Gil brings years of experience as a CEO for tech startups, a professor of software engineering, and as a serial entreprneur. He’s an avid traveler and a polyglot, although he’d be quick to tell you he’s achieved native fluency in ‘only’ two languages. In a formal Q&A, I sat down with Gil to highlight his vision for Retailbound’s future growth.
What’s your personal mission and objectives for Retailbound?
As CRO, I’m heading all of our sales and business development efforts, including the creation of new service offerings, strategic partnerships and expanding Retailbound’s services globally. My goal is to make Retailbound a truly global company while building a network of top partners who share a common goal: supporting consumer brands in their efforts to grow.
What excites you about Retailbound and how did you first hear about them?
I was initially approached by Retailbound back in 2017; at the time, I was the CEO of an up-and-coming innovative toy brand that had two successful Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns.
Much to my delight, the team still pursues the most innovative of products, helping them to gain entry into and stay relevant in retail.
How would you describe what Retailbound does in one sentence?
Wow, that’s a tough one. Retailbound strategically manages a brand’s retail channels (online and physical) to achieve and deliver focused sales growth in North America, Europe and the Far East.
How do you see the retail industry changing, and where does Retailbound fit into this?
The retail industry is shifting its focus to be more customer experience oriented. From our perspective at Retailbound, this requires an adjustment to how we promote brands and the interaction they and their products have with the end customer in stores. While this has been discussed at length by industry leaders, the execution of these strategies is another story. It requires 360-degree expertise for which Retailbound is well-positioned.
Another major trend taking place over the last decade that is now (finally) being addressed by major retailers is the growth in online shopping. Many of our brands choose to start with a retail strategy that is more online-heavy versus physical retail. This approach is intuitive to most of our tech startups; however, knowing when, how, and why to sell through physical stores has enabled our brands to outlast and thrive where other brands with a less diversified sales strategy struggle.
How is Retailbound different from other retail agencies out there?
Retailbound is like no other agency I’ve encountered in that its expertise lies in having its team members come from backgrounds that include both aspects of retail: the manufacturer side and the buyer side.
The team at Retailbound understands how buyers think, what they’re seeking, and also the constraints from a business perspective, including manufacturing, supply chain, quality control, inventory management and the research and development that’s involved in bringing a product to life.
In your experience as a former Retailbound client, when did it make the most sense for you to hire this team?
Prior to joining Retailbound, I was CEO of a highly innovative STEM toy company that had great success with crowdfunding campaigns but needed to continue pushing its sales into physical (and online) retail.
We needed to maintain our growth, attract investors and keep the lights on (quite literally). It was clear to me and my team that once our campaign concluded, it was critical to work with an experienced partner who could lead our push into retail in a strategic, focused and timely. Retailbound did all of that exceedingly well.
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Does your company sell a product? As you consider where to invest your time and energy in promoting your brand and product lines, think hard about combining the benefits of online and physical channels to strategically grow your business. If you want to scale your business in both online retail and physical retail, contact Yohan Jacob at [email protected].
