SeaBear

In part 1 of this two-part series from our August issue, we classified e-commerce systems into four essential groups: bundled suites, enterprise leaders, niche players and experienced multichannel partners.

Problem: SeaBear, a direct seller of smoked salmon and other specialty seafood, sought to upgrade its outdated e-commerce site to jump-start online sales. Solution: Completely redesigned its site. Results: Web-placed sales have nearly doubled compared to the old site, representing 40 percent of the company’s overall sales.

Responsibilities: Mike Mondello has served as SeaBear’s captain since 1996. He is involved in product and recipe development, concept creation, and, ultimately, product testing with customers. His vision is to build SeaBear into the premier seafood brand in the country. “We’re not out to be the biggest, but the richest and the best,” he says. Grew up in: Long Island, NY Education: B.S. in business from Boston College; M.B.A. in marketing and finance from Northwestern University Biggest catalog challenge: Mondello has had to transition the catalog from a holiday-focused, gift- oriented company to that of a world-class food provider. “This shift was