Jure Knehtl

JK GROWTH

JK’s ECOM growth consulting by Jure Knehtl is on a mission to empower ECOM business founders and marketers to reach profitable growth by upgrading the in-house team, knowledge, and processes.  

By consulting, organizing workshops, and coaching internal people, we cover the main growth pillars of ECOM growth success, such as: 
• Business profitable growth and success metrics 
• Scaling strategies to grow to the next level 
• Setting up a clear vision for the future and steps to get there 
• Coaching on leadership and self-mastery 
• Structure of the marketing department 
• Building a brandformance team 
• Processes within the marketing and how to work with other departments 
• Choosing the right external partners to be efficient 
• Paid, organic, and retention channels improvements and optimization 
• Preparing the marketing calendar to schedule launches, sales, new markets, and more 
• Adding new channels 
• Adding new markets 
• Expanding the product portfolio 
• Launching new brands  

Our knowledge is tested in practice and proven to work for various businesses.   

For each of our clients, we built a tailored process on how to upgrade the current status and how to build a fast-growing, sustainable ECOM business.

Founder

WeScale Brands

At WeScale DTC performance marketing agency, I was in charge of building an ecosystem and strategy to empower the growth of fast-growing DTC brands.

We built multiple 8-figure brands in Europe with the help of scientific creatives, behavior-driven media buying & advanced acquisition strategies.

WeScale performance 🚀 numbers:
• +152 Mio € revenue generated across all our clients
• +41 Mio € ad spend across Meta, TikTok & Google
• Scaled a business from 7 Mio to 25 Mio €
• 1.1 Mio € Revenue in 72 hours
• 27,000 products sold in 1 day
• Grew home decor brand from 0 to 1 Mio € in 7 months
• Generated 5.5 Mio € in 11 months for a beauty brand

Chief Executive Officer

HS PLUS

I built the whole marketing department with 30+ people from 0 that managed the biggest paid social budget in the region. 

The business was bootstrapped and reached mid-eight figures in yearly revenue in 4 years.

The growth was fueleded by leveraging the ultimate power of performance marketing, creativity, and integration of all departments into the business growth strategy.

My journey at HS PLUS started with one product, one market, and a 20 € daily budget and finished with:

• +120 products
• 13 localized markets
• the biggest Facebook ads budget in the region
• 40 Mio € Revenue generated
• own content creation process
• advance KPIs performance tracking

Head of Growth

AdStar - Digital Agency

I built a team of 15 members that helped multiple Slovenian and international businesses achieve 7-figure revenues with:

• Facebook ads
• UGC Creatives
• Localization
• Conversion rate optimization

AdStar performance agency was the first company and it was bootstrapped when I was 21 years old with 4,000€ in my bank account.

Performance Marketer & Growth Coach for the fast-growing ECOM brands in Europe

Proven traction in scaling multiple DTC brands to 8-figures in Europe.

Hey, nice to meet you. I am Jure Knehtl (also called JK), driven by results, creativity, and being a distributor on the market.

In my career, I helped generate 200M+ € eCommerce revenue for my partners by developing a customized marketing mix to maximize the brandformance.

For the last 9+ years, I've been leveraging Meta ads, TikTok, Influencer marketing, scientific performance-oriented creatives, localization, and retention channels to help DTC brands grow.

Here are 3 of my biggest successes so far:
- Built the whole marketing department from scratch and reached an explosive growth of a bootstrapped eCommerce business from 0 to 40M € revenue in 4 years.
- Founded a Boutique DTC Performance agency WeScale, in 2020, that grew to 20+ team members and 5 Mio € revenue in 3 years.
- Hyper-Scaled a beauty brand from 0 to 100M € revenue in 3 years, profitability.
 
❤️ Growth, leadership & basketball.
🛠 Chasing the NEXT WIN.

Knowing that I have more to offer, I apply that same drive to work with established brands as well as brands looking to make that pro jump.

