As the CEO of Juniper Commerce and Market by IMC, Bill Furlong often draws on his 25 years of experience in digital innovation and leadership.
“IMC’s omnichannel vision is bold and compelling, and I am intrigued and energized by the opportunity that Juniper presents,” said Furlong.
Launched in January 2021, JuniperMarket is a multi-line B2B e-commerce platform powered by International Market Centers, which allows home décor, gift, furniture and apparel buyers and sellers to connect anytime and anywhere.
The Juniper team matches up tens of millions of products, made by hundreds of thousands of designers, with thousands of buyers and eventually the consumer. Furlong believes in the potential of this big matching challenge amid a fragmented landscape.
“The world is a better place when we are able to supply a rich diversity of products allowing millions of people to connect with others and do business together easily,” he said. “The potential in the space is enormous since IMC has been in this space for more than a decade and has built trusted relations with both buyers and sellers over the years.”
Furlong believes IMC’s knowledge of the industry enabled his team to do something more quickly than it would have otherwise been possible.
“I think we need both a passion and obsession about the customer and what their needs are, paired with a passion and obsession about data, especially in the digital realm,” he said. “There is so much data and information available that there’s no need to make wild guesses all that much. We get so many signals back about what’s working and what isn’t. We lead by listening and learning from the customer, and I encourage creative problem solving.”
For Furlong, the heart of what it’s about at JuniperMarket is to create a great team culture. The company has hired more than 100 people in the past year, and the retention rate has been good.
“The number of people who leave has been very small because the people who brought the team together laid the foundation for a great culture,” Furlong added. “Our team members pour their hearts into doing their best work. It’s super powerful.”
