Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech's most innovative B2B founders. In today's episode, we're speaking with Maggie Adhami-Boynton, CEO and Co-Founder of ShopThing, a live video commerce platform that pairs brands with influencers to host engaging live shopping events. The company has raised $10 million in funding to bring this rapidly growing trend from Asia to the North American market.

Key topics discussed in this episode:

• Maggie's background as a 15-year tech veteran, working in marketing, advertising, telecommunications, and mobile app development for major brands, while also pursuing her passion for fashion and retail as a micro-influencer.
• The inspiration drawn from Sarah Blakely, the founder of Spanx, who built a billion-dollar brand against all odds, with no funding or experience, while being generous and genuine with her employees and partners.
• The influence of books like "Shoe Dog" by Phil Knight and "Never Split the Difference" by Chris Voss, as well as numerous other startup stories that provide valuable lessons on what to do and what not to do as an entrepreneur.
• ShopThing's origin story, from Maggie's frustrating experience trying to purchase a product through Instagram DMs to her discovery of the massive live video commerce trend in Asia, led by platforms like Taobao.
• The unique challenges and opportunities of introducing live video commerce to the North American market, which has a different consumer behavior and technology adoption curve compared to Asia.