Social Currency with Sammi Cohen

Rick Caruso (Caruso) on Disney-Inspired Retail, Political Leadership, and Why California Is Losing Entrepreneurs

Rick Caruso has spent decades reshaping Los Angeles through projects like The Grove, Americana at Brand, and Palisades Village. In this conversation with Sammi, Rick talks through his entrepreneurial strategy with real estate and beyond. Rick explains how he built a billion-dollar real estate empire by studying people instead of the industry, why he intentionally ignored traditional mall design rules, and the Walt Disney philosophies that shaped his approach to hospitality. He shares why he believes founders need to be comfortable being over their skis, how criticism actually signals progress, and the surprising rituals he still personally does for guests at his properties. Then the conversation turns to Los Angeles. Rick gives an unfiltered breakdown of the Pacific Palisades fires, explaining exactly how Palisades Village survived while much of the surrounding area burned. He walks through the fire prevention systems his team built years in advance, the operational decisions that protected the property, and the broader lessons for government competency and crisis management. Sammi and Rick also discuss why small businesses are increasingly struggling in California, why entrepreneurs are leaving cities like LA and New York, and the political climate that ultimately led Rick to decide not to run for governor.  Follow Sammi Cohen on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/sammicohentalks/?hl=en] Subscribe to the Social Currency newsletter [https://socialcurrency.beehiiv.com/]  Follow Rick Caruso’s work [https://www.instagram.com/rickcarusola/?hl=en] Here’s What Sammi Covers with Rick: 00:00 Rick Caruso’s Social Currency 02:50 Why “Follow Your Passion” Is Bad Advice 05:16 Why Not Knowing the Rules Helped Him Win 08:05 Why Founders Need to Be “Over Their Skis” 09:23 The “Celebrate vs. Isolate” Framework 10:00 Building The Grove Around the Farmers Market 12:08 Why Criticism Means You’re Doing Something Important 14:00 The Hospitality Details Guests Never Notice 18:12 Walt Disney’s Biggest Lesson for Entrepreneurs 22:12 Why People Propose at the Americana Fountain 25:00 Expensive Mistakes 28:32 Why Retail Must Constantly Reinvent Itself 29:14 How Palisades Village Reinvented Retail Layouts 30:00 Why Rick Writes a Fictional Story for Every Project 31:17 What Saved Palisades Village During the Fires 35:05 Why Rick Thinks LA Leadership Failed 37:13 Why Rick Decided Not to Run for Governor 41:00 Why California Needs Business-Minded Leadership 44:18 Solutions to Homelessness in LA 49:29 Why Small Businesses Are Struggling in California 51:45 Rick’s Personal System for Life and Leadership 54:13 Why Entrepreneurs Are Leaving California 56:02 Innovation vs. Naivety for Founders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Harley Finkelstein (Shopify) on AI Shopping Agents, Merit-Based Commerce, and the “Give a Sh*t Factor” That Makes Founder-Led Companies Win

Harley Finkelstein believes we’re entering the most important shift in commerce since the invention of online shopping itself. As President of Shopify, Harley has helped build the infrastructure powering millions of businesses across more than 175 countries. Now, he says AI is about to fundamentally change not only how consumers discover and buy products online— but how “machine customers” might do our shopping for us. Harley explains why agentic commerce could replace traditional search, his take on the idea that every brand is becoming a media company (featuring a Favorite Daughter case study), and why this new era may reward product quality more than ad spend. Harley also shares the story of joining Shopify in its earliest days, why founder-led companies consistently outperform, and why he believes modern entrepreneurs can now go from a kitchen-table idea to a multi-billion-dollar company faster than ever before. Plus: the brands he thinks are getting retail right—and the critical “give a sh*t factor” he believes only founders truly have. Follow Sammi Cohen on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/sammicohentalks/?hl=en] Subscribe to the Social Currency newsletter [https://socialcurrency.beehiiv.com/]  Follow Harley’s work [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harleyf?originalSubdomain=ca] and updates at Shopify [https://www.shopify.com/blog] Here’s What Sammi Covers with Harley: 00:00 Harley Finkelstein’s Social Currency 01:57 Partner Message: Mercury 02:30 Growing Up Around Immigrant Entrepreneurs 05:40 Why Harley Went to Law School 08:00 Meeting Shopify Founder Tobi Lütke 12:00 Why Shopify Felt Like a “Superpower” 15:00 Partner Message: Mercury 16:19 Partner Message: Mosh 18:00 The Moment Shopify Became a Generational Company 21:00 From E-Commerce Platform to Commerce Operating System 22:30 Every 26 Seconds a New Entrepreneur Gets Their First Sale 24:00 Why Some Brands Become Media Companies 25:00 Favorite Daughter and the Founder-Led Brand Flywheel 27:00 Why Most Brands Feel Inauthentic 28:30 What Great Retail Brands Understand About Emotion 30:00 Shopify’s OpenAI and ChatGPT Announcement 31:00 What “Agentic Commerce” Actually Means 32:00 AI Personal Shoppers and Curated Buying 35:00 Why AI Could Help Small Brands Win 37:00 The End of Traditional Search? 39:00 How Brands Maintain Identity Inside AI Platforms 41:00 Why Storytelling Matters More in an AI World 42:00 The Rise of Machine Customers 44:00 Why Harley Is a Techno-Optimist 47:30 Why Founder-Led Companies Win 50:00 The Founder “Give a Shit Factor” 51:00 Harley’s Framework for Finding Your Life’s Work Thanks to Our Sponsors! Mercury: mercury.com [http://mercury.com] Mosh Bars:  moshlife.com/socialcurrency [http://moshlife.com/socialcurrency] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Todd Kahn (Coach) on Winning Gen Z, Shrinking to Grow, and the Brand Turnaround That Changed Everything

