On Tuesday February 18, 2025, we hosted our inaugural client summit, Curated, in New York City. Our primary goal was to give the people behind the inspiring brands we work with an opportunity to have insightful conversations and network with each other. Held at Shopify's SoHo New York venue, the event featured a thoughtfully designed agenda tailored to the themes we’ve heard directly from our clients, including keynotes, panel discussions, and interactive sessions led by industry experts.
For our clients traveling from out of town, we arranged accommodations at the five-star Beekman Hotel, including a happy hour and dinner to get to know each other the evening prior to the summit.
A ‘Curated’ Exhibition
On the upper floor of our summit, we ‘curated’ a product exhibition featuring nine of our clients, uplifting their product and our collaboration with them in the way that you would see in a museum. We displayed Naghedi’s core collection of handbags and sandals, Assouline’s Travel Series books, Laura Mercier’s iconic setting powder, HUSH’s Iced bed sheet collection, bareMinerals’ Complexion Rescue tinted moisturizer, Mavi’s Marcel loose straight leg jeans, Fellow’s Aiden coffee brewer, Benchmade’s cutlery knife collection, and Nest New York’s perfume oil collection.
Morning Sessions: Setting the Stage
The day commenced with a warm welcome and breakfast at Shopify NY, located at 131 Greene Street. Domaine's President, Marko Bon, and Chief Revenue Officer, Mac King, delivered the opening keynote, emphasizing the event's focus on collaboration and shared growth.
The first panel delved into Personalization, featuring Jade Fern from NEST New York, Marcia Payton from Nosto, Domaine's Director of CRM, Stacy Strom and President, Marko Bon. The discussion centered on strategies to enhance on-site shopping experiences through tailored customer interactions.
Following this, a fireside chat on Internationalization provided an inside look at the cross-border expansion strategies of beauty brands Laura Mercier, BUXOM Cosmetics, and bareMinerals. Carney Nir from Orveon Global sat down with Domaine's CTO, Max Rolon, and Head of Account Management, Allie Hincks, to discuss key considerations for successful international growth.
Midday: Industry Insights and Innovations
After a brief intermission, Domaine's Head of Strategy, Jen Karlson, led a session on Industry Benchmarks, unpacking the latest trends to inform accelerated growth across sectors like Beauty, Fashion & Apparel, and Home Furnishings.
This was followed by a series of lightning talks called Commerce Features hosted by Domaine’s Director of Account Management Natalie Bader. This series highlights unique implementations we launched for our clients. Megan Maquera from Assouline spotlighted the launch of their Culture Lounge, an expansive content platform built directly into their site. Joe Prebich of Benchmade showcased their bold 3D knife customizer, unique for their industry. Laura Mann from Kendo Brands presented the ‘Fentyverse’, the way that Fenty’s four sub-categories of Beauty, Skin, Fragrance, and Hair all live within the same site and same universe. Lastly, Alexandra Alessi from Olaplex gave a preview of their brand new site, which places emphasis on their roots with beauty professionals while providing deep product education.
A networking lunch provided attendees the opportunity to connect and discuss the morning's insights, with catering from Olive’s in New York.
Afternoon Sessions: Deep Dives into Design and Commerce Growth
Post-lunch, the focus shifted to the Shopify Product Roadmap, with Shopify’s Staff Solutions Engineer Tanya Nam discussing upcoming features and functionalities, followed by an open Q&A session.
The UX/Design panel featured Domaine's VP of Creative, Trey Hardin, and Director of User Experience, Katie Baligod, alongside Asia Casey from Timex, Alexa Gulian Azarian from Oscar de la Renta, and Sean Kelly from Hush. The discussion highlighted principles and processes for impactful site redesigns that drive engagement, reflecting on evolving customer expectations.
Later, an intimate fireside chat with Jane Scott from Tuckernuck and our Director of Account Management Blaise Rashtchian explored the brand’s Enterprise Growth journey, sharing strategies for scaling through strategic planning, conversion rate optimization, and crafting a compelling on-site experience.
The day's sessions concluded with Partner Features lightning talks, where Domaine’s Innovation Partners: Klaviyo, Yotpo, Gorgias, Recharge, and Loop discussed how our clients are implementing Shopify's technology partner ecosystem in innovative ways.
Evening: Networking and Community Building
Closing remarks from Marko Bon and Mac King led into an evening of continued networking. Attendees traveled to the Beekman Hotel for a happy hour, fostering informal connections in a relaxed setting. The evening culminated in intimate dinners, with groups of 20 to 30 guests hosted at renowned New York City restaurants: Atera, Manhatta, Beefbar, and Carbone (at Sadelle’s). Each dinner was sponsored by our partners: Recharge, Yotpo, Klaviyo, Nosto, Loop, Gorgias, and Shopify, facilitating deeper discussions and relationship-building.
Reflecting on the event, Marko Bon noted, "With so many of our clients facing similar questions—around personalization, expansion, technology, and growth—we wanted to facilitate real conversations between brands that are navigating these shifts firsthand."
Curated by Domaine successfully fostered an environment of collaboration and knowledge sharing, setting the stage for future gatherings aimed at addressing the evolving challenges and opportunities within the ecommerce landscape.
