Bedfellows: How Boll & Branch Keeps Humans and AI in the Same Sheets

Boll & Branch spent 12 years doing the unfashionable thing: perfecting the product first and figuring out distribution second. Chief Commercial Officer Katia Unlu joins Phillip and Brian on today’s episode to discuss Boll & Branch’s store expansion strategy, an AI-generated damage claim that went viral, and the case for stimulation over substitution. 

That’s Not How the Waffle Blanket Tears

Key takeaways:

• Brands of the DTC era that failed were distracted by over-indexing on one hero product and not focusing on customer experiences that drive retention and brand love. 
• Boll & Branch opens stores where their customers and ICP already live.
• A human CX team caught an AI-generated image in a fraudulent damage claim thanks to the team’s sharp knowledge of the brand’s fabric and tear patterns. This is human expertise and technological advancement meeting in the middle.
• Boll & Branch’s AI tools aim to stimulate the customer relationship rather than flatten it.
• The 2027 playbook is boring, but it works. Focusing on the fundamentals is key.
• [00:23:12] "People might buy something they enjoy, but they will actually defend what they love." – Brian Lange
• [00:29:45] "There's no shortcut for what real-life consumer insights can give you when you just go and talk to people in stores." – Katia Unlu
• [00:43:50] "We very much don’t want to substitute. We don't have an AI bot on our website that you can even ask questions to." – Katia Unlu

Associated Links:

• Boll & Branch
• Scott Tannen's LinkedIn post on AI-generated return fraud at Boll & Branch 
• Read our in-store retail space analyses: Field Notes on Future Commerce
• More on human vs. agent: Episode 447: The Agent Has Left the Building
• Explore our Word of Mouth Index
• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

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