Future Commerce

Even in the aftermath of difficulties within the retail and commerce world, there is a relentless positivity and excitement shared among those living and working in it. This was evident at The NRF Big Show this year. Have a listen as Phillip and Brian share more about their perspective on this and what this could mean for the very near future!

• The NRF Big Show was great, and everyone was enthusiastic about being there, back at the Big Show like old times
• Walmart Technologies and the strides they are making is impressive and really overtaking Amazon when it comes to eCommerce experience and customer expectations
• Shopify, coming in with a booth at NRF, with their Commerce Components roll out made quite the splash
• “Regardless of whether you think you already provide a lot of these products and services, the ecosystem needs you to just say it in their language.” - Phillip
• “People look for creative ways to use tools they're familiar with.” - Brian
• Despite fake news about a downturn in sales, inflation is slowing, and that techno-optimism can’t be turned down or slowed down right now
• Brian and Phillip share some of their favorite parts of the NRF Big Show and why they were impactful
• The world in which we live is one where it takes a whole lot for people to go deep
• There were a lot of robotics at The Big Show this year, and interestingly also a lot of Chads
• As we walk through a season where cost management is high, companies may want to forego cloud prices and find other solutions

• Check out Retail Remix by Alicia Esposito here.
• Have you checked out our YouTube channel yet?
• Get your copy of Archetypes, our newly published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of 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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• Who are The Biggest Retail Winners of 2022? What about The Biggest Retail Losers of 2022? Are these surprises? Who will it be for 2023?
• “If there is digital business to be won, Walmart can win it and they'll win it away from Amazon.” - Phillip
• “The call to work back in the office again is going to spur a set of entrepreneurs from big and small brands alike,” leading to growth in the maker economy
• The Biggest DTC Winner prediction for 2022 was so so right and was basically a no-look half-court swish, but will this be the case for our prediction for 2023’s Biggest DTC Winner?
• “There is a small group of people that are realizing that physical media has a place in the world because the things they love are being taken away from them and they're no longer available on streaming services. When that happens, it changes the way people find safety and security in the things they find entertaining and important in their lives.” - Phillip
• Brian has some bold and exciting predictions for the tech world for 2023, and it will be interesting to see how close he will get to being on the mark with these
• “The tools that are about to be unleashed into the world are going to be absolutely the most interesting trends of 2023.” - Phillip
• Have you heard of Media Chic? Phillip explains what it is and why he thinks we will see more of it in 2023
• “People are going to revolt. There's going to be a genuine trend of people quitting to start their own businesses and really doubling down on what their home working situation looks like.” - Brian

• Have you checked out our YouTube channel yet?
• RSVP to our Archetypes Pop Up X Industry West here!
• Get ready for Archetypes, our newly published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of 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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What a year 2022 was. Let’s recap it together, shall we? Phillip and Brian look back on the most popular episodes, articles, and happenings at Future Commerce and tease a lot about what is coming in 2023 and why they are excited about what’s ahead. Listen now!

• The most listened-to-episode of 2022 was Episode 240 featuring Magdalena Kala, in which she dropped lots of great insights that became even more profound as the year unfolded
• As technology like blockchain and other protocols advance, we have to stop using industry lingo because people don’t buy protocols, they buy products
• It’s the creative jobs that AI is coming after, not the lower-end jobs that we all thought would be in danger, but the world always finds a way to succeed in middle-management right?
• Unfortunately, ChatGPT wouldn’t do what Phillip asked when he asked for a bullet-point version of Beowulf in Gen Z slang
• “It used to be if you understood Booleans, you could be good at Google. If you understand gaslighting, you can be great at GPT.” - Phillip
• Like Kris Gösser says, “The shipping experience is half the shopping experience.”
• Guests like Miki Agrawal, Neil Shakar, and Seyi Taylor provided interesting perspectives that we couldn’t have done without in 2022
• You have to build something worth protecting before you build the moat to protect it
• We believe commerce is personal, and that makes it very important to all of us, so we continue to embrace the stories of people and brands, and sharing these will be an emphasis in 2023
• Thank you to all of you for joining us throughout 2022 and coming with us into 2023!

• Have you checked out our YouTube channel yet?
• RSVP to our Archetypes Pop Up X Industry West here!
• Get ready for Archetypes, our newly published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

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Where are people shopping and how is that affecting how people are launching brands today? The guys sit down with Calvin Lammers to hear what he is seeing as an emerging CPG leader to get his take on the opportunity available to brands today.

