Podcast: Future Commerce

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 448: The Room Where Retail Happens feat. Zia Daniell Wigder, Shoptalk’s Global President

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00:00 / 00:32:36

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 447: The Agent Has Left the Building

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00:00 / 00:37:22

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 446: McDonald's CEO Ate a Burger Like He Was Defusing a Bomb

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00:00 / 01:04:01

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 445: Consolidation Is Power: Insights from eTail Palm Springs

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00:00 / 00:51:28

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 444: Cracking the Viral Code: Creators As CMOs

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00:00 / 00:49:20

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 443: Daily Harvest is Fighting the Wellness Hype Machine

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00:00 / 00:26:26

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode Every Brand Spent $20M on 30 Seconds. Levi's Bought the Whole Super Bowl.

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00:00 / 00:52:50

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 442: Supply Chain's AI Evolution: Infinite Simulations

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00:00 / 00:44:15

Join us at SoCom 2026, the Social Commerce Conference. February 26 in Venice Beach and save 20% with code FCSC2026

Damon 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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 442: Why Gap is Back: The Mattel Playbook for Brand Reinvigoration

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00:00 / 00:35:27

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.

Future Commerce

Future Commerce | Episode 440: How Brands Become Publishers In the Age of Distrust

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00:00 / 00:57:32