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S2E10b #NRFLive SPECIAL - Last Mile Delivery Experiences with FarEye Feb 23, 2023

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When you hear, “last mile logistics” in retail, what do you think of? This episode continues our special podcast cross-over series, #NRFLive, with the This Week In Innovation podcast. In Part 2 of the series, hosts Ricardo Belmar and Jeff Roster speak with the CEO and CMO of last mile logistics provider FarEye to learn how they are helping retailers provide the most flexible, efficient, and sustainable delivery experience to their customers while keeping costs down! You’ll also hear some interesting consumer trends on delivery expectations that may surprise you!Jeff and Ricardo recorded this session live, and in-person with Kushal Nahata, CEO, and Judd Marcello, CMO, of FarEye during the NRF 2023 Big Show. Special thanks to our sponsor Avanade for making this series possible by providing an amazing recording space in their NRF lounge.Listen, or watch on YouTube, to see how much Jeff and Ricardo learn from the FarEye team! And regular cohost Casey Golden also joins Ricardo for a quick recap and introduction.News alert! We’ve moved up to #18 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list - please consider giving us a 5-star review in Apple Podcasts! With your help, we’ll move our way up the Top 20! Leave us a review & be mentioned in future episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your regular hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023, 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock, and RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E10b Last Mile Delivery Experiences with FarEye[00:00:00] Show Intro[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar:[00:00:19] Hello and welcome to a special season two episode 10 part two of the Retail Razor Show. This is the second of our multi-part series recorded live and in person at the N R F 2023 Show in January. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:35] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome to the Retail Razor Show, retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike. And for this special bonus, welcome N R F fans to our hot take hashtag N R F Live mini series.[00:00:55] Ricardo Belmar: So Casey, just like our last episode, this is a [00:01:00] special podcast crossover event with Jeff Roster, host of This Week in Innovation podcast. We recorded this series live at in-person at the N R F Show in the fabulous lounge space our good friends at Avanade graciously allowed us to use.[00:01:15] Casey Golden: Yes. A special shout out to our friends and sponsors at Avanade for giving you and Jeff such a great space to set up and record. These are not easy areas to find.[00:01:26] Ricardo Belmar: Oh yeah, ab absolutely, absolutely. Especially at the Javit Center. . So, so let's get right to it then. So, Casey, when I say Last Mile logistics to you, what do you think of?[00:01:36] Casey Golden: delivered to my door in two hours with a smile.[00:01:40] Ricardo Belmar: All right. Well then this episode is really going to fascinate you hopefully as much as it will our listeners, Jeff and I had the pleasure of interviewing Kushal Nahata, the C E O of FarEye, and Judd Marcello FarEye's, C M O, and wow, did we learn a lot about how retailers can make their last mile [00:02:00] logistics not only more efficient, cost effective and more sustainable, but also do it while giving their customers a much better, and dare I say, personalized delivery experience.[00:02:11] Casey Golden: Very cool. I'm digging it. And now I want to know how FarEye is doing all of that. it's a pretty tall order and let's face it, this is pretty much table stakes for any e-commerce operation.[00:02:27] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, I, I, I agree. And I'll just say that if you're trying to balance between getting your delivery costs down with giving your customers what they want, this is an interview you want to take notes from. I don't wanna give away too much, but be on the lookout for some interesting trends on what consumers want more than fast delivery from their e-commerce orders.[00:02:47] Casey Golden: All right, now I'm getting a bit anxious. You know how much I love a good e-commerce discussion. Let's have it already.[00:02:54] Ricardo Belmar: I'm with you. I'm with you. So let's jump in and listen to our interview with Kushal and Judd.[00:02:58] [00:03:00][00:03:03] FarEye Interview[00:03:03] Ricardo Belmar: Welcome everyone.[00:03:05] I'm Ricardo Belmar and I'm here with Jeff Roster, host of This Week in Innovation podcast, and we are continuing our NRF 2023 series with two special guests, Kushal Nahata, the C E O of FarEye. Welcome, Kushal.[00:03:18] Kushal Nahata: welcome. Hi everyone.[00:03:20] Ricardo Belmar: And Judd Marcello, FarEye's CMO.[00:03:22] Judd Marcello: Thanks for having us. Happy to be here.[00:03:24] Ricardo Belmar: Thank you guys. Thank you both for being here. So Jeff, why don't we just jump right in?[00:03:27] Jeff Roster: Sounds good.[00:03:28] Ricardo Belmar: Sound good to you? All right, so Kushal, Judd, why don't you give us just a couple quick sentences so we're all familiar with what FarEye does.[00:03:35] Kushal Nahata: Yeah. So look we, we are a last mile delivery platform. We essentially help all,[00:03:40] of us as consumers get the products delivered to our doorstep at the time we need, with the choices we want to make.[00:03:48] And we do that by enabling all the brands, retailers, and logistic companies to be efficient and do deliveries the way consumers need and want it.[00:04:00][00:04:00] Ricardo Belmar: Okay. Excellent. All right, so we've got four questions for you that we're really interested in hearing about. So start off, let's talk about e-commerce. Of course. You know, obviously we're. More e-commerce spending happening. Retailers have been ramping up their capabilities around fulfillment, delivering e-commerce.[00:04:17] So with that influx in e-commerce spending, how are retailers reinventing their approach to delivering a better experience all the way to consumers doorsteps.[00:04:26] Kushal Nahata: So maybe I'll go first. Look, COVID was the time when generally the e-commerce took off for every single retailer because consumers couldn't move out, they can't go to these stores.[00:04:38] So everything happened online and one of the biggest challenge was the delivery network and capability didn't existed in the way retailers desired for it, and it was a sudden peak. So what we've seen retailers really innovating is going for a hybrid model.[00:04:56] And by hybrid, what I mean is a part of it [00:05:00] is their own fleet, which gives them more control, gives them directly voice of the customer how and what they need it.[00:05:07] And at the same time, they're partnering with third party delivery networks and which is not limited to let's say, top two or top three delivery service providers, but they're working with regional, with local delivery service providers as well. Now, how this helps is, it gives them scale, it gives them control,[00:05:26] And it also helps them optimize the cost because the local regional players are sometimes more efficient from a cost perspective, but then the challenge is they can't scale nationally.[00:05:35] So if you build that as a network, it becomes a super strategic competitive advantage for your brand. And that's what, if you see most of the top retailers have done in the last five to 10 years.[00:05:48] Judd Marcello: And I think, you know, in addition to what Kushal said, if you're a retailer and you're a prioritizing that innovation in your, in your logistics, in your delivery logistics, in your operations, creating efficiencies, Then that enables you to [00:06:00] then focus on the customer experience.[00:06:01] Cause that's the other area of innovation. And when you think about deliveries for consumer deliveries, the consumer now has so much control dictating what they want, where they wanna receive it, when they wanna receive it. You know, they've been fed the idea of next day delivery, same day delivery now. So now the consumer expectations are increasingly high.[00:06:21] And I think if you're a retailer today, if you're focused on making the delivery experience, From order to where they're on the website and they click the buy button to when that package lands on their, their front doorstep. If you make that seamless for the consumer, if you make it easy and it's convenient for them, and they have a sense of control in that, that is one way to win that consumer and ultimately win them for the long term.[00:06:42] Jeff Roster: So what exactly are you a platform that that gig economy folks can plug in ups, all that. And your, your ultimate customer is the retailer who's using you as a platform to figure out that last mile.[00:06:56] Kushal Nahata: Yeah.[00:06:57] So you need to understand that as a platform [00:07:00] to manage and scale deliveries. It could be through your own fleet where you are running some part of your fleet on your own, or it could be a logistic company.[00:07:09] Who has thousands of fleets of their own. It could be third party delivery network, which is what you said the gig workers and all are connected to the platform. So one, and then there is the orchestration. When the order comes, what's the best way to deliver that order with a super delightful experience to the consumer.[00:07:28] Judd Marcello: Mm-hmm.[00:07:28] Jeff Roster: Wow. So you're making that decision whether it's going out on a Uber driver or it's going out on UPS carrier or, or some other strategy, some other retailer owned, owned mechanism [00:07:40] Kushal Nahata: Absolutely. And actually our journey starts a step before. So when you and I as consumers go onto the e-commerce platforms at the website, we help them, brands, show the right delivery options to the consumers.[00:07:52] In terms of when you're scrolling a product, when can you get it delivered? And then also, so first is giving those choices to the consumers [00:08:00] so that they find enough options to place the order. Then choosing the right delivery provider, and then providing the live tracking and experience. If you want to change the delivery, if you wanna change the time, you can do that.[00:08:15] And at the end, monitoring the entire journey from an operations perspective, that was it delivered on time and with a desired experience and with the cost that was planned for it or not.[00:08:28] Jeff Roster: Wow.[00:08:28] Ricardo Belmar: Oh, so so you really have components on the consumer side that address all the pieces the consumer wants, which is what you just described here, that all the communication points for that originate from the what they perceive as the retailer, right?[00:08:43] Telling them it's shipped, when it's coming, how long it's gonna take, if there's a delay, et cetera. But you've also got behind the scenes for the retailer's benefit. You're optimizing this process. You're always trying to find the lowest cost method, I'll say right to, to get that done.[00:08:57] Kushal Nahata: Absolutely. And look, [00:09:00] probably a decade ago, like each, each retailer or each store had its own experience. When you walk into the store, the colors, the way shelves are placed, the way products are placed. Now, the same thing you need to look at from an online perspective as well, that each brand needs to design that delivery journey, which is a part of its identity itself.[00:09:19] What are the options do I want to give to my consumer? How will they track and in respective of who's delivering? It's a branded delivery experience, which is promised by the retailer.[00:09:32] Jeff Roster: Wow.[00:09:33] Judd Marcello: And it's also, and one of the other things to throw in there too, it's not just marrying the consumer side and the logistics side in a way.[00:09:40] If you can get that right and you're in a position where you can innovate, it's also, it's how, what options you give the customer in order to receive their goods. So when you think about fulfillment and you think about innovation, like drone becoming more important, right? There are you, you can do drop off lockers if you're within a city.[00:09:56] So you create more optionality for the consumer to make sure they [00:10:00] can access that product. So delivery doesn't necessarily need to be to their front door, it could be to a space that's convenient for them on their way home from work. So you know that innovation. Then once you're starting to get the logistics piece worked out, and then you, you understand what your capabilities are, you can layer in that kind of like customer experience, innovation into the offering.[00:10:18] Jeff Roster: So you're the platform, the hub, you don't care whether that end deliverable is. Truck, a drone or a flying car in a few years, you, you don't, you don't care.[00:10:28] Whatever the evolution of, of that, that that vehicle or it's a robot or Wow.[00:10:33] Judd Marcello: Interesting.[00:10:34] Ricardo Belmar: You, you could plug[00:10:34] Kushal Nahata: we say it is, it's, it's definitely important what you deliver, but it's more important how you deliver [00:10:41] Judd Marcello: Yeah. [00:10:42] Kushal Nahata: Because as consumers, we are now hooked to the experience. How it's getting delivered to me. So brands really investing and improving their delivery experiene. And that's why last mile is super complex because one is the mode which is which type of vehicle is delivering, [00:11:00] but also if you go from where you're getting it delivered, it can be delivered from a store. It could be a fulfillment center, it could be a micro fulfillment which lot of companies are investing in, or it could be a distribution center as well. So you can have multiple points from where the products can be delivered. You can have multiple ways through which product can travel. But eventually what you want to optimize for is a delightful delivery experience at an affordable or a lesser cost.[00:11:29] Jeff Roster: Wow.[00:11:30] Ricardo Belmar: Wow. Well, so you've kind of, I think, almost answered the next question I was gonna ask you already, because, but let's maybe go in a little more detail because everything, you just kind of described Kushal,…

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S2E10a #NRFLive SPECIAL - #TRI Friends Fireside Chat on #NRF2023 Feb 03, 2023

