Running a business shouldn't feel this hard.
We help businesses remove the friction that's costing them time and money, using AI-powered systems that actually fit how you work.
Results and experience
- 47.97x return on ad spend: $138 in ads drove $6,625 in revenue
- 30 sec per invoice, replacing manual data entry
- 20+ yrs in retail operations at Amazon, Myer, Sundance Catalog, and J.Crew
- 5 press features on AI in 2026, including CRM Buyer and E-Commerce Times
Problems We Solve
We focus on the friction points that hold businesses back
Manual Work Eating Your Team's Time
Repetitive tasks that should take minutes are consuming hours. We build systems that automate the tedious so your team can focus on what matters.
Decision-Making in the Dark
You're making critical calls without the data you need, relying on gut instead of insight. We build visibility into what actually matters.
Scaling Bottlenecks
You can't grow without throwing bodies at the problem. We design processes that scale without proportional headcount.
Reactive Instead of Proactive
You're constantly firefighting instead of getting ahead of problems. We create systems that surface issues before they become crises.
Margin Erosion
Profits are slipping through inefficiencies you can't quite pinpoint. We identify the leaks and build systems to stop them.
AI Confusion
You know AI matters but not where to start. We cut through the hype and show you what actually works for your business.
Why Work With DeSpain Consulting
Large-company operations rigor, applied to businesses of any size
We know how operations really run
Anne DeSpain spent 20+ years inside some of retail's most complex operations, at Amazon, Myer, Sundance Catalog, J.Crew, and Limited Brands. We know where the friction hides and which questions to ask before anything gets built.
We test it on our own businesses first
We run our own businesses, including Wasatch Gift (opens in new tab), on the same AI systems we build for clients. Every recommendation has already worked in a business we operate.
Your team keeps the capability
We build systems that fit how you already work and teach your team to run them, so the skills stay in-house after the project ends.
Two Ways to Start
Pick the one that fits where you are today
For businesses
AI Opportunity Audit
$350
- 30-minute strategy session by video call
- Personalized audit report within 24 hours
- Prioritized workflows to automate, tools to evaluate, and next steps
- Credited toward your build if you move forward with us
At least three actionable opportunities, or a full refund.
Book the AuditFor individuals
Get Started with AI
$150
- 60-minute one-on-one session by video call
- Your AI tools set up for what you want to do
- A short personal AI plan you keep
- Prompts for the things you do most
Finish with a tool set up and a plan you understand, or a full refund.
Get Started with AIWhat Clients Say
"You had a terrific knack of being able to take your large company experience and distill it down to actionable, value added initiatives for our smaller company."
"You exposed so many blind spots within the company."
"Gave me the ability to assess the company from more of a 30,000 feet viewpoint as opposed to always being in the weeds."
"Anne presented the information in an approachable and actionable format. She is knowledgeable, while still curious and engaged in what is coming next. I'm looking forward to learning more from Anne."Workshop Attendee
As Quoted In
CRM Buyer
"We are nowhere near 'set it and forget it' with agentic AI. You are still the driver of the car. The work shifts from executing tasks to guiding, directing, and refining the agents. There are real efficiency gains, but the time investment doesn't disappear."
E-Commerce Times
"LLMs reward authoritative, well-structured content over keyword-stuffed pages. If your brand doesn't have a clear, credible story backed by real substance, you're not getting surfaced. In AI search, you're either there in the output, or you're not."
TechRound
"The gender gap in AI is real, and it operates at two levels, those who use the technology and those who train it. User bias gets attention, but training bias matters just as much. When the people shaping large language models bring a predominantly male worldview to that work, the outputs reflect it."
TechNewsWorld
"We are headed back to the era when PR really mattered. An era before brands figured out how to game Google through keyword stuffing and structured data tricks and when getting the word out required genuine storytelling and creative outreach. Now that LLMs are serving up brand recommendations in response to conversational queries, the rules have changed again."
E-Commerce Times
"Reddit is where real people describe real problems in their own words, organized by topic, and it licensed its content into AI answers, so it gets pulled into responses and cited constantly."
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens in the AI Opportunity Audit?
It starts with a 30-minute video call about how your business runs today. Within 24 hours you receive a personalized audit report that maps your highest-value AI opportunities to your specific operations, with a prioritized list of workflows to automate, tools to evaluate, and next steps. The audit is $350.
What if the audit doesn't turn up anything useful?
If you don't walk away with at least three actionable AI opportunities specific to your business, we refund your $350 in full.
Does the $350 count toward a bigger project?
Yes. If you move forward with us to build the systems the audit identifies, your $350 is credited toward that work.
Do I need to be technical?
No. We start from how your business works today and explain everything in plain English. The goal is systems your team can run and a team that knows how to use them.
What's the difference between the audit and Get Started with AI?
The $350 AI Opportunity Audit is for businesses that want to find where AI will save the most time and margin in their operations. Get Started with AI is a $150, 60-minute one-on-one session for individuals who want their AI tools set up, a personal starting plan, and prompts they can use right away.
Who do you work with?
Small business owners, founders, and operations leaders, plus purpose-driven organizations. We work best with businesses that have real operational challenges and are ready to implement.
Where are you based?
Park City, Utah. Sessions run by video call, so we work with clients anywhere.
Ready to remove the friction from your business?
Start with a 30-minute AI Opportunity Audit. If you don't walk away with at least three actionable opportunities, it's free.