Art of Supply

Epizode

• 
  Inside the Rise of Cargo Theft W/ Keith Lewis 17.09.2026 29min

  "I want your phone numbers, I want your internet domain, I want everything, your PO box, everything. Now I've become you." - Keith Lewis, Vice President of Operations at Verisk CargoNet A purchased MC (motor carrier) number, sometimes bought for as little as $5,000, can turn a stranger into a fully credentialed trucking company overnight. It can make them look trustworthy enough that you hand them a truckload full of valuable inventory. Keith Lewis, Vice President of Operations at Verisk CargoNet, spent 26 years in law enforcement before joining CargoNet's crime analyst unit, and in this episode he walks Kelly Barner through how cargo theft has evolved from truck-stop break-ins into an organized, border-spanning business chasing the highest-value freight in the network. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Keith and Kelly explore: - Why a single load bound for an AI data center can be worth $20 to $30 million — and how that's changed what thieves target - How purchased MC numbers and misdirected loads let criminals become "legitimate" carriers in a matter of days - Why a $400,000 lobster theft and a $400,000 copper theft have completely different endings - Why most stolen freight is never recovered, and the one document that determines whether it can be Links: Keith Lewis on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keith-lewis-08b55817/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  Detroit can build it, but can Detroit source it? 10.09.2026 18min

  "We are on borrowed time." - Army Major General John Ferrari On July 20th, President Trump signed an executive order making it dramatically harder for defense contractors to buy critical materials from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. Seven days later, the U.S. Army handed Ford and GM prototype contracts to build a new heavy infantry squad vehicle on the theory that Detroit can build trucks faster and cheaper than the traditional defense industrial base. Nobody has explained how the new restrictions and speed expectations are supposed to work at the same time. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: - What the U.S. Army asked Ford and GM for and what the new sourcing rules now forbid them from buying to build it - Why a bomber plant outside Ypsilanti is the most useful data point in this story, and why the lesson everyone takes from it is backwards - The second rulebook already two years into the same experiment that might give us an early look at what to expect here   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  Foreign-Trade Zones in a 20 Percent Tariff Environment 03.09.2026 38min

  "When the government starts collecting money as a tax, they don't normally give it back." — Curtis Spencer, CEO, IMS Worldwide For most of the last sixty years, the average U.S. tariff rate was two and a half percent. Duty was a rounding error, and import networks got designed accordingly.  Curtis Spencer, CEO of IMS Worldwide, says the floor is now 20 percent, and plenty of importers are still treating that like weather that will pass. He has spent more than four decades in foreign-trade zones. When he started, the United States had twelve of them. Customs is about to issue number 302. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner and Curtis Spencer discuss: - Why the business case for an FTZ went from 2- or 3-to-1 to 10-to-1 without the paperwork getting any harder -  What "substantial transformation" means now that customs is chasing country of origin into second- and third-tier suppliers -  The 1 percent of cases where a bonded warehouse beats a zone, and how to tell whether you are in it Links: Curtis Spencer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curtis-spencer-0a553010/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  The $604 Million Freight Broker Liability Verdict 27.08.2026 18min

  "C.H. Robinson does not employ drivers." - C.H. Robinson Chief Legal Officer Dorothy Capers This May, two courts drew a new line for freight brokerage liability. The U.S. Supreme Court stripped brokers of a federal defense they had leaned on for years. The Texas Supreme Court turned around and told Home Depot it wasn't liable for a fatal crash involving a carrier hauling its freight. Two companies, both a step removed from the truck. Opposite outcomes. The difference came down to control. And then, in July, a separate jury found that C.H. Robinson might be responsible for the actions of a driver that did not work for them, but a carrier they hired. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner covers: - Why a jury decided the driver was C.H. Robinson's "borrowed employee," and how that turned 23% of the blame into 68% of the bill - What protected Home Depot, and how fast that protection disappears -  Why the industry's response could pull carriers out of the market you buy from, concentrating volume and raising prices Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  What "Dignity of Work" Means for Supply Chain Operations W/ Robert Martichenko 20.08.2026 41min

