Stay ConnectedOmni Talk Retail provides news, analysis, and commentary on the latest trends and issues in the retail industry. Created by a retailer, Chris Walton, for retailers, Omni Talk Retail covers a wide range of topics related to retail, including e-commerce, technology, marketing, and consumer behavior.
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn – https://podcorn.com/privacy
Copyright: © All rights reserved
In this Omni Talk Retail interview, recorded live from the Global DIY Summit 2026 in Amsterdam, Chris Walton sits down with Curtis Smith, Executive Director of the Do it Best Foundation and True Value Foundation, to discuss the role of community impact in the future of retail.
Curtis shares the story behind Do it Best's acquisition of True Value, how the combined organization has expanded to roughly 9,000 locations across 60 countries, and what it takes to merge two philanthropic organizations into one unified mission.
The conversation explores how retailers can create meaningful impact beyond selling products, why community investment remains a competitive advantage, and how business leaders can balance growth, efficiency, and social responsibility in a rapidly changing world.
Most importantly, Curtis offers a powerful reminder to leaders attending the Global DIY Summit: every business ultimately serves people, and lasting success comes from creating value both inside and outside the store.
• The Do it Best acquisition of True Value and its impact on the organization
• Combining two foundations under one mission
• Building stronger communities through retail philanthropy
• Why retailers should think beyond products and transactions
• Lessons from supporting more than 150 nonprofit organizations
• The challenge of scaling charitable impact across markets
• How business growth and community investment work together
• The role of social responsibility in modern retail leadership
• Why the DIY industry naturally attracts people-first leaders
• Curtis Smith's message to executives on purpose, people, and legacy
Thank you to Vusion for supporting Omni Talk Retail's live coverage from the Global DIY Summit 2026 in Amsterdam.
Welcome to Omni Talk's Retail Daily Minute, sponsored by Duvo and Mirakl.
In today's Retail Daily Minute, Omni Talk's Chris Walton discusses:
The Retail Daily Minute has been rocketing up the Feedspot charts, so stay informed with Omni Talk's Retail Daily Minute, your source for the latest and most important retail insights.
Welcome to Omni Talk's Retail Daily Minute, sponsored by Duvo and Mirakl.
In today's Retail Daily Minute, Omni Talk's Chris Walton discusses:
The Retail Daily Minute has been rocketing up the Feedspot charts, so stay informed with Omni Talk's Retail Daily Minute, your source for the latest and most important retail insights.
In this 5 Insightful Minutes episode, Tomáš Čupr, Co-Founder and CEO of duvo.ai and CEO of the Rohlik Group, joins Omni Talk live from Shoptalk Europe to discuss why retailers need to rethink how they approach AI adoption.
Drawing from his experience building duvo.ai while leading one of Europe's largest online grocers, Tomáš explains why AI shouldn't be viewed as a replacement for people, but as a way to eliminate the manual, repetitive work that drains productivity and leaks value across organizations. He also shares why retailers need to move faster, stop waiting for perfectly clean data, and focus on solving real operational pain points today.
Key Topics Covered:
• Why retail employees spend too much time acting as "human APIs" between disconnected systems
• How AI can eliminate repetitive tasks and unlock employee capacity
• Why retailers shouldn't wait for perfect data before deploying AI
• The risks of lengthy AI roadmaps and multi-year transformation strategies
• Why successful AI implementations work alongside existing systems like SAP and existing ERPs
• The importance of designing AI for both people and agents, rather than replacing entire workforces
• How duvo.ai helps retailers automate messy processes in just a few weeks
• Why Tomáš believes retailers should focus on solving today's problems instead of planning for a future that may never arrive
• How his experience leading both duvo.ai and the Rohlik Group shapes a practical approach to enterprise AI adoption
🎧 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more retail insights from the leaders shaping the future of commerce!
#AIinRetail #RetailAI #ShoptalkEurope #duvoai #Rohlik #RetailTechnology #DigitalTransformation #RetailOperations #EnterpriseAI #ArtificialIntelligence #OmniTalk #RetailPodcast
Sponsored Content
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five Lightning Round segment closes out the show with summer travel recommendations, lifelong sports loyalties, and the retail leaders Chris Walton and Chap Achen would most love to spend time with.
Chris and Chap discuss why Europe tops their summer bucket lists, from iconic destinations to the experiences they believe everyone should have at least once. They also bond over the emotional roller coaster that comes with being Minnesota Vikings fans and what keeps them coming back season after season despite the heartbreak.
The conversation rounds out with a look at the retail innovators and executives they'd most want to sit down with today, offering insight into the leaders shaping the future of the industry—and the questions they'd be eager to ask them.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#LightningRound #OmniTalkRetail #Vikings #MinnesotaVikings #SummerTravel #EuropeTravel #RetailLeadership #RetailPodcast #FastFive #RetailNews
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment explores The Mall, a startup attempting to create a universal shopping feed across thousands of brands.
Chris Walton and Chap Achen debate whether consumers actually want a new discovery platform, what makes shopping different from streaming, and why the biggest players may already be solving this problem.
The conversation also examines what this idea reveals about the future of retail discovery—and why becoming the "Spotify of shopping" may be easier said than done.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#TheMall #RetailTechnology #Ecommerce #ShoppingApps #ProductDiscovery #RetailInnovation #RetailNews #ConsumerTrends #AI #OmniTalk
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment explores Amazon's latest AI-powered visual search features and what they reveal about the future of shopping.
Chris Walton and Chap Achen discuss whether shoppers want to search using aesthetics instead of keywords, how discovery is evolving, and why visual commerce could reshape customer expectations.
The conversation also examines the risks that come with AI-generated recommendations and whether these new experiences will actually improve conversion.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#Amazon #VisualSearch #AI #RetailTechnology #Ecommerce #ProductDiscovery #ArtificialIntelligence #RetailInnovation #RetailNews #OmniTalk
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment explores New York's proposed legislation aimed at limiting AI-powered personalized pricing.
Chris Walton and Chap Achen discuss the fine line between personalization and surveillance pricing, why retailers should tread carefully, and how AI can still enhance the customer experience without eroding trust.
The conversation also highlights the growing regulatory questions surrounding AI in commerce and whether retailers can balance innovation with consumer confidence.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#AI #DynamicPricing #Personalization #RetailTechnology #RetailNews #ArtificialIntelligence #CustomerExperience #RetailStrategy #Commerce #OmniTalk
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment explores Amazon's expansion of same-day grocery delivery in the UK and what it could mean for the future of grocery retail.
Chris Walton and Chap Achen discuss why the UK grocery market presents unique challenges, whether Amazon can steal share from established players, and why omnichannel execution remains critical.
The conversation also examines how delivery expectations continue to evolve around the world.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#Amazon #GroceryDelivery #AmazonFresh #RetailNews #Omnichannel #Ecommerce #RetailTechnology #SupplyChain #RetailStrategy #OmniTalk
This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment explores Walmart's move into restaurant delivery by bringing Subway sandwiches directly to customers through its app.
Chris Walton and Chap Achen discuss why this expansion is about much more than sandwiches, how Walmart's fulfillment infrastructure continues to evolve, and why Uber Eats and DoorDash should be paying close attention.
The conversation also examines how delivery convenience, basket size, and even drone capabilities could help Walmart strengthen its competitive advantage.
⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/BYxUBG-sSTQ
#Walmart #Subway #FoodDelivery #LastMileDelivery #RetailInnovation #RetailNews #SupplyChain #WalmartPlus #OmniChannel #OmniTalk
Our TOPPODCAST Picks 
