From Amazon to VTEX: Alexandre Gusmão on the Art and Science of Product
October 7, 2025
From New York to Mexico City, Brazil, and the U.S., Alexandre Gusmão, Senior Director of Product Management at VTEX, has built a career shaped by diverse cultures, entrepreneurship, and global product leadership. After co-founding a digital investment startup in Brazil and leading personalization at Amazon Retail, Alexandre now heads product at VTEX, where he helps define the balance between SaaS foundations and customer differentiation.
In this episode of VTEX Live, Alexandre joins Santiago Naranjo to share how to decide what’s “table stakes” versus a true differentiator, why prioritization across 40+ countries and industries is both an art and a science, and how product teams can avoid becoming “glorified backlog managers.” He also reflects on hiring for curiosity and domain expertise, creating direct customer loops, and the importance of always articulating vision behind every feature request.
If you’ve ever wondered how a global platform scales while still enabling unique customer value, this episode shows why clarity, extensibility, and vision make all the difference.
A VTEX Live podcast featuring Alexandre Gusmão, Senior Director of Product Management at VTEX, who has built his career across multiple countries, industries, and roles, from co-founding a digital investment startup in Brazil, to leading personalization at Amazon Retail, and now shaping global product strategy at VTEX.
What does it take to lead product across 40+ countries and multiple industries? And how do you decide what to build versus what to buy in a world of SaaS platforms and unique customer needs?
In this episode, Alexandre joins host Santiago Naranjo, Chief Revenue Officer at VTEX, to unpack how product leaders can balance SaaS foundations with true differentiation, why prioritization is both an art and a science, and how to manage the competing voices of customers, competitors, founders, sales, and finance. He explains how VTEX learns from industry leaders to identify common needs, keeps the platform extensible for niche requirements, and uses value sizing (conversion lift, GMV impact, time saved) to guide decisions with data rather than opinion.
You’ll also hear Alexandre’s candid perspective on avoiding the trap of “glorified backlog managers.” He shares how VTEX hires for domain and engineering depth, dogfoods its own products, connects PMs directly with customers through sponsorship programs, and constantly reinforces the importance of articulating the vision behind every request. The episode closes on a personal note, with Alexandre previewing his DJ set at VTEX Day, showing how his multicultural background continues to shape not just his leadership, but his music and creativity.
For anyone navigating global product leadership or scaling commerce platforms, this is a rare, inside look at how clarity, extensibility, and vision drive innovation at scale.
Episode Highlights
[00:03:00] From Banking to Startup: Alexandre’s Early Career - Alexandre explains how, after a short stint in banking, he joined two colleagues to co-found a digital investment distribution company in Brazil. Serving the “mass affluent” market, he learned product by doing, studying design, managing engineers, and scaling the company to billions in assets under management.
[00:05:35] From Kellogg to Amazon Retail Analytics - Seeking deeper product expertise, Alexandre pursued an MBA at Kellogg along with a Master’s in Design Innovation. He shares how this path led him to Amazon Retail’s core analytics team, where he worked on personalization systems that shaped the shopping experience for millions worldwide.
[00:06:33] Why VTEX’s Platform + Ecosystem Model Stood Out - Alexandre recalls why VTEX felt like “love at first sight.” He highlights the platform model that serves multiple industries, the collaborative ecosystem, and the timing just before the IPO. Believing he could help drive the company’s next wave of growth, he joined and now leads VTEX’s global product team.
[00:08:35] SaaS vs. Build: Table Stakes vs. Differentiators - Alexandre outlines a practical framework for CTOs and CEOs: outsource what’s “table stakes” with SaaS, but build around what truly differentiates your business. Whether it’s customer experience or post-sales service, knowing this distinction is critical for innovation and growth.
[00:12:20] Prioritizing Across 40+ Countries and Industries - With VTEX operating in dozens of markets, Alexandre explains how he works with industry-leading customers to understand emerging needs, then looks for common patterns like personalization and merchandising. Solving these shared challenges once benefits everyone, while the platform’s extensibility lets niche players adapt for themselves.
[00:20:29] Avoiding the ‘Backlog Manager’ Trap - Alexandre shares candidly how enterprise product managers can slip into being “glorified backlog managers” if they only react to strong stakeholders. He describes VTEX’s approach to avoiding this trap: hiring for domain depth and curiosity, dogfooding VTEX’s own products, creating direct customer loops through sponsorship programs, and constantly articulating the vision behind every feature request.
Resources
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