AI won’t grout your cracks 🏡

Last week, I went hard on the divide between agencies and how they’re approaching AI. This week? Let’s give the retailers a little love.

While it’s easy to get swept up in the hype of AI, something happened this week that reminded me - forget AI vs non-AI for a second - the gap between those leaning into the future and those still struggling with the basics is just as grim.

On Wednesday night, I hosted an Add To Cart + Shopify VIP dinner in Sydney with some past podcast guests and ecommerce leaders. One of them was Drew from TileCloud. I don’t think he’ll mind the shoutout. He had the whole table captivated all night. While I can’t share everything that was discussed, it’s fair to say Drew isn’t just using AI, he’s building his business around it.

He rattled off tools, use cases, workarounds, costs - even the stuff that wasn’t working. He was transparent, curious, and clearly obsessed with how AI could reshape both operations and customer experience. Of all the founders I’ve met recently, he’s one of the furthest down the AI path.

Naturally, I couldn’t let the night pass without an awkward moment. I blurted out that I’d just ordered tiles... but not from TileCloud. I’d gone with Beaumont Tiles, because they were close by and I needed a small order quickly. Just $300 worth, nothing major. Drew didn’t seem offended… to my face.

Anyway, that decision came back to bite me.

My tiler had a last-minute cancellation and told me on Tuesday he could be there Friday. I jumped online straight away, locking in a Thursday click and collect to make sure we had everything ready. The checkout crashed three times. Autofill didn’t work. Payment failed once. But eventually, it went through, and I got a confirmation saying they’d be ready Thursday. A win! Or so I thought.

On Thursday, I got a one-line text email from ‘online sales’ saying the tiles had been shipped. I was in Sydney, so Sarah headed to the local store that afternoon. When she arrived, she was told Click & Collect doesn’t operate after 2pm. The dock was closed. Oh, and we should’ve called ahead a couple of hours in advance, just to check the order was ready. Good to know. Not ideal, but fine. We’d go back Friday morning at 7am, just before the tiler arrived.

Friday rolls around. Sarah returns at 7am... and is told the tiles aren’t actually there. That email I got? It was meant for internal teams only. Head office handles online orders. The store was a franchise. The tiles had left the warehouse to the store, but hadn’t arrived yet. We had to cancel the tiler.

And because the universe has a sense of humour, on Thursday night I received a Trustpilot email: “We want to give you a 5-star experience. How did we do?” My fingertips tingled. I left a very honest review, with specific examples. Communication was poor, the experience was clunky, and it felt like stepping ten years back in time. No response for days.

When one finally came through, here’s the full message I received:

And that, my friends, was my Beaumont experience.

So yes, AI is a game-changer. But if your ecommerce basics aren’t sorted - accurate stock info, functioning checkout, reliable communication - then AI should be the least of your worries. The gap between great, good, and below-par ecommerce experiences is only going to get wider.

Cheers,
Bushy

PS. It’s ecommerce school camp next week, Retail Fest on the Gold Coast. Hit me up if you are going. If you’re a retailer, register for our Trivia Night. According to Eventbrite, it’s “going fast'“. It’s going to be lots of bogan fun.

ECOMMERCE NEWS (from the past week)

1. 🔎 Damn you Google. You win again.
   I admit it. I was down on Google and their ability to keep up with AI. But this year’s Google I/O felt like a shot of adrenaline straight into the heart of ecommerce. It could also be a new Bon Jovi song. Between Gemini’s new capabilities, vibe coding, AI-generated video, agentic checkout and virtual try-ons, Google isn’t just improving the shopping journey, it’s rewriting the whole thing. The big shift? Customers may no longer have to do the shopping... just set the parameters and let the bots go to work. I wrote a little something on it that sparked a heap of good convo. If you haven’t got time to get across the full announcement, this piece shows that legacy ecom is just living on a prayer.

2. 😎 Shopify Editions: Welcome to Your AI-Powered Storefront
   Shopify’s Summer 2025 Editions dropped and it’s all about new horizons - literally, that’s what they’re calling it. 150 updates. The headliner is that you can now use AI to generate custom themes and site blocks, making it easier than ever to design without touching code. I’m sure they heard my message about Canva and Gamma coming for them. There’s also big news for POS, B2B, international, and finally... Apple Pay at checkout. No more Shopify Payments workaround. It’s here. Gavin McKew wrote a good post that shows why this little change is a big deal.

3.  🤖 One in Three Aussies Are Using AI to Shop
   According to a new Adyen report, one in three Australian shoppers are already using AI to guide their purchase decisions. That jumps to nearly half for Millennials and Gen Z. Not exactly surprising, but very handy if you're trying to get AI research and investment over the line internally. If you don’t have an AI line item in your FY26 budget, you are in trouble.

4. ✍️ A Substack To The Future
   Yes, we talk a lot about AI here. But this week, I fell a little bit in love with an old-school medium again: email newsletters. Specifically, how brands like Madewell and American Eagle are using Substack to build deeper, more authentic storytelling. These aren’t mass-blasted promo emails. They’re rich in ultra-cool trends and effortless charm… the opposite of this newsletter. Even if the subscriber base is small, I love this reminder: not all engagement needs to be engineered by algorithms.

5. ✈️ Expedia Turns Reels Into Real Itineraries
   This is clever. Expedia just launched a feature where you can send them a travel Reel on Insta or TikTok, and they’ll analyse it, match it to real locations, and send you a suggested itinerary. It’s a great reminder that you don’t always need to be the content creator, but you can be the enabler. Turn customer curiosity into action and you’re in the game.

Got opinions on the top news stories this week? Join Add To Cart CAMPUS, our free learning community for ecommerce professionals to discuss in our Inspiration Library.

JOIN US FOR TRIVIA AT RETAIL FEST!

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Tickets are $20, which includes entry, drinks and nibbles, with all money going to Thread Together. Thanks to Shippit, impact.com and Fractionus for being our partners for the night!

Retailer tickets are now available - only a handful remain! 🎉

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Nathan Bush is an independent Australian ecommerce transformation consultant, with expertise in marketing, technology, and team leadership. If you're looking for fresh ideas, facing key decisions, or implementing significant investments, I'd love to work with you. Learn more and get in touch.