Why do so many famous men have alcohol brands? Welcome back to The Checkout Podcast, where we break down the latest in eCommerce, brand building, and digital culture—with a little chaos along the way. In this episode, we get into: 💥 Why every famous guy has an alcohol brand (The Rock, Ryan Reynolds, Kevin Hart—what’s the deal?) 💥 The rise of cannabis beverages and new mind-altering brands 💥 AI in eCommerce—will it replace human jobs or just make brands more efficient? 💥 The fraud problem nobody talks about: chargebacks, scams, and fake refunds 💥 Agency drama: When should agencies take credit for a brand's success? 📢 Featuring: 🚀 Zoe Kahn - CEO of The Inevitable Agency, early team member at Ghost & Chomps 👕 Bart Szaniewski - Co-founder of Dad Gang, eCommerce veteran ⚡ Nick Shackelford - Partner and Head of Retention at Brez and a serial entrepreneur 🎤 John Coyle - Typical white guy who talks a lot and thinks others MUST want to hear his opinions. ⚡ Subscribe for more eCommerce insights, brand breakdowns, and unfiltered takes! 📢 Follow us on social media: Nick Shackelford Twitter/X: https://x.com/iamshackelford LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickshackelford/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamnickshackelford/ Zoe Kahn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_zoekahn_/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-kahn-5b61aa129/ Twitter/X: https://x.com/_zoekahn_ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ZoeKahn Bart Szaniewski Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theszef/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bart-szaniewski-374b1141/ Twitter/X: https://x.com/TheSzef John Coyle YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@johnjhcoyle Twitter/X: https://x.com/johnjhcoyle Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnjhcoyle/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-coyle-1bb231120/ 📩 Business inquiries: john@coyle-enterprises.com Chapters:  00:00 - Welcome to The Checkout Podcast 🎙️ 02:15 - Meet the crew: Who’s on today’s episode? 05:45 - Why do all famous men have an alcohol brand? 10:20 - Alcohol, cannabis, and mind-altering brands: What’s next? 14:50 - The LTV advantage of vice brands vs. other categories 18:35 - Why female celebrities lean toward beauty & wellness brands 22:10 - The psychology behind celebrity brand loyalty 27:05 - Can non-celebrities still win in alcohol & beauty? 30:45 - The cannabis beverage boom & market opportunity 36:00 - eCommerce fraud: The problem nobody talks about 41:30 - Chargebacks, customer scams, and fraud prevention tools 45:15 - AI-powered agents in customer service: Game changer or overhyped? 50:55 - The future of AI in marketing & media buying 55:40 - The Vessi agency drama: When should agencies claim credit? 01:02:15 - Do agencies really help brands scale, or just take credit? 01:08:45 - AI’s impact on eCommerce jobs—will it replace humans? 01:15:30 - When AI starts making purchase decisions for consumers 01:21:55 - Could AI change how we buy everything online? 01:28:20 - Final thoughts & wrap-up