If you have a question or just want to exchange ideas - send me a message - I look forward to our conversation!

Want to get in touch about the potential collaboration, mentorship or a speaking gig?
Email me: jure.knehtl.digital@gmail.com

At WeScale DTC performance marketing agency, I am in charge of building an ecosystem and strategy to empower the growth of fast-growing DTC brands.

We built multiple 8-figure brands in Europe with the help of scientific creatives, behavior-driven media buying & advanced acquisition strategies.

WeScale performance 🚀 numbers:
• +152 Mio € revenue generated across all our clients
• +41 Mio € ad spend across Meta, TikTok & Google
• Scaled a business from 7 Mio to 25 Mio €
• 1.1 Mio € Revenue in 72 hours
• 27,000 products sold in 1 day

Click the links below and check our value posts 👀

Want to get in touch?
Email me: jure.knehtl@wescale.agency

Behind every success story there are: 
 
- Money worries 
- Sleepless nights 
- Tons of lost deals 
- Failed businesses 
- A lot of self-doubts 
 
I experienced it, and many others have experienced it. 
 
Don't be fooled by nice cars, fame, or revenue numbers, because the road to there is filled with struggle. 
 
That's why it's so important to have people around. 
 
Doing it together is hard. 
 
Doing it alone is painful (maybe impossible). 
 
We should support each other more as entrepreneurs ❤️ 
 
Have a good weekend.

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In performance marketing, everything can go to sh*t. 
 
At the beginning of my career I: 
 
- Took things too much to heart. 
- Let fluctuation of the results affect me. 
- Put a ton of pressure on myself because of it. 
 
When the results are good you are on top of the world, confident, when the results are bad you feel lost. 
 
Now is that period of downs for many brands. 
 
I see ECOM brands struggling with Meta because of changes, big spenders, and competitors. 
 
My best piece of advice: 
 
Step back. 
 
Control what you can control. 
 
This doesn't mean waiting until it passes but focusing on things you can improve and letting go of the rest. 
 
Find controllable things: 
 
- Offers 
- Messaging. 
- Landing pages 
- Angles of creatives and copy. 
 
Then improve on these every day. 
 
Whenever I see someone struggling I like to say: Control what you can control and execute relentlessly. 
 
This always worked for me. 
 
Don't be emotionally attached to the external factors. 
 
Focus on things under your control. 🤘 
 
P.S. Every Wednesday, I send a value-packed newsletter to 11,500+ investors, founders, and CMOs. Join via the link in the comments.

99% of success is knowing: 
 
- What to prioritize. 
- What to say NO to. 
 
Many businesses are trapped in low-impact work keeping them busy with no time for high-impact work. 
 
The Pareto principle: 
 
- 80% of sales might come from 20% of customers. 
- 80% of sales might come from 20% of creatives. 
- 80% of sales might come from 20% of products. 
 
Identify tasks that move you forward. 
 
Ditch the rest. 
 
It's not always about more, more and more. 
 
It's about the right things. 🤝 
 
Happy weekend.

One bad hire can cost you more than you think. 
 
I learned the hard way that it's better to take your time with hiring and be slow rather than fast. 
 
Here are 2 reasons why: 
 
1) Attitude & company culture. 
 
Everyone can learn the skills, but their attitude is more important than the skills themselves. 
 
You can train for skill. 
 
If the person isn't a good fit (culture-wise), and their vision is not the same as yours, then it won't last long. 
 
It can have an impact on other employees aswell. 
 
2) Turnover. 
 
You invest time and resources for each new hire. 
 
If you hire wrong, people might leave fast so you need to do it all over again, ending up investing your time & resources. 
 
Think twice before you hire. 
 
Remember: 
 
Hire slow, but right. 
 
You'll save yourself time, resources, and energy and actually grow your company the right way. 
 
As I like to say: 
 
Hire brains, not bodies. 🤘

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Friday reminder to marketers and ECOM brands. 
 
You will save by hiring cheap short-term. 
 