Todd Kahn took over the commercial responsibility for Coach in March of 2020. Two weeks later, he closed all North America stores.  Today, Coach CEO Todd Kahn sits down with Sammi to break down the strategy behind one of fashion’s biggest brand turnarounds, and why Coach had to do the exact opposite of conventional growth advice to pull it off. He explains why trying to be “for everyone” almost destroyed the brand, how flash sales quietly trained customers to wait for discounts, and why the company stopped greeting shoppers with coupons entirely during the pandemic. Todd also shares how Coach rebuilt itself for Gen Z through “expressive luxury,” viral bags like the Tabby and Brooklyn, immersive retail experiences, and unexpected ideas like coffee shops, book charms, and co-creation stations inside stores. Plus: the real reason Gen Z shops in person more than people think, why virality can’t be engineered, and the internal operating system Todd uses to run a nearly $7 billion business. Follow Sammi Cohen on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/sammicohentalks/?hl=en] Subscribe to the Social Currency newsletter [https://socialcurrency.beehiiv.com/]  Follow [https://www.instagram.com/coach/] the Coach branding masterclass Here’s What Sammi Covers with Todd: 00:00 Todd Kahn’s Social Currency 02:30 From Corporate Lawyer to Coach CEO 07:52 Joining Coach During the Financial Crisis 10:00 What Actually Went Wrong at Coach 14:00 Flash Sales, Discounting, and Brand Dilution 15:00 Hiring Stuart Vevers and Resetting Creativity 19:00 Rediscovering Coach’s Brand Codes 20:44 Why Coach Focused on Gen Z 23:00 Closing 250 Stores to Save the Brand 24:00 Why “Stores Are Commercial Activities” 26:00 Cutting 40% of the Assortment 27:10 The “Timeless Gen Z” Strategy 28:40 Taking Over Coach Right Before COVID 29:50 Why Coach Stopped Leading with Discounts 30:20 Building a Billion-Dollar Digital Business 31:00 Why People Bought Handbags During Lockdown 32:00 From Performance Marketing to Brand Building 33:00 Bringing 2.9 Million New Customers Into Coach 34:00 Why Coach Wants to Be Your First Luxury Bag 35:30 The Real Story Behind Bag Charm Mania 38:00 What Actually Creates Virality 39:45 Why Coach Only Does Two Big Campaigns a Year 40:00 What “Expressive Luxury” Really Means 42:00 Why Gen Z Loves Shopping In Person 43:00 Coach Play Stores and Experiential Retail 44:00 The Business Strategy Behind Coach Coffee Shops 47:30 Todd’s Operating System for Leadership 50:22 The Story Behind Coach’s Viral Book Charms 52:00 Why Gen Z Is Returning to Books and Community Thanks to Mercury for sponsoring this episode! mercury.com [http://mercury.com]  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Rebecca Hessel Cohen (LoveShackFancy) on Building a Multi-Generational Fashion Brand, D2C Versus Retail, and Collaborations That Actually Work

