Former Notonthehighstreet CEO Ella d’Amato looks to rewrite commerce for good with launch of i love it

Ella d’Amato, the former interim CEO of online marketplace Notonthehighstreet, has co-founded i love it.

Founded last year, the venture is aiming to ‘rewrite commerce for good’, by tapping AI to create a recommendation led video and image shopping app that rewards users for their genuine product endorsements. 

d’Amato comments: “92% of shoppers trust word-of-mouth more than ads. Be it your friend who knows everything about skincare and running, or that one who knows every restaurant - think about how many times you buy off a friend's recommendation versus an ad.”

“At the same time, brands are telling us that word of mouth is more effective than traditional marketing and the cost of marketing today is making it hard for brands to trade effectively online. Clearly, the most valuable thing for all is genuine endorsement.”

“The issue is, those people tend to get nothing in return. We believe that brands would much rather pay a loyal customer than the likes of Meta and Google. And people would much rather shop from someone they trust.”

Currently in beta mode, i love it is focusing on the fitness space, allowing users to shop, share recommendations, and earn. The platform currently lays claim to over 10,000 products, with plans to expand into other areas in the future. 

d’Amato adds: “We want to be the ‘Every Passion Store'. A platform not limited to big-name creators. i love it is for all - your best friend, the neighbour that you actually like, your favourite yoga instructor or your run club buddy.”

“A place where trusted friends help friends and get rewarded for it. Where everyone can earn from sharing the things that they are passionate about.”

The founding UK team brings together industry expertise from a mix of retail, e-commerce, media and social companies, including TikTok Shop, LTK, Klarna, Stylist and Omnicom.

Investment to date has concentrated on building a scalable Web 3 platform that, according to a press release, “blends human curation with the power of AI to personalise and scale trusted recommendations at scale”.

2024 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS

Social commerce is a key focus area for the sixth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards, which is now open for entries.

The awards, sponsored by CADS, 3D Cloud, Retail Technology Show 2025, and Business France, celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

It’s free to enter and you can do so across multiple categories.

Key 2024 dates

Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline 

Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed

30th October-6th November: Judging days

Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ in Central London.