Let’s not just wait for the future to happen. Let’s all play a part in making our towns and cities more alive, creative and engaging.
HOWARD SAUNDERS
@retailfuturist
BLOGS & PODCASTS:
EVERYTHING IS KILLING YOU
My handy go-to guide to help you avoid all the nasty things in life that are clearly colluding to ta…
AI UPDATE
Forget those creative blocks and endless hours sweating over storyboards or chewing your biro at bor…
SILLY-CON VALLEY (AND THE TECH WE DON’T WANT)
Far too often in our rush to embrace innovation we ignore, even trample upon, the very fundamentals …
ESCAPE FROM PROGRESSIVILLE
I had a terrible nightmare last night.
I dreamt I was living in a strange dystopian city called P…
WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
My video Christmas card produced with the help of AI. Song created in Suno, video clips created with…
BEYOND THE MELTDOWN
Deny it if you must, but America is poised to race ahead of sclerotic, over regulated Europe as neve…
BEAUTIFUL BOY
Here’s my latest music video. The song was created using Suno and remixed with Reason. The great thi…
NO SHOES DANCING
AI Text to Video is improving at an incredible rate. This song and the video were created with writt…
WHEN BOTS RULE THE WORLD
“How was your experience coming through security today? I know it was six in the morning and we fo…
ROBO-TED, the movie
It’s the year 2050 and the planet faces complete annihilation. Can Robo-Ted save us?
SPACEBOY, THE MOVIE
No photography, no actors, no scenery, no cameras, no musicians, no production company…just me and…
WFH? WTF!
An opiate has turned us into rudderless drones for whom work is little more than an irritant that in…
THE REVELATION
“Give a man the power to decide who should be allowed to drink lemonade and he will use it.”
NECK ON THE LINE TIME
Let me put my neck on the line and make some pertinent prognostications for the coming year.
I AM THE PERFECT CITIZEN
I am the perfect citizen
I believe in the BBC
Sir David Almighty Attenborough
He’s like a god t…
IN THE FUTURE EVERYTHING WILL BE FAKE
Everything we see, everything we are told will be adjusted, enhanced, exaggerated or just downright …
ALIGHT HERE FOR TOPSY-TURVIA
Whether it’s education, the police, the health service, comedy, the news, sex, history…everythin…
YOU HAVE BEEN HYPER-PROCESSED!
We expect it of our food. We know that, say, a supermarket lasagne has been reconstituted, augmented…
THE INSUFFERABLES
I’m sure you will recognise us. We are the lip syncers and the lycra-clad gym barbies that demand …
REALITY CHECK
So enamoured are we with the future, we wilfully ignore the smirking elephant in the room
CONvenience (AI Edition)
In this fast-paced world of ours, convenience is king. We want everything now, and we want it easy. …
CONvenience
Instead of going to the pub on Friday night, how about I deliver a couple of pints of freshly poured…
AI CHANGES EVERYTHING
Don’t read this blog. Try AI yourself. Go to OpenAI, sign up to ChatGPT and have some fun. You’l…
2042
No one knows what technological advances will be waiting for us in twenty year’s time but we do kn…
WELCOME TO A NEW ERA
Our recent history will be wrapped and labelled soon enough but it sure feels like one almightily hi…
LET’S GO OFF-GRID FOR AUGUST!
One month of digital abstention, Time to shut down our screens for a bit To quell our addiction to o…
SUPERHEROES TO THE RESCUE
Here in the West we may have lost faith in ourselves, but an unlikely gang of superheroes may just h…
THE NUMBERS GAME
MALTHUSIAN MATHEMATICS AND THE BIG MAC Twenty years have passed since I first read Fast Food Nation …
THE NEW VICTORIANS
Have you caught sight of your reflection in the shop window lately, longing to be recognised by your…
DYSTOPIA 2041
ApMan is indispensable, frankly. Obviously you need it to get into a bar, store or a gallery, but no…
WHY I’M BETTER THAN YOU
I may sound arrogant but since everything turned upside down in early 2020 I’ve learnt so much mor…
THE RETAIL RIDE
They’re getting smarter, you must’ve noticed. One minute you’re innocently wiling away a few m…
COVID CULTURE
First signs of infection are a Cheshire cat of a grin and an obsequious tilt of the head.
