Future Commerce

Armand Wilson, Chief Revenue Officer at Whatnot, joins Phillip and Brian to unpack why live shopping finally took hold in the West. Drawing from Whatnot’s recent 2026 State of Live Selling Report, we trace the platform's origin from a niche Funko Pop marketplace to an $8B GMV juggernaut after landing $225 million in Series F funding. Main Street Went Live Key Takeaways: The barrier to entry for live selling is far lower than traditional eCommerce. 80% of Whatnot buyers return the following month, compared with approximately 30% in traditional eCommerce. Live selling lets brands tell their story in ways a static product page never can. Whatnot raised $225M in Series F; the platform did $8B in GMV last year. Live commerce is quietly revitalizing small businesses and local brick-and-mortar. Key Quotes: [00:09:00] "It's clienteling in almost a digital way, blurring the line between parasocial relationship and actual relationship between seller and buyer." — Brian Lange [00:12:00] "It could cost you a hundred thousand dollars to open up a comic bookshop. It costs you $0 to open up a comic bookshop on Whatnot." — Armand Wilson [00:31:45] "It's really hard to tell your story in an authentic way when you're just telling it on a couple of lines of text on a product page." — Armand Wilson [00:41:30] "80% of our customers come back the next month, whereas traditional eCommerce is, on average, maybe 30%." — Armand Wilson In-Show Mentions: Whatnot’s State of Live Selling Report Associated Links: Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Zia Daniell Wigder, Global President of Shoptalk and Groceryshop, joins Brian and Alicia to mark Shoptalk's 10th anniversary and unpack the themes defining the spring show in Las Vegas. (Hint: AI isn't the headline, it's the backdrop.) A week before one of retail’s biggest, most beloved shows, Zia maps the tensions, the conversations, and the hot topics shaping the next era of retail events.  The More We Automate, the More We Meet Key Takeaways: AI is the backdrop to retail in 2026, but it’s not the whole story As AI scales, in-person human connection becomes more valuable, not less Shoptalk curates its agenda top-down, then finds the speakers to match; it’s about bringing buzz brands, heritage retailers, and influential platforms together In the US, social commerce is still in its early days, which means it’s still incredibly underestimated; brand leaders will share their lessons and best practices on stage during tactical workshops for the first time Creator-brand relationships work better when brands let go of the brief Key Quotes: [00:05:00] "In-person human connections are even more important today than they have been in the past,  because we have all of this operational efficiency, all of this streamlining and optimization happening in the background in some cases, taking away some of the interactions we might've had before." — Zia Daniell Wigder [00:11:52] "You've got the huge champions that say yes, [AI] is going to change everything about the world of product discovery as we know it. And then you've got the other side saying, this is way over-hyped." — Zia Daniell Wigder [00:23:01] "Brands aren't necessarily asking about [social commerce] per se, but it almost feels like they should be." — Zia Daniell Wigder [00:24:04] "Brands are still having briefs shoved at [creators] and telling them what they should be doing, as opposed to working with them in a more collaborative way." — Zia Daniell Wigder In-Show Mentions: Shoptalk Spring 2026 – March, Las Vegas POSSIBLE – April, Miami Groceryshop – September, Las Vegas Manifest – February 2027, Las Vegas Associated Links: Visit Future Commerce’s Shoptalk hub to see what’s happening during the show Apply to attend our After Dark celebration of STRATA Vol. 001, our newest zine Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As ChatGPT pulls back on native in-app checkout, malls becomemainstream again. Is agentic commerce ready for primetime, or are consumers seeking more analog experiences? PLUS: Dick's Sporting Goods' loyalty loop that turns steps into spending power, and a dystopian new platform that rents out humans for AI agents that can't operate in the physical world. Everything old is new again. Granny’s Favorite Store Goes to TikTok Shop Key takeaways: ChatGPT is stepping back from native in-app checkout, but the commerce protocol it built with Stripe lives on 77% of shoppers prefer clicking through to a website over buying directly via AI The mall remains a societal favorite third space, even as stores become shoppable content studios (just ask John Lewis) Dick's Sporting Goods' movement-linked