Show notes

In honor of the NRF Big Show we’re kicking off a special podcast cross-over series, #NRFLive, with Jeff Roster’s show This Week In Innovation. This episode is a very special, intimately authentic conversation between four top retail influencers, recorded live, and in-person during the NRF show.Jeff and host, Ricardo Belmar, join retail legends, Vicki Cantrell, CEO of Vendors in Partnership, LLC, and Ron Thurston, author of Retail Pride and host of the Retail in America podcast and tour. Together our four retail friends chat about the VIP Awards ceremony, RetailROI’s Super Saturday event, what they expect to see during NRF, the impact of innovation in retail, & the latest retail tech buzzwords. Plus, they reach an important conclusion about why retail is, after all, all about the people.Listen, or watch on YouTube, and join our four friends for the kind of discussion that can only happen when you’re recording live, and in-person in a setting like the NRF Big Show!News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show was a finalist for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during the NRF Big Show 2023!News alert #2! We’ve moved up to #18 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list - please consider giving us a 5-star review in Apple Podcasts! With your help, we’ll move our way up the Top 20! Leave us a review & be mentioned in future episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023, 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock, and a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E10a #NRFLive SPECIAL - #TRI Friends Fireside Chat[00:00:00] Show Intro[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar: Hello and welcome to a special season two episode 10 of the Retail Razor Show. This is the first of a multi-part series recorded live and in person at the N R F 2023 show from January 13th to 18th, otherwise known as N R F Week. And I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:37] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome, retail Razor Show listeners, retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike. And for this special bonus, welcome N R F fans to our hot take, hashtag N R F Live mini series.[00:00:59] Ricardo Belmar: Well, Casey, [00:01:00] this is an incredible treat for listeners and viewers. Just like our last episode, our top 10 trends and predictions for 2023, the recordings in this miniseries all happen live and in person. While you know about 35,000 or so of our closest retail friends swarmed New York City,[00:01:16] Casey Golden: I just loved recording face-to-face when we're just not, these two little squares from the shoulders up on a Zoom screen.[00:01:24] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. So let's set the stage here for this series. Lot lot's happening. Cuz not only is this a special live and in-person recording series, but it's also a podcast crossover event.[00:01:35] Casey Golden: Wait really?[00:01:37] Ricardo Belmar: Yes, really we are crossing over with our fellow Retail Avenger, Jeff Roster and his This Week in Innovation podcast.[00:01:45] Here's what'll happen. So this episode kicks off our hashtag N R F Live series with what may be my absolute favorite podcast recording of our entire run so far.[00:01:55] Casey Golden: all time fave like that's saying a lot. I mean, I [00:02:00] adore Jeff, but this is an all time fave.[00:02:03] Ricardo Belmar: Yes, yes. Really of, of, of all time. Well, at least until the next one, but no[00:02:10] Casey Golden: All right. Well, with that kind of buildup you'll have to explain a little more so, spill.[00:02:15] Ricardo Belmar: Okay. Okay. So late last year Jeff and I were talking about our N R F plans, comparing how many places we, we overlapped and realized it would be a great opportunity to do a series of interviews of super interesting people at N R F. Friends we don't often see in person and just talk trends. Talk about what's hot at the show, what's coming next in retail.[00:02:37] So the crossover was born. And we thought, we'll, we'll jointly host these interviews and then we'll just release them all across both the Retail Razor Show and This Week in Innovation[00:02:45] Casey Golden: Very cool. I'm digging this[00:02:48] Ricardo Belmar: But wait, there's more[00:02:50] Casey Golden: in your best announcement voice[00:02:52] Ricardo Belmar: I'm trying to build up some suspense here[00:02:54] Casey Golden: We're already on the edge of our seat. [00:02:56] Ricardo Belmar: So, so not only is this our first crossover series, but [00:03:00] it's also our first sponsored podcast.[00:03:03] Casey Golden: Ah, look at our podcast. It's adulting[00:03:06] Ricardo Belmar: exactly, exactly. We didn't realize just how popular we we've become. So while Jeff and I were making plans around who we tried to interview during N R F, there was one important thing we realized. We actually need a really solid place to sit down and record during N R F, because let's face it, the Javit Center isn't the most conducive to podcast recording[00:03:26] Casey Golden: It's not the most conducive for much. So I mean, I don't think we could do this while sitting in front of Starbucks either.[00:03:34] Ricardo Belmar: Right. E Exactly, exactly. But fortunately for us, our, our good friends of the show and avid podcast supporters at Avanade made us a really nice offer to use some space in their lounge area on the fourth floor, just above the expo hall. So fans of our show may have seen a preview photo of this setup on LinkedIn during N R F as we posted a few behind the scenes pics courtesy of the, the marketing team at Avanade[00:03:56] Casey Golden: Oh, big shout out to the marketing team at Avanade [00:04:00] for their support and for providing such an amazing space. I wish I could have been there for all of these.[00:04:07] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, we, we definitely missed you for those. And, and for this episode's recording, we were also fortunate to take advantage of another great spot in one of the conference rooms at the Microsoft Times Square office. Right after this year's retail ROI Super Saturday event had concluded right at the same location.[00:04:22] So extra fortunate. We happened to run into two very special friends of the show who've been on before. They agreed to sit down with Jeff and me to have an open conversation about our first two days at N r. About what we expected to find, what we might uncover during the show. And to be fair, Jeff and I pitched this as a quick 15 minute recording to them to convince them to do it.[00:04:42] And of course that turned into a nearly 50 minutes session because guess what happens when you have four retail friends get together? I haven't seen each other in person in so long.[00:04:51] Casey Golden: Yeah, we just don't stop. I'm thinking it would be very much like a friends' TV show reunion episode. You just [00:05:00] keep going and going because there is just so much happening in the industry right now[00:05:05] Ricardo Belmar: You, you said it. You said it. So, so we'll be hearing our, our conversation this episode with none other than retail legend, Vicki Cantrell currently c e o at vendors in partnership and organizer of the V I P awards event during N R F plus, Ron Thurston, author of the bestselling book, Retail Pride and Host of the Retail in America Podcast and tour.[00:05:25] And of course, to top it all off, since we're all RETHINK Retail, top retail influencers for 2023 just announced at the N R F show.[00:05:34] Casey Golden: Absolutely incredible and I'm so honored to be on the list this year and included, a big congrats all around to everyone for making the cut and sharing their perspective.[00:05:47] Ricardo Belmar: Absolutely. Absolutely. And, and fun fact, this might even surprise some listeners and viewers, but Ron and I met in person for the first time at this n r F show.[00:05:56] You know, absolute, it's a like a pandemic story, right? I mean, as after all [00:06:00] these years that we've known each other. But this was the first time we actually met face to face in person.[00:06:06] Casey Golden: Wow. I didn't realize that. I actually met Ron during the pandemic in Dominican Republic.[00:06:12] Ricardo Belmar: That's right. That's right.[00:06:15] Casey Golden: It's just, that is just an amazing little fun fact. You know, we forget how, how often we work with people that we've actually never been i r l with. [00:06:28] Ricardo Belmar: That's right. And you, and you'll hear us talk about that in the recording too, cuz we all had stories that had happened to us just in those first couple of days.[00:06:35] Casey Golden: Yeah, I mean how could we build up this episode any more than we already have? So let's get to it and not keep everyone waiting.[00:06:44] Ricardo Belmar: Yes, I totally agree.[00:06:47] Casey Golden: Ah, I wanna point out one more thing.[00:06:50] Ricardo Belmar: Y you didn't just do that, did you?[00:06:52] Casey Golden: I did. But first I wanna point out that you've said multiple viewer multiple times now. And I [00:07:00] know we told our listeners they could see us on video and episode one of the season, but we've had some tech technical issues plaguing us all season long. . This is actually the first one we've released this season with video.[00:07:16] Ricardo Belmar: Good point. Good catch. Casey. Yes, yes. We actually do have video this time. And honestly we have our, our great friends at Rethink Retail. To thank for that Gabriela Bock, one of the producers at Rethink was gracious enough to record our conversation on video. And while what, if you're watching the video, you have to pay attention to just how small a conference room that was.[00:07:38] I don't know how she managed to stay with us for, for almost the entire time. Carefully walking around the room with video gear and it, it was just an amazing effort. You know, we, we had also told her it was gonna be 15 minutes and she thought, oh great. This is, this will be fun to do and sure enough turns into 50.[00:07:55] So, you know what, what an amazing effort and thanks so much to, to Gabriella and RETHINK for, for doing that for us.[00:08:00][00:08:00] Casey Golden: Well talk about commitment and just incredible continued support. And if you're a careful viewer, you'll also catch another familiar rethink retail face in the background, taking photos. I won't give away who it is yet, but when we come back, we'll let you in on the scoop.[00:08:17] Ricardo Belmar: Okay, well, a, after this incredibly long intro that we've managed now, maybe our longest yet let's dive in and listen to what Jeff, Vicki, Ron, and myself had to say about the v i p awards, Retail ROI, N R F in general, and just the state of retail today and, and what we expect to, to happen this year.[00:08:35] And, and you'll see why this is quickly my, my favorite podcast we've ever done.[00:08:39] Casey Golden: Amazing.[00:08:39][00:08:44] #NRFLive - TRI Friends Fireside Chat[00:08:44] Ricardo Belmar: Hey everybody. I'm here with Jeff Roster and co-host of this weekend innovation, and you guessed it. This is part of our crossover series between our two podcasts. How you doing, Jeff?[00:08:55] Jeff Roster: I am doing fantastic. Ricardo, how about yourself[00:08:58] Ricardo Belmar: I'm doing wonderful. [00:09:00] And part of that I would say is true for you too because we are live and in person at the N R F show, which we haven't been in quite some time.[00:09:08] three years. [00:09:09] Jeff Roster: Well, actually I was here. I was here last[00:09:12] Ricardo Belmar: you get bonus points for last year. You get bonus points for last[00:09:16] Jeff Roster: year, okay. The re the Startup community came strong last year[00:09:18] Ricardo Belmar: That's true. That's very true. You can, we'll, we'll leave that one there and then on that one there. And we are joined by two incredibly wonderful people in the retail industry.[00:09:28] Vicki Cantrell, how you doing? Vicki? And Ron Thurston.[00:09:33] Ron Thurston: Hi everyone. Happy to be here.[00:09:35] Ricardo Belmar: So we thought we would just kind of kick things off by talking a little bit about the first couple of events that have started N r F week this year starting with Vicki, with your event. Last night as of when we were recording this, the vendors in partnership awards ceremony.[00:09:49] Why don't you give us a, a quick recap of some of the highlights.[00:09:52] Vicki Cantrell: Oh, I'd love to. It was really an amazing night. Um, we, uh, I started this thing three years ago [00:10:00] and last night I think we kind of crossed a threshold because the message that I have dreamed about is really taking hold.[00:10:07] And it's about how we do business, not who does business with who. And really about problem solving, not solution selling, and. The things that really resonated with me last night and the things that people come up and say to me have to do with the fact that I say that, you know, people buy from people, they don't buy from companies.[00:10:30] Um, the gratitude that people had when they had to kind of put together their nominations and they realize. They took a breath and said how far they've come and they were able to recognize their teams. These are all the relationship aspects, um, that flowed through the night. Aside from that, it was a beautiful night, beautiful venue.[00:10:51] So much love in the room. We sold out. [00:10:54] Jeff Roster: congratulations. [00:10:55] Thank you.[00:10:56] Ricardo Belmar: a big achievement. Yeah.[00:10:57] Jeff Roster: I kind of liked it when I could move around a little bit. [00:10:59] Vicki Cantrell: I know [00:11:00] you do.[00:11:00] Jeff Roster: so you know,[00:11:02] Ron Thurston: there were people here today are[00:11:03] Jeff Roster: quite as easy moving around this, time,[00:11:07] Vicki Cantrell: but uh, yeah, so, uh, we're really thrilled with the evening and, uh, a lot of great buzz and I just believe, I always thought I was pushing a rock uphill to take away this, this aspect of buyer, seller.[00:11:21] Yeah. But you know, it's that rock is moving. And so I'm thrilled.[00:11:27] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. I,…

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S2E9 - Top 10 Predictions for 2023 Jan 25, 2023

