Future Commerce

By Phillip Jackson, Brian LangeSociety & Culture Business Entrepreneurship Philosophy Marketing

Future Commerce episodes

April 01LIVE at Shoptalk Spring: Wing’s Heather Rivera on Five-Minute Futures
Recorded live at Shoptalk, Phillip and Brian sit down with Heather Rivera, Chief Business Officer at Wing (an Alphabet company), to talk about how Wing has crafted our five-minute delivery future. Spoiler: the novelty of drones wearing off might be the best thing that ever happened to the industry.
Building the Drone While We’re Flying It
Key takeaways:
Wing's fastest recorded delivery: 2 minutes, 37 seconds. Average is under five minutes.

25% of Wing customers order three times a week – habit, not novelty.

Wing just announced its largest residential drone delivery expansion yet, with Walmart, covering 270+ store locations.

~70% of Walmart SKUs fit in Wing's current delivery box – roughly 50,000 products.

Wing recently doubled its payload capacity from 2.5 lbs to 5 lbs, opening new SKU and category possibilities.

[00:20:39] "I want this technology to become unremarkable for people because it just becomes part of the way they go about their lives." – Heather Rivera

[00:13:09] "I predict there's gonna be whole sets of new companies that design existing products to fit into the five pound baskets." – Brian
Associated Links:
Get STRATA

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.
26 min
March 31 *TEASER* Baptist Oreos, Anglican Biscotti
Oreos are Baptist, Biscotti are Anglican, and we're losing our minds. Cookie theology, meme reality, mass hallucinations, the price of attention, and more on the full After Dark episode – accessible to Future Commerce Plus members.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
7 min
March 30Shoptalk Spring Recap: STRATA, Snoop Dogg, & the Simulacra
Recording LIVE from the show floor of Shoptalk Spring 2026, the Future Commerce team brings our hottest takes and deepest insights from this year’s event. PLUS: We celebrated the launch of our newest zine, STRATA Vol. 001, with over 150 of our favorite people (including Snoop Dogg?). Get your copy at futurecommerce.com/strata.
Our Week In the STRATAsphere
Key takeaways:
AI was the headline theme, but the humanity angle landed harder with attendees.

In-booth content creation has become the industry standard; Future Commerce pioneered it in 2017.

FedEx's Jason Brenner reframed logistics as a brand trust moment, not just a last mile.

Victoria's Secret CEO Hillary Super showed what vision-led turnarounds actually look like.

Curious people will always find leverage. AI just multiplies what they were already doing.

“Maybe by this time next year, we will see OpenClaw-specific agencies on the show floor.” – Phillip

"If you're inherently curious and someone who likes to problem solve...AI is gonna help you, totally, without a doubt." – Alicia
In-Show Mentions:
Get STRATA

FedEx: Same-Day Local

Subscribe to catch our full recap on Insiders
Associated Links:
See more post-show coverage in The Senses

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.
41 min
March 25The Live Commerce Window Is Open Now
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.
45 min
March 18The Room Where Retail Happens feat. Zia Daniell Wigder, Shoptalk’s Global President
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.
33 min
March 11The Agent Has Left the Building
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.
38 min
March 04McDonald's CEO Ate a Burger Like He Was Defusing a Bomb
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.
1 hr 5 min
February 27Consolidation Is Power: Insights from eTail Palm Springs
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.
52 min
February 25Cracking the Viral Code: Creators As CMOs
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.
50 min
February 20Daily Harvest is Fighting the Wellness Hype Machine
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.
27 min

About Future Commerce

From the publisher's feed

Future Commerce is the culture magazine for Commerce. Hosts Phillip Jackson and Brian Lange help brand and digital marketing leaders see around the next corner by exploring the intersection of Culture and Commerce.