Laura Smith

Laura Smith

VP, eCommerce Marketplaces Sweetwater
Laura Smith

Monday, August 10: Summit Day

4:35 PM Search: Panel: Winning New Customers When Every Click Costs More: Smarter Acquisition Strategies for 2026

Customer acquisition costs keep climbing across every channel—from social and search to retail media and influencers—forcing brands to rethink how they attract, convert, and retain shoppers. As the lines blur between acquisition and loyalty, leading retailers are finding new ways to optimize spend, personalize outreach, and build communities that convert organically. In this session, retail and eCommerce leaders will discuss how they’re adapting their acquisition strategies amid budget pressure, data signal loss, and channel fragmentation. Learn how they’re blending brand storytelling with performance precision, rethinking attribution, and leveraging AI and owned data to drive profitable new customer growth

  • Balancing acquisition and retention when budgets tighten
  • Reducing dependence on paid social through organic and creator-led discovery
  • Using AI, predictive modeling, and first-party data for smarter targeting
  • Measuring true CAC in a multi-touch environment
  • Building partnerships and retail media collaborations that attract high-value customers

5:05 PM Retailer Only: Masterminds

Join fellow eTailers in a laid-back setting for roundtable discussions. Bring your biggest challenges and brainstorm solutions with others who get it. It's all about open conversations, sharing ideas, and helping each other tackle problems together.

  • Roundtable 1: Topic to be Determined
  • Roundtable 2: Topic to be Determined
  • Laura Smith, VP, eCommerce Marketplaces, Sweetwater
  • Roundtable 3: Topic to be Determined
  • Christine Ciccone, Senior Director, Digital Marketing & Customer Experience, Brother 
  • Roundtable 4: Reshaping Retail Roles and Teams Amid Rapid Growth & Changing Customer Expectations
  • Kelsey Knight, Chief Commercial Officer, Slumberkins
  • Roundtable 5: Retail's Privacy Reckoning: How iOS 26 Is Shaping Data Strategies and Customer Experience
  • Roundtable 6: Manufacturing Moves Front-and-Center: How Changing Production, Rising Transparency, and New Retailer-Wholesaler Partnerships Are Protecting Brand Value
  • Roundtable 7: Creating with the Creators: How Brands Are Partnering with Creators to Launch New Products to Build in Audiences
  • Lauren McGuinness, VP, DTC, SharkNinja
  • Roundtable 8: Scale Your Story: How High-Volume Creative Production Drives Engagement
  • Brittany Csik, eCommerce Manager, Negative
  • Roundtable 9: Providing Personalized Experiences While Navigating Data Security Regulations
  • Brett Bone, Chief Strategy Officer, Simple Modern 
  • Roundtable 10: Leveraging Payment Providers: Optimizing Vendor Mix, Marketplace Integration, and Ancillary Revenue Streams for Sales Growth

Check out the incredible speaker line-up to see who will be joining Laura.

Download The Latest Agenda