Ecommerce Playbook: Numbers, Struggles & Growth Why CTC Bought Into Commerce Roundtable
Apr 7, 2026
Jimmy Kim, founder of Commerce Roundtable and former Sendlane operator, turned a 50-person CBD meetup into a community-driven ecommerce conference. He shares the rise from virtual pivots in COVID to curated in-person events, why sponsor-first formats fail, the power of intentional networking, and plans for workshops, roadshows, and deeper community-led education.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Origins In A 50 Person CBD Roundtable
- Jimmy Kim started Commerce Roundtable in 2019 by hosting a 50-person CBD roundtable in a San Diego office to learn industry needs.
- That intimate, founder-driven first event framed the format and community ethos that scaled later.
From Virtual Experiments To Live Validation
- During COVID Commerce Roundtable ran eight to nine virtual shows experimenting with gamification and content-first formats.
- In 2023 Jimmy ran his first live 220-person event and validated demand before acquiring and spinning it out in 2024.
Sponsor First Events Break Education
- Most ecommerce events are sponsor-first and content-last, which reduces attendee value and authenticity.
- Jimmy noticed paid speakers and vendor-driven stages dominated the market while meaningful education was missing.