• How brands launch has now significantly changed. Before, brands could decide to avoid Amazon but now, it’s an imperative part of their early business strategy.
• Amazon is a true platform now and has become more competitive, so differentiation at the start is very important for a brand to be set up well for success and scale
• When it comes to emerging brands, Instacart is better at helping those brands be discovered and scale than Walmart+, especially if it’s in the grocery category
• The path forward for a lot of brands could be taking advantage of the opportunity to grow quickly and then moving to an aggregator or portfolio
• We may still see a lot of brands, but we likely won’t see them scale like Venture wanted them to scale
• “If it's hard that means not everybody's doing it and there's a reason why. But that also means there's an opportunity to succeed.” - Calvin
• Good partnerships are key, and they have to cut through the clutter and build your audience authentically to make sense
• You have to learn to anticipate what the next thing is going to be so you’re not late for this moment

• Learn more about Calvin Lammers and Rare Eye.
• Get ready for Archetypes, our newly published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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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If only there was a directory where we can find out concise information about CPG and also a directory of agencies for brands to find. Well, there is! Listen in as Phillip and Brian discuss the CPG world with Andrea Popova and also find out what some of their favorite product placements in films are and why the future of feature is different.

• CPGD is a wealth of information for leaders in the CPG world and a great resource for connections and was a huge lucky moment for Andrea
• TikTok is just not the same as it was in the beginning of its reign, and it’s a lot harder to go viral there now
• There are some really interesting product placements in films that actually lead to the product being more like a side-character, and there are some brilliant examples
• Back when Phillip was 14, the Tampa Bay Times wrote an article about a specific product placement that actually made a lasting impression on him that still impacts him today
• “The whole premise behind celebrity back brands and how this is becoming more of a thing is because now the power has shifted towards the brand actually needing the financial support of the celebrities to grow.” - Andrea
• Why have some celebrities starting brands gotten backlash and others have been accepted?
• If Brian ever gets famous, look for his sweater brand
• There's some regionality and the awareness of the allure of such a thing based on where you happen to be and the feasibility to get it that can effect the way product placement in a film makes an impact
• When you populate the world of a film or show with consumer brands that are vestiges of certain eras, it gives it some authenticity, so how can that translate to now with the explosion of DTC brands and what does the future of features look like for them?

• Learn more about Andrea Popova and Consumer Packaged Good Directory (CPGD).
• Episode 3 of Visions: Romanticism
• Get ready for Archetypes, our soon-to-be-published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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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AI advancements are changing the landscape of product photography in many industries, including eCommerce. There are many exciting use cases and possibilities and also some snags that the AI world is trying to untangle, such as rights to content, proper execution of image generation, and other issues that could be figured out by the time 2023 rolls around. Seriously? Listen now to hear Sofiia Shvets’ take on this and more!

• The power of AI technology is not only about saving time and money but streamlining efficiency, so that teams are more connected and more able to operate at a higher scale
• Having more tooling that allows a still very small team to be able to operate efficiently with competitive margins is the biggest challenge that we face in eCommerce today
• We are at the beginning of phase 2 of generative AI where we can actually create content from scratch for multiple industries, including eCommerce
• AI tech is iterating so fast that within the next month or month and a half, Sofiia predicts we won’t be able to pick out the photos on a website that are AI generated
• “There will be a future use case that we can't even be able to dream of that is more likely the outcome than not.” - Phillip
• “There is a study that I read recently that currently around 1% of the content and the Internet is AI-generated. In the next 6-10 years, the prediction is up to 50%.” - Sofiia
• AI changes the way we think about how consumers are going to interact with content in the future

• Learn more about Sofiia Shvets and Claid AI.
• Get ready for Archetypes, our soon-to-be-published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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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With the advancements in technology over the years and the prospect of advancements looking into the future, how can we make sure we are looking around and keeping our approach as one that brings others with us? Is there a way to build that also lifts others and strives to not leave some behind? Phillip and Brian chat with Adii Pienaar about this and more. Listen now! 

• “Going from 0 to 1 remains hard. As a founder, especially when you are responsible to your shareholders and your team members, there are some days where things don't work as hoped or planned. That is still hard.” - Adii
• “There's an African proverb that says “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you're going to want to go far, go together.’” - Adii
• Adii is a technologist and early adopter and believes that AI and machine learning will continue to advance, but it will stop before the robots take over completely
• Functionally or logistically it is easier to build a business now than it was 20 years ago, but without that balance of science and art, there can’t truly be success
• It’s very interesting to look at the dynamics of building a business with teams where the communication has to be asychronous
• Writing well, being a storyteller, is an important skill set in eCommerce
• “The core technology has probably not changed significantly, but we're probably at that stage now where there is a massive step change in the skills that you need to apply to use the same technology.” - Adii
• As we continue to build technology, we have to consider the consequences from a human perspective and not leave some behind who may need a different approach

• Learn more about Adii Pienaar and Cogsy at @adii on Twitter or Cogsy.com.
• Get ready for Archetypes, our soon-to-be-published 240-page journal! Check it out at ArchetypesJournal.com
• Get your tickets to our Archetypes Event December 1 in Miami, FL
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

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Balance strives to make online B2B payments something that doesn’t suck. Why is it important to take action and learn as much as you can about digitizing your business? How do you move from a “keep our business alive” mentality to “grow our business in 2023” strategy? Why is B2B such a vital part of the new world of eCommerce? Listen Now!

