ASR Sunday Brief #15

What Shopify operators were talking about this week

August 30, 2026

From the founder:

New this week: Shopify Jobs. A free job board for the network.

We kept hearing the same two things from opposite directions. Brands wanted help finding operators for long-term contracts and full-time roles. Operators and experts in the network wanted to hear about opportunities that weren't on LinkedIn yet. So we built the place where those two meet.

Posting a job is free. Post one here or browse what's already open if you're looking.

Pattern of the week is the flip side of the same coin — what operators are asking for when they can't hire.

Like this newsletter? Forward this email to another brand operator or app developer!

Welcome to the brand network

These are a few brand operators that joined us this week:

Hannah L. — Owner, United States · Fashion & Apparel · Basic plan

Stephen B. — E-commerce Manager · Home & Decor · Plus plan

Kevin S. — Agency, United States  · Development

Start a project to meet these participants and others like them.

  • Seeking operators who are responsible for catalog metadata 
    Research Call · Incentive: $150 · 45 mins — on metadata, tags, and descriptions: who owns the process, why it matters, what's been tried

  • Ecom/Ops Managers looking for a new tool for forecasting inventory/promotions & competitor price tracking 
    Sales Call · Incentive: $250 · 30 mins — putting revenue context on operational data instead of flat "low stock" lists

  • Beyond Points: Enterprise VIP Loyalty With No Subscription Fees 
    Sales Call · Incentive: $250 · 30 mins — paid and free membership tiers for brands moving past points programs

Shopify Jobs is now live

We built a free job board for the network.

Brands in our network kept asking how to find operators for long-term contracts and full-time roles. Operators and experts kept asking where the good opportunities were before they hit LinkedIn. Both problems, one answer.

If you're hiring: posting is free. Long-term contracts, part-time, full-time — all welcome. Post a job →

If you're looking: browse what's open. The roles come from brands already inside the network, which means you know who you're talking to before the first call. Browse open roles →

Pattern of the week

One request kept surfacing in different words this week: do more without adding people.

One operator running a brand with over 800,000 customers and nearly 2,000 SKUs described a deliberately lean team and wrote that they're looking for tools to operate at the level of brands with twice their headcount. A solo developer working across multiple beauty brands described automation as "the whole strategy, not a side interest." Another wants AI agents that make existing VAs faster rather than replacing them. A fourth is chasing "less manual work" across merchandising, ops, and discovery in one sweep.

Why it matters: the framing has shifted. A year ago the AI question was "what can this do?" This week it's "what does this let me not hire for?" That's a much harder bar — and a much more specific one. If you're building for this network, the pitch that lands is the one that names the role your tool absorbs, not the feature list it ships.

Nobody is asking for more people. They're asking for more leverage.

From the feed this week

Three reads worth your time this week:

🏆 Referral contest update — still very open

The leaderboard has moved but the race is still open — 2–5 activated referrals is enough to land in the top three.

Prizes, on top of the ongoing referral pay ($50 per Shopify store, $100 per Shopify Plus store):

  • 1st — $1,000

  • 2nd — $500

  • 3rd — $300

If it helps, here are three you can copy and adapt:

For a DM to an operator you know:

Hey — you'd probably get something out of this. It's a research network where Shopify brands get paid ($100–$250) to do 30–45 min calls with app teams building tools for stores like yours. You hear what's coming before it launches, and you get paid for the time. Here's my link if you want a look: [your link]

For a Slack or Facebook community post:

If you run a Shopify store and get value from talking shop with app founders — app store research pays operators $100–$250 for research calls about the tools you already use. No pitch decks, no obligation. Sharing my referral link in case it's useful: [your link]

For a short LinkedIn post:

One of the more useful things I've done this year: joining app store research as a brand operator. App teams pay for 30–45 minutes of honest feedback about the Shopify tools you actually use. You end up seeing what's being built months before it ships. If you run or operate a Shopify store, worth a look: [your link]

Thanks to everyone who's referred someone this month. It genuinely helps.

Join our private communities

Join the ASR Brand Operator Slack

Private discussions for Shopify brands. Apply to join →

Join the ASR Shopify App Slack

For Shopify app founders. Apply to join →

See you next week.

Jon and team
— app store research

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