Future Commerce

Latest Episodes:

Everything Must Merge May 23, 2025

Show notes

Massive acquisitions—from Skechers to Touchland to Foot Locker—aren’t just headline fodder; they reflect deeper shifts in how value is defined in commerce today. Phillip and Brian explore what this means for brand identity, consumer behavior, and retail strategy, while diving into everything from Ghost Nutrition’s licensing fallout to how Ozempic might reshape fashion trends. It’s all a signal: the future of commerce is being redrawn across culture, tech, and even your closet.

The Skechering of Commerce

Key takeaways:

The recent wave of M&A is less about scale, and more about strategic repositioning.
Ghost Nutrition’s licensing phase-out may challenge the brand’s original cultural cachet.
City Furniture proves sustainability investments can directly boost profitability.
Weight-loss trends like Ozempic are subtly altering fashion preferences and product demand.
Context—not trend—is becoming the driving force in personal style and shopping decisions.
[00:01:41] Phillip: "Everything is an ad unit. That’s the new wild future we have for you."
[00:05:15] Brian: "Skechers was also acquired this month... $9.4 billion."
[00:27:04] Phillip: "If you want your Ghost Nutrition stuff, you better stock up."
[00:47:00] Brian: "Context is taking dominance again ... That’s our next move in fashion."

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!

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[After Dark] SINNERS: Wooden Nickels, Gold Sovereigns, and the Price of Power May 21, 2025

Show notes

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Wooden nickels, gilded sovereigns, and a juke-joint cash drawer. We peel back the layers of Ryan Coogler’s SINNERS to show how currency turns into control—and why plantation scrip still echoes in today’s loyalty points. Get the full breakdown and bonus notes with Future Commerce Plus.

Join the Membership: futurecommerce.com/plus and save $10 on your first month with code AFTERDARK

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Commerce as Sacred Symbol May 16, 2025

Show notes

Live from Los Angeles, Phillip and Brian explore bizarre and brilliant intersections of commerce and culture of late, from commerce themes in Sinners to pope merch to DIY luxury. In an episode that’s part futurist insight, part sacred absurdity, they connect the dots between retail psychology, meme theology, and trade policy. PLUS: Phillip and Brian head to The Whalies with Triple Whale. Coming up on the show, catch their live interview from The Whalies with Bryan Cano of True Classic!

High Church, Low Inventory

Key takeaways:

The Commerce of Catholicism – Pope transitions now drive digital engagement, pilgrimage surges, and resale markets. Welcome to the Vatican's Shopify moment.
Tariffs as Theater – The recent 90-day tariff reprieve reveals how uncertainty fuels deal-making and could permanently reshape global economic alliances.
Contentification of the Sacred – From Conclave to meme lore, the papacy is now part of the entertainment-industrial complex, raising questions about the role of narrative and brand in modern faith.
DIY is the New Luxury – Phillip’s journey from $300 Instagram pants to $6 Goodwill masterpieces signals a cultural shift: recession-core meets personal branding.
Slop is Dead (Maybe) – Brian drops a bold claim: participatory lo-fi media has peaked. What’s next? Meaningful myth, meta-modern storytelling, and high-context digital ritual.
[00:06:27] “Once you hit the limit with your product, you start to look at category expansion. You have to ask the ‘why’ questions.” – Brian
[00:52:45] “The way we relate to culture is through the commerce experience of it—when an American lens is applied.” – Phillip

In-Show Mentions:

The Senses: I Vatican’t Believe These Prices
Insiders: Language Games

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ 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.

*TEASER* Mustache Twirls and Bunions May 14, 2025

Show notes

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 new Word of Mouth Index with Fairing, a brand new member benefit
Save 15% on Future Commerce print journals and merch
Exclusive 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.

Cringe Sincerity and the Return of eBay May 09, 2025

Show notes

Phillip and Brian bring hot takes on eBay’s Met Gala presence, the latest tariff turmoil, and the future of autonomous driving. PLUS: Dissecting Warren Buffet’s retirement and new research on Gen Z vs. Millennial communication trends.

