problem that still needs a solution, you can hunt for a cheaper provider if the product and service are still solid enough. (Hint: leave K****o for Yopto Email and save boatloads + get great service.)

4. International growth can wait unless you're all-in

The number of brands I’ve seen spin up international sites or campaigns without a full CX and ops plan is still too high. If tariffs or shipping costs are hurting, expanding into new markets without customer support, clear policies, and local delivery expectations just makes things worse. Either invest properly or pause.

5. Protect the people doing the work that drives retention

If you’re making team cuts, don’t just go by title or salary. Start with who is responsible for actual retention levers. The person building your flows, handling CX tickets, fixing post-purchase gaps, etc.—that’s the engine. Losing them might save money in the short term, but it kills momentum. Figure out who’s closest to revenue and who’s closest to customer experience. Those are not the people to lose right now if it will cause more pain than gain.

That’s it for this week!

Looking to get your message in front of more than 15,000 marketers at some of the best brands in ecom?

I’ve got some available ad space in the next few weeks–just reply to this email or shoot me a note on LinkedIn.

Cheers, 

Eli 💛

P.S. Looking for inspo on your next email/sms campaign? 

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