In this episode of CommerceAI, Ian Jindal speaks with Stephen Dewar, Director of Marketing and AI Transformation at Blackcircles.com, the UK’s leading online tyre retailer and part of the Michelin Group. They explore how a business that turns an anxious, “your money, your life” purchase into a simple, people‑centred journey is weaving AI through every layer of its operations – from customer research and tyre merchandising to internal tooling and board‑level decision‑making. Stephen shares how Blackcircles built its own Nexus platform with 30–40 AI agents, set out a people‑first AI policy, and uses AI to democratise intelligence without compromising privacy or safety. This is a grounded, practitioner’s view of AI transformation in a very real, very physical commerce business. Key themesMaking a stressful purchase simple: Blackcircles was founded to take the complexity and anxiety out of buying tyres by guiding customers from number plate to the right product, backed by strong data and people‑centred service.AI lands with employees before customers: A turning point came when an internal presentation, powered quietly by an AI tool, made the leadership realise AI would reshape how staff, stakeholders and partners work long before it showed up in marketing decks.Customers arrive better briefed: Search behaviour has shifted from “buy tyres” to natural‑language questions like “what are the best tyres for my Volvo,” with customers arriving more informed and conducting research through LLMs and agents before they ever hit the site.A cyborg approach to merchandising: Product selection combines internal tools and AI with human specialists who still override and fine‑tune recommendations for safety‑critical “your money, your life” purchases, boosting both conversion and customer satisfaction.Nexus: internal AI for everyone: Blackcircles built Nexus, a browser‑based internal hub of 30–40 AI modules that any employee can use for tasks ranging from email drafting to legal analysis and financial modelling, sitting safely behind existing security and log‑ins.People, privacy, performance: Their AI adoption is anchored in three pillars – improving people’s work and satisfaction, protecting privacy by keeping PII out of AI systems, and only deploying AI where it genuinely improves performance rather than adding novelty.Boards in an AI age: Stephen argues that boards don’t need to own AI as a function; they need the humility to listen, communicate well, and equip teams with tools and skills, treating AI as a societal shift rather than a niche IT project.Skills for the AI generation: For new joiners and first‑line managers alike, communication (including with AI agents) and critical thinking are the two universal skills that will matter across industries, geographies and roles.Highlights~00:01 – Stephen introduces Blackcircles.com, its Michelin ownership, and how the brand turns a stressful, complex tyre purchase into a simple people‑centred journey.~04:05 – The internal “AI moment”: a staff presentation built with an AI tool triggers the realisation that AI will reshape how employees, not just customers, work.~06:48 – Changing search behaviour and customer research: from “buy tyres” to conversational queries and deeper exploration of product and brand pages.~09:41 – Launching an on‑site conversational agent to both guide customers and learn how they actually ask questions about tyres.~11:34 – A “cyborg” approach to merchandising: blending algorithms with tyre specialists to protect safety and improve accessibility and satisfaction.~16:06 – The three‑pillar AI policy (people, privacy, performance) and why they deliberately keep PII out of AI systems.~18:02 – Introducing Nexus: an internal, browser‑based home for 30–40 AI modules used across departments for writing, research, legal and financial tasks.~23:31 – “The AI age took about 40 minutes”: Stephen on the speed of adoption and why cross‑functional communication matters more than ownership.~29:48 – How leadership and frontline teams are encouraged to “go and play” with AI, leading to a complete redesign of management meetings using Notebook LM.~32:25 – Stephen’s three buckets for AI value – efficiencies, opportunities and innovation – and how AI lets creative people build what they imagine.About the guestStephen Dewar is Director of Marketing and AI Transformation at Blackcircles.com, the UK’s leading online tyre retailer and part of the Michelin Group. He leads all marketing activity – from paid and owned media to how the brand shows up inside large language models – while steering Blackcircles’ AI transformation across departments. With a deep focus on customer data and journey design, Stephen has helped the business blend algorithmic tools with human tyre specialists to improve safety, satisfaction and conversion. He also designs internal AI ...
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35 min