Zuckerberg wants Meta to launch its own prediction market, consumer hardware roundup goes deep, L Catterton bets on skincare brand Roz, and Anthropic ships the "Claude Tag." Plus Jad Kiwan on what happens when you sell your ecom brand, Yahli Malchin on Wayve Wear and natural-fiber activewear, and Bill Warshauer on Tillo and the gift card network powering rewards for 2,000+ brands.

ON TODAY'S EPISODE OF ECOMM COWBOY

Jad Kiwan (Co-Founder, Ecomswap) — Built EcomSwap in 2023 with Eliott Bucher into a Dubai-based M&A advisory for the under-$5M-EBITDA gap between investment banks and side-hustle marketplaces. Claims 100+ closed deals across US, Europe, UAE; deals $0.5M–$20M+; 93% listing-to-sale; 50,000+ buyers and $2B+ in capital. Operator first — built and exited DTC brands since 2017. We dig into the five-stage exit from valuation to close, what quietly destroys multiples founders never fix, and KPIs acquirers hammer on in diligence.

Yahli Malchin (Founder, Wayve Wear) — Solo-founder building Wayve Wear, a 100% natural-fiber activewear brand (no synthetics) out of LA. Ex-PM at Marqeta and Next Insurance who tried to replace his synthetic wardrobe in 2023, couldn't find activewear that hit his bar, filed the WAYVE trademark Feb 2024, launched a six-piece collection that September. Anchor product: Quad Short — organic cotton shell, merino compression liner. Certifications: GOTS, OEKO-TEX 100, RWS. Building in public on YouTube. We dig into why nobody makes 100% natural-fiber activewear once you try to manufacture it, an "obvious" rule he broke because he didn't know it existed.

Bill Warshauer (CRO, Tillo) — Chief Revenue Officer at Tillo, the global gift card network and API connecting buyers to 2,000+ brands across 37 markets and 25 currencies. Joined Tillo as CRO for North America in September 2024 after a 23-year run at Blackhawk Network, most recently VP of North America Incentives. We dig into how a gift card API actually distributes brand value at scale, what DTC brands miss about rewards and incentives as an acquisition channel.

ALSO ON THE SHOW

- Ferrari backlash

- Bryan Johnson, longevity drugs, Immortals.com

- OpenAI's AI chip: Jalapeño

- Product of the Century: smile whitening pouches

- Is remote work white-collar fraud?

- Fintech startup Slash rolls back

- Subscription blender

- Nori Robot L2

- Moment of zen: the most awesome business

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