Social 333 Podcast – Ep. 71: Making Millions Selling Products with a Shopify Store (feat. Anatoliy Labinskiy)

Host: Chris D. Bentley
Guest: Anatoliy Labinskiy
Release Date: November 14, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode of the Social 333 Podcast, host Chris Bentley interviews Anatoliy Labinskiy, a successful e-commerce entrepreneur and founder of an advertising agency that builds and scales Shopify stores. They dive deep into the realities of making millions with Shopify, demystifying dropshipping versus branding, the importance of marketing and ads, building relationships with suppliers, keeping up with trends, and how generative AI (such as ChatGPT) is revolutionizing e-commerce strategy. The conversation is candid, practical, and packed with actionable insights for anyone interested in starting or scaling an online store.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Anatoliy’s Background and E-Commerce Approach

[01:44]

• Anatoliy runs an agency focused on building advertising ecosystems for e-commerce brands, utilizing Google, Facebook, TikTok ads, and email/SMS marketing.
• Handles both dropshipping businesses and those seeking to establish lasting brands.
• Also invests in real estate in the U.S.

“We’re just building all this advertising ecosystem for the brands and dropshipping stores as well which are already making some results and want to become a brands...”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [01:44]

2. Dropshipping 101: How It Really Works

[02:54–07:55]

• Sourcing: Products are typically sourced from Alibaba, AliExpress, or private suppliers. You negotiate wholesale rates, sell at a markup, and only pay the supplier after you make a sale.
• Supplier Strategies:
  • Platform-based: Easily integrated but higher risk of chargebacks and less control.
  • Private suppliers: More trust, better rates, can provide custom content, but require track record (10–20 sales/day for 3+ months).
  • Branding: Platforms now allow you to add your own branding and logos even for dropshipped goods—opening doors to direct-to-consumer brands.

“The proper supplier will record some content for you. ...They can do the professional photoshooting. So private suppliers you need to make like...at least like 10–20 sales a day for last like three months.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [04:30]

3. Driving Sales: Traffic, Ads, and Influencers

[07:55–11:56]

• Traffic Generation Methods:
  • Influencer partnerships (one-off, ongoing, ad spend split)
  • Facebook Groups, forums (warm audiences)
  • Organic reach via personalities with built-in followings (e.g., OnlyFans creators)
  • Paid Meta Ads (Facebook/Instagram): still the most powerful for volume
• Platform Differences: Amazon and Walmart allow influencers to recommend via “preferred lists,” but with Shopify you own the entire customer journey and data.

“You have possibilities. Find out the good influencer...From another hand. You can do like Facebook groups...met ads, Google Ads, TikTok ads...But Facebook, it’s still like a biggest platform to advertise.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [08:55]

4. The Power of Personal Brands and Operations

[11:56–14:25]

• Influencers or hobbyists with niche audiences (e.g. chefs, fitness personalities) can easily monetize their followings via Shopify stores.
• Usually, the back-end operations are managed by experienced ecommerce partners or agencies.

“Someone else reaching out to them with the skills of operations in E-commerce and saying, hey, like, you have audience in this place, you know how to promote. Let’s cooperate.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [13:15]

5. Mistakes & False Expectations in E-Commerce

[14:25–19:24]

• Main Pitfall: Unrealistic expectations fueled by YouTube “get-rich” videos.
• Unlike opening a physical store, people underestimate necessary investment (ads, branding, product selection).
• Success requires real research: understanding your “avatar” (target customer), competitive costs, realistic Return on Ad Spend (ROAS), and customer acquisition costs.
• Owning Data: Shopify gives you customer data (email, SMS), unlike Amazon where it’s single-sale and no relationship.

“Biggest mistakes, it’s fails expectations from...people complaining it’s dead, it doesn’t work...because they just watching the YouTube video and believing that okay, so this is how it works. But when [they] implementing nothing is working as it was said...”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [14:51]

6. What Makes a “Winning Product”?

[19:24–24:03]

• Key Traits: Products that attract attention organically (TikTok is a goldmine for trends), but success boils down to deep research and packaging/marketing better than competitors.
• Any product can become a “winner” given better creative, ad copy, and funnel design.
• Current Hot Niches: supplements, health & beauty (especially skincare), pet supplements, sleep improvement, menopause-related products, consumables (high LTV).

