16 2025 June
How To See Through a Manipulated Headline (A Retailwire Case Study)
One thing I often talk about in this newsletter is honing our media literacy. This week I found a perfect case study to illustrate how...
Read Now22 2025 May
When the Government Refuses to Protect Consumers, Tools Like This Can Fill the Gap
For over thirty years, the EPA’s Energy Star testing and certification program has helped consumers see how energy-efficient an appliance or electronic device is before...
Read Now08 2025 May
What One Man’s T-Shirt Test Says About Sustainability
For the past two years, startup founder Torleif Markussen Lunde created a quiet test of the sustainability of three comparable white t-shirts. The most expensive was...
Read Now26 2025 March
The Quest to Prevent Scalpers and the Rise of the Freebie Bots
There is a word for people who buy a child’s game when it first comes out and then immediately try to sell it online for...
Read Now05 2025 March
The Subtle Master Plan Behind De Beers New DiamondProof In-Store Verification Device
A little over six months ago, De Beers Group announced the DiamondProof “diamond verification instrument” at a jewelry trade show in Las Vegas. The idea was that...
Read Now10 2025 February
Poopy Diapers and How to Destroy a Small Business with Minimal Effort
Paul and Rachelle Baron sell washable swim diapers on Amazon. Like many other small businesses, they use the logistics arm of Amazon to provide distribution...
Read Now05 2025 February
The Age of the AI Chatbot Salesperson Might Have an Unintended Side Effect
Training an employee to do upselling (and be good at it) is notoriously difficult. When it’s done right, it can drive significant revenue for many...
Read Now16 2025 January
The Brilliance of Costco’s New Plan to Build Apartments on Top of Their Stores
There is a housing shortage in many cities. And there’s a Costco in those cities. In an ambitious new project, the brand is working with...
Read Now06 2025 January
How 2025 Could Become The Year of Reuse
Every time I would visit India growing up, one sight would fascinate me as we traveled the roads was the number of old Ambassador black...
Read Now26 2024 December
The Biggest Question from the Influencer Suing Another Influencer for “Copying Her Vibe”
Two influencers meet at a fancy hotel in Austin to collaborate on some social media posts. That’s how the story started but it quickly goes...
Read Now26 2024 November
The Non-Obvious Book of the Week: Pretending You Care by Norm Feuti
As we head into a holiday season, the Black Friday deals are already getting published out there and you might be thinking about heading out...
Read Now04 2024 September
Why Branded Reselling Platforms That Allow Customers to Sell Old Products to Each Other May Be Better Than Ebay
Sustainability-first brands like Patagonia have taken their commitment to reuse to the furthest extreme by creating an entire ecommerce experience dedicated to allowing their customers...
Read Now13 2024 June
The Unpredictable Gamble of Collecting Vintage Toys
If you are a child of the 80s, this week’s story of the latest vintage toy to sell for over half a million dollars (a Star Wars...
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