Show notes

It’s a new year, and after wrapping up another NRF Big Show, we felt it was time to share our Top 10 Predictions for retail and retail tech in 2023! What will retailers focus on this year? How will consumer shopping and buying habits change? From the evolution of retail media networks and loyalty programs, to web3, the metaverse, and ChatGPT, what technologies make the cut and deserve your attention? Hosts Ricardo and Casey cut through the clutter and give you their top 10 trends for 2023 in this episode. See if their predictions match yours and let us know on LinkedIn!Plus, our new segment, Retail Razor Data Blades returns, with another special data insight from Georgina Nelson, CEO of TruRating, learned from their 100,000’s of point-of-sale customer survey polls. In this episode learn how aligning with consumer values still plays a critical role in consumer buying decisions!News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show was a finalist for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during the NRF Big Show 2023!News alert #2! We’ve moved up to #18 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list - please consider giving us a 5-star review in Apple Podcasts! With your help, we’ll move our way up the Top 20! Leave us a review & be mentioned in future episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023, 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock, and a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2023. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, Overclocked, and Tech Lore, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS1E9 Top 10 Predictions for 2023[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar:[00:00:20] Show Intro[00:00:20] Ricardo Belmar: Hello and welcome to season two, episode nine of The Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:26] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome retail show listeners to retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike.[00:00:38] Ricardo Belmar: Well, Casey, this is the moment many of our fans have been waiting for.[00:00:43] It's time for our top 10 retail predictions for 2023, and as a huge bonus, we are recording live and in person in New York City right after the end of the N R F big show. We're literally sitting face-to-face and we never get to do that for this show.[00:00:59] Casey Golden: never, I [00:01:00] mean, we're always sitting face to face from the shoulders up, [00:01:02] Ricardo Belmar: and a little square on a screen, but,[00:01:06] Casey Golden: I can't think of a better way to wrap up NRF than sharing our hot takes live.[00:01:10] Ricardo Belmar: Absolutely. We don't often get to do this live and in person.[00:01:13] Retail Razor Data Blades - "How aligning with consumer values still plays a critical role"[00:01:13] Ricardo Belmar: But first, it's time for the newest segment of our show Retail Razor Data Blades, where we talk real world numbers and slice through measurable consumer insights. It's a bit like, show me the math so I understand where this data's coming from and bringing us that slicing and dicing of data is Georgina Nelson, CEO of TruRating.[00:01:30] TruRating is changing the way retailers track how customers feel against how they spend with an innovative multi-channel feedback solution with an average of 80% response rate from consumers. Georgina will share with us some key data points and offer a bit of insight into what's behind those numbers based on their extensive customer survey data at the point of sale.[00:01:48] Casey Golden: Welcome, Georgina.[00:01:50] Georgina Nelson: Thank you so much for having me![00:01:52] Casey Golden: So today's Retail Razor Data Blade segment is "how aligning with customer values still plays [00:02:00] a critical role".[00:02:01] Georgina Nelson: So, yeah, to that point, we wanted to really find out what was driving consumers loyalty behavior. As you know, as a time when retailers are, are feeling the, the pinch of inflation as of their shoppers. You know, we can often get to this race to the bottom where prices are slashed in desperation to, to try and win that customer loyalty.[00:02:25] And so we, we asked some simple questions as to what was driving that loyal behavior. Interestingly, we found just over smidgen, over 50%, so 51% of consumers said they were influenced by their loyalty card and by money off vouchers. , but a staggering 77% said what actually drives their behavior and their loyalty is whether their retailers' values resonate with them and they affiliated with it.[00:02:56] And so I think in this modern time of loyalty, [00:03:00] you know, that sends a really clear message for retailers to understand what values do their customers really affiliate with and how can they market those to them and ensure that that's understood and really build that, build that bond with their consumer base.[00:03:17] Casey Golden: Yeah, really backs up the, you know, communicate your brand and your values. Stop talking about price.[00:03:24] Georgina Nelson: Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And you know, even just recently, we've still seen that over 75% of US consumers. They do want to buy ecologically sound products. They do want to buy organic when those choices are available. And so it's really to retailers, you know, don't scrimp on these initiatives just because times might be toughed because consumers are still are looking for those.[00:03:50] And looking for that stance in values to make their choices.[00:03:54] Casey Golden: Yep.[00:03:55] Ricardo Belmar: Georgina, it seems like for this to really be [00:04:00] beneficial for the retailers that are going to, like your data, is suggesting that they need to lean into this and, and not stop investing. They'd have to really understand how to communicate that to their customers to, to make it really worthwhile and beneficial.[00:04:14] Georgina Nelson: Yeah, I, you know, I think strategies need to be, it's not like a blanket one, one email, one shot in the dark. We really need to have a nuanced understanding of the customer base and what drives that loyalty. And then that needs to be communicated across a website, across product placements, across brand messaging.[00:04:36] And I think what's important is that, you know, all customers are not alike. You know, there's gonna be a mix. And what we see is that mix is more, you know, is obviously very prevalent at a store level. In terms of each store is a snowflake with different customer segmentation and really beginning to understand that at a store level, how you know, and testing and asking [00:05:00] customers now how have your, you know, have they understood the green initiatives which you are pushing?[00:05:07] Do they understand the drive on organic produce in, you know, understanding that awareness and then being able to tailor. Better coms and better marketing is absolutely key. And and we recommend doing that at a granular store level.[00:05:23] Casey Golden: I couldn't agree more. Well, that does it for another edition of Retail Razor Blades.[00:05:28] Georgina Nelson: Does this mean I get to keep the segment intro music every time? I'm on the show.[00:05:34] Ricardo Belmar: I, I think we can arrange that[00:05:36] Georgina Nelson: Thank you so much both.[00:05:38] Casey Golden: Absolute pleasure.[00:05:39] So now let's get right to those predictions. Ricardo, what would you say there are any underlining themes that we'll see across our 10 predictions?[00:05:53] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, I think there are at least two big themes. One would be the impact of the economy, of course, [00:06:00] that's having on retailer investments and consumer shopping habits, and I think the second is frankly, gen Z.[00:06:05] We'll see how Gen Z's shopping and buying habits are gonna have a bigger impact this year than they have in past years.[00:06:11] Prediction #1 - Private Label take over[00:06:11] Casey Golden: Let's dive into number one. Private label is taking over our shelves. You all know that I love a good brand and I'm a label of label lover, but a lot of products have become brand neutral with the help of the homogenization of marketplaces, like Wayfair and Amazon marketing convenience over the brands that they carry. Many private label brands are actually in our cupboards without even knowing it.[00:06:41] Margin is king, especially during these uncertain economic environments. Retailers need the most control over the product assortment and the bottom line. Finding a lot of Gen Z doesn't have the brand loyalty in CPG that a lot of other generations do. [00:06:58] Ricardo Belmar: yeah, I think that's [00:07:00] probably a key one right there too. Especially after a year of inflation consumers want lower cost options, but everyone still wants high quality. Nobody wants to go down in price and then get something that's just too cheap and not good enough. But I think the big difference that you just pointed out, it's, gen Z doesn't seem to care about brand loyalty, especially not with, with CPGs, might be a slightly different story if we're talking apparel or home goods. But I think at the end of the day, unless you're buying on the high end luxury side of home goods, most people don't care what the brand name is on it. It's just whatever looks good and feels good to them. When it's apparel, it all depends on who we're talking about.[00:07:35] Department stores for sure, probably would love to have a third of their sales or more be their own private labels, but the fact is a lot of 'em haven't traditionally been good enough for most buyers, but Gen Z doesn't seem to care.[00:07:46] Casey Golden: No. I mean, gosh, Shein did like a billion dollars in sales [00:07:49] Ricardo Belmar: yeah, exactly.[00:07:50] Exactly. So , so, so what does that say? So yeah, I think that that's a, that's definitely a, a good number one to kick off the list. [00:07:58] Prediction #2 - Retail Media Network evolution [00:07:58] Ricardo Belmar: So let me take us to number two, [00:08:00] which for me is, is a big one. And everybody knows I love talking about this topic, and that's retail media networks and how they're gonna evolve. [00:08:07] This year it's all gonna be about the, in-store media experience and how that gets combined with all the digital channels to really make a, a good end-to-end media experience that retailers can sell to brands. So, everyone likes to debate this a little bit because it seems like a trend and yes, we all know that Amazon has the majority of the share, but the fact is even if a retailer can get one percent, of this total media network share.[00:08:33] Those are big numbers and, and they're big numbers that come with big margins, so it really is helpful.[00:08:39] for a[00:08:40] retailer, and if, if we look at some relevant context to this, I mean, you've got a lot of things that are going on that make this special. I mean, one, there's all the first party data that retailers are getting from these media networks, and that's huge.[00:08:51] That lets them deliver really strong return on the a on advertising spend, right? Good ROAS for the brands. And one of the things we heard during nrf, that's a [00:09:00] big trend on this that I a hundred percent agree with. You know, you've got a decline in TV advertising in general. We've got cookies going away and, and we've got just in general, right, the digitization of the store.[00:09:10] All this stuff kind of combines to make it super attractive to actually put media bys and advertising at the point at which a customer makes a buying decision. So why would this not increase?[00:09:22] And there's even, I think more from that, I mean, you know, people also like to debate where is the, where are these dollars coming from?[00:09:28] You know, brands look at all these media networks and as a brand say, oh, do I have to spend now on 20 different retail networks in addition to all the other ads spend? I have? Well, well, maybe they do, but the truth is right, they're gonna shift the spend a little bit. So it, the, the answer is, you know, when you ask where do the dollars come from?[00:09:43] Well, pretty much everywhere else, it's not a retail media network. But I think probably the biggest threat is to Facebook or Meta and to Google because it's their ad dollar spend that's gonna go to these retail media networks, Amazon and everybody else.[00:09:54] Casey Golden: 100 Percent. They're already, brands have already and been shifting these [00:10:00] budgets and not by a hundred thousand dollars, but like numbers.[00:10:04] 875,000 for those month[00:10:06] Ricardo Belmar: it's big numbers. It's big numbers. And when you roll in, the more advanced networks, they're gonna have tie-ins to streaming tv. They're gonna have connections into, players like Netflix, Hulu, and everybody that are gonna tie into it.[00:10:18] And it's all comes down to audience data, right? And, and when you start applying this in-store, let's remember that 85 percent of all retail sales still happen in stores. So this isn't just an e-commerce play anymore. This is about doing what, you know, Doug Stephens and others used to talk about the store as, as theater, the store as media.[00:10:36] Well, this is the year that we're really gonna start to see that because of these retail media networks and, and I think the last thing I'll add to it is, The end goal isn't just, I think the media network. The end goal is for the retailer to introduce a collection of B2B services. They can sell to brands or, and even to other retailers.[00:10:54] So, sure, Walmart's the obvious first one to do it because of their size and scale. But that doesn't mean that, Best [00:11:00] Buy, couldn't do it or, or any other large enough retailer couldn't take exactly what they're doing in these services, bundle 'em up and sell 'em as a package. They're gonna have so much more first party customer data.[00:11:11] Every brand wants access to that.[00:11:13] Casey Golden: I agree. And everybody's spent a lot of money over the last decade on creating their audience and all of their customer data. So this is just another monetization strategy that they can go ahead and not put it all just into the individual products that they're selli…

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S2E8 - #NRFforBeginners with Andrew Laudato Jan 06, 2023

