With No Cars To Sell Ford Wants To Sell You a Non-Fungible Token

Ford’s new way to expand revenue is merch and NFTs. Here’s what that means.

Ford announced today that the company will use its brand strength to sell you things without wheels. Included in these things will be merchandise like clothes and products you don’t even know you need like non-fungible tokens. With chip shortages and a global lack of available battery capacity for EVs meaning empty dealer lots, any company would be crazy not to jump into peripheral revenue generation.

Not sure you may want a Ford non-fungible token? Sure you do. An NFT (non-fungible token) is a digital asset that represents real-world objects like art, music, in-game items, and videos. How can you possibly live another minute without a Ford one of these?

Leading Ford’s movement into the NFT and merch space is Alexandra Ford English, the first female board of directors member at the Ford Motor Company. Ms. Ford English holds a bachelor’s degree in Human Biology with a concentration in the Neurobiology and Physiology of Human Behavior from Stanford University. She also has a master’s degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School. You may have noticed the Ford in her name. She is (coincidentally) the daughter of Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford.

“Anywhere you go around the world, you find passionate Ford fans and we want to offer them an inspiring collection of merchandise and accessories, and potentially even digital products like NFTs,” said English. “I’m so excited for this opportunity to create new ways for people to connect with our brand and grow the business.”

Ford says, and we agree, that Ford’s deep connection to customers and unique place in popular culture provides untapped opportunities for merchandising growth. Ford points out that demand has grown in recent years as Ford has introduced a string of hits such as the new Bronco Sport, Bronco SUV, Mustang Mach-E, and the new Maverick subcompact pickup.

Ford didn’t offer any timeline for the newly expanded portfolio of goods and services the company plans to begin providing. This author is looking forward to ordering a non-fungible coupe with twice pipes lowered to the ground. Just in time for the holidays.

John Goreham is a long-time New England Motor Press Association member and recovering engineer. John's interest in EVs goes back to 1990 when he designed the thermal control system for an EV battery as part of an academic team. After earning his mechanical engineering degree, John completed a marketing program at Northeastern University and worked with automotive component manufacturers, in the semiconductor industry, and in biotech. In addition to Torque News, John's work has appeared in print in dozens of American news outlets and he provides reviews to many vehicle shopping sites. You can follow John on TikTok @ToknCars, on Twitter, and view his credentials at Linkedin