How Shopify Brands Are Scaling with Creators: gen.video at Amplify NYC

Jessica Thorpe
Jul 22
3 min read

At Amplify NYC, over 100 Brand founders, Shopify store owners, entrepreneurs and ecommerce leaders came together around one shared mission: turn storytelling into sales through creators. From early-stage startups to scaled DTC brands, the takeaway was clear ...

TikTok Shop, influencer marketing, and creator-driven content are powering the next wave of ecommerce growth.

Learn From Leading Brand Founders & Leaders

The event featured some of the most exciting voices in ecommerce, including Onewith, Mid-Day Squares, ESCA, Kanga Coolers, Pair, Ice Shaker, College Hunks Hauling Junk, Scrub Daddy, Saltair, Cheers, and Dude Wipes. Many are Shark Tank alumni, proving that with strong storytelling, creative marketing, and authentic influencer partnerships, brands can break through any stage of growth.

Key Insights for Shopify and DTC Brands on UGC Success

Shopify is leading the way. Founders are leaning into Shopify to gain control of their storefronts, customer relationships, and data, moving away from over-reliance on third-party marketplaces.
Creators = growth engines. Partnerships with influencers on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube are the most effective way to drive awareness, engagement, and conversions.
UGC and TikTok Shop power sales. Social commerce fueled by authentic creator content is quickly becoming a must-have for sustainable DTC growth.
Brand first, retail second. Building a recognizable, trusted brand identity is critical before pursuing retail or wholesale deals.
Why storytelling wins. Founders with a clear purpose and narrative are attracting loyal communities and converting them into repeat customers.

What Works Now For Shopify Brands Looking to Creators

Creative Velocity: AI-driven, performance-led storytelling is the future of scaling paid social.
The Social Commerce Playbook: Converting UGC, affiliate programs, and TikTok Shop into predictable revenue engines.
Protect & Power Up: Practical strategies to safeguard your brand IP, operations, and creator partnerships (read our recent post on building creator communities here).

What About Amazon?

Amazon remains a key sales channel for many brands, but the sentiment at Amplify was clear: diversification matters. Founders want more control over their growth, and creator-led marketing -- especially through TikTok Shop and direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategies offer that flexibility.

How to use partnrUP and the gen.video Team to unlock creator success

At gen.video, we built partnrUP to make creator-led growth accessible for brands of all sizes:

Discover and recruit high-performing influencers on TikTok Shop, Instagram, and YouTube.
Launch campaigns that convert, from seeding products to managing affiliates and UGC partnerships.
Measure what matters, including conversions, ROI, and customer lifetime value across all channels.
Turn authentic storytelling into predictable sales with an all-in-one creator management and reporting platform.

Whether you’re a Shopify merchant, scaling DTC brand, or expanding beyond marketplaces, partnrUP helps you harness the creator economy to build sustainable growth.

We left Amplify NYC inspired by the vision and grit of these founders and energized to support the next generation of category-defining brands. More about the event and it's founders:

The Amplify Founderverse team is on a mission to reshape how founders connect, learn, and grow. Designed as a “curated, founder-first pop‑up” series, the event is built by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs -- bringing together bold brand-builders, Shark Tank alumni, and fast-scaling startups in cities across the U.S. Their goal? To foster authentic connections and deliver actionable insights to founders who are ready to scale smarter. The partnrUP platform is on a similar mission to democratize influencer marketing - making it accessible and scalable for starter brands to enterprise businesses.