At Friends of Commerce, each decision we make is based on the following values.
We will politely and proactively share with you our honest opinion on your project. Setting honest expectations at the beginning of the project is the key to achieving success. So, you’ll never have to worry about us promoting something to you that you don’t need. . True friends are honest with each other, and we will tell you if that “cool” feature is something you really need or if you have food stuck in your teeth 😉
Technology projects are always a journey and they sometimes come with challenges as we uncover hidden obstacles. You’ll be looped in right away to hear about it and the solutions to keep the project flowing. You won’t be kept in the dark as you’ll see the work we’ve done each week, the project process, and the tracking to budget.
We’re going to do what’s best for you, every time. There are times when decisions have to be made about what organization takes priority, and for us it is always the client. We know this approach builds a rock-solid foundation for long-term partnerships and allows us to sleep at night with a clear conscience.
Our working relationship will stretch beyond weekly email. We will be in consistent communication throughout the project. A byproduct of all these interactions is that we get to know our clients and build lasting partnerships. Even when the project is complete, we’ll want to know how it is going and be there to support you in any way. We are always available for a catch-up chat or a sounding board for ideas.
As a result, clients see us as a vital part of their team, rather than a vendor. Through consistently providing honest and transparent advice and a quality product, it is easy for our clients to put their trust in us. We strive to continually work in a highly aligned manner so that each decision we make always favors the best interest of our clients.
In addition, the above values allow us to consistently implement the best industry practices for each and every project. In the past, we’ve experienced companies that get blinded by dollar signs and take shortcuts in order to save money, resulting in a product that doesn’t best fit the needs of the client. When you work with Friends of Commerce, you’ll know that no matter what, the technology will be sound. We don’t take shortcuts, we don’t do shoddy work, and we never artificially bloat a project to make extra money.
Friends of Commerce was started to fill a gap in the market of providing honest, authentic, and expert high integrity advice and services to both growing and new retailers, brands, and manufacturers at fair and reasonable rates. Having witnessed scenarios where smaller companies were forced to accept the risk and use unproven offshore resources due to budget constraints or larger companies being charged highly inflated costs and sold bloated projects that weren’t in their best interest. The founders of FoC saw an opportunity to be able to provide the solution to both sides of that problem, high-quality work at fair rates with the client’s interest as the highest priority, just like a friend would do.
CTO & Co-Founder
Having been a senior technical figure in eCommerce now for 20+ years, Matt has expert knowledge in all prominent eCommerce solutions and platforms to date. Matt has architected and led teams in some of the most complex eCommerce solutions on the planet while pushing the limits in the eCommerce space. Zumiez, TOMS Shoes, FitBit, Valvoline, TBN, Dry Bar, Benefit Cosmetics, are just a few of the many marquis brand names that have leveraged the expertise that Matt brings to any eCommerce business. Matt is at the forefront of bringing B2B businesses online, optimizing and streamlining the purchasing and fulfillment processes, automating antiquated manual processes and architecting scalable platforms that will support the business for years to come.
CEO & Co-Founder
RJ has led sales and commercial efforts in the eCommerce space for both large publicly traded companies as well as a number of early stage start-ups. He brings a track record of success and a commitment to putting client’s best interests at the heart of his engagements over his 20+ years of digital commerce sales and sales management experience. “During my years in the eCommerce platform space, I have witnessed too many retailers and brands that would change platforms in hopes of overcoming the limitations of their current technology, only to find that they merely were trading in one set of limitations for different set of limitations, as well as “partners” that were more focused on their own interests instead of that of client. From those experiences, I knew that there would be a substantial opportunity for a company that would provide unbiased client-centric advice and expert development services in order to help their clients adapt and achieve success in an ever changing digital commerce landscape.”
Prior to Friends ofCommerce, RJ served as Chief Revenue Officer of AirDeck, Inc, VP of Revenue at Reaction Commerce (acquired by Mailchimp), Solutions, Sr. Director of Sales at Demandware, VP of Sales & Marketing for Venda (now part of Oracle), and VP of Sales for Digital River’s Bluehornet division. He has also excelled in sales roles for Kintera, Needle, and WebSideStory (now part of Adobe). RJ received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Illinois.
Trying to create a new way to do business.
In the e-commerce industry.
We’ve got the experience you need!
Get in touch any time!
Trying to create a new way to do business.
In the e-commerce industry.
We’ve got the experience you need!
Get in touch any time!
“Friends of Commerce were easy to work with in getting our first site up. They listened to our needs and made our interests central to their work.”
“Friends of Commerce had the knowledge to bring our sales to the next level. They have cadre of tools to address any e-commerce platform issue, as well as internal connections to numerous e-commerce platforms to get positive results–even on difficult issues. FoC was able to get us engaged with in early access product development”
“Partnering with Friends of Commerce for our E-Commerce development and implementation has been an asset for our organization. The accessibility, the knowledge, and the collaboration this company provides are impeccable.”
“We are always pleased with the service we get from Friends of Commerce! We started our store with big commerce to further our ministry and no matter the problem or concern, they are very helpful and quick to find the solutions that is needed. Whether it’s a weekly meeting or a quick email/message they are always there to work with us and support us in any way they can.”
Honest consulting for e-commerce businesses.