Amazon Accelerate is over and I'll say it straight... the PEOPLE were the best p
By Ruben Alikhanyan · October 1, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Amazon Accelerate is over and I'll say it straight... the PEOPLE were the best part!
Three days in Seattle. Big announcements, sure. But a week later, it's the conversations I keep coming back to!
A big thank you to everyone who made it such an unforgettable experience...
Henry Lugo, MsEM from Quality Importer was my constant companion out there. Every party, every hallway, somehow always five feet away. Wouldn't have had it any other way.
Peipei Zhou, we've known each other for a while, but meeting in person was long overdue. So glad it finally happened!
Eric Geyer, CPWA®, CRPC™ knows the exit side of this business cold... value growth, liquidity, the part most sellers ignore until it's too late. The kind of advisor you want in your corner YEARS before you ever sell.
Brian Thorne, one of the brightest GTM operators I've ever talked to. It was a pleasure meeting you!
Severina CHETIN runs Grand Sunsource and is one of the most genuine people I met all week and seriously sharp on the seller side. Loved our conversation!
Dave Laub is the president of Groove Industrial, national online sales in wire rope and rigging. A specialized category where you have to truly know your product, and he does. Great meeting you!
Tan Ansari, good to finally put a face to the Trellis name. Trellis put the *right* person in charge of sales, and that much was obvious very fast.
Jordan Nwukor runs retail media across Amazon, Walmart and Instacart. A lot of overlap with where we're headed. Glad we met.
Gretel Troetsch R knows TikTok Shop from the inside. She's ex-TikTok Shop and it shows the second she starts talking. Great meeting you and learning from you!
Everett Simpson, a marketplaces guy who actually actually runs the accounts, and it shows within two minutes of talking to him. Dialed in on PPC in a way most people who claim it aren't.
Corey D. Brown 🦬, your headline says you build brands people love on Amazon. After meeting you I'd say those brands are lucky to have you!
Ryan Flannagan built and sold his own company, and now he gets CPG brands onto Target, Walmart, Costco and Kroger shelves. A different game from ours, and he plays it at the top. I could listen to those stories all day.
And Jessica Wright... one of the best operations minds in the Amazon space. We didn't get to finish that conversation... I fully intend to fix that. Would love to partner together again!
Thank you all for a great week. Seattle was special because of you!
#amazon #accelerate