  "You know, Robert, I have no expectation to ever be happy at work. I just hope to be a little less miserable."  That's the line from a restaurant server that Robert Martichenko, board chair of TrailPath Workplace Solutions and founder of the lean consultancy LeanCore, can't shake.  Operational supply chain roles aren't easy, but that doesn't mean it isn't possible for people to find dignity in their work. Hoping to be less miserable one day at a time does little for individual frontline workers, and it does even less for the company that employs them and the customers they serve. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Robert and Kelly Barner dig into what dignity means in the workplace, and why it is not the same thing as respect: - Why "respect for people" is the wrong frame, and what dignity actually requires - The four states TrailPath's research finds people in at work — and why nearly half of most workforces are declining or surviving, not growing or thriving - What the second law of thermodynamics has to do with your supply chain, and why chasing unit cost quietly cost procurement its relationships   Links: Robert Martichenko on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertmartichenko/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  The $285,000 Electric Truck Nobody Can Find 13.08.2026 16min

  In December of 2025, a $285,000 Windrose Technology electric semi-truck went missing. It still has not been found.  Reportedly, two mechanics who kept it running, Travis Waite and Harold Keller, left Windrose Technology owed a combined $91,000 in back wages, and (according to the company) are holding the truck until they are paid. That's not the strangest thing about Windrose Technology. It's just the most dramatic. Windrose is a Chinese-founded, Belgium-headquartered electric truck startup. It was founded in 2022 by Wen Han, a 36-year-old Stanford MBA and all-around colorful character.  By most independent accounts, the truck itself is good, but that does little to explain the public disputes with former employees.  Is this a well-engineered truck buried under a chaotic company with an eccentric founder or a company whose chaos is a preview of what may happen when production has to scale? In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: - Why a $285,000 electric truck is currently sitting somewhere nobody at Windrose can find, and why the two guys who allegedly know where it is aren't telling - How a truck built in China ended up with a VIN that says it was made in Georgia, and what that suggests about trucking safety compliance's dependence on the honor system - Why Nikola's pardoned, convicted founder made a lowball offer for the company, and why that story gets a lot more complicated once you see the actual trucks Windrose has on the road in Texas and Chile   Links: Troubling Times for Electric Trucking: https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-troubling-times-for-electric-trucking  Why is nobody talking about China's new supply chain regulations?: https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-why-is-nobody-talking-about-chinas-new-supply-chain-regulations  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  CMA CGM and FedEx Supply Chain: The Deal Behind the Deal 06.08.2026 17min

  "FedEx is not simply selling an asset, it is trading a warehousing unit for a deeper transportation relationship with one of the world's largest container lines, which is a smarter reallocation than a straight divestiture." — Bruno Digital FedEx just sold its Supply Chain unit to CMA CGM for $1.4 billion. It sold for the same price FedEx paid for the same business, under a different name, back in 2015.  But FedEx didn't just sell an operating unit. They also entered into a larger agreement for ocean and air cargo that highlights some interesting trends in global logistics. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: - What the $1.4 Billion deal includes, and the multi-year ocean and air cargo agreements worth an estimated $3.5 Billion that are riding along with it - Why U.S. law would make it impossible for CMA CGM to ever buy FedEx outright - Whether CMA CGM's growing air cargo fleet is competition for FedEx, or something else entirely   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/ Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  Checkbox Supply Chain Compliance Just Got a Lot More Expensive 30.07.2026 44min

  "AI will never replace that human judgment. And the number one reason for that is responsibility." — Elisar Nurmagambet, Co-Founder and CEO, Tesari AI When Meta acquired the Chinese AI agent startup Manus for roughly $2 Billion, the due diligence looked clean.   Four months later, China's government blocked the deal and ordered it unwound.  Elisar Nurmagambet, Co-Founder and CEO of Tesari AI, and Brian Andersen, their Vice President of National Security Applications, join Kelly Barner to explain why the compliance model most companies still run on wasn't built for this moment, and why some of the sharpest early-warning signals in global trade never show up in a standard database at all.  In this episode Elissar and Brian discuss: - Why "checkbox compliance" has become a board-level, CEO-level liability - What a government-licensed social media influencer in China revealed about the Meta-Manus deal, months before it collapsed - Why "substance over form" now determines whose jurisdiction your supply chain falls under, regardless of where an entity is legally registered - The investigative mindset that supply chain professionals have to develop to succeed in today's challenging conditions   Links: Elisar Nurmagambet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissarn/  Brian Andersen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tbrianandersen/  Tesari AI: https://www.tesari.ai  National Security Starts in the Supply Chain (AOS, Ep 211): https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-national-security-starts-in-the-supply-chain  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  All Forecasts Are Wrong W/ Michael Murray 23.07.2026 30min