Rebecca Hessel Cohen didn’t set out to build a company, she just wanted better bridesmaid dresses. But that small idea turned into LoveShackFancy, a multi-generational, cult-favorite brand with dozens of stores, hundreds of retail partners, and a fiercely loyal community. Today, Rebecca joins Sammi to break down the unfiltered reality of building a fashion business from scratch. From leaving her dream job at Cosmopolitan, to launching her first collection the same week she had her first child, to schlepping dresses in her car to early customers— this the unfiltered look at what it means to start a business. They also get into Rebecca’s viral social media moments (including the most epic bat mitzvah), building a brand that resonates from “babies to eighties,” how she evaluates collaborations from Stanley to Victoria's Secret, and what actually makes a retail store feel magical instead of transactional.  Follow Sammi Cohen on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/sammicohentalks/?hl=en] Subscribe to the Social Currency newsletter [https://socialcurrency.beehiiv.com/]  Follow Rebecca [https://www.instagram.com/becknyc/] and LoveShackFancy [https://www.instagram.com/loveshackfancy/] Here’s What Sammi Covers with Rebecca: 00:00 The Gwyneth Paltrow Moment That Changed Everything 02:03 Partner Message: Mercury for Personal Banking 03:00 Growing Up in Fashion Closets 06:00 Life as a Fashion Editor at Cosmopolitan 10:30 The Bridesmaid Dress That Started It All 14:00 Turning a Side Hustle Into a Business 18:30 Launching a Brand While Having a Baby 20:53 Partner Message: Mercury for Business Banking 22:07 Partner Message: Mosh Bars 23:42 Why LoveShackFancy Wasn’t an Overnight Success 26:00 Building a Team and Scaling the Business 29:00 Opening Retail Stores During COVID 33:00 Dividing Roles With Her Husband 36:00 Building the Beauty Business and Sephora Strategy 38:30 Where Inspiration Actually Comes From 41:00 Designing for “Babies to Eighties” 43:30 How LoveShackFancy Approaches Collaborations 47:00 What Makes a Partnership Actually Work 49:30 Building a Brand Through Community and Retail 52:00 The Power of Experiential Shopping 55:00 Supporting Female Founders Through Trunk Shows 58:00 The Viral Home Tour and Social Media Strategy 01:02:00 Instagram vs. TikTok: How Rebecca Thinks About Both 01:05:00 What She Shares Online (And What She Doesn’t) Thanks to Our Sponsors! Mercury: mercury.com [http://mercury.com] Mosh Bars:  moshlife.com/socialcurrency [http://moshlife.com/socialcurrency]  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Steven Schwartz (Whop) on Building a Unicorn, Creating Millionaires, and the Future of Work

What if the future of work doesn’t look anything like the office jobs we were told to chase? Steven Schwartz started building businesses as a teenager and eventually turned that obsession into Whop, one of the fastest-growing marketplaces for internet businesses. Today, the company is valued at $1.6 billion and helps thousands of people earn income online. In this episode, Steven joins Sammi to break down how he met his co-founder on Facebook at 13, why they almost quit Whop after just three months, and how they scaled it into a unicorn backed by names like Peter Thiel and Kevin Hart. They also unpack the creator economy, why everyone is a creator now, why traditional 9-to-5 career paths are being disrupted, and what “agentic income” could mean in the next era of work. Plus: why Steven thinks the biggest mistake aspiring entrepreneurs make is waiting to feel ready. Follow Sammi Cohen on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/sammicohentalks/?hl=en] Subscribe to the Social Currency newsletter [https://socialcurrency.beehiiv.com/]  Check out Whop [https://whop.com/] Here’s what Sammi covers with Steven: 00:00 How Steven Met His Co-Founder at 13 on Facebook 03:15 Building Sneaker Bots as a Teenager 06:00 20+ Side Hustles Before Whop 10:30 Almost Quitting Whop After 3 Months 14:00 What Whop Actually Is 19:00 50,000+ New Users Per Day 22:00 The $1.6 Billion Valuation Explained 25:00 Why Stablecoins Matter for Global Business 29:45 Whop Has Created Hundreds of Millionaires 32:30 Advice for New Entrepreneurs 36:00 AI and the End of the Creator Economy 39:30 What “Agentic Income” Means 41:30 The Company That Tried to Buy Whop 43:00 Why Steven Wants to Redefine Work 46:00 Whop Finance and the Future of Money 50:00 Why Creators Shouldn’t Rely on One Platform Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]