Editor’s note — This article is written by John LeBaron, Chief Revenue Officer at Pattern. John leads global SaaS, Services, and go-to-market efforts for Pattern and its partners. He previously held marketing leadership roles at Rackspace, Apple, Cisco, and Ciena, and holds degrees from Kellogg, Columbia, and BYU.

I once took a physics class where I was totally lost. I went to the professor, hoping for some guidance. His advice? “Some people get physics. Some people don’t. Just power through.”

That answer stuck with me — but not because it was helpful. It wasn’t. Because when it comes to ecommerce, I don’t believe that. I don’t believe there are people who “just get it” and people who never will.

Yes, this world is complex. But it’s not rocket science. It’s not astrophysics.

And we can do this. Together.

There are amazing people in this space. People who can teach you, walk with you, hold your hand along the way. So let’s drop the narrative that this isn’t possible for you, or for your team, or your brand. It is possible. In fact, we’re already doing it. We’re living proof.

Why standing still isn’t an option

Let’s be real. 2025 has already felt like ten years of change packed into six months.Ecommerce is evolving faster than anything else on the internet. Case in point? TikTok. Once just a place for dance trends and viral videos, now? A social commerce powerhouse.

59% of TikTok users now shop directly on the platform. That’s higher than any other non-marketplace channel. Google tried this. Amazon tried this. TikTok cracked it. It’s not a fluke, it’s a wake-up call.

If you take a nap in this industry, TikTok might be bigger than Walmart by the time you wake up.

This is why we stay close. Why we share, test, learn — together. Because the pace of change doesn’t slow down just because we’re tired.

Running lean, thinking big 

There’s one thing we keep hearing from brands: “We don’t have enough resources.”

We ran a study with 300 brand leaders across North America. What we found? 70% had ten or fewer people on their ecommerce team. And the crazy thing was 50% had five or less. That’s wild.

We’re talking about trillion-dollar stakes — being managed by lean, overwhelmed teams just trying to stay afloat.

No wonder it feels hard. No wonder it feels overwhelming. It is overwhelming. But you’re not imagining it. And you’re not alone. You don’t need a hundred people. You need the right partners.

The only way is together

We’re not just building strategy decks and setting up storefronts. We’re building the future of how people buy. And none of us are doing it solo.

This industry moves too fast, grows too big, and changes too often to do it alone. That’s why we’re here.

To hold the door open for each other. To show the way forward — even when we’re still figuring it out ourselves. To lift together.

So don’t buy into the narrative that this isn’t for you. That you can’t keep up. That you're behind.

You’re in it. And we’re in it with you.

Let’s go.