The Role of Commerce in Society
At Future Commerce, we've always been fascinated by the symbiotic relationship between the products we consume and the cultural fabric that shapes us. Our VISIONS brand provides a space for us to push beyond the typical trends report and dig deeper into the philosophical ideas driving the evolution of commerce.
This year's retrospective allowed us to reflect on just how much the landscape has shifted—from the blurring of digital and physical experiences to the ways products have become vessels for self-expression. Retail is a complex, ever-changing industry which provides a unique perspective into our cultural expressions.
Join us on a journey through VISIONS past to see just how much retail—and our culture—has developed in the last 5 years.
After all, commerce is culture.
Contents:
- VISIONS 2024: The Multiplayer Brand
- VISIONS 2023: New Ways of Seeing
- VISIONS 2022: The Centrality of Commerce
- VISIONS 2021: The Convergence of Physical and Digital
- VISIONS 2020: The Beginning
THIS ARTICLE IS FOR MEMBERS ONLY
Insights and futurism for executives in eCom and Retail
Those things we shouldn’t say out loud? We say them on the private feed. Bi-weekly “after dark” podcasts and a members-only newsletter, just for subscribers.
Our research reports combine visionary thinking with data-backed findings from our own advisory panel, made up of leaders at brands you know and trust.
Query and prompt our vast archive of research, podcasts, and newsletters with a ChatGPT-like interface. Get exclusive access to Alani™, the AI-powered engine for Future Commerce, powered by BundleIQ.
VISIONS 2024
The current iteration of VISIONS takes the Future Commerce team on the road, visiting multiple cities and hearing from experts across the retail, arts, design, and writing fields.
.png)
VISIONS SUMMIT NYC - 2024
Hosted at the MoMA in NYC on June 11, 2024, this half-day event featured a mix of keynote presentations, fireside chats, and moderated panel discussions with culture innovators across disciplines: media, creative arts, brand building, and technology.
VISIONS Summit: NYC focused on established and next-gen voices in equal measure, and explored the idea of “Monoculture in the Modern Age” and the shifting dynamics defining this moment. Curated for the curious, the talks from VISIONS Summit: NYC is guaranteed to change the way you think about how we consume.
VISIONS Summit: NYC Keynote Addresses
From First Look to First Bloom
Alison Roman, NYT Bestselling Author, Cook, and Content Creator
Alison shares her experience as a digital creator in our modern world and dishes out both the beauty and the difficulties of public life.
How Algorithms Flattened Culture
Kyle Chayka, Author & Staff writer for the New Yorker
Kyle Chayka shares insights from his latest book, Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture, with Q&A to follow.
VISIONS Summit: NYC Panels
The False Dichotomy of Physical vs. Digital
with Reggie James, Ruby Thelot, and Paul Canetti
The boundaries between physical and digital realms are dissolving. How will this convergence reshape our daily experiences?
How Fragmented Media Co-Creates Moments that Matter
with Hitha Herzog, Retail Analyst and Kate Lindsay, Author of Embedded Substack
In a world of personalized content, does monoculture still exist? Hitha Herzog and Kate Lindsay explore shared cultural moments in fragmented media.
Content Creators and Authenticity
with Emily Hopkins, haripst and YouTube creator
What are some of the challenges of maintaining authenticity while growing an audience? How can brands foster genuine connections in the creator economy?
Technological Progress & Multiplayer Behavior
with Sanjeev Gill, Stripe & Michaela Weber, BigCommerce
Technology is enabling global commerce at unprecedented speeds. Are you prepared for the next wave of commerce innovation?
Creating Connection in the Age of AI
with Sebastian Reetz, Bloomreach and Alicia Esposito, Retail Touchpoints
AI is revolutionizing personalization, but how do we maintain human connection? Can AI truly understand and cater to individual consumer needs?
.jpeg)
VISIONS Summit Austin - 2024
Imagine a world where brands transcend the vision of their creators, becoming a collective masterpiece shaped by every interaction. This is not the future; this is now.
