Your product,
reviewed by an
Emmy-winning
creative director.
I've spent 25 years making launch and campaign work for Walmart, Google, Apple and Samsung. These days I also review cameras, lighting, audio gear, 3D printers and guitar gear in my Oakland studio.
Amazon Influencer (opens in a new tab) · @iamjohnlacroix on YouTube (opens in a new tab), Instagram (opens in a new tab) and TikTok (opens in a new tab) · linkedin.com/in/johnlacroix (opens in a new tab)
Why work with me
My creative work on Walmart+ helped drive a $10 billion increase in retail sales. I've led launch campaigns with Elton John, Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, and LeBron James. I've directed national product launches, so I know how to make a product look good on camera. I've studied the strategy and science behind ecommerce and social media, from how Amazon ranks review videos to what keeps a viewer watching. I live and work in a fully equipped media studio in Oakland, set up for audio, video and photo, with room to shoot products and models. I light, shoot, edit and color every review myself, in 4K, and I say what I don't like about it too.
My reviews reach two audiences: people who follow my media and creative work, and fans of Ten Yard Fight, the hardcore band I play guitar in, which tours internationally.
Ernie Ball endorsed artist
Recent reviews
Work I've led
Walmart
Creative Director, 2019–2023. Led three creative teams across Walmart+, Health & Wellness and the retail verticals. Directed the Walmart+ nationwide launch, Walmart's biggest campaign of the year, and celebrity launches with LeBron James, Elton John, Patti LaBelle, Kristen Bell & Dax Shepard, Jennifer Garner and Katie Couric. Helped make the Walmart app the #1 shopping app during the holidays.
Samsung & Apple
Group Creative Director, Level Studios / Rosetta, 2010–2014. Led up to 165 people across four offices on Samsung, then a dedicated 140-person Apple team. Brand identity and retail systems for Samsung at Best Buy and for the Apple Store. Helped build Apple's first digital textbooks.
Group Creative Director, Firewood, 2018–2019. Ran creative for Google Workspace, Enterprise and Education with 100+ creatives across studio and embedded teams.
Live sports TV
Head of Creative, Sportvision, 2004–2009. Designed the NFL yellow first-down line, K-Zone and FoxTrax, and invented FreezeCam. Graphics for FOX, ESPN, CBS, ABC and NBC. Two Emmys.
Medicine Agency
Founder and Executive Creative Director. Clients included Lucasfilm / ILM, Element and Flip Skateboards and The Berrics. Directed The Explosion's video "Here I Am" for Virgin Records.
Education
BFA in Photography & Graphic Design, Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Passion projects
Photographer
I shoot Fujifilm and light with Godox, in a studio set up for product and model shoots.
Musician
I play guitar in the Boston hardcore band Ten Yard Fight and I'm an Ernie Ball endorsed artist. Activision and Red Bull had me customize a Guitar Hero II controller for a MusiCares charity auction.
Maker
I design and 3D print my own parts, and I build software and hardware.
Ten Yard Fight
I play guitar in Ten Yard Fight, the Boston straight edge band that, alongside In My Eyes and Floorpunch, led the youth crew hardcore revival of the late '90s. We signed to Equal Vision Records, and the first pressing of our Hardcore Pride 7-inch sold out in under a week. We toured the US, Europe, Canada and Puerto Rico.
Our last show in Boston, on October 17, 1999, became the first Edge Day. It's been held every October 17 since, from Boston to London, Gothenburg and São Paulo. We headlined This Is Hardcore in 2018 and played Furnace Fest in 2025.
My independent software studio. I build AI tools for creative work and music software for guitarists.
Visit my studio
The Ad Bench
A tool I built that scores short-form ads before anyone spends money running them. Upload a TikTok, Reel, Short or script and it gives you a score out of 100, a breakdown of the hook, and specific rewrites. It's in public beta.
Try it
AxeBlock EDIT
An iPad and iPhone app I built for editing a Fractal Axe-Fx III live: presets, scenes, every block and the routing grid. It's in public beta on TestFlight and built with VoiceOver support from day one.
See my appAwards
Press
Apple.com
A four-part Pro/Video profile on how I made skateboarding video magazines at 411 Video Productions, and the Mac gear I made them with.
SportsBusiness Journal
CBS signed a multiyear deal to use FreezeCam, my invention, on its lead NFL game each week.
The Boston Phoenix
Behind the scenes while I directed The Explosion's first major-label video for Virgin Records.
American Demographics
On Swindle, the magazine Shepard Fairey and I started.
Synthesis
The custom LED Guitar Hero II controller I designed for Activision and Red Bull's MusiCares auction.
One Step Beyond Podcast
A guest on episode 41, "Never Give Up," about hustling my way to creative director at Walmart.
Web Design for Dummies
Interviewed in the book's "Creative inspiration" sidebar on how I find ideas for new web designs, from my time at LEVEL Studios.
Gingko Press
Credited alongside Roger Gastman on two art books: Dalek's first monograph, Nickel Plated Angels, and Morning Wood, a 320-page collection of 50 artists.
How to Manage Creative People
Quoted in WebDAM's expert guide to managing creative teams, from my time at Fire Engine RED.
Published in
I wrote articles, designed layouts and shot photos for these magazines. I also co-founded Swindle with Shepard Fairey and Roger Gastman, art-directed the book Morning Wood, and published my own music magazine, Extent. I started my first punk zine at 15, and by my freshman year of college it had a 7,000-copy full-color print run.
Audience
What I review
What I make
When I take on a product, this is what I make. Sending a product doesn't guarantee a review or a positive one. I only post what I honestly think.
Amazon review video
Posted to my storefront and tagged to the product. Amazon decides whether it appears on the product page.
4K video
Shot at 3840×2160, 24 fps, lit, with proper audio and color grading. I use your product on camera.
YouTube
The full review on my channel, with a link to your listing.
Vertical cut
A captioned 9:16 version for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.
Custom thumbnail
I design each one myself, with your product front and center.
Idea list placement
Your product goes into the matching idea list on my storefront.
How it works
- Send me your product and its ASIN with the form below.
- I'll tell you quickly whether it's a fit for my audience.
- I use it for a while before I film.
- My review goes up on Amazon, YouTube and short-form, and I send you the links.
Ground rules
- I disclose every free product in the first 45 seconds, on every platform, as the FTC requires.
- I say what I actually think, including the downsides. Brands don't approve scripts.
- I follow Amazon's rules, including no prices in the video.
- Paid content and usage rights are quoted per project.
Want me to review something?
Tell me about your product. I'll get back to you by email.
Or email hello@johnlacroix.com · LinkedIn · Instagram