2024 Honorees

Anya Geimanson

Co-founder and CEO

“To be an innovator, you need to move fast from vision to execution.”

Tell us about your company and role.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of Visually.io, the next-gen optimization and personalization platform for Shopify.

Visually powers Shopify’s fastest growing brands (The Oodie, Andie’s swim, JDsport and more!).

How would you describe yourself?

The first is empathy. In order to create products and strategies that will be valued and loved by our customers, we need to understand them and be curious about them.

Second, is focus. Innovation might sound easy when you think about it, but in order to innovate in the real world, you need to work hard and put a lot of concentrated effort into it.

Third is resilience. It takes time to innovate, and it’s usually not a straight line, but more of a roller coaster.

What qualities does an effective marketer need to have?

Success in online marketing is a lot more about getting many small changes right than what is commonly assumed. Marketers need the ability to move quickly from vision to execution and be continuously experimenting and learning from failures.

What has been your biggest professional success so far?

Building Visually.io!

I’ve been in eCommerce for 15 years, most of which I was on the DTC side, where I had the privilege to scale brands from 6 to 9 figures.

Back in the day, everything was code, but when Shopify came along and changed all that. I was surprised that there isn’t a “Klaviyo for onsite” and decided to build Visually alongside my partners. I take a lot of my DTC background into building our product. I strongly believe that the next generation of B2B products should be as intuitive and simple as a DTC experience.

What causes are you most passionate about?

Mental health. It often reminds me of CRO in the sense that In order to improve, you need a good feedback loop. That’s why I’ve been seeing a therapist for 6 years and counting (one of the best time and money investments I ever made btw). I love being able to better understand and continuously optimize my own internal algorithms.

What do you think is the biggest challenge facing eCommerce brands?

Growing profitably while competition is at an all time high, and the economy is slower than what we’re used to in past years.

What's your favorite loyalty program or subscription offering from an eCommerce brand?

Andie Swim. Love everything about this brand, from the product to the amazing team of women behind it!

What do you geek out over?

Mushroom picking! Being in nature, and concentrating on finding the right spot, has a meditative effect I love. Did you know that fungi is neither plant nor animal? It’s an organism with its own kingdom of life. I know, MIND BLOWN!