During a panel discussion at eTail Boston, DTC founders and executives shared how they are using AI tools to navigate evolving retail challenges and drive growth. Brands including Vaila Shoes, Murphy Door, Viv for your V, and Hivessence are reimagining their relationships with wholesale partners while leveraging AI operationally and for marketing. Ahriana Edwards, founder and CEO of Vaila Shoes, emphasized that scaling a bootstrapped DTC-first brand requires constant adaptation and creative use of AI tools to reach untapped audiences.
Jeremy Barker, CEO of Murphy Door, is using AI to run a more efficient DTC operation and to help his team price orders, turning a product roughly every six minutes while prices are going down. Katie Diasti, founder and CEO of Viv for your V, capitalized on Gemini and ChatGPT traffic by building a content strategy around search engine optimization, leveraging viral moments and creating consistent educational marketing material to retarget customers who discovered the brand through generative AI chatbots. David Burrows, CEO of Hivessence, noted that AI and search optimization allow brands to return to storytelling because customers increasingly use AI chatbots for advice on new routines and products, treating them as consultants.
For commerce practitioners, the takeaway is that AI is no longer optional for DTC scaling—it is essential for cost management, customer acquisition, and content strategy in an environment where customer acquisition costs are rising and margins are tightening.