• “Because there are more opportunities, more relationships that can be formed, and because discovery is so much higher due to digitization of B2B, we're actually moving into an unknown area in B2B, which is you don't know or have a relationship with the other person on the other side of the transaction.” - Phillip
• “B2B is the economy. It's not a nuance. It's not a segment of something. It’s really the future of the economy.” - Bar
• “If you have a relationship with trust, you better be ready to also digitize or you're going to have the Chem Directs and the Steel Directs and the Lumber Directs of the world coming for you.” - Brian
• “If you're not digitizing at some level, you will get hurt. You will have to choose digitizing your business or working with platforms that are digitizing your sales channel. You have to do something.” - Bar
• After such a huge wave of brand building of business tools in DTC, B2B is a natural evolution to get the products that were built into other channels
• Continuing to build digital disruption is actually a moat that you can build around owning your corner of distribution
• Leveraging your brand to create your own niche marketplace and leveraging your brand to increase supply are trends with enormous potential
• Business teams need to adapt as technology continues to advance and AR will be something Balance will enable, not erase

• Get connected with Balance at GetBalance.com.
• Learn more about Bar Geron.
• Listen to our other Step by Step seasons
• Archetypes Event December 1 in Miami, FL
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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.

Venture Capital has been powering brands in the modern era and has also shifted with the changing times. How has Forerunner experienced those changes over the past decade and what opportunity is there ahead? Kirsten Green, General Partner at Forerunner Ventures joins this episode of Step by Step to talk about the evolution of eCommerce, the massive monetary potential of the B2B industry, and the role of data and research in eCommerce. Listen Now!

• “The customer wants what they want, where they want it, when they want it, how they want it, and the job of a business is to understand what that means for them in the context of all the channels that are available.” - Kirsten
• The evolution of eCommerce has now also led to the expectation of delight and excellent experience from business tools and software that used to be mostly about functionality
• One of the original promises of direct to consumer was to take out the middleman because middlemen were expensive, but did that work?
• “The transformation of this industry happens in partnership with the evolution of consumer behavior and expectation and the technology that allows those expectations to be met.” - Kirsten
• The word is that 12 - 25 trillion dollars is the opportunity that B2B transactions offer within the next few years, which is enormous
• “Staying grounded and where there are those kinds of big opportunities and seismic shifts in business and investing into those is what we spend the lion's share of timing consideration around.” - Kirsten
• Kirsten believes we are in a pre-data era, not a post-data one, and actually we really need to be sharpening our worldview through research and engaging and getting ongoing feedback about what's going on with the consumer, the user, the mindset, and behavior, which is evolving at a breakneck speed
• “One of the biggest challenges to work through in the evolution of business, whether it's a B2C company or a B2B business is really bringing the user, the human, along in that journey in how they use and leverage the technology and their willingness to do that.” - Kirsten

• Get connected with Balance at GetBalance.com.
• Learn more about Kirsten Green.
• Listen to our other Step by Step seasons
• Archetypes Event December 1 in Miami, FL
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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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There are a million reasons why B2B payments are behind the times. In an era where margins are razor thin, businesses make irrational decisions that cause frustration and headaches for employees and for finance. The modernization of payments in business is the final frontier of digital transformation, employee experience, cash flow management, and profitability. When every point of margin matters, investing in your payments infrastructure is critical to your success. Listen in as Paul do Forno, Managing Director at Deloitte shares why he believes B2B payments is the next great untapped industry. Listen now!

• Digital Commerce 360 estimates that businesses pay other businesses approximately $17 Trillion
• Of that $17 Trillion, about half of those payments are done manually and due for optimization.
• There is a lot to think about in B2B payments, including setting up terms, how you sell, who you’re selling to, setting up new clients, and more.
• If Paul were trying to sell the benefit of B2B payment tools, he would really focus on the reduction of average payment time.
• For Paul, he experiences their B2B business growing faster than their B2C business, which he isn’t surprised by, looking at the state of the current economy.
• The role of trust is vital in B2B payments. If one doesn’t have insight into what they’re buying, their order, etc, they won’t trust the supplier to fulfill their promise.

• Get connected with Balance
• Learn more about Paul do Forno
• Listen to our other Step by Step seasons
• Archetypes Event December 1 in Miami, FL
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more of what we are witnessing in the commerce world!
• Download VISIONS 2022 NOW!
• 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.