“Any kind of product could be a winner. ...But if you got the hot product and make it 1% better...by doing the research, most probably that ‘winning product’ will be on your store.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [20:46]

7. The Lifecycle of E-Com Trends & Opportunity Windows

[25:59–28:25]

• Market windows open and close quickly (example: melatonin pill arbitrage due to ingredient change).
• Appetite for trends is cyclical; adaptability is key.
• Accept a small “piece of the pie” and be content rather than chasing unattainable heights.

“… I think one of the keys just in life is just being happy with what you got.”
— Chris Bentley [27:49]

8. Sustaining Sales: Creative Testing and Offers

[28:25–32:00]

• Facebook/Meta ad algorithm changes have extended product life cycles if you aggressively test creative assets (50+ per week for big stores).
• Upgrading offers (e.g., bundling, highlighting included gifts) can boost conversion even on existing products.

“Quantity of creatives on ads will allow you to keep this momentum longer and changing the offer… Second thing after creatives, it’s offer testing for sure.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [28:25]

9. The AI Revolution in E-Commerce

[32:00–42:09]

• AI tools like ChatGPT have dramatically sped up tasks (market research, copywriting, funnel optimization).
• Best results come from detailed prompts describing your audience, goals, and desired outcomes.
• AI can help with upsell suggestions, improving AOV, localization/adaptation for sophistication levels in various countries, and creative iterations.

“AI is 100 speed in your business. If you’re not using [it] you’ll be out of the door in the near future.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [42:09]

10. Real Estate as a Second Act

[43:06–44:13]

• Anatoliy bought 14 units in the U.S. using the BRRRR method (Buy, Renovate, Rent, Refinance, Repeat).
• Exhaustive market (town/state) research and smart financing (hard money lenders, DSCR loans).

11. Reflecting on the Journey: Would Anatoliy Change Anything?

[44:32–46:29]

• Anatoliy wouldn’t change the struggles, mistakes, or even slow starts; adversity built the resilience necessary for his current success.

“If I would go back, back, I would love to see myself from the side...But I would not even speak to myself...otherwise it’s going to be really suicide or whatever because people lose motivation drive and start getting depressed...I would not change anything. It’s what made me who I am.”
— Anatoliy Labinskiy [44:32]

Notable Quotes

• “You are not spend money until you receive the purchase.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [02:54]
• “The more you sell, the matter, the more money they are making...” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [04:30]
• “I feel like Shopify ... is like actually a e-comm business. Like you're actually reaching out to somebody, like, hey, I got this inventory or you have that inventory. I have this shop. I have eyes on my shop. This is what I want to sell.” – Chris Bentley [11:23]
• “But Amazon—you are not owning data. You cannot run SMS/email marketing. You're only one time selling and that’s why you don’t know who is that. In Shopify, you're owning the data.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [17:16]
• “Any kind of product could be a winner… But sometimes if product doesn’t work, whatever you do and it doesn’t work, you should not get married on it.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [20:46]
• “AI is 100 speed in your business. If you’re not using your business, you’ll be out of the door in the near future.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [42:09]
• “If you’re going to be comparing yourself with anyone...you should build your own story. Like otherwise it’s going to be really suicide or whatever because people lose motivation drive and start getting depressed because they are not happy with whatever they get in.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [28:25]
• “But I would not even speak to myself...I would be weak because everything is just like coming with solutions, with advice...I would not change anything. It’s what made me who I am.” – Anatoliy Labinskiy [44:32]

Key Timestamps

• [01:44] Anatoliy’s e-commerce agency & real estate background
• [02:54] Dropshipping explained, supplier relationships, and branding
• [07:55] The current state of traffic: ads, influencers, organic
• [14:25] Common mistakes & false expectations in online business
• [19:24] How to identify and cultivate a “winning product”
• [25:01] Current hot niches and trends analysis
• [28:25] The importance of creative testing and ongoing iteration
• [32:00] How AI transformed marketing and product research
• [43:06] Real estate investing as a complementary business
• [44:32] Anatoliy’s no-regret philosophy on struggle and growth

This episode is a goldmine for anyone serious about Shopify, dropshipping, or e-commerce in general, blending hard-won wisdom with up-to-the-minute tactics for traffic, product selection, creative iteration, and the new role of AI in entrepreneurship.