The Y2K Bug Zapped Us Into Postmodernism

Key takeaways:

Trends that feel like youth trends are actually just internet trends. Their effects are now felt across generations, not siloed age groups.
There has been a shift from modernism to postmodernism, and in turn, sincerity to ironic insincerity.
Boy Meets World: 25 years after its series finale airs, we reflect on its sitcom era as a marker of TV’s transition from modernism and sincerity to postmodernism and ironic insincerity.
Kendra Scott taps into Gen Alpha.
eBay returns to Brian’s radar and then sponsors the 2025 Met Gala. Coincidence?
“Understanding the society in which you live, and the cultural moment taking place, is taken for granted a lot.” – Phillip
“The Y2K bug was actually just the end of sincerity.” – Brian
“We’ve leaned so far into cheap goods for so long, there might be a memetic cycle happening now where we lean back into goods that are durable.” – Brian
“Autonomous driving is extraordinarily disruptive—just like AI is for information, AVs are for how we live, plan cities, and think about ownership.” – Phillip

In-Show Mentions:

The Guardian: Gen Z Is Turning to Voice Notes
Dirt.fyi: The State of A24
Titan Caskets: Grave Conversations
Waymo Partners with Toyota

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Join Future Commerce+ 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.

The Great Consumption Crisis May 02, 2025

Show notes

Brian dials in from B2B Chicago, Phillip gets existential, and Alicia Esposito returns to the show and makes her debut as the newest member of the Future Commerce team. This week, we unpack music festivals’ escalating cost of participation, Coachella as a retail laboratory, and how looming global trade challenges overconsumption. PLUS: The auto industry experiences a rare analog awakening.

It Was Big Hibiscus All Along

Key takeaways:

70% of B2B purchasers are Gen Z or Millennials.
Tariffs are a real threat – Brands are bracing for supply chain disruption, with some using tariff warnings as marketing FOMO triggers.
Future Commerce analyzes the overpriced festival craze on Insiders #190 and Insiders #191.
The draw to Coachella? It’s not music, or $30 Dave’s Hot Chicken sandwiches. It’s vibes.
The Slate Truck represents a broader cultural trend toward digital detox and reverse skeuomorphism, bringing real-world, tactile experiences back into the digital age.
[00:04:07] “Digitalization came for B2C and we didn’t say anything. And now it’s here for B2B.” – Brian Lange
[00:15:17] “The reckoning has been coming for a long time. Overconsumption isn’t just a consumer issue—it’s a systemic one. If the climate crisis didn’t spark change, what will?” – Phillip Jackson
[00:16:57] “At what point will the cost of participation outweigh the value of participation to the point where it's like, well, what am I even doing this for?” – Alicia Esposito

In-Show Mentions:

Insiders #191: City of Coachella: Population: In Debt
Insiders #190: Is Coachella Buzz Brands’ Supply Chain Friend or Foe?
Politico: How Gen Z Became the Most Gullible Generation

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ 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.

Praying To AI in A New Cultural Climate Apr 25, 2025

Show notes

Phillip and Brian dig into the cultural implications of AI’s new role—not just as a tool, but as a confidant, a co-pilot, and even a therapist. They also get into the Kraft Heinz x A1 viral moment, trade war disinformation on TikTok, and how AI-fueled consumer aesthetics are transforming luxury. Plus: A new HBR report shows “therapy and companionship” is now the top use case for GenAI. What does this mean for society and us as individuals?

The Secret’s in the Sauce

Key takeaways:

Kraft Heinz's real-time A1 ad proves responsive marketing now competes on cultural speed.
“Therapy and companionship” is the top AI use case of 2025—raising serious questions about trust and emotional outsourcing.
TikTok disinformation and fake Birkin bags signal a new era of aesthetic manipulation and consumer mimicry.
Agentic AI use cases like coding and life management are accelerating due to new protocols like MCP.
The interplay of commerce, identity, and AI isn’t theoretical—it’s already reshaping real-world buying behavior.

In-Show Mentions:

Order LORE by Future Commerce
Harvard Business Review’s 2025 GenAI Use Case Study
Kraft Heinz x Mischief “For Educational Purposes Only” ad
All-In Podcast tariff debate featuring David Sacks and Ezra Klein
TikTok’s disinformation around luxury goods

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ 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.

Everything, Everywhere, All at Once Apr 18, 2025

Show notes

Andrew McLuhan—author, speaker, and steward of The McLuhan Institute—shares rich, mind-bending perspectives on the current state of culture, media, connection, and commerce. Drawing from a generations-deep intellectual legacy forged by media theorist and philosopher Marshall McLuhan, Andrew explores what it means to live in a world electrified by complete digital immersion.