RETAIL ROLL OF HONOUR
The dark earth smoulders twixt broken bodies strewn
Whilst pale ghosts dance to a deathly tune
Now i…
THE REBOOT
Looking back it was obvious really. Ridiculous rents and rates marching onwards and upwards meant ev…
TEN LOCKDOWN LESSONS FOR LIFE
Lockdown was horrendous but it also forced us to adapt and see things differently. So what are the k…
DEAR BORIS
We need your help urgently, but the good news is we want you to do absolutely nothing. I’m sure yo…
LETTER TO AMERICA
Oh how I worry about you. I worry about your health, your moods, your mind. I worry that your once r…
GOOD NEWS! THE FUTURE WILL BE REALLY MESSY
In troubled times the future gets scarier. Understandably, our visions for the rest of this century …
THE GRINCH WHO STOLE CHRISTMAS
The Grinch hated Christmas and the whole Christmas season And this year, especially, he had a good r…
ARE YOU NON-ESSENTIAL?
I’ve wasted my life. I spent forty years training, learning, practising, reading and ultimately de…
FORGET COVID. THIS IS THE KILLER VIRUS.
I was wrong. I thought that the crescendo of hysteria that’s been festering like a planet sized bo…
THE RISE OF THE MINI TYRANTS
We all know the type. Dress a man in a hi-vis vest, armed with a clipboard and a biro, and you’ve …
YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING
Kids ruin Christmas. It’s not their fault, of course, but as November drags to its drizzly demise …
SHIT SHOPS
London is infested with them: the tacky newsagent with the sponsored fascia that hasn’t seen a soa…
Let’s not just wait for the future to happen. Let’s all play a part in making our towns and cities more alive, creative and engaging.
HOWARD SAUNDERS
@retailfuturist
BLOGS & PODCASTS:
EVERYTHING IS KILLING YOU
My handy go-to guide to help you avoid all the nasty things in life that are clearly colluding to ta…AI UPDATE
Forget those creative blocks and endless hours sweating over storyboards or chewing your biro at bor…SILLY-CON VALLEY (AND THE TECH WE DON’T WANT)
Far too often in our rush to embrace innovation we ignore, even trample upon, the very fundamentals …ESCAPE FROM PROGRESSIVILLE
I had a terrible nightmare last night. I dreamt I was living in a strange dystopian city called P…WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
My video Christmas card produced with the help of AI. Song created in Suno, video clips created with…BEYOND THE MELTDOWN
Deny it if you must, but America is poised to race ahead of sclerotic, over regulated Europe as neve…BEAUTIFUL BOY
Here’s my latest music video. The song was created using Suno and remixed with Reason. The great thi…NO SHOES DANCING
AI Text to Video is improving at an incredible rate. This song and the video were created with writt…WHEN BOTS RULE THE WORLD
“How was your experience coming through security today? I know it was six in the morning and we fo…ROBO-TED, the movie
It’s the year 2050 and the planet faces complete annihilation. Can Robo-Ted save us?SPACEBOY, THE MOVIE
No photography, no actors, no scenery, no cameras, no musicians, no production company…just me and…WFH? WTF!