rewards program is quietly building one of retail's stickiest loyalty ecosystems, making it a viable competitor to AI apps "Rent-a-Human" platforms signal a strange new frontier: AI agents outsourcing tasks to people in “meatspace” In-Show Mentions: How 2,000 consumers used AI to shop Gen Z Is Going to the Mall Again — WSJ Rent-a-Human Join us at Shoptalk Spring 2026! Associated Links: Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Phillip and Brian get deep on a week when everything felt a little unhinged: Shopify's AI sidekick started building custom apps, Iran allegedly took out AWS data centers mid-Claude-outage, and the McDonald's CEO went mega-viral just days after Phillip prophesied it. Underneath the chaos, a throughline emerges: the things we've used to measure value (view counts, credit card rewards, third-party apps, and AI contracts) are quietly expiring. Culture is first. Then comes commerce. This SKU Is Delicious Key takeaways: Shopify Sidekick can now build one-off apps on demand, raising real questions about the future of third-party SaaS. AI geopolitics is here: data centers are now strategic infrastructure, and the "human in the loop" question has military stakes. Meta's move to invoicing ends years of free credit card rewards for brands running paid social,  — and that party's been winding down anyway. MrBeast's long-form view counts are down 50% YoY, even with heavy paid promotion; the algorithm has shifted to interest-based, not subscriber-based. Media buyers optimizing for CPMs are chasing non-real traffic. — Rrecovering a sense of propriety is the only way back. In-Show Mentions: How MrBeast Dominated 2025 Using Advertising Phillip’s Big Arch burger virality prediction Get on the list for the Future Commerce x Shoptalk After Party Associated Links: Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We’re live and poolside at the close of eTail Palm Springs. This year’s conference brought less theory and more proof, from agentic platforms doing actual operational work to the quiet rise of go-to-market tooling among merchants. One thing is clear: AI stopped talking and started shipping. Brian and Phillip break down the sessions, hallway conversations, and briefings that mattered most, and dive into their marathon week of discussions with companies including CommerceIQ, Attentive, Resolve AI, Decile, Modem, and more. The Year AI Stopped Talking and Started Working Key takeaways: Agentic AI is operational now. Platforms like CommerceIQ are replacing FTE-style workflows, running around the clock, and proactively surfacing insights. Context is everything… and most native AI tools don't have it. In-tool AI using synthetic or siloed data is producing unreliable outputs. The winning stack integrates across all data sources. CRM is mainstream; go-to-market tooling is emerging. Merchants are now using tools like Clay, a tool built for B2B sales prospecting, to find creators, influencers, and strategic partners. Clienteling looks different when repurchase cycles are a decade long. Brands like Ernesta (custom rugs) and GHD (hairstyling tools) are rethinking loyalty and relationship-building without the luxury of frequent transactions. "Consolidation is power." Whoever consolidates information, tasks, and systems the best will hold the advantage, both in business and in AI. Quotes: [00:20:15] "The marketing agent is looking for a segmentation issue... high CAC and low LTV. Those are things that, as an organization, you'd have to surface, invest in, create segments, create a dashboard — and then bother to look at." — Phillip [00:37:38] "The job of the RFP responder is the same as the code developer. They become a shepherd and a reviewer rather than a writer." — Brian  [00:48:03] "What do we lose when we eliminate the mundane?" — Brian  [00:51:09] "In the next six months, AI is going to own entire workflows without any human intervention." — George Davis, CMO of Cozy Earth (as quoted by Phillip) In-Show Mentions: Listen to Kristin Flor Perret’s episode on Future Commerce Get on the list for our ShopTalk Spring After Party Associated Links: Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jonathan Cohen, CMO of Onyx Global Group (Pure Daily Care & Aquasonic), joins Phillip and Alicia to trace the arc from Amazon-first launches to TikTok Shop dominance. This week, we unpack the unmeasurable and explore what it actually means to cede your marketing playbook to a creator economy that doesn't need your permission. Control Is Overrated, Anyway Key Takeaways Creators are the new CMOs. Brands don't cascade strategy; creators build their own. Amazon reviews are still currency. Early