  "Just-in-time inventory is great when it's working, but when it stops working, it's a huge disaster because you don't have material staged and you don't have strategic reserves." — Michael Murray, Senior Director of Global Supply Chain, DSV Inventory Management Solutions For most of the 2000s, the mandate in manufacturing was lean: hold less, order just-in-time, and keep working capital off the balance sheet. Then came a string of shocks: COVID, the Suez Canal blockage, and a global chip shortage.  All of a sudden, just-in-time started looking more like just-in-trouble. Companies swung hard toward just-in-case, stockpiling inventory as insurance against the next disruption. Michael Murray, Senior Director of Global Supply Chain at DSV Inventory Management Solutions, isn't ready to declare just-in-time dead.  In this episode of Art of Supply, Michael joins Kelly Barner to talk about the cost challenges that can result when inventory is managed reactively:  - Why the pendulum keeps swinging between just-in-time and just-in-case - Why trade policy is becoming a bigger driver of inventory strategy than COVID ever was - How a consolidated VMI model changes the math for OEMs, and why suppliers may be harder to convince than CFOs   Links: Michael Murray on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mp-murray/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  182,000 Pounds of Nectarines Too Valuable to Sell 16.07.2026 17min

  Earlier this month, thousands of people descended on a small orchard in California's Central Valley to receive free nectarines. The crowds became so large that the California Highway Patrol temporarily shut the event down because of traffic and safety concerns. At first glance, it looked like a feel-good story—a farmer sharing his harvest with the community. But that wasn't the whole story. Third-generation farmer Cesar Mora says he gave away more than 100,000 pounds of nectarines because he couldn't sell them. The fruit wasn't spoiled. There wasn't a bumper crop that overwhelmed demand. The giveaway stemmed from a legal dispute over who controls the right to market and sell a specific variety of nectarine. This story raises questions about intellectual property, exclusive supply agreements, and market access. It also demonstrates that sometimes the biggest supply chain constraint isn't producing something, it's having permission to sell it. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: - How proprietary fruit varieties became valuable intellectual property. - Why one California farmer says he had no choice but to give away his crop. - The legal dispute over contracts, exclusivity, and commercialization rights.   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  The Ships Are Lying About Where They Are 09.07.2026 18min

  Imagine seeing one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world almost empty, before realizing that it isn't empty at all. The ships are still there, but the data has disappeared. Analysts monitoring the Strait of Hormuz have watched vessels vanish only to reappear someplace else hours later. Others appear to be sailing across inland airports or drifting through the Iranian desert.  The Automatic Identification System (AIS) has quietly become part of the information infrastructure that global trade depends on.  So what happens when one of the world's most trusted sources of maritime information can no longer be accepted at face value? In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner breaks down why the tracking system the entire shipping industry runs on can no longer be trusted and who's actually exposed: - Why self-reporting makes AIS, the backbone of global ship tracking, scalable and vulnerable to manipulation  - The difference between the information provided by AIS and other systems like radar and GPS  - Why insurers, commodity traders, and sanctions regulators are all pricing risk off data that may be fictional   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  Stablecoins Have Their Moment in the Real Economy W/ Tanner Taddeo 02.07.2026 30min

  Cross-border payments have long been a game of advantages. Large enterprises get fast settlement, cheap foreign exchange rates, and sophisticated treasury tools, while mid-market companies are left to piece together workarounds through regional banks and costly third-party providers.  Stablecoin infrastructure is changing that equation, offering businesses of all sizes access to the same financial rails that were once reserved for the Fortune 500. The result is faster payments, lower costs, and smarter capital management across global supply chains. Tanner Taddeo is the co-founder and CEO of Stable Sea, a fintech platform helping mid-market businesses move money across borders using stablecoin-based infrastructure. His background spans humanitarian finance, investment banking across Europe and South Asia, the Gates Foundation, and fintech roles at Plaid and Block, all with a consistent focus on expanding financial access for underserved businesses and communities. In this episode of Art of Supply, Tanner and Kelly Barner discuss: - What stablecoins are and why they behave nothing like the volatile cryptocurrencies most people are familiar with - Why mid-market companies have been left behind by the traditional banking system when it comes to global payments and treasury management  - The supplier relationship advantage of faster, cheaper cross-border settlement  - The next frontier in stablecoin adoption, which will turn payment liabilities into yield-generating assets  Links: Tanner Taddeo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanner-taddeo-9b64562a/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  3 Questions We Can't Answer About Amazon LTL 25.06.2026 17min

