Shopify Exec Reveals the Future of Post-Anonymous Retail cover art

Shopify Exec Reveals the Future of Post-Anonymous Retail

Shopify Exec Reveals the Future of Post-Anonymous Retail

Listen for free

View show details

This Season's Biggest Deal | $0.99/mo for 3 months + $20 Audible bonus

Auto-renews at $8.99/mo. after 3 months - terms apply.
Summary
 Shopify merchants set a record $14.6 billion over BFCM last year. But as discovery moves into AI and the season stretches longer, the store’s job is changing from closing a sale to starting a relationship.Ellen Linardi, VP of Product at Shopify, is obsessed with fixing in-store workflows and dreams of a world where items left in a shopper’s online cart are ready when the customer arrives in-store. We unpack how in-person purchases are both the most personal and the most anonymous transactions in retail, how POS workflows free merchants to focus on curation, and why 2027 should be the year businesses uplevel experiential commerce.When the Online Cart Follows You In-StoreKey takeaways:The customer relationship often starts online, and deepens in-store. Shopify is focusing on closing that gap.Retail-first merchants still need to be findable through AI search. That’s where awareness and discovery happen now, before consumers leave home.While the holidays are for new business acquisition, brands should treat every sale as a relationship moment: identified customers spend significantly more.Workflow is everything, and optimization differs from store to store. Customize POS to how each location actually sells.“A customer list is only as good as what you do with it afterward.” — Ellen Linardi“Buyers are not forgiving with wasted time. And time in store is not wasted time, [unless] you’re waiting.” — Ellen Linardi“I like to think of [small businesses] as people with consumer resources but enterprise problems.” — Ellen Linardi“An in-person transaction is the most anonymous transaction we have, and yet it is the most personal.” — Brian LangeIn-Show Mentions:Learn more about Shopify’s latest retail and POS updates at Shopify EditionsExplore Shopify POS and Smart GridConnect with Ellen Linardi on LinkedInFuture Commerce’s BFCM 2025: We Give Thanks for Couch CommerceFuture Commerce’s OMNIMODAL researchFuture Commerce’s The Concierge Economy guideFuture Commerce’s celebrity brands Signal Report with MercivGet tickets to VISIONS Summit, February 10, 2027 at MoMAAssociated Links:Memorable Over Measurable: Retail’s Lost Wonders (Ep. 482)Separating Real Signals from the Noise (Ep. 480)Member Brief: Return on Experience and the New KPIs of Store Design (Insiders)Field Notes: How Physical Retail’s Most Compelling Stores Activate the Senses (Insiders)The Good Friction Opportunity (Insiders)The Doorbusters Are Back (And So Are the 5 am Lines) (The Senses)Check out Future Commerce on YouTubeCheck out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and printSubscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce worldListen to our other episodes of Future CommerceHave 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.
No reviews yet
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.