But it will cost you more long term. 
 
Choose wisely. 
 
Happy weekend. ✌️

Stop wanting to go from 0 to 100 overnight. 
 
Go day by day instead: 
 
For me, the biggest progress came when I shifted my mindset to focus on day-to-day execution. 
 
I always tend to set big goals in small time frames. 
 
I wanted to go from 0 to 100 in 2 days but in reality, you need a week, month, year or even more to go from 0 to 1. 
 
And I see this when working with other founders. 
 
Here's how I approach it now: 
 
1) Set goals in a long time frame. 
 
Don't think days, think years. I set myself goals for 5  years ahead which are realistic. 
 
Flash them out and note them down. 
 
2) Develop daily habits. 
 
Now, you need to develop habits that will get you there and do them daily without a waiver. 
 
I focus on executing small daily tasks for at least 100 days and then analyze the progress. 
 
I found by doing that, you'll progress much faster on a bigger scale than if you focus on BIG goals only. 
 
0,1% progress every day compounds. 
 
Focus on day-to-day. 
 
Try it.

Imagine paid social as an amplifier of your business. 
 
If it doesn't work, then the ads won't work. 
 
If it does work, then the ads will work. 
 
Too many businesses are looking for a quick fix in the ads without making a business work in the first place. 
 
Have a business that works first. 
 
Then use ads to make it work even more. 
 
P.S. I show insight and strategies on how to scale ECOM brands to 11,500 people every Wednesday in my newsletter. Join via the link in the comments.

''Does it scale?'' 
 
The question that helped me scale multiple ECOM brands to 8 figures and beyond. 
 
When I was a CMO for one of the ECOM brands, there was a mentor who always asked me: 
 
Does it scale? 
 
I used to look at tactics like ads manager settings and how to improve things on the micro level. 
 
He looked one step beyond that. 
 
It wasn't only about things that work, it was about making them scalable and repeatable. 
 
That's the biggest difference between: 
 
1. ECOM brands that scale. 
2. ECOM brands that don't. 
 
Example for ad creatives: 
 
If you find that UGC works for you, don't stop there. 
 
Make it scalable by creating a process behind it (content creators, iterations, production). 
 
Think about how you can make it work on a bigger scale with a repeatable and predictable process. 
 
When you find what works, don't think micro. 
 
Zoom out and thinking wider. 
 
To me, the biggest milestone happened when I made things that work scalable (and predictable). 
 
Now I'm helping clients do the same. 🤝 
 
Do you focus on creating processes or not? 
 
P.S. Every Wednesday I send a newsletter to 11,500+ people on marketing and ECOM insights to help them scale beyond 8 figures. No BS, just experiences. Join via the link in the comments.

If you put a logo on your product, it doesn't mean you have an ECOM brand. 
 
Branded products aren't your brand. 
 
When you see the real brands, people are emotionally connected to them. 
 
- They trust them. 
- They want to be part of them. 
- They feel something about them. 
 
Products are important for sure. 
 
They need to solve a real problem. 
 
But in the end, if you have a strong brand people buy more into the perception you formed. 
 
To build a brand you need good customer experience, good products, the right messaging, and WOM. 
 
This doesn't happen overnight. 
 
What brand means to you? 
 
♻️ Repost it if you like it. 
 
P.S. If you want to learn how to build (and scale) your ECOM brand, join 11,500+ people who get marketing insights every Wednesday (link in the comments).

I often remind myself that nobody will remember: 
 
- Your salary 
- Your fancy title 
- How ‘busy’ you were 
- How stressed you were 
- How many hours you worked 
- What was your revenue last month 
- At how many events you have spoken 
 
They will remember how you impacted their lives and inspired them to be a better version of themselves. 
 
Optimize accordingly. 
 
Happy weekend. ✌️

Everyone is replaceable. 
 
Even when you feel you aren't. 
 
When you work for a company (any role you have) you think you are irreplaceable. 
 