  On Wednesday, June 10th, Amazon announced that they will now offer full LTL services to anyone.  Before that, LTL was available "inbound only," meaning from Amazon sellers to Amazon facilities to Amazon customers. In their press outreach, the company has touted their 80,000 trailers and 24,000 intermodal containers, as well as improved load visibility and fleet security measures. The response to this announcement was split. Traditional freight carriers like FedEx Freight, Old Dominion, and XPO lost market value, but some analysts have a different take. They are not so sure we should have the reaction we've been conditioned to have when Amazon moves into a new market. At least not yet. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers three big questions looming over this story: - Is Amazon LTL truly functioning as an asset-backed carrier, or are they more of a broker behind a front of assets? - What kinds of shippers will the Amazon LTL service appeal to? - Do Amazon's integrated abilities position them to completely upend how freight works? We can't promise you will get the answer to those questions in this episode, but listeners should walk away with a better understanding of why they matter.   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  The Supply Planning Paradox: Why Bigger Budgets Don't Buy Better Outcomes 18.06.2026 34min

  "Demand planning is the thing which everybody seems to focus on, because it's kind of theoretical. You come up with a forecast and it doesn't really influence anything. It's when you look at the supply side, that's when it becomes real." Most supply chains are supported by investments in demand planning tools, sales and operations planning systems, and MRPs… so why is the supply plan being 'fixed' by a person with a spreadsheet and a hunch? Mark Robinson is the CEO of Orchestr8, an enterprise supply chain planning platform. He has spent more than two decades helping global organizations including Shell, BT, 3M, and Boots improve their supply chain planning performance.  He has always maintained a particular interest in the gap between supply planning theory and the realities of execution - one that AI may just be ready to help bridge. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner and Mark discuss why: -Bigger budgets don't buy better outcomes -Supply planning can't be waved away as a background task -A love of 'firefighting' may be half the problem with supply planning   Links: Mark Robinson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-robinson-3a470211/  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
• 
  Too big to merge? Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Try Again 11.06.2026 17min

  Can a mega merger of peers increase competition in their market? Case in point: the proposed rail merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern. Both are Class I railroads, among the largest by revenue in North America as defined by the Surface Transportation Board. According to a 2001 Surface Transportation Board rule, their merger must enhance competition - but that's not usually how mergers are designed to work, especially among giants. And this is the first rail merger that has to meet that requirement. After some back-and-forth, the Surface Transportation Board "conditionally" accepted the merger application on May 28th, but they are still looking for more information. No review activities will be conducted until that information is provided. In other words: the Surface Transportation Board has accepted the Union Pacific - Norfolk Southern filing, but they have not accepted the information provided in that filing. We'll have to wait to find out if the application is approved based on its merits. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers the proposed merger from multiple angles: - The expectations for increased rail competition and public benefit - How the railways propose to give their non-transcontinental competitors a fighting chance - Whether the Surface Transportation Board and a coalition of opponents think competition is likely Links: One Railroad to Rule Them All? Inside the Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern Merger: https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-one-railroad-to-rule-them-all-inside-the-union-pacific-norfolk-southern-merger  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
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  FedEx Freight's Independence Day 04.06.2026 17min

  On Monday, June 1st, FedEx Freight CEO John Smith rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange to celebrate the fact that the company is now operating (and trading) independently. This story dates back to the summer of 2024, when the idea of separating out FedEx's LTL operating unit was just a very believable rumor. Now they are the largest LTL provider in North America, and what one outlet described as a $9 Billion startup, with 40,000 employees. And yet, for all of the company-led fanfare, the media coverage was… uninspired? With one notable exception that is…  In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers what we know about FedEx Freight's immediate plans for their corporate freedom: - What they plan to focus on as a company, both from a growth standpoint and operationally - Where the company stands on the question of emissions reduction, regulatory changes, and driverless fleets - How soon we might have some idea of how successful they will be   Links: Will FedEx Freight hit the open road? (AOS, December 2024): https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-will-fedex-freight-hit-the-open-road  Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
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  Red Lobster's Comeback Gamble 28.05.2026 17min