investment in social proof compounds over the years. Sampling is a long game. Expect results two to three months out, not just the week of Black Friday. TikTok Live provides free focus groups. Real-time customer feedback can greenlight a new product line and unlock new growth opportunities. You can't dashboard everything. The brands with staying power are building habits, not just conversions. "The creators are our mini CMOs. They build their own marketing plans, their own talking points, their own strategies to sell our products." — Jonathan Cohen [00:22:08] "We have cut checks for tens of thousands of dollars to creators we've never spoken to before." — Jonathan Cohen [00:22:07] "If you brush your teeth, you're an Aquasonic potential customer." — Jonathan Cohen [00:45:28] "You're building habits. And there's no better investment in brand than that — because those habits stick with them a lot longer than the ad dollar you spent to get them there." — Phillip Jackson [00:47:50] Associated Links: Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In just one year, Daily Harvest was acquired by Chobani, dropped its subscription requirement, and launched a campaign calling out the wellness hype machine. CEO Ricky Silver joins us to talk about the facts in an industry dominated by fiction. Selling Food, Not Fiction Key takeaways: The wellness hype machine is exhausting consumers. Daily Harvest's "Eat Food, Not Fiction" is its counter-punch. Subscription was a business convenience, not a consumer demand, and removing the gate unlocked growth. Consumer sovereignty and business autonomy are in tension with one another. The brands that resolve it will win. LLMs are the new discovery layer. Brands must build authoritative, trusted ecosystems to surface in AI answers. Fixing the food system requires collectivism, even with rivals. "Some of our best consumers were the ones who engaged with the skipping function. Active management meant they were finding the right cadence for them." — Ricky Silver "Connection is a motive. It is not tech-driven — even if technology is the thing bringing us together." — Ricky Silver Associated Links: Learn more about Daily Harvest Catch up on Future Commerce’s 2026 predictions Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Most Super Bowl ads failed before they aired. Dr. Marcus Collins explains why. We break down the Super Bowl as a cultural spectacle: the ads, the Bad Bunny halftime show, and the Levi's strategy that no one is talking about.Key takeaways:Why Marcus felt bad for every marketer who ran a Super Bowl ad this yearThe Lay's ad was beautiful. Marcus saw a father handing his daughter a lifetime of debt.How Levi's turned a 30-second spot, a stadium, a popup, and a halftime show into one integrated play"This is not a 32-second ad. This is a constellation of nodes that together tell the story only Levi's could."What Anthropic understood about the group chat that OpenAI and Google missedBad Bunny performed for 120 million viewers at home, not the 70,000 in the stadium, and that was the pointAssociated Links:Catch our Super Bowl ad analysis in our Things We're Overthinking newsletter.Follow From the Culture, hosted by Dr. Marcus Collins and Amanda SlavinBuy For the Culture on AmazonCheck out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

LIVE from Manifest 2026: Shipium CEO Jason Murray reveals why AI transformation isn't about making old processes faster but fundamentally rethinking workflows. From turning three-day analytics tasks into minutes with Orca to exploring adjacent areas such as auditing and consulting, Phillip, Brian, and Jason unpack how domain-specific AI creates competitive moats in an era when traditional advantages are dissolving.Some Kid In His Dorm Room Is Coming For Your CompanyKey takeaways:AI works when you rethink workflows, not optimize existing onesDomain-specific AI beats general LLMs through context and reduced hallucinationsSpeed of experimentation matters more than prediction accuracy aloneAdjacent spaces, like auditing, are now accessible through AI-powered digital twinsTraditional moats are dissolving; data and ecosystem relationships become keyIn-Show Mentions:Learn more about ShipiumLearn more about ManifestAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Join us at SoCom 2026, the Social Commerce Conference. February 26 in Venice Beach and save 20% with code FCSC2026Damon Berger, Head of Consumer Digital Engagement at Gap Inc., joins the show to share the strategy behind the brand's comeback. He unpacks the playbook for rebuilding an iconic brand, why it worked for Barbie, and why creator capital is the new north