The merchants princes of yesteryear will soon abdicate their thrones to a whole new breed of expertise -- the social media influencer. Social media has forever changed the relationship between product and distribution, and the pace of change is only about to accelerate. Prior to the rise of e-commerce and social media, physical retail stores were the only game in town, and the so-called “merchant princes” acted as the gate keepers. Similarly, Kylie Jenner weaponized her family name and became the youngest self-made billionaire ever through social media. All of which is a story that gets even more interesting when you apply this same thought exercise to the physical retail world as well.

Source: Forbes May 17, 2019 21:33 UTC