Show notes

Happy New Year from the Retail Razor Show! A new year means it’s time for the annual National Retail Federation Big show held in New York City. But what if it’s your first time? It can be quite overwhelming for retailers and retailtech beginners. Fortunately, we’re here to help by bringing you a seasoned NRF veteran with his best tips and tricks to get the most out of your NRF experience!Fan favorite friend of the show, Andrew Laudato, COO of The Vitamin Shoppe joins our hosts to talk all things NRF Big Show and share what he has learned over 20+ years of attending the event. We hope to see you at NRF!Plus, our new segment, Retail Razor Data Blades returns, with another special insight from Georgina Nelson, CEO of TruRating ,learned from their 100,000’s of point-of-sale customer survey polls. In this episode learn how inflation is impacting shopper buying habits!News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show is nominated for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during the NRF Big Show 2023!News alert #2! We’ve moved up to #18 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list - please consider giving us a 5-star review in Apple Podcasts! With your help, we’ll move our way up the Top 20! Leave us a review & be mentioned in future episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, Overclocked, and Tech Lore, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E8 NRF for Beginners[00:00:20] Show Intro[00:00:20] Ricardo Belmar: Hello, and welcome to season two, episode eight of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:26] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome, retail Razor Show listeners to retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike.[00:00:38] Ricardo Belmar: Well, Casey, this is a conversation I've really been looking forward to each year in January, pandemic year's, not withstanding, retail industry comes together for the largest event in our industry. The National Retail Federation's, big show in New York. At its peak, I think this event was right before the pandemic, 40,000 attendees from across North America and, and a lot of international visitors from all over the world.[00:00:59] Now [00:01:00] we're coming up on the 2023 big show next month from, from when we're recording this. So we're thinking listeners are probably hearing a lot of noise by now about what's gonna happen at this show,[00:01:10] Casey Golden: That's right. And they don't call it the big show for no reason. And since our specialty is cutting through the clutter and the noise, In retail to get to the useful bits that everyone wants to know. We thought we'd put together a special ed addition to our show to serve as a guide for beginners who are either attending their first show or feel like they could benefit from an experienced N R F veteran on how to navigate Javits.[00:01:36] Ricardo Belmar: And to do that, we invited a really incredible retailer with years of experience attending and leveraging the N R F event to the fullest to bring you this special edition N R F for beginner's episode. So today we are going to hear from no stranger to the show, Andrew Laudato, CEO of The Vitamin Shoppe.[00:01:53] Casey Golden: So many great tips and tricks on how to make the best of the show, how to meet your goals as a [00:02:00] retailer attendee, and even more importantly, how to navigate my city, New York City. So if you're new to the N R F Show or to New York City, you're going to find a few nuggets here that are useful, in this conversation.[00:02:13] Be sure to have your notepads ready to go get that Slack channel open.[00:02:19] Retail Razor Data Blades[00:02:19] Ricardo Belmar: But first it's time for the newest segment of our show, the Retail Razor Data Blades, where we talk real world numbers and slice through measurable consumer insights. It's a bit like, show me the math so I understand where this data is coming from and bringing us that slicing and dicing of data is Georgina Nelson, CEO of TruRating.[00:02:37] TruRating is changing the way retailers track how customers feel against how they spend with an innovative multi-channel feedback solution that has an average of 80% response rate from consumers. Georgina will share with us some key data points and offer a bit of insight into what's behind those numbers based on that extensive customer survey data at the point of sale.[00:02:56] Casey Golden: Welcome, Georgina.[00:02:58] Georgina Nelson: Thank you so much for having me.[00:02:59] Casey Golden: [00:03:00] So today's Retail Razor Data Blade segment is "how rising prices are impacting shopper habits". Georgina, give us the data.[00:03:09] Georgina Nelson: Well, last time we chatted, we discussed how over 81% of consumers who we polled across our markets, and that was, yeah, over 170,000 shoppers had been noticing the, the pinch on the cost of living. So 81% were noticing, but then we thought, how, how is that actually impacting behavior? You know, what changes are people making in light of that and how is that affecting retailers?[00:03:36] So we asked whether people were driving less or more as a result, and we found that 63% of consumers in the US said they were driving less because of the rising gas prices. We also found out that 60% were cooking more at home, so eating out less and 74% were using a list [00:04:00] when they went shopping which is a big increase on our, on the previous times, which we've asked that.[00:04:05] And academic research shows that generally consumers spend 15% less when they have a list. It's that, that discipline and keeping to it.[00:04:14] Casey Golden: Interesting.[00:04:15] Georgina Nelson: Yes. So so it, it's really become clear to us that there's, when it comes down to discretionary spend, big ticket items, you know, consumers are definitely being more careful.[00:04:27] They're shopping around more, they're making less frequent trips when they're going by public transport. And that means that the retailers who are in urban areas where, where there's a great public transport network aren't at such a disadvantage.[00:04:42] Casey Golden: So Georgina, I know retailers and consumers alike have been feeling the burden of inflation for quite a few months now. I'm certainly shopping around more and being a lot more considerate about where I choose to spend my hard-earned dollars. , is it pretty much all doom and [00:05:00] gloom until inflation winds down, or is there some upside here for retailers?[00:05:06] Georgina Nelson: I think that's a definite upside when you think of that consumer shopping around. That opens a whole world of opportunity. You've got new consumers coming through your door and you've got a chance to to woo and turn them. And so you know, this is a great. Yeah, a great opportunity to win new loyalty with incredible customer experience, targeted marketing and comms, and yeah, and build that loyalty fan base.[00:05:34] Casey Golden: And I think there's something to say when, in any type of recession or inflation or any type of point when the economy's taking that pinch. Those consumers that continue to shop with you, they're really kind of top of mind as a brand is really top of mind for them. And it's, it's pretty important as you go into like a different economy to see where those customers end up flushing [00:06:00] out.[00:06:00] Overall, I would assume.[00:06:02] Georgina Nelson: Yeah. Yeah. A hundred percent. And I think it's around understanding, you know, what makes that that customer loyal? What are they, what are they affiliating with your brand? What products are they purchasing? And really getting into that deeper level of, of customer insight and analytics. . I think, you know, as we, as we look to how a, a lot of our retailers are fighting the, the inflation and the, and the pinch on wallets spend.[00:06:32] It's really focusing down on, as I said, the element of customer experience, but train, train, training, you know, the, the store cashier to actually be a brand ambassador. How can they promote recommendations? How can they promote upsell, and even, you know, simple things. We found that like such as asking a customer their name.[00:06:53] In some of these, you know, fashion environments, et cetera when that consultative sale really helps, we've [00:07:00] seen that drive average basket spend by over 30%. [00:07:04] Ricardo Belmar: Mm. [00:07:05] Georgina Nelson: Likewise, if a customer makes a, you know, if, if a cashier makes a recommendation. So, you know, all these, all these simple things which a retailer can, can take and train the teams and then see the, see the impact down at a store level are key.[00:07:22] Ricardo Belmar: Well, it all comes back to that experience, doesn't it? . Well, there we have another edition of the Retail Razor Data Blades.[00:07:28] Casey Golden: I'm listening for the cool segment music right now.[00:07:31] Ricardo Belmar: Okay. And with that cool update, let's jump right into the discussion with our special guest for our NRF for Beginner's discussion.[00:07:44][00:07:49] #NRFforBeginners with Andy Laudato[00:07:49] Ricardo Belmar: Today we're here with a retailer who's no stranger to the show and has extensive experience making the most of the N R F Show and all the activities during N R F Week in New York City each year.[00:08:00][00:08:00] Casey Golden: That's right. So let's introduce our guest, Andrew Lodato, COO of the Vitamin Shoppe and former CIO of Pier one imports. Let's pave the way for the newbies coming to N R F this year. [00:08:12] Ricardo Belmar: Welcome back to the show, Andy.[00:08:13] Andrew Laudato: Yeah. Thank you. Hello. Great to see you, Ricardo and Casey.[00:08:16] Casey Golden: So how many NRFs have each of you been to in your retail career?[00:08:20] Andrew Laudato: Yeah, so I've been to 20, 21. This will be 22. [00:08:25] Ricardo Belmar: Wow. [00:08:26] Andrew Laudato: I actually took a little stint outside of retail. Well, it sounds like a lot, but when you meet people there, you'll meet people with 30 plus NRFs under their belt. I consider myself a veteran, but certainly not a senior. Some, some of the people [00:08:38] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. I think this is gonna be my, I, I've lost track, even though it doesn't sound like I should with like 11th or 12th nrf. So sometimes you're, you're totally right about that, Andy. I'll run into someone in those say, oh, this is my 20th N R f, and I'm thinking, oh, that, that's kind of making me sound like the newbie[00:08:55] Andrew Laudato: exactly.[00:08:56] Casey Golden: think I'm only at like six, so you guys have got, definitely got me beat[00:09:00][00:09:01] Ricardo Belmar: Well, let's take a brief step back and for those who are the true beginners to nrf, let's define exactly what NRF is. And so Andy, how would you describe the, the jam-packed NRF week as its start, become called in the last few years? You know, of activity surrounding the actual NRF show and everything else that's going on in New York City during that nice bitter cold week in January that we're always also used to[00:09:27] Andrew Laudato: Yeah, so we all call it NRF or NRF Week, but actually NRF is stands for the National Retail Federation, and it's a retail advocacy and lobby organization. So most retailers are members of the National Retail Federation, and every year the NRF puts on several shows, conferences, events around different disciplines, technology, supply chain, digital store ops.[00:09:50] But in New York, once a year, they have what they call the "big show". So we just call it the NRF and but it's the big show. I don't know if this is true, but the [00:10:00] story is a hundred plus years ago. Retailers, you know, all got together in New York City and said, how'd we do over the holidays? I just imagined like 12 people in a room with a box of donuts and, and it really evolved from there. [00:10:11] Ricardo Belmar: I wonder if that's true.[00:10:13] Andrew Laudato: I made it up, but It sounds [00:10:14] Ricardo Belmar: good though. You can picture it.[00:10:17] Casey Golden: I'm like, it's a building filled with men in pleaded pants. So as a retailer, what should our goals be attending? What kind of ROI do you expect to get from this trip?[00:10:30] All about ROI[00:10:30] Andrew Laudato: Yeah, I case, I'm glad you used the term roi. I mean, people spend a lot of time and money to attend. You know, hotels in New York are 300 to $500 a night and then travel, you[00:10:41] Casey Golden: Put a P and L behind every event,[00:10:44] Andrew Laudato: Yeah, exactly right. And so, you know, so I think it's really important and if, you know, you get the opportunity to go, especially one of your first times, you know, make sure your company feels like they got their money's worth of their investment.[00:10:57] And so I always have goals. I think everyone [00:11:00] should set some goals, and mine are pretty simple, but, but I think they're powerful. My goal will be to come back from the big show with one to three brand new ideas, something I haven't heard, read, whether it's been on a podcast. So you get inspired whether you're at a formal session or a chat or a social and you hear something someone's doing or contemplating.[00:11:19] And to get one new idea that you can bring back to your business makes you know the investment palatable or, or worth it. Then I also have a goal of having, making three or more retail connections. Just to meet someone new finding someone in a different company that does what you did, or maybe they're ahead of you on some journey on either omni or digital or some path that's important to you.[00:11:41] So making that connection that you can follow up with later is really, really key. And then the last thing on my return on investment is to get a scorecard on how you're doing to honestly judge yourself when you, you talk to others and sometimes you find. Everyone's not as far as long. So sometimes you may be like, [00:12:00] wow, I feel like we're behind when you read all the hype and then you start talking to people about their reality.…

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S2E7 - Retail Transformers - Bryan Dove Dec 21, 2022