star. Plus, he reveals how Gap moved from "chasing relevance” to driving it, and why brand distinction is the new survival strategy against the sea of AI slop.Gap is Back, Baby.Key Takeaways:Creators are the cultural conduit, building conversational capital through authentic audience relationshipsGap's KATSEYE campaign sparked participation, not just viewership, enabling fans to own the momentPurpose-driven brands live their values quietly rather than preaching them publiclyBrand distinction becomes a survival strategy when 50% of internet traffic is botsGet Blue partnership scales Gap's influence to address global water access for 200M peopleDamon Berger [03:33]: "Creators are the conduit to what is kind of cool out in the world...the idea for us is that we have a variety of relationships with them."Damon Berger [12:14]: "That was really why one of the reasons that it was so popular and shared and viral...people started taking that video and doing all their own dances and doing their own interpretations to it and expressing themselves and joining a larger conversation."Damon Berger [15:14]: "We were just being ourselves. We were just living our own brand values, where we believe in the value of diverse voices. We believe in people being themselves no matter what."Damon Berger [29:26]: "In the sea of sameness and the sea of AI slop and all of these worlds of not really knowing who you're buying from…[brand distinction] is what people care about, and that's how we've won over the last couple of years."In-Show Mentions:Gap's "Better in Denim" Campaign - Viral campaign featuring "Milkshake" by KelisGet Blue Initiative - Partnership with Gap Inc., Amazon, Starbucks, and EcolabAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Andrew McLuhan (The McLuhan Institute) and Paulo Ferreira (co-founder, Baroes Brand Publishing) join us to dissect the seismic shift from persuasion to publication. As institutions crumble and audiences demand transparency, brands are discovering they don't need platforms—they need publishing strategies. From Brazil's brand publishing revolution to venture capital as the ultimate gamble, this conversation explores how commerce and culture collapse into a single, trust-driven narrative where every brand becomes its own campfire.Content Is Dethroned, Context Is KingKey Takeaways:Brands must shift from persuasive advertising to informational publishingBrand publishing empowers direct audience relationships, cutting out middlemenContext and transparency build trust, but objectivity is increasingly seen as a mythWell-informed consumers strengthen brands, while fear of knowledge signals weaknessStorytelling is the new sales department and remixability drives cultural powerKey Quotes:"A good brand doesn't fear a well-informed client. A good brand wants a well-informed client." — Paulo Ferreira [00:58:52]"With our new media, people have the freedom to find it themselves. Brands are becoming their own campfires, allowing people to crowd around and exchange stories." — Andrew McLuhan [00:10:11]"‘The medium is the message’ was telling radio people to calm down about TV. Being obsolete doesn't mean death, it means rebirth." — Andrew McLuhan [00:23:53]"Trust is built through transparency. The scroll is infinite now. The stakes have never been higher for laying our cards on the table." — Andrew McLuhan [01:00:22]Associated Links:Learn more about The McLuhan InstituteLearn more about Baroes Brand PublishingCheck out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Theory meets tarmac. Sushmitha "Sushi" Radhakrishnan runs finance and operations at Birddogs, the men's apparel brand born from a Shark Tank moment that's now selling through Dick's Sporting Goods. She breaks down what cash flow actually looks like when summer—not holidays—is your Super Bowl, tariffs hit mid-growth, and every trend cycle could make or break a season.Key takeaways:Seasonal brands need capital access during revenue troughs, not just peaksMulti-channel operations demand different buying cycles—wholesale plans months ahead while DTC converts in hoursSpeed separates winners in apparel—trends change faster than traditional finance approval loopsSmall teams need executive-level spend control with rapid scalability for growth momentsKey Quotes:Sushi Radhakrishnan [00:14:49]: "Because we are a seasonal business, having access to credit cards like a Brex where we have charge cards—in those situations when we're in our cash flow troughs, having that extra flexibility is really critical to us. There's a six month period where we have to have really good months because that's what funds the business in the lower months."Sushi