July 2026, London.
Ecom Insiders, the community for the UK’s fastest-growing ecommerce brands, brought founders and ecommerce leaders together in London for its annual Summer Soirée, with a keynote from The Turmeric Co. founder Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu and a panel of brand leaders.
On 15 July 2026, Ecom Insiders hosted its annual Summer Soirée in London. The evening brought together founders, ecommerce leaders and marketers from some of the UK’s best and fastest-growing brands for honest, brand-led conversations about growth, followed by drinks and plenty of time to connect.
What is Ecom Insiders?
Ecom Insiders is a community for UK-based ecommerce founders and brand leaders, created and run by Underground Ecom. It brings people together to share what’s actually working in ecommerce, from customer lifetime value and retention to new channels and growth strategy.
The community runs events throughout the year, from the Summer Soirée in London to sessions like Ecom Insiders x Yolk House Fest in Brighton. Each one is built around real conversations between people building brands, rather than sales pitches.
Keynote: Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu on building The Turmeric Co.
The evening’s keynote came from Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu, founder and CEO of The Turmeric Co. and a former Premier League and Wales international footballer.
The Turmeric Co. started with a family recipe, developed by Thomas and his father over more than a decade, which Thomas relied on throughout his football career. The brand launched direct to consumer in 2018 and has since grown into one of the UK’s best-known functional drinks brands, including a launch into Sainsbury’s.
Thomas shared the story behind the brand, his belief in the product and his vision for where it goes next.
“Hearing Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu speak about the launch of The Turmeric Co. was inspiring. Hearing the back story directly from the founder, his belief in the product and vision for the future was powerful for any brand looking to grow in the UK and beyond.”
Emini Jaggan-Hilton, Events Lead, Ecom Insiders
The Brand Panel
Next up was our brand panel, sharing practical insight from the people running some of the UK’s most exciting consumer brands. They did a brilliant job, despite some technical difficulties with the mic.
A huge thank you to our panellists:
- Harvey Armstrong, CEO at Prime Time
- Henry Porpora, Founder at SULT™
- David Olusegun, Founder at Aiye Growth Ventures
- Bryn Hassan, Ecommerce Manager at PerfectTed
The conversation covered LTV, Retention, PPC, Tiktok Shop and Loyalty, with each panelist sharing what has worked, and what hasn’t, as their brands have grown.
Drinks, connections and conversations
After the talks, the evening moved on to drinks and networking at Jin Bo Law, Aldgate. For many guests this is the best part of any Ecom Insiders event: a relaxed room full of people who understand the same challenges, from rising acquisition costs to building customer loyalty.
Thank you to everyone who came along, and to our partners for helping make the evening happen.
Ecom Insiders is just getting started
The Summer Soirée is just one part of what Ecom Insiders is building. The Ecom Insiders community group is now officially open: an online space for founders and ecommerce leaders to keep the conversation going between events, share ideas and learn from each other.
Want to join? If you’re a brand that wants to be part of a genuine community of the UK’s best and fastest-growing ecommerce brands, and we’ll send you the link to join.
About Underground Ecom
Underground Ecom is a London-based CRM and retention marketing agency, specialising in email, SMS and lifecycle marketing for DTC and ecommerce brands. We’re a Klaviyo Master Elite Partner and an accredited member of the Data & Marketing Association, and the team behind Ecom Insiders.
Sources
- The Turmeric Co. member profile (GS1 UK)
- From Premier League star to entrepreneur (Pony Studio interview)
- Event date and partner mention: Mollie team post on LinkedIn promoting the Summer Soirée
