James Massey on leaving in-house ecommerce roles at Ickle Bubba and Myprotein to start JM Digital, which is now Gravitas and its three divisions.
I started my career in-house, running ecommerce for DTC brands, first at Myprotein and then at Ickle Bubba. At Myprotein I worked in website trading across international markets, and I saw how much influencer marketing could do for a brand at scale. It is also where I hired Dan.
Working brand-side, I kept noticing how easily teams get stuck in execution mode: constantly launching and firefighting, without the space to step back and see what is working and why. The result is often momentum without understanding, which leads to missed opportunities and scaling that doesn't pay off.
That is why I left and started JM Digital, first as an ecommerce consultancy offering data-driven insight, strategy and hands-on trading support to DTC brands. It began as a solo freelance journey, and it has grown into something much bigger.
Who we are today
The business is now Gravitas, with three divisions:
- Gravitas Influencer: creator-led acquisition for consumer brands, run partnership ads first and judged on what drives growth
- Gravitas Talent: representing creators and connecting them with brands through strategic partnerships
- Gravitas Ecommerce: Shopify strategy and execution for DTC brands
It is the same idea I started with: give brands the space to step back, see what is working, and back it properly, with people who have done the job in-house.
Learn more about how we build creator-led acquisition programmes through our influencer marketing service.