Nobody can do the same as you do. 
 
Had this exact feeling as an ECOM agency CEO and 2x CMO of 8-figure brands. 
 
But in every company, even if the employees leave, they all leave pieces behind: 
 
- Systems. 
- Processes. 
- Frameworks. 
 
Sure, it is not the same who is in the position they were, but the company will run either way. 
 
The bigger the company, the smaller the impact each person has. 
 
If you are a CEO, entrepreneur, or C-level position, don't be afraid to take time off. 
 
The business will run without you.

Some brands have their strategy backward: 
 
- Beautiful logo. 
- Beautiful website. 
- Nice product they think will sell. 
- Figuring out what problem does it solve. 
- Figuring out to whom they will sell it and how. 
 
Now, turn it around. 
 
Instead of focusing on your branding from the get-go, focus on your product to reach product-market fit. 
 
Put an effort into creating a scalable product: 
 
- Broader target audience. 
- Actually solves the problem. 
- Great benefits for the customers. 
- A great unique selling proposition. 
 
Then the rest. 🤝 
 
What's your opinion on this?

Everyone wants to be a leader. 
 
But not many realize there is hard work in being one (and it's not as glamourizing as it might seem). 
 
I've been a CEO of an ECOM agency with 32 employees at its peak. 
 
Here are 2 important points: 
 
1) Leadership skills. 
 
If you are exceptional at marketing, this doesn't mean you'll be a good leader of the marketing team. 
 
Leadership skills are completely different. 
 
I believe a leader needs to know the technical aspects of marketing if they want to lead people in this area. 
 
But leadership skills are more important. 
 
2)  Responsibility. 
 
I often ask clients: 
 
- Why do you want to be a leader? 
- Can you imagine leading 30+ people? 
 
Sometimes the answer is NO because we often fear the responsibility that comes with being a leader. 
 
Nothing wrong with that. 
 
It's important to know what you do and don't want. 
 
And then adapt your business accordingly. 
 
For me, leadership brought me huge personal growth. 
 
Even if the start is scary, you learn and evolve when you put yourself in that position. 
 
Are you a leader? 
 
P.S. For me insights about marketing, leadership and growing ECOM brands join 11.5k+ people in my newsletter. Link in the comments.

We like to hide failures because they make us ''weak''. 
 
I think the opposite, here are my biggest failures: 
 
- 8+ Kickstarter campaigns 
- 10+ failed expansions to new markets 
- Setting up a content creation studio in Slovenia 
- Lost five 8-figures yearly revenue brands as clients 
- Building own sunglasses & cosmetics ECOM business 
 
Without those failures, I wouldn't be where I am today. 
 
Best piece of advice: 
 
Don't think you are only as good as your last project. 
 
You are as good as what you learn from them and take those learnings to new projects. 
 
On the other side, if the project goes well, don't sleep on your laurels but evolve or you'll be left behind. 
 
Have a good weekend. 
 
P.S. Join 11,500+ investors, founders and CMOs reading my Wednesday emails on marketing insights to grow your business (link in the comments).

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Many brands want to expand to new markets, but most of them fail. Here are 7 reasons why: 
 
1. Lack of localization 
2. Unrealistic expectations 
3. Poor budget predictions 
4. Lack of social proof and credibility 
5. Unknown local eCommerce specifics 
6. Treating a new market as an existing market 
7. Guessing where to go next without research or testing 
 
So last week I wrote an article on how to do it. 
 
Here are 7 key points you can use for your brand: 
 
1) STEP 1 - Waiting list. 
 
Build an email list of people interested in the products. 
 
Build an audience for retargeting and re-engagement. 
 
The goal is to test messaging, newly produced creatives, angles, and targetings with ads. 
 
2) STEP 2 - Launch to PMF. 
 
Email the VIP waiting list + set up dedicated Meta ads for this list with a secret -X% OFF promo code. 
 