Radhakrishnan [00:20:28]: "This is my first foray into apparel and selling it online and trends change so quickly. A winning product—it's definitely a very dynamic environment to operate in."Sushi Radhakrishnan [00:18:12]: "We move really fast. Getting that feedback loop shortened is really important when we're managing cash. That's been refreshing with Brex—the support we're getting from a credit card provider. I don't have that same level of one on one service with American Express."Sushi Radhakrishnan [00:23:22]: "People buy apparel based on emotion, not just because they see it come across their Instagram reel. It's really important that we continue to appeal to our buyers in a way that's more than just selling the value prop of our product."Associated Links:Learn more about BrexLearn more about MelioCheck out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The old retail calendar is dead. Between TikTok virality, celebrity sightings, and ChatGPT-powered discovery, brands face a new reality: commerce runs on culture’s clock. Nicole Thomas (Brex) and Anand Mehta (Melio) break down how this shift from predictable peaks to perpetual possibility demands radical financial agility.Key takeaways:Retail shifted from twice-yearly peaks to monthly cultural spikes brands can't predictCash conversion cycle reveals hidden supplier payment leverage beyond inventory optimizationCredit card float extends working capital without compounding traditional loan debtLiquidity separates trend leaders from trend chasers regardless of business sizeKey Quotes:Nicole Thomas [00:06:27]: "Seasonality is kind of taking shape in the way that it's less of like these ebbs and flows maybe twice a year to maybe once a month. If your product goes viral or if a celebrity endorses something, your consumers are now expecting to get those products when they want it."Anand Mehta [00:22:17]: "Costco managed to have a very low, if not negative cash conversion cycle because their store is the warehouse. They've already sold and converted their inventory to cash before they even have to pay it out."Nicole Thomas [00:37:06]: "Commerce is definitely making a big shift to flattening out, but not flattening out enough to where you can actually predict those peaks and valleys. We're definitely shifting from a calendar economy to more of a cultural economy."Anand Mehta [00:32:14]: "This use case of extending cash flow isn't just for businesses who are struggling. If you're a brand that is very liquid, having that cash buffer allows you to be a brand that's jumping in on a trend in the early stages of the trend, not chasing a trend."In-Show Mentions:Learn more about BrexLearn more about MelioCheck out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Cash flow isn't just spreadsheets—it's survival. In an era of tariffs, currency swings, and supply chain whiplash, small businesses face a paradox: grow fast while everything shifts beneath you. Corinne Boonstra (Brex) and Aharon Naveen (Melio) unpack how payment independence becomes the ultimate competitive advantage.Key takeaways:Tariff volatility forces brands to message consumers directly about pricing pressuresSmall businesses gain agility advantage by switching suppliers faster than competitorsPayment independence decouples cash flow from vendor relationship power dynamicsTechnology stacks need finance-novice friendliness, not just CFO sophisticationKey Quotes:Corinne Boonstra [00:08:11]: "Brands are having to reach out to their consumer base to communicate with them why prices are increasing or using that as kind of a pivotal point of, say, buy these goods now while they're this price."Aharon Naveen [00:12:06]: "Switching vendors is complex. It comes with an operational overhead of different net terms, different currency conversions, different shipping time, different payment acceptance."Aharon Naveen [00:19:45]: "Giving the control back to small business, putting them in a position that they can overcome the relationship dynamic or the power dynamic of a new vendor—that is what technology brings to play."Corinne Boonstra [00:23:10]: "These tools need to be able to be leveraged by your CMO, your head of digital, your founder—whoever is ultimately making these decisions might not have an accounting background."Associated Links:Learn more about BrexLearn more about MelioCheck out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

