“$100M dollar brands are being built for boring products” - Harley Finkelstein of Shopify - My First Million Recap

Podcast: My First Million

Published: 2025-06-12

Duration: 1 hr 1 min

Guests: Harley Finkelstein

Summary

Building $100M brands around 'boring' products is possible by elevating their design, branding, and storytelling. Harley Finkelstein shares examples of entrepreneurs who transformed utilitarian items into high-margin, giftable products, revealing how Shopify supports their growth.

What Happened

Harley Finkelstein kicks off the conversation with the story of Touchland, a hand sanitizer company that reimagined a boring utility product as a luxury item. Starting on Kickstarter with $67,000, Touchland scaled to $130M in revenue and $55M in EBITDA before selling for $880M. Harley emphasizes how branding and design can turn commoditized products into high-margin businesses, a trend he says is increasingly common on Shopify.

The episode highlights James Dyson's approach to innovation, comparing him to Steve Jobs for his obsession with perfecting everyday items like vacuum cleaners. Harley praises Dyson's ability to leverage modern media, such as YouTube, to showcase products and create aspirational demand, pointing out that Shopify merchants often embrace similar strategies to grow their brands.

Harley reveals his personal entrepreneurial ventures, including a prototype for Flint, a disruptor in the fire log market. He discusses how total addressable market (TAM) should be viewed as dynamic rather than fixed, as great entrepreneurs grow the pie by expanding product use cases and channels, citing AG1's $600M per year revenue on a single SKU as an example.

AI emerges as a key theme, with Harley discussing Shopify's internal memo that makes AI proficiency a baseline expectation for employees. He explains how friction has been added to hiring decisions, requiring managers to prove why AI can't handle certain tasks before hiring new team members. Harley shares his own AI usage, such as uploading personal health data to ChatGPT for analysis and using Claude for document review.

The hosts dive into Harley's health and longevity practices, including annual Prenuvo scans for cancer detection and Clearly scans for cardiovascular health. He describes his focus on tracking his body's baseline and changes over time, emphasizing the importance of monitoring health metrics proactively.

Harley discusses Shopify's evolution, detailing how the company reduced its workforce from 14,000 to 8,000 post-pandemic and sold non-core businesses like its shipping division to Flexport. He explains how Toby Lütke, Shopify’s founder, reshaped the company around spiky strengths, positioning Shopify as a commerce-everywhere platform.

The episode wraps with Harley's insights into storytelling, describing how he improves Shopify's earnings calls by injecting personality and passion into the presentation. He contrasts this approach with AI-generated calls, which lack emotional connection, and highlights his strategy of studying competitors’ earnings calls to refine his own delivery.

Key Insights

• Touchland turned $67,000 from Kickstarter into $880M by reinventing hand sanitizer as a luxury item. Their success came from treating a commodity product like a fashion brand, proving that design and branding can unlock massive margins in 'boring' industries.
• Shopify mandates AI proficiency for employees, even requiring managers to justify why AI can't handle certain tasks before hiring. This policy flips traditional hiring logic, forcing teams to exhaust automation before adding headcount.
• Harley Finkelstein uses AI tools like Claude and ChatGPT for personal tasks such as document review and health data analysis. By offloading repetitive or complex tasks to AI, he frees up time for higher-value activities, showing how personalized AI usage can amplify productivity.
• James Dyson grew demand for vacuums by turning dull products into aspirational ones, using media like YouTube to tell a story about design and quality. Shopify brands borrow this playbook to make everyday items desirable, proving that storytelling sells even the most mundane goods.

Key Questions Answered

How did Harley Finkelstein turn boring products into $100M brands?

Harley cites examples like Touchland, a hand sanitizer brand that reimagined its product as a luxury item with sleek design and collaborations. He also highlights Dyson's innovations in vacuums and discusses growing total addressable markets by expanding use cases and channels.

What is Shopify’s stance on AI according to Harley Finkelstein?

Shopify’s leaked memo makes AI proficiency a baseline expectation for employees. Before hiring, managers must justify why AI can't handle certain tasks, encouraging reflexive use of AI in daily operations. Harley himself uses AI for health data analysis and business insights.

What health and longevity practices does Harley Finkelstein follow?

Harley undergoes annual Prenuvo scans to proactively monitor for cancer and Clearly scans to assess cardiovascular health. He tracks changes in his health metrics over time and participates in challenging physical activities, such as the 29029 Everest simulation.