  Endless Shrimp is BACK at Red Lobster… a headline few people in the business world would have predicted.  The promotion played an over-hyped role in the company's 2024 bankruptcy filing, mostly because it was easier to explain than a bad real estate leaseback deal led by investors at the time – the actual cause of Red Lobster's financial trouble. Their new CEO, Damola Adamolekun, is best known for leading the turnaround at P.F. Chang's and was handpicked by Fortress Investment Group, the investors that bought Red Lobster out of bankruptcy. In November 2024, Adamolekun told Today he had ended the Endless Shrimp promotion "Because I know how to do math." And yet… six weeks before the end of the company's fiscal year… it looks like their best hope. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner looks back at Red Lobster: - How much progress the company has made since their bankruptcy - The cost pressures, both internal and external, they are struggling to overcome - And the impact a media-savvy CEO has been able to have on restaurant traffic   Links: Ultimate Endless Real Estate Costs at Red Lobster https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-ultimate-endless-real-estate-costs-at-red-lobster Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/  Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193  Art of Supply on AOP: http://www.artofsupply.com  Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe   
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  Why is nobody talking about China's new supply chain regulations? 21.05.2026 20min

  China's new supply chain regulations may be one of the biggest global trade and sourcing stories that almost nobody is talking about. Decree 834 and 835 quietly took effect - immediately - on April 7th and 13th. If China decides to enforce them, they could fundamentally change how multinational companies approach sourcing, reshoring, compliance, and supplier diversification. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner breaks down China's newly enacted Decrees 834 and 835 — regulations designed to protect Chinese industrial and supply chain security, while potentially penalizing companies that attempt to diversify away from China. Listen to discover: - What China's Decrees 834 and 835 mean for Western (and China-owned) businesses - Why reshoring and China +1 strategies may now carry new risks - How companies could become trapped between conflicting U.S., EU, and Chinese regulations - Why ordinary supplier due diligence and compliance audits may now face additional scrutiny - The growing concern over "extraterritorial" enforcement and China's expanding economic leverage - Potential penalties ranging from market restrictions to sanctions on individuals Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-barner-6884443/ Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/art-of-supply-6895142546301960193 Art of Supply on AOP: https://artofsupply.com Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter: https://resources.artofprocurement.com/art-of-procurement-podcast-subscribe 
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  Consumption Challenges at Boston Beer Company 14.05.2026 20min

  During the pandemic, some buyers and suppliers made aggressive bets about the future.  Demand was surging, capacity was constrained, and everyone worried more about shortages than oversupply. For a while, it looked like the logic was sound, but now one of those agreements has turned into a $175.5 Million jury verdict. Boston Beer Company (through its subsidiary American Craft Brewery) has been found liable in a dispute with their supplier Ardagh Metal Packaging over minimum can purchase requirements. The contracts that offer safety during times of scarcity can quickly become liabilities when markets normalize. Companies increasingly have to navigate both realities at the same time. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers:  - The background of the Ardagh Metal Packaging and Boston Beer Company dispute  - Why pandemic-era supply assumptions created long-tail contractual risk  - The legal arguments around minimum purchase commitments and supplier quality claims  - What this case teaches us about flexibility, forecasting, and commercial risk allocation   Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter  Art of Supply on AOP Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter
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  Social Value as Strategy in Public Sector Procurement W/ Guy Battle 07.05.2026 38min

  "We have seen a transformation between the public sector and the private sector in terms of their relationship. We've seen enormous change in this country." - Guy Battle, CEO of Social Value Portal The U.K. Social Value Act of 2012 requires all public sector buyers to ask suppliers how much their business will contribute to the community if they win the work up for bidding. It has not just become a differentiator among supplier proposals, it has shifted how the government is awarding its contracts. Contributions to social value are now being included in the award process alongside cost and quality. Guy Battle is the CEO of the Social Value Portal, and the author of a recent article published in the Journal of Public Procurement: "Social value as a lever for achieving value for money and community outcomes in procurement." He describes social value as a business's answer to the question: How do you contribute to our environment, support the local community, and bolster the local economy? In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Guy discusses social value with Kelly Barner in the context of: The longer term corporate social responsibility (CSR) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) movement Current regulations, and how they started a shift that has moved beyond compliance What has been required to allow social value to build momentum and achieve scale How public sector policy can drive change across the private sector supply base   Links: Guy Battle on LinkedIn JoPP Article: Social value as a lever for achieving value for money and community outcomes in procurement Kelly Barner on LinkedIn Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter  Art of Supply on AOP Subscribe to the Art of Procurement Newsletter