VISIONS SUMMIT: Austin invites you to dive deep into The Multiplayer Brand, where digital commerce evolves at the speed of culture, and every consumer holds the power to shape the story, and the aesthetics, of a brand.
Comprised of 4 unique panels, featuring a stellar lineup of experts in consumer psychology, trend analysis, and brand and digital marketing, we cover the seismic shifts in how brands are build and experienced in a digital-first world.
The Changing Role of the CMO in the Multiplayer Brand
with Alexa Lombardo, Marketing Strategist and Fractional CMO
Reactive Marketing, The Super Bowl, and the Multiplayer Brand
with Matt Klein, Head of Foresight at Reddit. Author of ZINE.
BK Beauty Becomes Multiplayer: The Trend-Centric Nature of Tiktok Shop
with Lisa and Paul Jauregui, Co-Founders of BK Beauty
Our Nondeterministic Future: The Future of Web Commerce
with Rabah Rahil CMO and Rishabh Jain, CEO of FERMÀT
VISIONS 2023: New Ways of Seeing
VISIONS Vol IV was a result of 20+ collaborators working tirelessly to entertain and inform retailers of the future of this thing we do in commerce. These modern prophets — artists, writers, poets, operators, founders, doctorates — foresee the world that will be.
VISIONS Summit NYC - 2023
Of Marketplaces and Machines
with Doak Sergent, IPSY, Slaire Spackman, Consumerhaus, Jared Watson NYU Stern, and Rachel Yaeger, Human NYC
Where is the Counter-Culture? On the Rise of the Critic Class
with Alexi Alario, Nymphet Alumni, Daisy Alioto, Dirt, Matt Klein, Zine, and Emily Sundberg, FeedMe
Counterfactuals, The Changing Relationship Between Art, Authenticity, and Value - VISIONS Summit
with Jessica Backus, Artsy, Laura C. Espinosa, Zip, Marc Drapeau, RXN Group, and Ruby Thelot, 13101401 Inc.
VISIONS Summit: Chicago - 2023
The VISIONS Summit in Chicago was designed specifically for leaders and executives in retail, eCommerce, and DTC brands. our Chicago summit presents ideas such as:
- the rich history of visual arts and media, and how Commerce serves as a patron of those art forms.
- the ideas of innovative thinkers like Marshall McLuhan, John Berger, and Norbert Weiner and how their ideas further illuminate our not-so-distant future ahead.
- the rise of a new class of creators focused on improving the world of commerce and the ways that creators and brands can work together to improve customer experiences.
- the collapse of genre and convergence of every past trend and piece of media and how trends form and influence purchasing behaviors
- an executive interview with José Cabaço about his time as the head of adidas’ Creator Farm in Brooklyn, the creator economy, and how brands can prepare for a resurgence of anti-sellout culture.
VISIONS 2022: The Centrality of Commerce
Our 2022 report presents a provocative exploration of the evolving landscape where consumer behavior, cultural shifts, and modernity intersect. We investigate topics such as the homogenization of experiences, the sacraments of commerce, and our "sh*tty robot future." We provide a unique lens on how brands are becoming our new religion and trolls are winning the culture war.
This cultural deep dive provides fresh perspectives on the underlying psychological factors driving commercial trends, inviting readers to reconsider the complex relationship between commerce and culture in our rapidly changing world.
Accompanying the report, we also released a 10-part podcast series, with recordings from our first-ever VISIONS Summit in Palm Beach, FL.
VISIONS 2021: The Convergence of Physical and Digital
From the cosy rise of homesteading maximalism to the proliferation of capitalism in the digital commons, this report offers fresh perspectives on the complex relationship between commerce and identity in a post-COVID world. Our 2021 report challenges readers to reconsider how the products we consume reflect and influence our collective cultural fabric. Let us guide you through this thought-provoking journey into the heart of our evolving commercial landscape.
VISION 2020: The Beginning
The report that started it all. Read our original VISION report. Published in January 2020, this report covers topics like the power of no-code in commerce, the role of our limited attentions, and the need for sustainability practices.
.png)