Show notes

What is the future of ecommerce? How will dropship, marketplaces, & fulfillment evolve to serve an ever-demanding consumer? These are complex issues so we invited our latest Retail Transformer to help us cut through the clutter – meet Bryan Dove, CEO of CommerceHub. Bryan talks us through how DTC brands and retailers alike can tackle these challenges while delivering the conveniences consumers demand – from communicating delivery schedules to fulfilling orders most efficiently, and so much more! Get your notepad ready to take notes because you’re going to learn why Bryan Dove is more than meets the eye in this nonstop stream of insightful ecommerce nuggets! Introducing our new segment, Retail Razor Data Blades, with special consumer insights from Georgina Nelson, CEO of TruRating ,learned from their 100,000’s of point-of-sale customer survey polls. In this episode we learn how inflation doesn't impact everyone the same way!News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show has been nominated for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during the NRF Big Show 2023 in January in New York City!News alert #2! We’ve moved up to #18 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list - please consider giving us a 5-star review in Apple Podcasts! With your help, we’ll move our way up the Top 20! Leave us a review & be mentioned in future episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, Overclocked, and Tech Lore, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E7 Bryan Dove[00:00:00] Pre-Intro[00:00:00] Casey Golden: Ricardo, I've got one word for you to describe this week's show, marketplaces drop ship fulfillment data. Okay. It's a whole lot of one words. Drop ship counts as a word, right? All right. Let's just say this is all about the future of e-com.[00:00:23] Ricardo Belmar: Y Yeah. Okay. So I'm not quite sure how many words that counts for, but I'm, I'm gonna go ahead and stick with e-commerce as the theme for this week, and following up our amazing episode with Polly Wong focused on direct to consumer. And we've got another amazing retail transformer on today's show to dive into the future of e-commerce.[00:00:41] Casey Golden: And this is really exciting. Like every e-commerce junkie out there listening or watching should be taking out their notepad right now and be ready for some golden nuggets and tips. Um, no pun intended, These strategies that will come at you faster than you can say, where's my package? [00:01:02] Ricardo Belmar: That is so true actually. Actually, this is getting to be a habit, isn't it? Needing a notepad just to listen to the podcast. So should we [00:01:09] Casey Golden: know if it's like good or bad. [00:01:10] Ricardo Belmar: know, right. ,maybe we should just get this episode started or, or should we just make everybody wait a little more and keep listening to us talking about it?[00:01:19] Casey Golden: You're too cruel and obsessed with long introductions. Let's say we just jump in to the intro music already.[00:01:28] Show Intro[00:01:28] Ricardo Belmar: Hello, and welcome to season two, episode seven of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:01:55] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome, retail Razor Show listeners to retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologist, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike.[00:02:07] Ricardo Belmar: We're back with another incredible retail transformer as our guest this week, and if you're just coming from episode five, our special D T C retail transformer episode with Polly Wong, then you're really going to do the dance of joy for this one.[00:02:21] Casey Golden: Yes. And as a founder, I am so exciting. We're diving into the future of e-commerce, looking at marketplaces, drop shipping, fulfillment challenges, inventory challenges, and much, much more for the whole Commerce family in this episode.[00:02:37] Ricardo Belmar: Oh yeah, faithful Retail Razor Show listeners will learn exactly why Bryan Dove, CEO of Commerce Hub is more than meets the eye.[00:02:45] Casey Golden: I have to say that I love that we finally got to deep dive into the murky waters of e-commerce to really think about and talk through what brands need to get out of their e-commerce sites going forward and how they should grow, what the right tools are. What they need to be building and how they should handle their supplier relationships. There's just so much more to go into, like fulfillment strategies, managing inventory, and much of this will relate back to what Polly talked about, customer retention.[00:03:18] Ricardo Belmar: that, that's right. This discussion with Bryan is a nice bookend to our chat with Polly. I, I can't say enough that if you're a DTC founder or you're responsible for your brand's e-commerce and are looking at drop shipping or marketplace expansion to grow the business, wow are you here at the right time. This discussion combined with Polly's could just about be your best practices guide to success.[00:03:40] Retail Razor Data Blades - "Inflation doesn't impact everyone the same way"[00:03:40] Ricardo Belmar: But first it's time for the newest segment of our show, Retail Razor Data Blades, where we talk real world numbers and slice through measurable consumer insights. It's a bit like, show me the math so I understand where this data is coming from, and bringing us that slicing and dicing of data is Georgina Nelson, c e o of true rating.[00:03:58] Georgina will share with us some key data points and offer a bit of insight into what's behind those numbers based on their extensive customer insight data at the point of sale[00:04:06] Casey Golden: welcome, Georgina.[00:04:12] Georgina Nelson: Thank you so much for having me. [00:04:14] Casey Golden: So today's retail razor data blades segment is "Inflation doesn't impact everyone the same way". Georgina, tell us more.[00:04:22] Georgina Nelson: So yeah. We've done some consumer insight research over the past few months to really try and understand how all these macroeconomic trends are influencing consumers in their shopping behaviors and habits. We sampled over 170,000 consumers across our key markets in the UK, North America, and Australia. And I think in terms of the nugget I wanted to shout about today was just really, I guess not surprisingly, the number of people who are noticing the impact on rising, rising cost of living. And that was a whopping 81% of consumers registered that change. But where I think it gets interesting and you, as you say, Ricardo, slicing and dicing that data is looking at the differences across demographics and age range. So when we looked at seniors, we found that 89% had been noticing the the rising cost of living. But take that, flip that up and look at those under 30 and only 75%. And so when you actually think about how the cost of living is impacting different demographics, I think it's, really focused on the rising cost of food, food bills, keeping your house warm and yeah.[00:05:39] And fuel, et cetera. And so you know, many of us, including me, did a, did a few stints living with mom and dad in my twenties. And so, you know, those household bills aren't, aren't impacting us as, as, as much. And and I think that's, you know, that's really the key lesson is that it's not, not a generic homogenous sweep all impact.[00:06:03] We have to really look at slicing and dicing that data and getting very granular insights about how, how these trends are impacting different groups.[00:06:11] Ricardo Belmar: So Georgina, we, we so often hear retailers being tempted to chase the newest and youngest demographic because they believe that's where the staying power is and the greater lifetime customer value might come from. But from the data you're, you're telling us, it, it seems to tell us really that retailers need to both tailor their messaging and their targeting unique to uniquely speak to each of those demographics to get the best conversion just based on how current economic conditions are impacting them differently.[00:06:39] So how would you say retailers should react to this data?[00:06:42] Georgina Nelson: Yeah, I, I very much agree. I think it needs to be a nuanced approach and you know, primarily to survive these times, retailers need to really invest in understanding their consumers. And, you know, as we saw through the pandemic, how. Quickly, these consumers are changing and keeping abreast of that. And so that means, you know, nuanced and targeted messaging to different consumer groups. But also I think it's down to a store level. You know, taking a very granular approach each, each store, as I always say, is a snowflake, and they have their own client. You know, their own customer mix. And so being able to get customer insight down to that store and granular level and really understanding that, that mix up. It helps you have targeted and nuanced strategies depending on that store. So, you know, if you do need to make a price increase, it might be an idea to, you know, look across the whole of North America, for example, and understand your, your base and, and share that distribution across different states and vary that price increase depending on the customer base, for example. So I definitely think that those retailers who are on the front foot with understanding their customers and being able to react really quickly to sentiment and changes in behavior are those who are gonna have the competitive advantage as we muddle through these times.[00:08:07] Casey Golden: It's great. Georgina, thank you so much for joining us today on Retail Razor's Data Blades,[00:08:13] Georgina Nelson: Thank you. It's been a pleasure.[00:08:15][00:08:20] Interview with Bryan Dove[00:08:20] Casey Golden: Things have changed now that we've sliced some data. Let's get back to the evolution of e-commerce with Bryan Dove.[00:08:27] Ricardo Belmar: And we are here with our special guest and latest retail transformer to visit the show. Bryan Dove, CEO of Commerce Hub, a leading provider of cloud-based e-commerce, fulfillment and marketing solutions for large retailers, marketplaces, consumer brands, and their suppliers. Welcome Bryan.[00:08:48] Bryan Dove: Thanks for having me.[00:08:49] Casey Golden: Really glad to have you join us, Bryan. Since our last call, we've both been really excited to have this conversation on marketplaces and fulfillment. Kind of touch on some drop shipping and what's been really what the future holds for all these areas for retailing in today's environment and our tomorrow's.[00:09:06] Bryan Dove: That's great. I'm, I'm excited to share, share what share what we've learned along the way.[00:09:10] Casey Golden: So just to get started, Bryan, why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself, Commerce Hub and how Commerce Hub works with retailers?[00:09:18] Bryan Dove: Sure. to start with Commerce Hub, the Commerce hub's got 25 years of history. We've been working with the largest big box retailers that are out there and, and really from the late nineties helping them enable and, and expand their e-commerce selection. So our customer lists. Our are the largest retailers you can imagine, folks like Walmart and Costco and, and Macy's and Nordstrom and Best Buy and so on.[00:09:38] We have a, we have a, a pretty, pretty meaningful number of customers in the large, large, big box retailer enterprise space. And what we've focused on since the beginning is helping them expand the number of items that they sell on their website. Where they have not had to have not had to purchase those items.[00:09:54] So classically referred to as Drop Ship. I think in modern terms there's drop ship, there's marketplace, and there's probably a blend of some other terms to, to describe that. We really just think about it as the unowned inventory. And for most of our, for most of our retailers, it powers it powers a significant portion and sometimes the majority of their overall overall online sales and almost always the majority of their overall online selection.[00:10:15] And for my personal background, I've been at Commerce Hub. Coming up on two years, so a little bit more than a year and a half. And then prior to this, I ran a travel business based outta Europe that helped almost a billion travelers a year worldwide. We were number one in 140, 150 countries. And then prior to that, I spent some time at at Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, and and some other tech companies along the way.[00:10:33] Casey Golden: Amazing. So just to add a little bit of context for our listeners, the Commerce Suite, what does that mean to a brand or a retailer?[00:10:42] Bryan Dove: So we at Shop Talk this year, So back in March of 22, we, we launched what we branded as the Commerce Suite. And this was really our, our primary evolution of the history of the business. So historically we've been, we had been really narrowly focused on. Enabling drop ship and has been been quite successful.[00:10:59] It's a critical piece of infrastructure for all of these retailers that we work with. But as we were talking to our customers, what we heard is we heard lots of needs for expansion for flexibility, various customers experimenting with item, with ideas like marketplace. Now, if you ask five customers what they mean by a marketplace, you'll get 10 to 15 different answers [00:11:18] Casey Golden: omnichannel.[00:11:19] Bryan Dove: Yeah. And, and so, so when, when you, when you really listen for the essence and, and push the labels to the side, what they were really looking for is flexibility in the way that they engaged with suppliers, flexibility in the way that they set up items and got them published to the site. Flexibility in striking different economic arrangements with different brands that they worked with.[00:11:38] And so our, our release of the commerce suite was really the first major step in that direction to go from a pure drop ship platform. To enabling that flexibility that allows, that allows our retailers and the brands and suppliers that work with them to, to flex between a drop ship model, a marketplace model, and be able to look at those differences really as, as almost like, like li…

