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Bonjour Millionaire, 

On Sunday, I did something I thought I’d never do. I shared my tech stack.

Today we dig into HOW I built and continue to evolve it. With not 1, but 2, analogies I’m pretty proud of.

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​​MEET APPLOVIN

ON THIS EPISODE OF GO-TO-MILLIONS 

Is your tech stack… stacked against you?

Back in my agency days, I worked for a fashion brand that had, how shall I put this… the sloooooooowest site in the world.

Sped-up footage of the homepage refreshing.

Truly gorgeous clothes. But, by the time the PDPs loaded, they were out of style.

Years of cheap dev and bad code + high-end assets + lack of regular tidying had created an astronomical amount of tech debt.

The solution wasn’t pretty, easy, or cheap. Stripping your tech stack down to the studs never is. GTMetrix hatedddddddd that site I'll tell you that.

This is why I take a closet cleanout approach to tech stacks:

👚: Regular review and maintenance when the season’s right (aka NOW), instead of a complete overhaul when the tech stack finally goes kaput at the most inconvenient time.

👜: Deciding what’s an “investment piece” and what’s an accessory past its prime.

A lot of brands struggle with this, because inertia’s comfortable and easy. Which doesn’t mean it’s not costing you.

You shouldn’t be an app collector hoarder, but you also shouldn’t be too scared to make a move to stay current + efficient.

1 of my New Year's resolutions was to regularly demo new tools & features - so I can uncover little updates that can drive bigger wins.

So. That's the tech stack battle. Now, here's how we win it.

READ THIS BEFORE YOU CHANGE ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR TECH STACK:

🧱 Know thy stack.

Shopify billing is opaque.

Some apps price on order usage, scaling silently as business grows.

Not everyone has the permissions to see the bills.

To improve your stack, you’ve got to know where the problems are and how much they’re costing you.

Get this info 1st. Because a cheap option from years ago that you no longer need is too expensive! Sorry!

You also need to know which tools are your “investment pieces,” or “load-bearing walls,” if you prefer a renovation analogy. I prefer clothes so if I lose you here I understand.

For me, this is Shopify Plus, Klaviyo, and Postscript.

These are your foundations, and are NOT to be touched without a lot of planning and prep. Don’t even THINK about doing it mid-peak or during BFCM. That’s like trying to put in a new roof during a hurricane. Wow I really can't stop with these but I should.

👯 Don’t do this alone.

Usually you CAN’T make the unilateral call to change your tech stack. Even if you have that kind of power, you SHOULDN’T.

Instead, take the time to sell new tools internally.

Talk to the daily users, the people with authority on the subject. Listen if they voice concerns and be open to their knowledge.

Treat them like the CEOs of their domain. (Yes, you should steal this line. I stole it, too.)

Getting the recommendation from the resident expert leads to more informed decision-making, stronger buy-in, and if the tool’s right, a better business. Also, nobody wants to be told what to use. It's really annoying and unproductive to force a tool into an operator's hands without full and complete alignment.

⛔ Beware of tech debt.

All the apps, tools, and pixels on pixels on pixels you try for a bit and then abandon add up.

They drain you of $222.99 here, $0.003 an order there( ads up if you're good at your job), $4K somewhere else.

Of course, customers don’t care how much your patchwork site is costing you. They care that your site’s slow as hell when they try to shop. The Net-a-Porter app has been really slow for me lately, anyone else?

And, they’ll bounce to shop your competitor in a heartbeat. I really don't want to have to go to Mytheresa but I will.

💸 Buy cheap, buy twice.

Now, not all great tools are expensive, and not all cheap tools are bad. Note my tech stack list!

But if we're talking about your core, load-bearing wall-type tools, it's often better to spend $$$ on the 1 RIGHT TOOL vs. running through 10 cheap ones you end up needing to replace.

You might save $$$ with the cheap options, but they’ll cost you time and efficiency. Which is also $$$.

Ask me how I know. 🐌

🧩 Make sure everyone plays nicely together.

It doesn’t matter how game-changing a new tool is. If it can’t talk to the rest of your stack, or if you don’t have an orchestration layer ready to rock to MAKE it talk, it can’t sit with you!

Otherwise, you’re spinning your SaaS budget into the void on a tool most of your team will forget even exists.

🤔 Check your motives before making any swaps or upgrades.

Changing your tech stack can be a big risk with a huge REWARD.

P.S. Don't go headless.

There are so many questions before any stack update.

Are you resisting change, because learning something new feels unmanageable? Or is there a legit reason to stop and come back in a bit? Are you chasing a shiny new tool just because? Or could this really be your tech stack’s missing piece? Is what you're buying going to work well in an agentic shopping world???

There's no 1 right answer. Demo everything and backchannel everything. Text your friends. Ask me before you buy something. No mistakes!!

GO-TO-MEME

It will.

Not to be like this but this is the worst text I've ever received from a brand and it's from a brand that YOU KNOW I LOVE.

I bought 3 shirts!! In 10 minutes, I'm the perfect customer! My name is Ari!! Zig! Headset! What in the voice to text is happening and how can we get it to stop!!

Yours,
Ari