Merchandising, Discovery and AI-driven Commerce

This week Nitin Mangtani joins Bill and I to mix up a delicious C&C bespoke mocktail and give us an update on Salesforce Commerce Cloud, their recent acquisition of Cimulate, and share his point-of-view on agentic commerce, and what the rise of AI-driven agents means for the future of B2B and software as a whole.

Nitin is Executive Vice President of Agentforce Commerce & Retail Cloud at Salesforce, one of the largest and most influential software companies on the planet. Nitin came to Salesforce by way of PredictSpring, a modern POS solution he founded and which Salesforce acquired in 2024. A long-time builder and leader in commerce, Nitin is in a unique position to talk about where agentic commerce and systems are heading - and the practical impacts that will have short-term as well.

We’ve known Nitin for sometime and been looking forward to having him on the show. So pour yourself something to sip along with us and enjoy our great conversation with Nitin.

Cheers!

Episode Chapters:

* Welcome and a deep dive into our bespoke mocktail with Dromme - what it is, what’s in it, and why it actually works.

* Hey Kai! Nitin explains Salesforce in a way Bill’s nine-year-old grandson can understand.

* From founder to EVP: Nitin’s path through commerce — PredictSpring, the Salesforce acquisition, and what drives his passion for commerce.

* Salesforce’s acquisition of Cimulate : the thesis, the timing, and what a CommerceGPT brings into the Commerce Cloud fold.

* Merchant control in the AI era: how brands use AI-driven discovery to tell their story, prioritize assortment, and drive campaigns.

* The Salesforce Commerce Cloud strategic reset: what changed, what it means, and what to pay attention to.

* Agentic commerce from the inside: what Salesforce customers are actually asking for, and where this sits on the priority list right now.

* B2B on the verge. Is B2B about to leapfrog B2C in the agentic world? Procurement agents, selling agents, and the autonomous commerce thesis.

* The SaaSpocalypse: if agents can orchestrate workflows, write software, and interact with systems directly — what happens to the traditional SaaS model?

* Reading the platform market: Solutions coming up-market, slower replatforming cycles, and where Salesforce Commerce goes from here.

* Looking to 2030: What does commerce look like, and what does that mean for the solutions market?

* Nitin’s next mocktail order.

Thanks for listening to C&C! Please subscribe so you don’t miss the next great conversation!

This week’s mocktail: The Calm Before the Storm

The no-and-low alcohol movement has been building for years, and at this point it’s no longer a trend - it’s a genuine shift in how a lot of mindful drinkers approach the glass. At C&C we love exploring NA, so when the opportunity came up to build an episode around a well-crafted mocktail, we wanted to do it right. Enter Dromme Calm.

Dromme Calm is a functional Scandinavian-inspired zero-proof elixir built around a serious functional ingredient stack — adaptogens, nootropics, and anti-inflammatory botanicals. We are talking Ashwagandha for stress response, Lion’s Mane mushroom for anxiety and cognitive support, L-Theanine for calm focus without drowsiness, 5-HTP as a serotonin precursor, Lemon Balm and Valerian Root for nervous system support, and water-soluble Turmeric and Ginger for anti-inflammatory effect. There is also Magnesium Citrate and Hop Essence — which adds a slight bitterness reminiscent of a spirit’s edge, and which carries mild sedative properties of its own. This is not a glass of sparkling water with a lime wedge. This is a bottle of something that has been thought through.

The name “The Calm Before the Storm” felt almost too perfect for a conversation about agentic commerce with someone sitting at the center of it. There is a kind of productive stillness in this moment — the feeling of standing just before something big arrives. The drink captures that. It’s grounding, clean, and surprisingly complex for something with no alcohol in it.

The Dromme Calm carries the body, the coconut water softens and rounds it, the lime juice lifts it, and the agave balances the whole thing. The optional ginger adds a little bite if you want it — and if you swap in honey syrup instead of agave, you get a rounder, more floral sweetness that really opens up the botanical notes in the Dromme.

If you are sober-curious, doing a dry stretch, or just want something interesting in your hand that is both delicious and brings on some relaxation — this is it.

Cheers!

The Calm Before the Storm Mocktail Spec

2 oz. - Dromme Calm zero-proof elixir

3 oz. - Coconut water (fresh or high-quality bottled)

3/4 oz. - Fresh lime juice (freshly squeezed)

1/2 oz. - Agave syrup (or honey syrup — see notes)

Optional: 2–3 thin slices of fresh ginger

Garnish: Lime wheel and a sprig of fresh mint

Steps:

If using ginger, muddle slices gently in the bottom of a shaker or glass. Add the Dromme Calm, coconut water, lime juice, and agave syrup to a shaker with ice. Shake well until chilled. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. Garnish with lime wheel and fresh mint.

Note: If using honey instead of agave: Make a honey syrup by combining honey and warm water at a 2:1 ratio (2 parts honey, 1 part water) and stirring until fully dissolved. Use the same volume as the agave syrup. The honey adds a rounder, floral sweetness that pairs beautifully with the herbal and botanical notes of the Dromme Calm.

Enjoy!

Please share! There is plenty of room for others at the cocktail party! Thank you!

As always, it’s great to have you here! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share, rate (it helps!), and let us know your thoughts. We love to hear from our listeners.

Be well, drink well, and here is to good business! Cheers! - Brian & Bill

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