Episode Details

Brian wants to go "woke" hunting, Phillip identifies socially conscious brands, Digiday launches Modern Retail. PLUS: MailChimp creates a content division because, quote, "why not?" Listen now!

Show Notes:

Main Takeaways:

• Brian wants to tell all of us about "woke commerce," and he's taken to Twitter to talk about it

• Will outdoor brands start to cater to hunters and fishers in the counterculture?

• June is Pride Month (Happy Pride!!), and brands are using their platforms to amplify allyship with the LGBTQAI+ community.

• Is Target the more socially conscious version of Walmart?

• Phillip really wants Brian to get hate mail.

Brian (And Only Brian) Wants to Talk About "Woke Commerce.":

• Brian wants to talk about woke commerce, which is effectively brands that are aware of and make it clear that they are aware of (and support) modern takes on many issues, for example, Patagonia's multiple campaigns to protect the environment and promote fair labor practices. Also, Patagonia's campaign to rebuke the Trump administration for reducing the size of two national monuments: Bear's Eve and Grand Staircase-Escalante.

• Phillip says that the term "woke" started well and has since been co-opted to mean things outside its original intent.

• Brian lives in Seattle: he knows several people who aren't all in on the current hunting culture (they may well support hunting regulations and increased gun control, but they do like to hunt and find themselves unable to purchase from places in-line with their values.

• The only brands that may be socially conscious, are generally more outdoors brand and not for hunting and fishing: except perhaps Filson's.

• Hunting aside: some brands are very obviously more socially conscious and value driven: like Third Love (Phillip takes a moment to hate on VS) and Everlane.

Creating Content Around Community: The New/Old Way of Commerce:

• For as long as commerce has existed, there has been a sense of community around it. Open air markets where farmers and fisherman etc. came to sell their wares, to church, to sports and all sorts of events.

• Now brands are dually creating products and communities at the same time, like Lively's founder Michelle Cordeiro Grant (or as Lianne refers to her, MCG), who in building Lively has built up a community that has actually resulted in the forming of several female-founded companies, Michelle explains the magic that happens when community meets commerce in her interview with Future Commerce, which is fantastic and inspiring.

• And now Mailchimp is getting in on the action of community-driven commerce, and they've decided to create original content, including a podcast.

• Phillip says Mailchimp has always been more than an email marketing platform, and he could see them acquiring a media company at some point.

• Also: It seems like every media is creating a retail vertical: special shoutout to Hilary Milnes (and Anna Hensel) from Digiday for establishing

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