Friends Of Commerce

What Friends Of Commerce does

Friends Of Commerce is a B2B eCommerce and digital transformation consultancy founded in 2013 and headquartered in San Diego, California, that serves mid-market manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers generating roughly $10M–$200M in annual revenue. The firm modernizes clients' legacy commerce and ERP stacks by implementing and integrating platforms such as BigCommerce, Acumatica, and Shopify Plus, with a proprietary BigCommerce B2B Edition Connector supporting unified account hierarchies, negotiated pricing, and quote-to-order workflows. Customers include Andover Fabrics, ACE Uniforms, FirstSpear, and Iowa Customs, across industries spanning textiles, uniforms, tactical gear, and custom manufacturing.

The company's technology stack centers on ERP–eCommerce integration architecture, supplemented by an AI readiness practice delivered under the Friends of AI (FoCAI) sub-brand. FoCAI promotes an orchestration-first AI architecture designed to enable flexible, multi-model deployments that mitigate vendor lock-in, paired with non-generative frameworks for secure data preparation, governance, and AI deployment planning. AI capability types span process automation, predictive analytics, NLP, recommendation, anomaly detection, generative AI, knowledge retrieval, and optimization across text, image, structured data, and multimodal modalities.

Friends Of Commerce operates as a bootstrapped, founder-owned professional services firm (CEO and co-founder RJ Stephens). Revenue is generated through project-based consulting engagements, typically structured as multi-year contracts with quote-based pricing tied to scope and complexity. Go-to-market combines consultative direct sales, inbound content marketing, partner co-marketing with BigCommerce/Acumatica/Shopify Plus, and thought leadership at events such as Acumatica Summit. The company holds no disclosed external funding and reports 11–50 employees.

Name

Friends Of Commerce

Legal name

Friends of Commerce

Website

https://friendsofcommerce.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Friends Of Commerce is a bootstrapped, founder-owned consultancy that modernizes mid-market B2B manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers ($10M–$200M revenue) by integrating eCommerce and ERP platforms and providing AI readiness consulting under its Friends of AI sub-brand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Sheridan

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. eCommerce Consulting and Digital Transformation Services: Professional consulting engagements for B2B eCommerce platform implementation, migration, and optimization. Services include operational efficiency audits, digital transformation roadmapping, UX/CRO, and post-launch analytics. Revenue is generated through project-based professional services engagements with mid-market and enterprise B2B clients.
2. AI Consulting Services (Friends of AI): Enterprise AI consulting delivered through the Friends of AI division, focusing on orchestration-first AI architecture, multi-model AI deployment, and secure AI adoption. Includes AI readiness assessments, data strategy, and implementation planning for internal operations, automation, and customer engagement workflows.
3. eCommerce Marketing Services: Expanded marketing services covering demand generation, traffic optimization, and ROI maximization for B2B and B2C clients across the customer lifecycle.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Friends Of Commerce is a B2B eCommerce and digital transformation consultancy that helps mid-market manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers modernize from legacy systems to integrated online commerce platforms. Services span strategy, platform implementation (BigCommerce, Shopify Plus), ERP integration (including a proprietary BigCommerce B2B Edition Connector for Acumatica), and AI readiness consulting delivered through its Friends of AI (FoCAI) sub-brand.

Product overview

Friends of Commerce is a B2B eCommerce and digital transformation consultancy that operates as a services company with a portfolio of specialized offerings. The core services include Digital Transformation & eCommerce Modernization (consulting and implementation for connecting ERP and eCommerce systems) and AI Readiness & Data Strategy services delivered through the friendsofai.ai subdomain. The company has launched Friends of AI as a sub-brand focused on enterprise AI consulting with orchestration-first architecture. Key technical solutions include the BigCommerce B2B Edition Connector for Acumatica integration. The company targets mid-market B2B manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers, and expanded in 2023 to include eCommerce marketing services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Friends of AI (FoCAI): A division dedicated to AI enterprise consulting, focusing on orchestration-first AI architecture to help enterprise organizations deploy flexible, multi-model AI ecosystems that mitigate vendor lock-in and deliver measurable ROI.