CEO of Optimove, Pini Yakuel, returns to explore the roots of positionless thinking and how AI pushes us to visionary methods over specialization. We explore how breaking departmental siloes unlocks 88% faster campaign cycles, and why a refreshed mindset will be your strongest tool in 2026.Key takeaways:Positionless marketing drove 88% campaign efficiency gains in 2025AI accelerates range; humans provide judgment and validation70% of consumers unsubscribed from 3+ brands in 3 monthsMindset change precedes technology adoption in successful AI integrationKey Quotes:[00:09:20] "The biggest compliment you get is something called ‘rosh gadol’...It means, I want your head to think about more things than it's currently thinking.” – Pini Yakuel[00:21:26] "Consumption and making decisions are the work. If you can't make decisions for yourself, you can't work with AI." – Brian Lange[00:28:44] "We have access to knowledge on every field...we have the best personal tutor in our pockets available 24 over seven." – Pini Yakuel[00:38:10] "It's very, very difficult to scale personalization. That's the bottom line. It's almost impossible to scale it." – Pini YakuelIn-Show Mentions:Optimove Connect (March 2026)Optimove + Forrester Study: Closing the Gap Between Promise and PerformanceOptimove Marketing Fatigue ReportAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Get ad-free episodes and bonus content, including the full recording of this podcast, by joining Future Commerce+ at futurecommerce.com/plus🆕 Access to our newest analysis feature for members, Field Notes, our retail space analysis briefing. Featuring brands like Swatch, Printemps, and Skims.Access to our new Word of Mouth Index with Fairing, a brand new member benefitSave 15% on Future Commerce print journals and merchExclusive invites to physical events, dinners, and priority invites to industry events (SXSW, Art Basel, VISIONS)Ad-free episodes and bonus content! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Fresh from the Javits Center, Phillip, Brian, and Alicia unpack NRF 2026's dominant themes, from AI's omnipresence to its curiously low adoption among the very professionals championing it. The conversation moves beyond technology theater to explore what truly drives commerce: cultural connection, intentional brand heritage, and multiplayer engagement that treats customers as collaborators rather than data points.2026 Brought Us An AI Wake-Up CallKey Takeaways:AI saturation at NRF contrasts sharply with minimal executive adoptionSuccessful AI integration preserves brand heritage rather than replacing itMultiplayer brand engagement becomes reality through tools like Taco Bell's Fan StyleplatformAnalog intimacy resurfaces as consumers fight against  digital fatigue"Who here has used AI to search for a product that you would like to buy? Not a single hand went up. Three out of 300 people had used ChatGPT to search for anything." — Phillip"The point isn't the technology. The point is building a memorable experience that connects people to people." — Brian (referencing Taco Bell's Dane Matthews)"How do you take a brand that is as beloved and known for being a merchant and design-led company and use technology in a way to just add to it and not try to over modernize it?" — Alicia (on Ralph Lauren's approach)"Maybe people are just figuring out where they want their time and how they want to spend their time... getting back to our roots through things like mahjong, board games, and very simplified intimate spaces." — AliciaIn-Show Mentions:Future Commerce Holiday AI Report, produced in partnership with CimulateMore details from NRF 2026Our official recap of Phillip’s conversation with Dane MathewsShop Future Commerce's Multiplayer Brand bookAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The future of commerce hinges on agility, but most brands remain stuck at spreadsheet speed. Louis Camassa, Director of Product Management at Rithum, breaks down findings from the 2026 Commerce Readiness Index and reveals why data quality, inventory latency, and algorithmic visibility matter more than channel expansion. We’re uncovering the infrastructure bottlenecks threatening AI's potential, and what it actually takes for brands to compete when algorithms decide what gets discovered.Your 2026 Resolution: Get UnstuckKey takeaways:63% of commerce teams face data quality issues affecting business decisionsInventory latency remains a competitive differentiator in agentic commerce experiencesZero-click phenomenon reducing referral traffic by 9% across e-commerce channelsAI compute costs compressed 10x in one year, matching traditional searchEnergy infrastructure, not algorithms, poses the greatest bottleneck to AI advancementKey Quotes:[00:02:04] Lou Camassa: "Most companies, whether you're a retailer or brand, you're moving at spreadsheet speed. That's just not the way of the future."