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Ecommerce Unit Economics 2026: The Complete Founder's Framework

Eightx Free Intermediate

A structured framework for CM1/CM2/contribution margin thinking that applies directly to a D2C brand regardless of market, the concepts are identical whether you're shipping from Mumbai or Miami.

  • Defines gross margin, contribution margin, and net margin distinctly
  • Explains where most brands miscalculate true per-order profitability
  • Framework transfers directly to Indian D2C cost structures (just swap in local fee rates)
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It answers 3 questions

  1. My revenue keeps growing but I'm still losing money. Why does that happen?
  2. What unit economics numbers should I actually be tracking every week, CM1, CM2, contribution margin?
  3. How do I model my D2C unit economics in a spreadsheet, and how many orders do I need to break even?

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  4. The cleanest plain-English starting point from the platform most Indian D2C brands actually run on. It nails the core idea -... shopify.com Article What Is Contribution Margin? Definition and Guide Shopify
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  6. A data-backed India newsletter deep-dive arguing that gross margin is the single strongest predictor of which D2C brands reach... thecpglab.substack.com Article I Studied 35 Indian D2C Brands. Here's What Actually Decides If They Win. The CPG Lab
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