1138: Automating online reselling and e-commerce with AI and your phone's camera w/ Graham Wood

Wantrepreneur to Entrepreneur | Start and Grow Your Own Business

In this episode, Brian sits down with Graham Wood, founder of Shopik, a game-changing platform that automates product listings for resellers using AI and machine learning. After being laid off from Google, Graham leveraged his 20+ years of experience in aerospace, big tech, and media to create Shopik, helping companies cut down product listing time from 45 minutes to under 2 minutes. Graham shares his entrepreneurial journey, the role AI plays in streamlining business operations, and why knowing your market is key to scaling a business.

💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business

🚀 How to turn setbacks (like layoffs) into business opportunities
🤖 Why AI and automation are essential for reducing business costs
💡 How to identify market gaps and build a solution that scales
🛍️ How to monetize a SaaS product and choose the right business model
💰 How to balance technology development with customer-driven features
📈 Why focusing on high-value clients first can accelerate growth
📸 How to use AI to extract product details from images and automate e-commerce

📝 About Graham Wood

Graham Wood is a seasoned entrepreneur and software engineer with over two decades of experience in big tech (Google), media (BuzzFeed), and aerospace. After being laid off from Google in 2023, Graham founded Shopik, a platform that automates product listings using AI and machine learning. His innovative approach to automation helps businesses save time and labor costs while increasing revenue through faster, more efficient listings. Graham’s experience spans from building apps to leading engineering teams at BuzzFeed and Google.

🎯 Graham’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs

"Find something you’re passionate about — and make it easier for others."
➡️ Your best business idea comes from solving a real-world problem
➡️ Passion fuels perseverance — you need to love what you’re doing to push through challenges
➡️ Focus on ROI — your product should save time or make money for customers

📢 Memorable Quotes

“AI is a tool — but you need to know how to use it to get the best results.” – Graham Wood
“The quicker you can list a product, the more profitable it becomes.” – Graham Wood
“Revenue matters, but passion is what will keep you in the game.” – Graham Wood

💡 Actionable Takeaways

✅ Automate repetitive tasks using AI to save time and costs
✅ Focus on securing high-value enterprise clients first — scale from there
✅ Build solutions that solve real pain points for your customers
✅ Prioritize product-market fit over mass adoption in the early stages
✅ Track customer feedback and use it to drive product improvements

🔗 Links & Resources

• Visit Shopik’s Website
• Connect with Graham on LinkedIn
• Follow Shopik on LinkedIn

Chapters

1. Meeting Graham Wood and Shopik (00:00:00)

2. From Aerospace to App Development (00:02:01)

3. Google Layoff to Entrepreneurship (00:08:33)

4. How Shopik Works and Solves Problems (00:11:10)

5. AI Applications in Practical Business (00:17:19)

6. Business Model and Enterprise Focus (00:19:41)

7. Balancing Tech and Business Tasks (00:23:15)

8. The Resale Market Opportunity (00:26:56)

9. Finding Passion in Entrepreneurship (00:32:39)