Gino Smit

Product & Growth Leader | Head of E-commerce & Growth at Cat Elite | Turning customer insight into measurable digital growth

Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands

About

I’m a strategic and hands-on product & growth leader with 10+ years of international experience building digital products, customer journeys and growth engines that drive revenue, efficiency and customer satisfaction. I connect high-level strategy with hands-on execution across product, e-commerce and growth. From CRO and customer journeys to CRM, digital marketing and commercial roadmaps. Whether a company is scaling an existing digital product landscape or building stronger direct-to-consumer channels, I bring structure, clarity and momentum. I’ve led cross-functional teams, launched revenue-driving features, improved digital journeys and helped teams turn customer insight into measurable growth across corporate, platform and D2C environments. ✅ Strong in complex environments ✅ Focused on business outcomes, customer experience and team empowerment ✅ Available for selected freelance or permanent leadership roles, hybrid or remote Looking to strengthen your product, e-commerce or growth leadership? Let’s connect.

Experience

  • Head of E-commerce & Growth at Cat Elite
    Aug 2025 - Present · 11 mos

    Leading e-commerce, growth and digital marketing for Cat Elite, a fast-growing D2C pet tech brand active in the Netherlands and Belgium. Responsible for scaling Cat Elite’s direct-to-consumer channels across e-commerce strategy, CRO, lifecycle/email marketing, paid media direction, campaign planning, creative testing and customer insights. Working closely with the founders and directing external specialists across Meta, Google, email, content, UGC and website development to grow direct revenue, improve acquisition and conversion, and reduce marketplace dependency.

  • Freelance Product & Growth Consultant at Self-employed
    Jun 2024 - Present · 2 yrs 1 mo

    Helping companies turn digital strategy into measurable growth. I work across product, e-commerce and growth: shaping customer journeys, improving conversion, building commercial roadmaps and connecting strategy with hands-on execution. Strongest in environments where product, marketing, data and customer experience need to come together.

  • Head of Product at Frontiers
    Feb 2023 - May 2024 · 1 yr 4 mos

    Defined product vision and guided the transformation of a global science platform, reaching 2M+ users and 100K+ authors across 180+ countries. - Achieved a 25% YoY increase in user engagement through a customer-focused strategy and continuous, data-informed UX improvements. - Restructured the team and strengthened agile and discovery practices, accelerating delivery speed and ownership. - Pioneered the use of AI in the product experience, increasing article reach by 16% and unlocking new monetization opportunities.

  • VodafoneZiggo (Utrecht, Netherlands)
    • Head of Digital Products
      Nov 2021 - Feb 2023 · 1 yr 4 mos

      Drove digital product strategy and delivery for B2C and B2B in a €1.5bn business, leading transformation across e-commerce, self-service and app platforms in a fast-paced, multi-brand environment. - Defined and rolled out a unified strategy across 10 fragmented digital domains, creating focus and cross-functional alignment. - Built and led a team of 15 Product Managers, improving team performance and increasing engagement by 40%. - Increased online sales by 10% and reduced call volume by 15% through personalized journeys and automated service flows. - Aligned tech, commercial and executive stakeholders by clearly linking product priorities to long-term business value

    • Lead Product Owner, Digital Service
      Mar 2020 - Nov 2021 · 1 yr 9 mos

      Led the digital product strategy and transformation of service journeys to improve user experience, retention and operational efficiency. - Reduced inbound support calls by 20% by launching simpler and more personalized support flows through automation and proactive messaging. - Improved in-app service experience by embedding contextual support, increasing self-service adoption and boosting service NPS by 8 points. - Collaborated with CX, operations and tech teams to prioritise initiatives, align roadmaps and deliver a customer-centric support experience. - Drove a shift from assumptions to data-informed decisions through 40+ A/B tests and structured product discovery, reducing churn by 12% and increasing lifecycle value by 10%.

  • Vodafone (2 yrs 1 mo)
    • Lead Product Manager, My Vodafone App (Global)
      Feb 2019 - Mar 2020 · 1 yr 2 mos

      Led the global repositioning and transformation of Vodafone’s flagship app (My Vodafone), impacting 30M+ users across 18 markets. - Delivered 10+ major product launches and 20+ growth experiments across Europe, LATAM and APAC - Drove measurable business impact: +25% digital sales, +10pts App TNPS, and app store rating increased from 3.8 to 4.3. - Defined and executed a unified global product strategy, aligning teams under one roadmap and experimentation framework. - Rolled out a co-development model across 9 core markets, improving speed, consistency and reusability.

    • Digital Commercial Programme Manager
      Mar 2018 - Feb 2019 · 1 yr

      • Achieved the target NPS for 3 out of 4 markets by leading the delivery of the Digital Customer Experience strategy • Conducted CX KPI analysis, supported the delivery of the digital enablers and implemented best practices across Vodafone markets • Launched a CX Innovation Program accelerating digital innovation and adapting proven CX concepts from other industries to Vodafone