8 Steps to Shoebuy.com's Success

4. Don't ever stop innovating and building value. Innovation for Shoebuy.com comes in all facets of the business, from how it offers product to how customers can transact on the site (e.g., PayPal, Bill Me Later, Google Checkout) to creating a culture of entrepreneurship. Citing a culture of entrepreneurship, Savitz noted that interns are treated the same as senior management and, in fact, many senior leaders at the company were former Shoebuy interns. Don't be afraid to call your brand manufacturers and even your competitors to gain insight about your business or the e-commerce industry as a whole, Savitz added.

5. Every dollar should be spent as though it's your last. Maximize opportunity and minimize risk, Savitz said. The goal should be to build partnerships with your vendors and lifelong relationships with your customers. Base your decisions on your own good assumptions, not the assumptions of others.

And lead by example, Savitz added. He made it a point not to fly first class or hire a car service when traveling for Shoebuy.com because he didn't want to set the example that it's alright for him to do this but not others.

6. Focus on being scalable and adaptable using metrics as a guiding light. Whether it's your technology, product offering, advertising, infrastructure and leadership, business model, etc., it must be scalable and adaptable to the marketplace, Savitz said.

7. Go for better than good; be in it to win it. All members of the Shoebuy.com team are held to a certain standard. Savitz believes that if you show loyalty to the people you work with they'll return that loyalty to you. Even in the worst of the recession a few years back when employee satisfaction levels were at their lowest, Shoebuy employees remained satisfied and invested in the company.