The goal is to: 
 
- Gather feedback 
- Profitable acquisitions 
- Understanding the sales trends. 
- Understanding ad creative’s winners 
- Set the benchmarks for performance metrics 
 
In this stage, the focus is getting traction and generating profitable results. 
 
3) STEP3 - Growth. 
 
Now when you have traction and PMF, then you need to scale acquisition and build retention. 
 
You can include local influencers, create dedicated landing pages, and include YT ads. 
 
On the retention side start sending regular newsletters + upgrading post-purchase flow. 
 
4) STEP 4 - Scale & Expansion. 
 
Understand what works best for you. 
 
The main focus is to get better at things that work on the acquisition and retention side, optimize it, and automate what is possible. 
 
Then open new markets and repeat the process. 
 
There aren't any secrets. 
 
Just a process you can follow and iterate on it. 
 
On how many markets are you? 
 
P.S. Read a whole breakdown in detail in the article I wrote: How to expand your eCommerce brand internationally - the link in the comments.

The old way of running an ECOM brand: 
 
- Create a simple website 
- Run a few Facebook ads 
- Refresh the ads 1x a week 
 
Money is coming in. 
 
The new way: 
 
- Highly optimized website 
- Omnichannel marketing 
- A community around your brand 
- A data-driven approach to creatives 
- Growing profitably over focusing on revenue 
 
How it is now is not the same as in 2018. 
 
How it will be in 3 years is not the same as it is now. 
 
If you don't adapt, you are left behind. 🤝 
 
What's your take?

Spoznaj ECOM Scaling Academy 🚀 

Mesta se že pridno polnijo in oblikuje se super skupina s katero bomo skupaj ustvarjali scaling okolje.


Expanding to new markets became hard. 
 
But not impossible. 
 
I have been doing international expansion for more than 10 years and helped 40+ ECOM businesses. 
 
Some of them crushed it right away. 
 
But most struggled big time. 
 
Investing in a new market in 2024 might be more challenging than it has been in the last seven years. 
 
- Higher competition 
- Higher marketing prices 
- Lower organic reach on platforms 
- Meta & Influencers are not as efficient as they were 
 
These are excuses in my opinion. 
 
I am working with 3 clients on international expansion and one of them is doing 150K € monthly revenue, and 12% profitability after 3 months on the market. 
 
So last week I wrote a newsletter to show you the most common mistakes I see ECOM business make. 
 
Some of them are: 
 
- Choosing the wrong market 
- Focusing on the wrong products 
- Copypasting what works on developed market 
 
And more. 
 
If you want to expand (and scale), then read the full article so you can avoid them. 🤝

If you can create a positive word of mouth for your ECOM brand you'll win. Here are 7 ways how: 
 
First, you need to have a good product. 
 
If you sell poor products, then you are left alone without WOM and customer retention. 
 
Then focus on these: 
 
1) Provide exceptional customer service 
 
2) Encourage and incentivize referrals 
 
3) Foster a sense of community 
 
4) Leverage user-generated content 
 
5) Collaborate with influencers 
 
6) Leverage online reviews and ratings 
 
7) Offer exclusive experiences or sneak peeks 
 
WOM is still the most effective way of marketing. 
 
Invest your time into building it & repeat. 
 
Just take care of a good product first. 🤝

Once you find a winning creative, the game isn't over. 
 
You need to iterate, here's how: 
 
- Test the hooks 
- Test new landing pages 
- Test with different thumbnails 
- Add a review or more social proof 
- Shorter vs. longer version of video 
- Use a video/image for collection ads 
- Testing the headlines or text layer over 
- Convert the image into a GIF or short video 
- Test the new “primary text” and “headlines” 
- Try new formats like green screen, transitions 
- Test the same creative with a different person 
 
If you stop once you find a winner, you will go backward again because sooner or later it will die off. 
 
Iterations are a never-ending process. 
 
Not a one-time thing. 🤝 
 
Do you have an iteration process? 
 
♻️ Repost it if you found it helpful.

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