A New Medium Is A New Culture

Key takeaways:

“I quickly discovered that it’s easy to overwhelm people with too much information. It’s almost the worst thing you can do, because you lose them, and it can be hard to get them back.” – Andrew McLuhan
“It’s much easier to teach people one thing at a time than it is to teach them ten things at once.” – Andrew McLuhan
“‘A poem can’t mean something that it doesn’t mean to you.’ Which is kind of deep, but it’s not the cop out that you think it is.” – Andrew McLuhan, quoting T.S. Eliot
“Marshall McLuhan saw that through human history we’ve been influenced and steered by the structure and nature of our innovations more than by what we’ve done with them. A new medium is a new culture.” – Andrew McLuhan
“We don’t like finding out how we’re being used.” – Andrew McLuhan
“Commerce is a form of media. It is manipulating people in some way and people are being shaped by it.” – Phillip

In-Show Mentions:

How People Are Really Using Gen AI in 2025 – Harvard Business Review
Other Harvard Business Review pieces:
- Personalization Done Right
- The Consumer Psychology of Adopting AI
Eric McLuhan’s Taking Up McLuhan’s Cause – re-released
The McLuhan Institute

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and to 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.

The Next Wave of Marketers: Curious, Collaborative, Chaos-Embracing Apr 11, 2025

Show notes

Live from Optimove Connect, Brian sits down with Optimove CEO Pini Yakuel and Nikolas Badminton, Chief Futurist at Futurist.com, to unpack the philosophical and practical implications of 'positionless marketing'—a radical rethink of organizational roles in the AI era.

Mind Over Mechanism

Key takeaways:

Positionless is Power: The most innovative organizations won't be flatter—they'll be fluid. Roles dissolve; talent flows where it’s needed.
AI Is the New Intern: It drafts, it preps, it gets you started—but the genius still has to come from you.
Old Process ≠ New Potential: Layering AI on legacy workflows just speeds up your inefficiency.
Control is a Creativity Killer: Let go of silos, turf wars, and micromanagement. The next gen of leaders will trust, not gatekeep.
The Kids Are Alright—and in Charge: Within 10 years, new mindsets will lead. Curious, collaborative, and chaos-embracing.
[00:04:48]: “Startups get stuff done because you're positionless. One day you're marketing, next day you're writing code. That’s how you beat the big guys—speed and fluidity.” – Pini Yakuel
[00:08:03]: “We create the tools, and the tools create us.” – Nick Badminton
[00:14:44]: “New tech + old process = expensive old process.” – Nick Badminton
[00:11:50]: “Friction is what makes life life.” – Brian Lange

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ 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.

The Marketer’s North Star is Myth Apr 09, 2025

Show notes

Brian goes live from Optimove Connect in London to explore how the idea of “positionless marketing” is revolutionizing the way we think about team structure, agility, and creativity in marketing. He chats with endurance swimmer and environmental activist Lewis Pugh, as well as DAZN’s Ria Chin-You and Optimove’s Paul O’Shea, about marketing’s future and how AI is shaping it.

Strive for Epic

Key takeaways:

[12:25] Lewis Pugh shares how emotional drive and preparation fuel extraordinary feats—like swimming across the North Pole—and what brands can learn from that level of purpose.
[20:29] “Epic” vs. “great”: Pugh discusses how to distinguish good work from game-changing campaigns.
[33:42] Environmental justice, consumer justice, and the universal value of doing what's right—and what this really means for global brands today.
[46:05] DAZN’s Ria Chin-You discusses managing CRM across 200+ markets with a team of nine—and the challenges of scaling personalization with limited resources.
[50:48] Integrating GenAI into real-world workflows is still a challenge, especially for resource-strapped teams—but the potential is there.
[58:24] Paul O’Shea explains Optimove’s vision for creating “super workers” through native AI integration and simplifying marketers’ jobs.
[1:01:08] Cultural nuance is key—global messaging isn’t just about translation, it’s about resonance.
[1:07:49] In fast-moving industries like sports, being agile isn’t optional. AI could be the key to real-time, reactive marketing at scale.
“Practice until you can’t get it wrong, not until you get it right.” — Lewis Pugh
“We need tools that help us scale personalization without sacrificing cultural authenticity.” — Ria Chin-You
“AI isn’t replacing you, it’s your new teammate.” — Brian

In-Show Mentions:

Learn more about Optimove’s positionless marketing platform at Optimove.com/futurecommerce
Discover Lewis Pugh’s environmental work at lewispughfoundation.org
Find Ria Chin-You’s work via DAZN and LinkedIn

Associated Links:

Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
Check out Future Commerce+ 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.

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The Skechering of Commerce

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High Church, Low Inventory

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The Y2K Bug Zapped Us Into Postmodernism

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It Was Big Hibiscus All Along

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The Secret’s in the Sauce

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A New Medium Is A New Culture

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Mind Over Mechanism

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Strive for Epic

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