[00:10:55] Lou Camassa: "We don't want to take from the past and just push it into the future. When we go into a chat experience, we don't want to drop somebody onto a homepage with a banner and categories. Let's think about this differently."[00:18:58] Lou Camassa: "We're seeing drops of about 9% across e-commerce in general on referral sources from Google because data is just being propagated in the AI overviews."[00:24:04] Lou Camassa: "Inventory latency is going to be a big game changer. It helps us get faster shipping and creates a competitive factor, specifically in LLM search, where everything else is commoditized."Associated Links:Check out Rithum’s 2026 Commerce Readiness IndexLearn more about Rithum’s offerings.Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Shipping frozen premium meats and prepared meals requires precise logistics that most marketplaces aren't built to handle. But Denys Gorbatiuk saw an opportunity where others saw impossible complexity. Grumpy Butcher became Temu's first frozen food seller and proved that operational excellence can break down expansion barriers and create a competitive advantage.Within five weeks, Temu accounted for over 12% of Grumpy Butcher's online sales. Yet the real story isn't just about velocity, it's about reaching younger demographics and using real-time data to fundamentally rethink product creation and curation.From corporate attorney to food industry innovator, Denys shares how mastering the operational challenges of frozen logistics, leveraging platform analytics, and partnering strategically with Temu transformed Grumpy Butcher from a pandemic-era startup into a fast-growing business that redefined how Americans shop for gourmet perishables.Shipping the Impossible – With **Operational ExcellenceKey takeaways:Being first in a hard category pays off: Pioneering frozen food on Temu positioned Grumpy Butcher as a category leader and innovator.Direct feedback and engagement with shoppers on Temu enabled product development, revealing stronger resonance with younger customers and reshaping the broader business strategy.Mastering complex logistics is defensible: Streamlining frozen food delivery and tackling common challenges helped Grumpy Butcher establish its core competitive advantage.Platform partnership means strategic collaboration: Temu provided operational support and guidance that went beyond transactional seller-marketplace relationships.In-Show Mentions:Learn more about Grumpy Butcher’s journey on TemuExplore Temu's seller services and marketplace solutionsAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jessica De Gennaro didn't know what a succulent was when she launched Shop Succulents. But she knew how to solve operational challenges, work agilely, and move product quickly on marketplaces. She tapped into the pandemic’s succulent boom and built a multi-marketplace operation shipping hundreds of thousands of live plants every year.But how do you scale across regions when you’re shipping succulents to consumers across different time zones with varying expectations, living in different climates?And what happens when Temu’s scale and network efficiencies across third-party logistics partners help make fulfillment more cost-effective and sustainable for low-cost products that were previously constrained by fulfillment economics?Jessica shares how Shop Succulents grew from 50 to 500 SKUs on Temu in months, leveraging platform-specific catalogs, vertical integration of growing operations, and continuous creative innovation to stay ahead in the highly competitive marketplace landscape.Creativity Is a Competitive Moat When Marketplaces Commoditize Everything ElseKey takeaways:Marketplace success requires constant product innovation: The sea of sameness demands creative catalog curation, strategic bundling, and staying ahead of copycats selling competitive products for lower prices.Temu’s scale and network efficiencies across third-party logistics partners help support more cost-efficient fulfillment for low-cost products, unlocking new catalog opportunities.Owning your supply chain optimizes margin: Shop Succulents now grows plants in-house to control costs, differentiate its catalog, and ensure product quality.Platform partnerships should drive collaborative problem-solving: Working directly with Temu's team solved live plant-specific challenges. By directly addressing customer concerns and inquiries, Jessica and her team maintained customer satisfaction and loyalty.In-Show Mentions:Learn more about Shop Succulents’ journey on TemuExplore Temu's seller services and marketplace solutionsAssociated Links:Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.