Open Residency

Sean Frank - E-Commerce Masterclass: How to Build, Scale & Win in 2026

Open Residency

Show Notes

In this episode, I sit down with Sean Frank, CEO of Ridge, for a deep dive into the systems behind one of the most profitable e-commerce brands operating today. Sean breaks down how Ridge confidently spends $100K/day on ads, why simplicity beats cleverness in performance creative, and the disciplined frameworks that allow Ridge to scale without outside capital. He also shares something he rarely talks about publicly: Ridge's biggest weakness — and why it's actually the one unfair advantage smaller brands still have in 2026. We unpack Ridge's entire performance machine: producing 200+ ad variations every month, hiring creators with editing instincts, building agency-less teams, and treating ad economics with ruthless clarity. Sean explains why most brands fail before they even have a product worth selling, what founders still misunderstand about Meta, and how operational discipline is becoming the new moat in e-commerce. This conversation is a masterclass in scaling, creative iteration, and building lean teams that win — even as the landscape gets harder.

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