Full show notes at the publisher

S2E6 – Holiday Special – Gifting Nov 23, 2022

Show notes

What will the holiday 2023 shopping season look like for retailers? How are consumers adjusting their shopping, buying, and gifting habits this holiday season given the current economic environment? It’s our Holiday Special episode and we’ve brought in two incredible experts to dive into what’s really happening this season and explore what we expect the season will bring retailers.Meet Roshan Jhunja, Head of Retail for Square, who recently released their holiday Festive Forecast report based on surveying merchants and consumers, and Bridget Johns-Pavlopoulos, co-Founder of To&From, a premium multi-brand marketplace for gifts of all occasions.Square/AfterPay Festive Forecast Report available here: https://bit.ly/3EwpqP2To&From gifting marketplace: https://app.toandfrom.com/News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show has been nominated for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during NRF 2023 in January in New York City! IF you’re a fan of the show, please give us your vote! You can vote here: https://bit.ly/VIPretailNews alert #2! We’ve moved up to #19 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list, so please keep those 5-star reviews in Apple Podcasts coming! With your help, we’ll move our way further up the Top 20! Leave us a review to be mentioned in upcoming episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring Made It On Stream (Xmas), from the album Lo-Fi Christmas, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno. Includes sound effects provided by Free Sounds Library.The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E6 Holiday Special[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar:[00:00:20] Show Intro[00:00:20] Ricardo Belmar: Hello and welcome to a very Merry and Joyous season two episode six of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo.[00:00:28] Casey Golden: And I'm your holiday spirited cohost, Casey Golden. Welcome retail Razor Show listeners to retail's favorite jingle, bell filled podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike.[00:00:45] Ricardo Belmar: And if you didn't guess by our whimsical and seasonal intro, this is our holiday specials for 2023 episode of the show.[00:00:54] Casey Golden: So Ricardo did. Did you start your holiday shopping or this season?[00:00:58] Ricardo Belmar: Okay. Actually, [00:01:00] no, not really. I mean, had every intention to, honestly, ever since that second Amazon Prime day that we're not supposed to call Prime Day, cuz apparently I'm one of the few people who did buy things on that sale, but they were mostly for me and it didn't really help me get the shopping started early.[00:01:14] Casey Golden: Oh, shame on you, Well, didn't you know that every industry expert is saying customers started the season early? Maybe you just need to hear it from our two guests today to get you into the shopping season of giving mode.[00:01:30] Ricardo Belmar: Well, funny you should say that, Casey, because I bet many of our listeners are just like me and could use some insider knowledge on gifting and shopping ideas for the season. And by the way, did you start your shopping already,[00:01:42] Casey Golden: Of course I did. My grandmother taught me to shop for thoughtful gifts all year long, but there are always a few emergency pur purchases before, you know, black friday, of course.[00:01:52] Ricardo Belmar: Well, I should have known. So let's tell our listeners then all about our guests for today. Since we're not like other retail podcasts, we don't [00:02:00] just bring you a holiday special episode and talk about sales numbers for year over year stats for the season. No, no, no, of course we don't do that.[00:02:09] Casey Golden: Certainly not. I mean, if you just want those types of numbers, check out the reports on NR F'S website instead, we're bringing you some much needed insights into what retailers and consumers are, not just thinking. , but what they're actually doing so far this season.[00:02:25] Ricardo Belmar: That's right. Today we will be chatting with Roshan Jhunja, the head of retail for Square, who will be sharing some valuable insights from their recently released holiday forecast and survey of merchants and consumers.[00:02:37] Casey Golden: And we also have Bridget Johns co-founder of To & From a premium multi-brand marketplace for gifts of all occasion. Who will share some interesting data about how consumers are shopping for gifts, and maybe she'll give us a few hints on what the hot presents really are this season.[00:02:54] Ricardo Belmar: Well, I could certainly use some help in that department, so let's not keep everybody waiting and dive right into our [00:03:00] discussion with Roshan and Bridget.[00:03:06] Holiday Special - Gifting[00:03:06] Casey Golden: welcome everyone. We all know that finding that perfect gift is no easy task. But our guests have been making holiday shopping a lot more productive for retailers to prepare for the holiday season and less stressful on our pocketbooks. Alarming stat, 41% of Americans are willing to take on debt to gift shop with a whopping 15.2 billion is the estimated total of unwanted presents.[00:03:35] This is worth the conversation. We all say we're starting out our holiday shopping early this year, but what are we buying? What are the trends in who's shopping where and with what? Let's unwrap the holiday gift shopping season. This is our 2023 holiday special report.[00:03:53] Ricardo Belmar: And of course when the retail razor show does a holiday special, we don't just run through all the usual stats everybody else talks about. [00:04:00] You know the ones, how much will sales increase year over year? What categories will underperform or overperform, all the usual suspects? No, we like to take a different approach and leverage some real world experts that have read the pulse of both retailers and consumers.[00:04:14] So to help us unwrap this holiday special extravaganza. We brought in two experts on the topic, Roshan Jhunja, head of retail at Square joins us today hot off the heels of releasing Square, and AfterPay's festive forecast report, Roshan will be sharing many facts and stats from that extensive merchant and consumer survey.[00:04:33] Welcome Roshan.[00:04:34] Roshan Jhunja: Thank you, Ricardo Casey. Glad to be here.[00:04:36] Casey Golden: And since it's the season of Gift Giving, we've also brought in Bridget Johns, co-founder of To and From a Premium Multi-brand marketplace for every occasion guest to share interesting facts and figures about how people are shopping, why they're shopping, and. What they're shopping for. As we learn why To and From's mission is to change how we feel about gift [00:05:00] giving and receiving.[00:05:01] Welcome Bridget.[00:05:02] Bridget Johns: thanks so much for having.[00:05:04] Ricardo Belmar: let's go to you first. We're gonna talk a lot about your Festive Forecast report in this episode because we're all about the data on this show. So why don't you start us off by telling us a little bit about your background and what you do at Square and Afterpay, and explain to us the methodology in the survey and you know, who are the respondents?[00:05:22] Roshan Jhunja: Yeah. Glad to do that. So just to recap, square started with a purpose, which was to enable any individual or business to participate in the economy. And today,[00:05:31] 13 years after that,[00:05:31] founding, we've got a full ecosystem of commerce solutions from software to hardware, enabling merchants of every size type and complexity to run their business on Square.[00:05:39] That includes retailers, restaurants, beauty, personal care. And so my role at Square is looking after the retail vertical. So in particular, I'm the head of retail at Square. I've been at the company for six years. Before this I was largely in financial services, but kind of was interested in the mission and purpose of Square, and that's what sort of brought me and keeps me and, and my goal.[00:05:59] And I'm, I'm, you know, [00:06:00] the thing that keeps me excited and, and eager to get going every day is to empower retailers of all sizes to. By leveraging Square's platform. So I over oversee all the aspects of the vertical and we were really looking to create the best possible experience for retailers who run their businesses on square. terms of the methodology of this survey you know, like any good survey, it's important to make sure you've got a broad cross section. So we looked at both the consumer side 1000 consumers in the US as well as the seller side. So on the consumers, you know, we surveyed at the beginning of September, we made sure that we got equal gender representation.[00:06:33] We made sure that it was a broad demographic from, you know, the, the different regions in the us, northwest south, the Midwest, and, and. generationally, because that's increasingly an important access to look at. We made sure to include gen Z and millennials. In fact, you know, those kind of younger cohorts made up about 40% of the survey, but we also heard from Gen X, baby boomers and the postwar generation.[00:06:55] And so, you know, by doing so, we were able to draw out some meaningful distinctions between [00:07:00] how those different consumers operate. And then lastly, we also made sure to, to cover the seller side of the story. So we surveyed almost 600 square sellers in the us you know, of varying sizes, including some larger sellers.[00:07:11] And you know, one of the things that we did here was we looked year over year factoring, you know, some data that we have both on the square and after pay side. And yeah, eager to get into some of the the.[00:07:21] Ricardo Belmar: All right, fantastic. I'm looking forward to that. So Bridget, let's have you jump in here. You know, we've known each other for a long time now, but for listeners, why don't you tell us your background and what did you, and why did you get into the, the gifting side of the business and what makes gifting such a challenge?[00:07:34] And of course, what makes to and from unique.[00:07:37] Bridget Johns: Yeah. Thank you so much for asking. I've been in retail my entire life. I grew up on a farm and my first retail business was a corn stand when I was 10 years old. I moved on to more exciting retail. Worked for many years for brands like Ralph Lauren Home Collection, Tiffany and Co L'Oreal. And for the last 12 years as you know, Ricardo, I worked for Retail Next, which is an analytics company based in Silicon Valley, really focused [00:08:00] on brick and mortar data, data gathering of, of customer.[00:08:04] Action inside of brick and mortar stores. So as I started thinking about how I wanted to take my two sets of experience and bring them together to start my own company, gifting was obvious. It's my love language. It always has been. And I see a lot of pain points in today's gifting in the gifting world.[00:08:22] So those sort of break down into three categories that I talk about as discovery. It's hard for people to find good gifts. If you go to large marketplaces and you search for something, you are probably gonna be disappointed in those search results. there are No tools really for modern gifting.[00:08:45] On the digital side when you get outside of those large marketplaces. So there aren't things like widely adopted universal registry. There isn't a data set that really allows. Somebody to understand a consumer and their [00:09:00] preferences when it comes to when it comes to the people that are they're buying for and the occasions they're buying for them in their life.[00:09:06] And the third thing is, as Casey talked about, you know, 15.2 billion in returns of gifts, people don't like the gifts that they're getting. So our idea. That there is enough data in the market and that people will tell you about what they actually want as gifts, that if you bring it together intelligently and layer it in with some really good curation and some really awesome tools that help to just manage the day to day gifting that you can deliver a much better experience for consumers.[00:09:37] So that's what we're building at, to and from.[00:09:40] Casey Golden: It's great and it is all about consumers. So let's talk about the first step to any gift giving inspiration, stocking up on ideas and making a list. This is really where I see an opportunity for retailers to win customers over through product discovery. Where are shoppers getting their inspiration from holiday purchases?[00:09:59] Bridget?[00:09:59] Bridget Johns: That is [00:10:00] a great question and I think Roan will probably say the same. They get through inspiration everywhere and sometimes in the most unusual places. I have a 10 year old son who is a hockey player in a hockey mom's group on Facebook, and you would be shocked to see how much conversation is about hockey related.[00:10:21] For their hockey players. So I think, and it's like one of the things that we do at to and from is we get very precise about the occasion, the relationship, and the interests of the people who you're buying for so that you can get very targeted in really good gift recommendations.[00:10:38] Casey Golden: Roshan, your report has some interesting stats on this topic. What did your surveyed customers say about how they come up with their gift ideas?[00:10:46] Roshan Jhunja: Yeah, well, you know, picking up directly from what Bridget was touching on earlier family and friends, right. So, you know, what we found was that about. 43% of consumers are looking to family and friends of their top sources of inspiration. You know, and I'm sure that includes, you know, [00:11:00] Facebook forums and whatnot that that hockey thing resonated.[00:11:03] My father-in-law is an avid Giants fan. And you know if I could find the right place to source more giants gifts for him, I absolutely would. I think I've kind of exhausted what's out there. But for sure family and friends followed by being in. And you know, this is where retailers really get a chance to cultivate some of the in-store experience and make sure that it's a great place to discover new products.[00:11:22] And then, you know,[00:11:23] following along after that would be websites, blogs, and forums. And so, You know, obviously social media's gotten a lot better with targeting. You know, a…

