From hard lessons to AI-ready analytics: Fanatics’ journey with dbt and Snowflake

Building a modern data platform rarely goes exactly as planned the first time. In this session, Luke Kranz from Fanatics will share practical lessons from Fanatics’ journey with dbt and Snowflake—from early challenges around warehouse architecture, permissions, and platform setup to the patterns the team uses today.

Luke will also explore how Fanatics is taking its dbt-powered data foundation a step further by feeding trusted data and business context into Snowflake Cortex and Snowflake Intelligence/Copilot-style experiences for executives, helping bring governed analytics closer to business decision-makers.

Attendees will leave with a candid look at the architectural decisions, mistakes, and lessons that shaped Fanatics’ environment, along with practical considerations for teams looking to build a scalable data foundation that can support both traditional analytics and emerging AI use cases."