Press here to shift your coat's gravity
- Thanks for joining me. Juggling gifts for a double birthday is always a struggle.
- No worries. I owe you one.
- I hope we can still grab a bite later. Let's start here.
Soft Morse-code-like beeps greet them as they step through the automated doors. The dimly lit room is plastered floor to ceiling with a mosaic of screens, casting a weirdly comforting glow over the concrete walls.
- What's with all the screens?
She grins.
- This store sells vintage datasets.
- Wait, vintage what? Can't he just use synthetic data like everyone else?
- Why write with a fountain pen when you can share your thoughts and describe the output to your assistant? The birthday boy collects vintage datasets to model weather sims for research contests. They require all data to be 100% organically generated.
- When I agreed to join you, I wouldn't have guessed we would be shopping for free-range data points.
She smiles and asks the shop louder than necessary.
- Hi, I'm looking for ship journal logs. The older, the better.
The shop replies with a warm, meticulously polite voice trained on thousands of shop assistants.
- Good afternoon! What budget are we looking at so that I can properly assist you through our exclusive collections today?
- I was hoping to make it within twelve hundred.
- Let me show you our latest arrivals.
Seasonal product selection on the wallscreen in front of them transforms into pages of a handwritten ship log overlayed with data annotations and infographic explainers. The store continues.
- We have this beauty. Last month, the crews laying new ocean cables discovered this 18th-century ship log on a shipwreck.
- How much is it?
- Depends on the storage option. Am I correct in assuming it's a gift?
- Yes, it's my partner's birthday.
- I have it on a biomemory card for such a special occasion.
- Sounds perfect. He won't stop talking about DNA encoding.
- That will be 980.
- I'll take it. Can I have it gift-wrapped?
- Certainly. Shall I mask the transaction for your partner's surprise?
- Yes. Fragmenting, please.
She waves her palm to confirm the transaction, and numbers start dancing on the screen. Once the store and her money assistant agree on the composition of mixed currency payment, the terminal flips, opening a container where a stainless steel cylinder appears. She takes the metallic gift box, tucks it into her bag, and they leave the store.
- Thanks for choosing RetroVault, your source for 100% authentic, organic data. Until next time!
They step back into the street, joining the crowd.
- One down, on the go.
- Thank you. That was… educational.
She winks.
- Wait until I take you to my daughter's favourite store.
- What's next on our list?
- A gravity coat. All teenagers want one nowadays.
- What's so special about it?
She explains, gesticulating enthusiastically.
- It’s made of electromorphing fabric. With a twist of a dial, it mimics the gravity of different planets, making the coat stretch and float as if you were on Jupiter or the Moon.
- Another space IP product? It's not a coincidence that every store these days looks like an art gallery or a science museum.
The crowd thickens around them slowly as they stop at the crossing, waiting for the streetlight to change.
- Yup. Making space tech consumer-friendly was a brilliant move. Introduce tax incentives for space bonds issued by space agencies, allow agencies to profit from their inventions to pump up their budgets and make crazy returns. Suddenly, everyone wants a piece of the cosmos, and getting the coolest, high-value-added stuff into people's hands fast keeps the excitement and funding alive.
Her friend signs a catchy jingle, attracting a few stares.
- Space-tek makes our dreams con-nect.
She chuckles.
- What? Those government ads are everywhere.
The light turns green, and they start walking again.
- We always dream of futures filled with big-ticket items like spaceships, flying cars, or jetpacks, but get the ones furnished with cheaper gadgets, better medicines, and fancy fabrics.
- The challenge with compounding progress is that we want to dream big but can only work on small incremental changes.
They stop at a window display where mechatronic mannequins showcase shape-shifting clothes. After entering the store, they escape loud electronic music by taking an escalator to the dressing rooms on the first floor.
- Do we know what we are looking for?
- Yes, I already booked a dressing room with everything I want to try on, so we won't waste any time. I'm starving, and I hope we can still enjoy a quick lunch later.
They walk through the store's floor packed with shoppers playing with machines showing the properties of different clothes and enter the lounge. The shopping assistant appears on the wallscreen.
- Hi, I have a dressing room booked for 1:45.
- Mrs Aoki? It's room number 11. The coats are ready for you.
Entering the dimly lit dressing room, they are surrounded by the lunar panorama glowing softly on the wallscreen in the oval room. Shadows flicker gently on colourful coats hanging on a rolling garment rack between two astrobubbly armchairs.
- Ahh, thank you for your time. I hate shopping alone.
She slips into the cool red and smooth fabric.
- Do you share the same size with your daughter?
- She's two sizes smaller, but I wanted to see those colours in real life.
When she zips the coat, her reflection appears on the lunar surface before them.
- Do you want to try one as well?
- Sure, why not?
- Wait until you feel it. Try this one.
She helps her wear the white coat, which is surprisingly lighter than anticipated.
- It suits you. Press here to shift your coat's gravity.
Her friend sets the dial to the “Moon” label, and the coat immediately starts floating around her as if defying gravity. They watch the fabric sway weightlessly.
- Wow, this feels a-m-a-z-i-n-g.
- It's hard to explain, but now you see why it's all the rage. You look so gorgeous in it. You should get one as well.
- Thanks. I'll stick with my current one. It stores 100 patterns, and I'm not too fond of single-colour things.
She waves to summon their shopping assistant to the wall screen.
- I'll take the red one in size M.
- Would you like it privacy-wrapped?
She winks.
- Absolutely. It's a surprise, after all.
As they finalise the purchase, she glances at her watch.
- Lunch?
- I thought you'd never ask.
Hello Practical Futurists,
Welcome back from the future, where space industries made shopping exciting again and data modelling turned into a competitive sport.
If you enjoyed this story, hit the heart-shaped “Like” button at the top or bottom of this page. It’s great feedback and helps others find it.Let's dive into our weekly workout, where we use futures thinking and product sci-fi to build a future-proof mindset. Start with this quote for extra inspiration:
"It's a rare gift, to know where you need to be, before you've been to all the places you don't need to be.”
Ursula K. Le Guin
As always, we begin by connecting the story to your personal life, making it more relatable.
Personal life reflection prompts
How do you approach gift-giving in an era of rapidly evolving and often intangible products?
When was the last time someone's company positively changed a mundane chore into a shared experience? What made it so special?
What role does nostalgia play in your relationship with technology?
Which 2 strategies do you rely on to mitigate tension between pursuing transformative goals and appreciating incremental, everyday progress?
How would you explain the value of continuous incremental improvement to a six-year-old?
Excellent work!
We're now ready to shift our focus to the context of the industry, organisation, team, service, or product you're working with.
Professional life reflection prompts
How do you communicate incremental improvements to the team as part of a bigger vision, knowing it may take a very long time to materialise?
What are the best two ways to manage inflated expectations?
In what two ways could an immersive customer experience improve the decision-making process in your industry?
What 3 opportunities might result from government agencies being able to profit from their inventions in your sector?
If resources weren’t a problem, how would you better incentivize behaviours that could lead to compounding progress in your team?
Which 2 types of internal data could your organisation try to monetise on the market? What operational challenges might you face in sourcing, digitizing, and legally distributing such datasets?
That’s everything we have for today. You did amazing!
Thank you for expanding your imagination with us. Leaders with bold ideas move our world forward.
Think bright, lead brighter, and see you soon.
Pawel Halicki
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