Full show notes at the publisher

S2E5 - Retail Transformers - Polly Wong Nov 09, 2022

Show notes

Direct-to-consumer. DTC. What emotional response do those words conjure for you? The formula for DTC used to be simple – spend marketing dollars to acquire new customers. Today, customer acquisition costs can be 10X higher than they used to be, so what should be the new strategy in these challenging, post-pandemic economic times? Polly Wong, president of Bellardi Wong, and our latest Retail Transformer, has the answers. Polly’s agency works with the best, most successful DTC brands and she is sharing the best practices every DTC founder, brand manager, and category manager need to know to be successful in this episode! Should you open stores? Leverage print? Catalogs? Is Facebook still worthwhile? What about TikTok? Listen and find out!News alert #1: The Retail Razor Show has been nominated for The Retail Voice Award at the Vendors in Partnership Award ceremony during NRF 2023 in January in New York City! IF you’re a fan of the show, please give us your vote! You can vote here: https://bit.ly/VIPretail News alert #2! We’ve moved up to #19 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list, so please keep those 5-star reviews in Apple Podcasts coming! With your help, we’ll move our way further up the Top 20! Leave us a review to be mentioned in upcoming episodes! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno.The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E5 Retail Transformers - Polly Wong[00:00:00] Pre-Intro[00:00:00] Casey Golden: Ricardo, I've got one word for you to describe this week's show. Dtc. [00:00:06] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, so Casey, I'm thinking that's technically three words, but, but nevermind that. Um, I don't think we've done an entire show focused on DTC before, have we?[00:00:13] Casey Golden: Hey, I didn't write the script. So[00:00:21] So this is exciting and. I'm especially pumped for all [00:00:24] the DTC founders out there tuning in. This one is for you.[00:00:28] Ricardo Belmar: That's true, and honestly, if you're a direct to consumer founder listening or, or watching us on YouTube, stop right now. Go grab a pen and paper or your iPad or whatever you like to use to take notes, because believe me, you are going to be writing things down nonstop in a mad fury throughout this episode.[00:00:45] Casey Golden: Oh yeah. The tips and tricks are going to be flying. And you just don't wanna miss a[00:00:50] minute.[00:00:51] Ricardo Belmar: So should we just start the show or should we make listeners suffer a little bit more first, with more of our carefree and eloquent banter,[00:00:56] Casey Golden: Oh, you're so cruel. Let's get to the music already. [00:00:59][00:01:19] Show Intro[00:01:19] Ricardo Belmar: Hello and welcome to season two, episode five of The Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:01:25] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome to the Retail Razor Show listeners, retail's unapologetically authentic podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everybody else in retail and tech alike. [00:01:39] Ricardo Belmar: We are [00:01:40] back with another [00:01:41] episode in our Retail Transformers series, and honestly, if you thought last episode's guest, Alan Smithson was an absolutely incredible, never ending source of value on the Metaverse, wow are you gonna be blown away with today's guest and topic![00:01:54] Casey Golden: Yeah. As a founder, I'm so excited we're going to dive into this world of D to C and talk with amazing expert that's working with most of the top D to C brands out there. You would not believe how much knowledge she has to share, and that could really impact your DTC business by multiples [00:02:16] Ricardo Belmar: Indeed! Faithful followers, you will learn exactly why Polly Wong is more than meets the eye. This may go down as one of our most listened to episodes. We're gonna hear about what the right marketing and media spend mix should be for customer acquisition today. Because honestly, if you think it's the same as it was in the early days of D to C, boy are you in for a shock.[00:02:35] Casey Golden: Yeah, I mean, did you even consider print, like say catalogs? I bet you didn't. You will after this episode.[00:02:44] Ricardo Belmar: And then there's all the tips you're gonna hear [00:02:46] on growth strategies, how to activate your CRM for more profitable growth, retargeting those customers. And what about opening stores? Have you thought about where to open stores? [00:02:55] Casey Golden: There's just so much we could list. I mean, you're going to hear so many incredible [00:03:00] nuggets on marketing, roi, ROAS, and just so much more. [00:03:04] Ricardo Belmar: All right, then let's get to it. [00:03:06] Casey Golden: Let's roll.[00:03:07][00:03:12] Polly Wong Interview[00:03:12] Ricardo Belmar: And we're here with our special guest and latest retail transformer to visit the show. Polly Wong, President of Belardi Wong, which some people may know as a direct to consumer marketing agency. But more on that in a moment. First of all, welcome Polly.[00:03:26] Polly Wong: Thank you for having me.[00:03:27] Casey Golden: It's great to have you on the show. Since we first met you, we've both been looking forward to this conversation and really digging in. So excited [00:03:36] Ricardo Belmar: Polly just to get us started, why don't you give us a more complete introduction of yourself and tell us about your company and what you do.[00:03:42] Polly Wong: You know, I've been in retail for 25 years. I've had an incredible amount of experience. Really. It's both on the client side at some major retailers. I started 25 years ago at eddiebower.com. I was fortunate to work at Williams Sonoma Inc across their portfolio of brands before jumping to the dark side to the agency side, which is a lot of fun and an incredible learning curve.[00:04:06] It's like learning on steroids, I like to say. Today at Belardi Wong, we have 400 active clients, about 90% D TO C brands. Of course, D to C brands have stores as well. And then some very large retail brands that that all of you would know as well. A tremendous amount of experience in fashion, at home decor, furnishings also in some niche categories as well.[00:04:28] We definitely do tend to work with premium brands targeting an affluent consumer. So much of the vantage point that I have to share with you today is really from that angle of brands who are really targeting, you know, an affluent consumer. The folks out there buying, you know, two or $300 sweaters and expensive shoes and $5,000 sofa.[00:04:47] So I, I like to make that clearer, but we're really privileged just to have an incredible vantage point into the industry. [00:04:53] Casey Golden: Really excited to dig deeper in this. As I mentioned before, I'm very intrigued in, in, into the side of the business of marketing. Compared to a lot of the more traditional route that have been taken over the last decade. So clearly you're focused on direct to consumer brands, both old and new, but certainly more established brands.[00:05:10] I think based off of what you said, one of the areas getting a lot of press lately in the D to C space is really how the marketing spend is being shifted from Facebook, Google, versus other mediums. Can you tell us a little bit about what's happening here with D to C brands and how that's changing this marketing mix?[00:05:30] Polly Wong: Sure. So it's been a really fascinating year to watch how the Apple platform changes have really impacted all of the digital platforms. Specifically meta we've found, as an aside, we've found that really Google is quite a resilient, steady, reliable channel. You know, Google continues to make enhancements that work for advertisers.[00:05:52] Performance Max on Google has worked very well for our clients over the last several months, so, so Google's very kind of reliable and steady. Google has had 10 to 50% increase, 10 to 15% increases. And, you know, costs, but really in line with kind of all the cost increases we're seeing across the p and l as a brand or as a retailer.[00:06:12] So really the challenge on the digital side in the last year has really come from meta and the Apple platform changes basically led. To less effective targeting and less effective measurement. And at the same time that our clients have seen a less effective measurement and less effective targeting on meta, they've also seen some pretty steep double digit increases on CPMs, on meta or Facebook, if you will.[00:06:38] And so we've seen dramatic underperformance in the last year, specifically in the social landscape. And so, you know, D to C brands inherently were built on Facebook and Google. The inherent DNA, if you will, of, of D to C brands is that one, they're performance based marketers, and two, you know, they're just wholeheartedly focused on new customer acquisition.[00:07:01] And so now you've seen that this Facebook channel just, you know, one of the top two most critical channels for new customer acquisition for DTC brands has really begun to plummet in the last year. I know across our client base through August, our clients have spent 19% less this year versus last year on Meta.[00:07:21] And that's because of the significant underperformance. But obviously Meta has taken the lion share of most of the marketing dollars for D2C brands. So, the question is, where is it going? You know, where are they shifting marketing spend? And that's been really interesting to [00:07:35] Casey Golden: That's great, and you really mention it as like a CRM strategy. [00:07:39] Is that, Is that right? [00:07:40] Spending shifts and pivots[00:07:40] Polly Wong: Yeah, so I think, well, I think we can talk about kind of where they're shifting their spend, but also, you know, what are some of the, the pivots that D to C brands need to make in order to be successful. And I think most D2C brands have not realized yet that the most incredible asset that they have is the customer file, the customer database.[00:08:01] That they've built up over the last five to 10 years. Now they've spent millions and millions of dollars building their customer file. New customer acquisition always comes at a cost. It's an investment. You cannot have a profitable business when you are only focused on acquisition as a fact.[00:08:15] Casey Golden: Oh my God, can you just like, say that [00:08:17] Ricardo Belmar: we should just frame that just to make that clear for, for everyone who's doubting that [00:08:22] Casey Golden: We're putting that in bold print.[00:08:24] Polly Wong: Yes. Also I'll just go out on a limb and also say you can't have a large, scalable, sustainable business when you only have a handful of product as well, we can get to that later. But definitely you can't just single handidly focus on new customer acquisition so I actually see, you know, there's a lot of headwinds right now, but I see a major tailwind that D to C brands could lean into is really crm, right? You know, I've talked to many, many brands over the years that when you ask them, they say they spent a hundred percent of their marketing budget on acquisition, and it's almost like crm, customer retention management. It's just an afterthought, right?[00:08:59] Like, Oh, we have email now, of course they'll say, We have email and sms. But there are really five major channels in the CRM toolbox, and we don't see D to C brands leaning into that. It's a discipline and a skill set they need to evolve to very quickly because that's where the profit is going to come, as we kind of stare down some economic uncertainty.[00:09:18] So the five channels that we really think about, obviously e email. Second is sms. Some clients have leaned into it very quickly. Some have not. It's still a huge opportunity. I, for one, wondered at the beginning if really SMS would just be shifting sales from email, but we do find that SMS is an incremental revenue driver.[00:09:37] So you've got email and sms. Obviously D to C brands are pretty good at targeting their customer file on Facebook, but they let it work too often on its own. And you really have to think about the segmentation and targeting of lapse customers. You have to carve out specific marketing dollars at targeting customers who've not bought from you in over a year.[00:09:58] There's still a better focus for your marketing dollar than pure new customer acquisition. And so you really wanna target your lapse customer file, on Facebook, and you wanna make sure you're looking at the frequency and the messaging and the targeting and the testing against that segment. [00:10:13] So now hopefully you've got brands, you know, leveraging and leaning into reactivation on social. I think what we don't find enough is actually proactive spending on search with your lapse customers. Let's say that Mary Jane bought a sweater from you a year and a half ago, and now Mary Jane is on Google searching for a turquoise turtleneck sweater.[00:10:36] You should be there targeting her. You should be buying that ad against Mary's search, right? Her click, you should be targeting her. And so really targeting lapse customers when they're searching for your product is a huge opportunity. We don't see clients carving out marketing dollars to really have that kind of proactive approach at customer reactivation on search, so I think that's a low hanging opportunity.[00:11:00] And then for definitely print. So all 400, you know, retailers and brands here, at Belardi Wong, are in the mail. They're leveraging direct mail and catalogs for customer retention. It's extremely effective. And driving up purchase frequency and revenue per customer and overall lifetime value. The great thing about print is that, you know, you've got a hundred percent reach.[00:11:22] So if you want to target Mary Jane who bought from you a year and a half ago she's gotta at least touch the piece to recycle it, so you've got a hundred percent reach. All of our data over the last year as we've looked at it, we've found that if you want to target a specific customer at a specific time within social, you've got about an 18% chance.[00:11:43]…