An opiate has turned us into rudderless drones for whom work is little more than an irritant that in…THE REVELATION
“Give a man the power to decide who should be allowed to drink lemonade and he will use it.”NECK ON THE LINE TIME
Let me put my neck on the line and make some pertinent prognostications for the coming year.I AM THE PERFECT CITIZEN
I am the perfect citizen I believe in the BBC Sir David Almighty Attenborough He’s like a god t…IN THE FUTURE EVERYTHING WILL BE FAKE
Everything we see, everything we are told will be adjusted, enhanced, exaggerated or just downright …ALIGHT HERE FOR TOPSY-TURVIA
Whether it’s education, the police, the health service, comedy, the news, sex, history…everythin…YOU HAVE BEEN HYPER-PROCESSED!
We expect it of our food. We know that, say, a supermarket lasagne has been reconstituted, augmented…THE INSUFFERABLES
I’m sure you will recognise us. We are the lip syncers and the lycra-clad gym barbies that demand …REALITY CHECK
So enamoured are we with the future, we wilfully ignore the smirking elephant in the roomCONvenience (AI Edition)
In this fast-paced world of ours, convenience is king. We want everything now, and we want it easy. …CONvenience
Instead of going to the pub on Friday night, how about I deliver a couple of pints of freshly poured…AI CHANGES EVERYTHING
Don’t read this blog. Try AI yourself. Go to OpenAI, sign up to ChatGPT and have some fun. You’l…2042
No one knows what technological advances will be waiting for us in twenty year’s time but we do kn…WELCOME TO A NEW ERA
Our recent history will be wrapped and labelled soon enough but it sure feels like one almightily hi…LET’S GO OFF-GRID FOR AUGUST!
One month of digital abstention, Time to shut down our screens for a bit To quell our addiction to o…SUPERHEROES TO THE RESCUE
Here in the West we may have lost faith in ourselves, but an unlikely gang of superheroes may just h…THE NUMBERS GAME
MALTHUSIAN MATHEMATICS AND THE BIG MAC Twenty years have passed since I first read Fast Food Nation …THE NEW VICTORIANS
Have you caught sight of your reflection in the shop window lately, longing to be recognised by your…DYSTOPIA 2041
ApMan is indispensable, frankly. Obviously you need it to get into a bar, store or a gallery, but no…WHY I’M BETTER THAN YOU
I may sound arrogant but since everything turned upside down in early 2020 I’ve learnt so much mor…THE RETAIL RIDE
They’re getting smarter, you must’ve noticed. One minute you’re innocently wiling away a few m…COVID CULTURE
First signs of infection are a Cheshire cat of a grin and an obsequious tilt of the head.RETAIL ROLL OF HONOUR
The dark earth smoulders twixt broken bodies strewn Whilst pale ghosts dance to a deathly tune Now i…THE REBOOT
Looking back it was obvious really. Ridiculous rents and rates marching onwards and upwards meant ev…TEN LOCKDOWN LESSONS FOR LIFE
Lockdown was horrendous but it also forced us to adapt and see things differently. So what are the k…DEAR BORIS
We need your help urgently, but the good news is we want you to do absolutely nothing. I’m sure yo…LETTER TO AMERICA
Oh how I worry about you. I worry about your health, your moods, your mind. I worry that your once r…GOOD NEWS! THE FUTURE WILL BE REALLY MESSY
In troubled times the future gets scarier. Understandably, our visions for the rest of this century …THE GRINCH WHO STOLE CHRISTMAS
The Grinch hated Christmas and the whole Christmas season And this year, especially, he had a good r…ARE YOU NON-ESSENTIAL?
I’ve wasted my life. I spent forty years training, learning, practising, reading and ultimately de…FORGET COVID. THIS IS THE KILLER VIRUS.
I was wrong. I thought that the crescendo of hysteria that’s been festering like a planet sized bo…THE RISE OF THE MINI TYRANTS
We all know the type. Dress a man in a hi-vis vest, armed with a clipboard and a biro, and you’ve …YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING
Kids ruin Christmas. It’s not their fault, of course, but as November drags to its drizzly demise …SHIT SHOPS
London is infested with them: the tacky newsagent with the sponsored fascia that hasn’t seen a soa…
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