Today we’d like to introduce you to Marissa Rodriguez.

Hi Marissa, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

On January 5th, 2015, the company I worked for abruptly shut down, leaving me without a job for the first time in my adult life. The experience forced me to slow down and stop. What emerged in that time and space was the realization that I was not happy in my professional life. I had never had a moment to really think about the future and my current life up until then. I realized that what I wanted more than anything else was time freedom. This is where the idea first came to me about becoming a ‘free agent’ and becoming a consultant in my industry. While I knew no one personally that was doing that sort of work, I still believed it was possible for me.

That first year was incredibly difficult not only financially but mentally and emotionally as well. There were many unknowns, the people in my life could not understand what I was doing or attempting to do, and I really had to navigate my fears and my mindset. I stuck with it over the course of the next 6 years, and I worked as a consultant focused on eCommerce and direct to consumer businesses. While I had time freedom, I did not have location freedom. I felt that I needed to be in New York City in order to meet clients and expand my business.

When the pandemic happened, it completely changed everything. All of my clients grew accustomed to video calls, and the world was shifting before my eyes. On June 25, 2021, I left on a vacation for Greece, by myself, a country I had never been to before where I had zero friends or family history. That vacation turned into 101 days (over a quarter of the year) and in that process I realized there were no issues with my clients, I could easily manage the time zone difference, and my location was totally irrelevant. I also fell in love with the country of Greece. I traveled to 11 Greek islands by myself, and I absolutely loved the lifestyle that I discovered there. Now, I wake up in the mornings, North America is sleeping, and I have 8 hours to myself before my work begins. In NYC, I was up at 6am daily and always felt like I was rushing and behind my schedule to get everything done. My new life in Greece was so liberating.

On December 27th, 2021, I moved to Greece permanently and never looked back. I’ve maintained most of my same clients. The businesses have generated over $75 million in revenue in North America while I have been living in Europe. In March 2024, I launched my e-learning platform, Through Experience®, so that I could help more founders and business owners learn the skills required to be successful in eCommerce.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

I believe that the biggest obstacles are usually internal ones like our mindset, our beliefs about what is possible, the stories we tell ourselves, the things we look upon as “facts”, etc. All of these things need to be re-written and confronted in order to write a new story and a new chapter. I’ve done a lot of work on myself, I’m an avid reader, and I’m always seeking and searching for other possibilities. The pressure we get from our family and friends (often, without them even realizing that they are doing it) to stay the same is huge. Yet, every great story requires you to do things you’ve never done before, step out of your known into the unknown, and recreate yourself.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?

My mission is to create a global community for entrepreneurs who are inspired to live a life on their own terms, and the best path I can share with them is eCommerce. Through Experience® is born out of my personal experiences – with a desire to share, guide, mentor, and coach from what I know to be true. The goal is to build a community that supports entrepreneurs as they ascend through their online journey and provide them with the systems and tools they will need in order to be successful at launching and scaling direct to consumer businesses.

In addition to this, I offer strategic online courses designed to provide actionable steps for entrepreneurs at any stage, and I absolutely love working one-on-one with clients. Helping individuals find their unique path to success, whether it’s through personalized coaching or course content, is something I’m deeply passionate about. Seeing my clients grow and thrive is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do.

I’m always open to connecting and hearing from others, so feel free to reach out! I invite everyone to stay in touch via social media, and you can find me on LinkedIn under “Marissa Rodriguez Founder + CEO of Through Experience.” I look forward to continuing to learn, share and grow together.

I’ve helped many founders go from zero to 8+ figures in annual revenue, and it was always something that I felt mixed emotions about. On the one hand, it’s incredible to be part of something that is so unbelievably transformative. On the other hand, I could only work with a handful of people at a time. I knew I did not want to open an agency, but I also wanted to reach more people and give more folks the tools to succeed online. What does a brand new founder with zero experience do if they do not have someone like me guiding them? They make a lot of mistakes, waste a lot of time and money, and some of them even quit. This is where the vision for Through Experience emerged, this concept of going from few to many. Of opening up the playbook that I personally use and giving it to millions of people around the world, so that they too can transform their lives and businesses.

The current eCommerce landscape is incredibly fragmented. You have subject matter experts that are siloed in their specific area of expertise, and very few generalists who understand the entire ecosystem. Very few “experts” out there have launched businesses themselves and scaled to over 9 figures. They also don’t have expertise across multiple online markets and across all product categories. I think this is why 90% of eCommerce businesses are failing. People are getting bad advice from specialists who do not understand the entire puzzle; they only know their part of the puzzle, and success requires orchestration.

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?

I’m very proud of the mission that we have at Through Experience®. Imagine a world where people do not feel stuck, confused, or lost. Imagine a world where people are free to make choices about their time, location, and even earning potential. When you are not limited by your geography and instead can make choices to live the life as you want to live it – that is power. It’s also why I spend so much time making sure that people build businesses that are truly self-sufficient and do not rely on Amazon, wholesale, or retail in order to thrive. It’s so important to know how to grow your own business. It’s life altering, even if you decide you want to work in eCommerce (like I have).

I truly think that there is no better industry than eCommerce. Once you learn these skills and you master them, there are so many options for you. From launching your own business as a founder, to buying a business and growing it, to selling your services and helping others grow their businesses, to investing in the space with confidence, creating solutions to further impact the entire industry, and/or any combination of the above.

I truly want to support people in all parts of their journey into the online world. That’s why building an ascension model is so important to me- creating pathways for growth no matter where you are in your journey. Equally important is having like-minded people around you as you grow, both personally and professionally. This is why I’m so proud of the community I’ve built. It’s growing continuously, and it’s amazing to see how we all learn from each other, no matter what stage we’re at.

It’s also why it feels so important for me to mentor and guide those that are coming up after me and genuinely want to learn and master eCommerce. I’ve been fortunate enough to have incredibly supporting clients, ex bosses, and colleagues who have been beyond instrumental in getting me to where I am today. A mentor can shorten your path – and we all deserve to learn through experience and to share the experiences we’ve accumulated on our journey. I’ve maintained relationships with the people who have been instrumental to me on my journey, and I want to make sure that I do the same for others. For example, I have kept relationships with people in my life whom I looked up to and who I have now known for 20 years. Their belief in me and their guidance will be something that I forever treasure and value.

To further support this, I offer a free newsletter filled with valuable resources, tools, and insights designed to help you grow and succeed, no matter your level. I want anyone to benefit from the tools and feel empowered to move forward. It’s all about creating a space where everyone can thrive, and I’m excited to see how our community continues to evolve and expand. Together, we’re building something truly special.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://throughexperience.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissa-rodriguez-6192b327