Products and services

• B2B eCommerce Modernization Consulting

Quantifiable outcome

• 83% year-over-year revenue increase in first quarter following digital transformation launch for Andover Fabrics

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability12 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, strategic and flagship.

• BigCommercecoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Platform partner providing the B2B Edition eCommerce platform. Friends of Commerce has developed a proprietary BigCommerce B2B Edition Connector for ERP integration with Acumatica. The partnership enables mid-market B2B clients to build scalable digital sales channels integrated with their ERP systems.
• AcumaticacoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Platform partner providing the Acumatica ERP system. Friends of Commerce specializes in integrating Acumatica with eCommerce platforms (BigCommerce) via proprietary B2B Connector solutions. CEO RJ Stephens spoke at Acumatica Summit 2026 on B2B Connector strategies.
• Shopify PlusstrategicTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Strategic partnership strengthened in 2025, expanding Friends of Commerce's platform capabilities for B2B clients who prefer the Shopify ecosystem.
• Clarity VenturesstrategicTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Strategic partnership expanded in 2025 with focus on AI-ready environments. Collaboration on developing AI implementation capabilities for shared B2B clients, including AI readiness and secure automation services.
• BennettPorterstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Acumatica Partner of the Year, with whom Friends of Commerce delivered the 'Manual to Modern' presentation at industry events, addressing integration challenges and paths to scalable digital commerce. BennettPorter co-presented at Acumatica Summit 2026 breakout session alongside Friends of Commerce, Acumatica, and BigCommerce.
• Commerce B2B Quick Start AcceleratorflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Friends of Commerce was named the inaugural partner in Commerce's B2B Quick Start Accelerator program in 2025, a flagship partnership position providing preferential co-marketing and go-to-market alignment with the platform vendor.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Opti: BigCommerce Elite Partner agency delivering eCommerce implementations, integrations, and digital strategy for mid-market and enterprise B2B/B2C brands. Directly comparable as a BigCommerce-focused consultancy with overlapping GTM and integration expertise.
• HexaGroup: Houston-based BigCommerce and Acumatica partner delivering ERP–eCommerce integration and digital transformation for mid-market B2B. Overlaps with Friends of Commerce on platform partnership stack and B2B integration services.
• Clarity Ventures: Strategic partner and BigCommerce/Acumatica implementation consultancy with overlapping mid-market B2B eCommerce focus. Comparable on platform expertise, ERP integration services, and the type of digital transformation engagements Friends of Commerce delivers.
• BennettPorter: Acumatica Partner of the Year and named collaborator of Friends of Commerce, delivering Acumatica ERP implementations and eCommerce integration services to mid-market B2B clients. Closely comparable on platform stack, customer profile, and project-based consulting model.

Emerging players

• Table XI: Mid-sized digital consultancy delivering custom eCommerce, web, and software solutions for B2B and B2C clients. Comparable on custom-built, project-based consulting for mid-market digital commerce initiatives.
• Guidance: Enterprise eCommerce consultancy delivering platform implementations and digital strategy across multiple commerce platforms. Comparable on eCommerce implementation and digital transformation services, though with broader enterprise focus.

Broad incumbents

• Slalom: Mid-market-focused management and technology consultancy with eCommerce and AI transformation practices. Comparable on target customer segment and digital transformation services, though with a much broader service portfolio.
• West Monroe: Mid-market-focused business and technology consultancy with strong digital and operations practices. Comparable on mid-market B2B customer focus and digital transformation delivery, though larger and more diversified.
• Blue Acorn iCi (Accenture Song): Large-scale digital commerce consultancy (now part of Accenture Song) with deep BigCommerce and Adobe Commerce expertise. Comparable on eCommerce implementation services but operates at enterprise scale across a much broader portfolio.
• Valtech (Lyons Consulting): Global digital commerce agency offering platform implementations, ERP integration, and transformation services. Comparable on consulting services but serves larger enterprise customers and operates at significantly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CommerceFriends
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCWjVbAPgiFuZjCWA75tBKmA/about
• Facebookfacebook.com/commercefriends
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/friendsofcommerce

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Friends Of Commerce