Full show notes at the publisher

S2E4 - Retail Transformers - Alan Smithson Oct 30, 2022

Show notes

Interested in the metaverse and need to know how to get started? Meet Alan Smithson, founder of MetaVrse, multiple TED Talk speaker, and builder of “The Mall” in the metaverse, but not just any mall! If there were a hundred-page encyclopedia of the metaverse, Alan would fill every page but you’d still need more room to cover his vast knowledge of all things metaverse. It’s season 2, episode 4, and we’re continuing our Retail Transformers series – you’ll see why Alan Smithson is truly more than meets the eye!Alan tells you what you need to get started with the metaverse, but takes us on an even deeper journey that touches on the future of jobs in digital technologies, how education needs to change to keep up, how the metaverse could make the world a better place, and of course, why shopping should be fun again! Plus, we’ll learn why asking children what they want to be when they grow up is the wrong question to ask. The real question is …News alert! We’re back at #20 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list, so please keep those 5-star reviews in Apple Podcasts coming! With your help, we’ll move our way further up the Top 20! Leave us a review and be mentioned in a future episode! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring E-Motive, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno.The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTS2E4 Retail Transformers - Alan Smithson[00:00:00] Pre-Show Intro[00:00:00] Alan Smithson: Good morning. Retail Razor. No, maybe too much. [00:00:05] Ricardo Belmar: actually we might, we might use that at the, in the intro beginning. [00:00:07] That was pretty [00:00:08] Good. ..That [00:00:09] Alan Smithson: like bit connect . I wanna go to a crypto conference and start doing that. Bit connect[00:00:17] Ricardo Belmar: Now that would be fun to see. [00:00:19] Alan Smithson: Too early maybe. Okay. We'll just start now. [00:00:21] Ricardo Belmar: Okay. All right, here we go. Here we go. [00:00:23][00:00:23] Introduction[00:00:23] Ricardo Belmar: hello, and welcome to season two, episode four of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:49] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome Retail Razor Show listeners to retail's favorite podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike.[00:01:01] Ricardo Belmar: And we have a truly special treat this week. Following up from our season debut episode on the Metaverse, we are back to talk more metaverse this week, aren't we?[00:01:10] Casey Golden: Yes, and I'm excited. Our listeners and viewers should be excited because this week we're not only talking Metaverse, but we're continuing our Retail Transformer series with special guest, Alan Smithson, founder and CEO of the company, Metaverse.[00:01:24] Ricardo Belmar: Yes. Our faithful followers will learn exactly why Alan is 'more than meets the eye'.[00:01:31] Casey Golden: Aww, you're gonna use that line, every time for these series, aren't you?[00:01:35] Ricardo Belmar: Absolutely, a hundred percent. I am totally here for that.[00:01:39] Casey Golden: Okay, so let's talk about Alan. There are few people in the early days of the Metaverse that can talk in depth about what retailers need to look at when building their metaverse strategy.[00:01:49] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, when we first talked to Alan, you know, when he first came to one of our clubhouse rooms, I was really impressed. And just like you said, he's got the knowledge about the metaverse. We'll also hear about his solution, the mall, that he's building, that will really change how retailers look at the metaverse.[00:02:03] And listeners or viewers are gonna come away with a really smart plan on, on how to attack the metaverse and get experimenting right away, just like we predicted back in season one episode four.[00:02:13] Casey Golden: And experimenting, and experimenting, trying things out is a matter of showing up and learning how to experiment. Alan hits on all of these topics and more honestly, each episode this season has been incredibly informative, but our guest energy is solid, true innovators. I don't know how we keep doing this from one episode to another, but keep those notepads handy.[00:02:35] You'll need it.[00:02:37] Ricardo Belmar: That's right. I mean, we could go on and on about all the juicy details Alan will talk about, but I think I can sum it up by saying if you were gonna write a hundred page Encyclopedia of the Metaverse, Alan would be on page one all the way through page 100, and you'd probably be asking for more pages after that.[00:02:54] Casey Golden: Agreed, so let's get to it then. Our interview with Alan Smithson co-founder of MetaVrse. [00:03:04] AlanSmithson Interview[00:03:04] Ricardo Belmar: And we are here with our very special guest, Alan Smithson, co-founder of the company MetaVrse, whose mission is to enable creation in the Metaverse for everyone. Following from our clubhouse session in our season one opener on the Metaverse and one of what's likely to be many more discussions we'll have on the metaverse going forward.[00:03:23] Alan, welcome to the Retail Razor Show. [00:03:25] Alan Smithson: Thank you so much, Ricardo and Casey. Thanks for having me. This is so, so exciting. You know, we we got to meet in person before these things, which is super cool, you know, and normally it's the other way around. You do all these podcasts and things, and then you finally meet somebody, you're like, Oh, yeah.[00:03:38] So it's really great to see some familiar faces and, and dive into the, the Occam's razor of retail .[00:03:46] Ricardo Belmar: exactly[00:03:47] Casey Golden: I'm so glad to see you Allen and having you here with us this morning. I'm just really excited to catch up and learn what's been going on since the last time we saw each other. [00:03:59] We're [00:03:59] Alan Smithson: many things. [00:04:00] Casey Golden: right. We're not casting from the, the metaverse yet. But who knows? This time next year, a seismic shift is taking [00:04:06] Alan Smithson: time next week we're gonna be releasing some cool stuff and we built in full video chat capabilities into our project. So we'll get into that later. But yeah, the three pushed some technology that will allow us to do this inside of virtual world.[00:04:21] Casey Golden: Interesting. Yes. Experiences on the internet are expected to be more immersive, three dimensional and virtual with the realization of web three . I believe the metaverse will will play , an integral role in product discovery and brand experiences.[00:04:36] Some people are saying it's dead and now it's like coming back. Some people said it's, this is just natural traction. So I mean, I think we're all here for the dips and we're all here for the eyes.[00:04:47] Alan Smithson: I really love the articles that say, you know, the Meta versus Dead or, you know, these are the same articles that in 10 years from now, people will look back and go, Oh yeah, you, you're the guy who wrote the internet as dead article. Good for you. You know, that really inspired a whole generation of people to build the internet, so, [00:05:04] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, it's like how many years ago when everybody was saying physical retail was dead,[00:05:09] Alan Smithson: I mean, yeah, like you can say everything's dead. Look, when we invented tv, people said, Oh, this is gonna replace radio. Every car still has a radio in it. [00:05:20] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. [00:05:21] Alan Smithson: like, radio didn't go away. It just changed and morphed. And you know, now we, now we have Spotify. Okay, maybe radio is not the primary thing, but it never died.[00:05:32] You know, TVs didn't go away when we got the internet. You know computers didn't go away when we got mobile phones. And, you know, mobile phones aren't going away anytime when we get VR and, and AR glasses. So, you know, adding new mediums does not necessarily mean that you, the other one fades away and dies, you know, it just becomes another medium.[00:05:51] There's, , let's say 10 years ago you had, I don't know, a billion people on the internet. Now we have 4 billion people on the Internet. Like, you know, the, the time right now is, is explosive growth. I mean, companies are raising, hundreds of millions of dollars, you know, tens and then hundreds of millions of dollars for internet technologies and metaverse technologies and web three technologies.[00:06:14] You know, this is just the money going in to invest to the future. So, I mean, we're in for a, a really, really interesting next, I guess, eight years now that we're almost kind of at the end of 2022. , By the end of this decade, the world will look very different than it does today,[00:06:30] Ricardo Belmar: Oh yeah. Yeah,[00:06:31] Casey Golden: I agree with that a hundred percent.[00:06:33] Ricardo Belmar: so, [00:06:34] Alan Smithson: none of the things will be dead.[00:06:35] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. No, none. None of it. We're just keep adding more and more I think as we're gonna get [00:06:39] into [00:06:39] Alan Smithson: more people coming on the[00:06:40] internet and more [00:06:41] Casey Golden: I'm [00:06:41] all [00:06:41] Alan Smithson: I like reading. [00:06:42] Casey Golden: web, like 6.0 already, right?[00:06:45] Alan Smithson: Why don't we have six G? I mean, my 5G phone doesn't really do anything for me. I'm like, 5g. I still have no signal. What the heck?[00:06:55] Casey Golden: It's still a marketing boy.[00:06:57] Alan Smithson: I bought a big phone that folds in half so that I can have all the things[00:07:02] Ricardo Belmar: And you're still waiting. And you're still [00:07:04] Alan Smithson: That's the wait. I still[00:07:05] Ricardo Belmar: so [00:07:06] Alan Smithson: but the technology's getting super fast. The the one thing that's exciting that. Most people are consuming the internet on a mobile phone now. Mobile phones and computers are the kind of dominant, but mobile phones kind of leapfrogged and it's places like Africa. They, they just bypass computers altogether and just went straight to phones.[00:07:22] Same with China. And so the phone technology is[00:07:25] Casey Golden: say, with 10 year olds,[00:07:27] Alan Smithson: exactly. 10 year olds in the Chinese, they, they just bypass computers all together.[00:07:32] Ricardo Belmar: Right. [00:07:33] Alan Smithson: But yeah, the, the world is using mobile phones to access the internet, and the mobile phones are getting so good. You know, the iPhone 14 came out y. These things are super, super computers now.[00:07:45] I mean, if you, One of the people that I, I really think highly of is a guy that runs this company called Otoy. They're a rendering engine and I can't remember the guy's name, but they came up with this concept of the render token. This was way before the whole crypto craze, and they said, What if we could tap into everybody's phone and computer and do batch rendering around the world?[00:08:06] So let's say Disney as a project, right? And they, you know, they need 500 servers to, to run this, you know scene of a Disney movie. Well, can't we then just push it out to a thousand phones, Have everybody, you know use the GPUs that are bit, you know, kinda sitting idle for most of the time on your phone.[00:08:22] Can we leverage that and then pay people for, for using this idle time on their phones?[00:08:27] seem to take off because I think it was a bit early, but that ability to tap into the billions of smartphones and computers out there and the processing power that is sitting idle, I think is going to be a key part of the metaverse moving forward in, in kind of the long term strategy. I mean, this is not, it's not an overnight thing. Nobody's really figured it out yet. But if we can do that, you think of how many computers around the world we could tap into for ai, for modeling, for protein folding for, you know, the good of mankind.[00:08:55] We can really use these these idle devices that are sitting idle for, you know, let's say most people, their phones are only sitting idle while they sleep, but[00:09:04] you know, it's, eight hours of sleep, depending on who you are. Casey, who only sleeps four hours a night,[00:09:12] What is MetaVrse & The Mall[00:09:12] Ricardo Belmar: Right. Well, Alan, so, diving into this space a little bit more, tell us a little more about what Metaverse is in your company and what you're doing and what you're and what that means for retailers and brands.[00:09:24] Alan Smithson: So we we started a company called Metaverse back in 2016, spelled M e t A V R s E, you know, for the vr idea, we built all sorts of projects in, in virtual, augmented, mixed reality, and 3d. We've done over 160 projects now but we've done everything from building retail locations virtual stores.[00:09:43] We've done virtual showrooms for automotive. We have built virtual training for, for medical, for consumer electronics. We did a lot of work for Samsung where we took their their new phone models, actually including this one, and then we animated them opening and you could turn it around and, you know, look inside and all this stuff.[00:09:59] We did a bunch of stuff for Samsung. We built virtual showrooms for MasterCard, but all of these things were actually built on our own engine. And so over the years we actually were building and working on our. What you would call a game engine or a creation platform. So similar to Unity and Unreal we have our own base, you know, rendering technology that allows us to render directly to the internet, directly to a web browser on a mobile phone.[00:10:24] So one of the, the claims to fame for us is that we have a low code, easy to create platform that bypasses the app stores. We actually don't have to go through Apple or Google. We just hit publish. It goes to a browser and works on any device. So this is super powerful and we really set up a goal in mind to build a platform that would let anybody participate and create in the Metaverse.[00:10:47] And so our mission is Metaverse creation for every. That's you know, that's always kind of been our ethos. It used to be XR creation for everyone, and then the whole world moved to the word metaverse.…

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S2E3c SPECIAL Groceryshop 2022 Part 3 – Andrew Lipsman of eMarketer & Krystina Gustafson of ShopTalk Oct 14, 2022

Show notes

Missed Groceryshop 2022? Not to worry, we’ve got you covered! Welcome to another SPECIAL EDITION season 2, episode 3, Part 3, Groceryshop recap!We’re bringing you 6 great interviews recorded live and in-person at Groceryshop in Las Vegas, NV, bundled up in 3 episodes with 2 interviews each. For part 3, we saved two very special guests for your listening pleasure. Andrew Lipsman, principal analyst for retail and ecommerce at Insider Intelligence gives us a rundown of the top trends across Groceryshop, with a focus on retail media, convenience stores, and a unique perspective on personalization and omnichannel. Then you’ll hear from Krystina Gustafson, SVP Content for Groceryshop and Shoptalk. Krystina gives us the insider’s view of the show, how it’s produced, another view of top trends, and finally, a take on what was NOT talked about at the show. You'll be hard pressed to find a more jampacked 30 minutes of insights!News alert! We’re back at #20 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list, so please keep those 5-star reviews in Apple Podcasts coming! With your help, we’ll move our way further up the Top 20! Leave us a review and be mentioned in a future episode! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring Swag Tag and Brag, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno.The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTSPECIAL Edition: Groceryshop 2022, Part 3[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar:[00:00:20] Introduction to Part 3[00:00:20] Ricardo Belmar: Hello, and welcome to season two, episode three, part three of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar.[00:00:26] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome retail Razor Show listeners to our un apologetically authentic retail podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everyone else in retail and retail tech alike. [00:00:39] Ricardo Belmar: So Casey, what did you think of part two of our grocery shop interview series with those two incredible grocery retailers, Lisa Kinney from Albertsons and Dave Steck from Schnuck Markets.[00:00:48] Casey Golden: Well, you did say that this episode would be thought provoking and you delivered. Lisa really sliced and diced what's happening in grocery with consumer data. I found it incredibly interesting and related right back to the future of retail media networks in a way I've just never heard anyone talk about it like that before. [00:01:07] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, that's right. I mean, Lisa really brought home issues around where the data comes from with all the tech partners that grocers are involved with now, and asked I think, some tough questions about how retail media would bring brands and retailers together and where all those dollars come from.[00:01:22] Casey Golden: Yeah. And then Dave Steck, I mean, is there any emerging tech that he's not looking into yet? I mean, I don't know, maybe web three, but. [00:01:31] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. Something tells me that that's not too far behind on his schedule . But yes, I mean, yeah, he, he really showed us how having the right corporate culture just opens the door to doing really creative and innovative things with New Tech in the store. I mean, he's got, he's not only has robots and IoT, he's looking at electronic shelf labels.[00:01:50] I think there's no limit to where Schnuck's is going, and it's pretty impressive.[00:01:53] Casey Golden: So for our listeners who haven't checked out part two. You should probably stop right now. Go back. Listen. We'll wait.[00:02:00] Ricardo Belmar: So, So do we just stop talking now and wait for the listeners to come back or what?[00:02:03] Casey Golden: Uh, Uh, not really. I mean, we're recording for a reason. We're not live. [00:02:06] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. Okay. That, Yeah. All right. I know, I know. Just, just kidding. So let's talk about this episode then.[00:02:10] Casey Golden: Who do you have lined up and tell me, did you save the best for last? Honestly, part two was jampacked full of insights coming at you every minute. [00:02:19] Ricardo Belmar: Well, I have to admit, yes, yes, Probably, possibly. Maybe. We did save the best for last, not to diminish anything about our previous guests in any way because they were all really amazing. We got lots of fantastic insights and, and knowledge from everybody. But , this time out, we've got two really amazing guests.[00:02:37] One I, I would call a recent fan favorite Andrew Lipsman the principal analyst for retail and e-commerce at e-marketer, Insider Intelligence, and hot off of our Retail Media networks episode. That's quickly becoming one of our most downloaded episodes, by the way ,that I caught up with Andrew at Grocery shop after one of his sessions, and we talked about what some of the biggest trends were across the whole show.[00:02:58] As we're pretty much near the end of the event at this point. So much of what Stewart told us in part one I think stayed the course for the rest of the show. But Andrew points out some really interesting tidbits about the convenience store segment . And it might just be a, a sleeping giant waiting to surface.[00:03:13] Within all the talk around, around grocery and food in, in general. So we briefly touch on quick commerce and rapid delivery and the latest from the show on those providers. It was really interesting though to hear his take on personalization and omnichannel and how those, I mean, let's face it, those are not new trends.[00:03:31] But suddenly they were just front and center at grocery shop. You, you'd think that the grocery industry hadn't heard of those two things before the way they were being talked about. So I think his position will surprise you on those two. And, you have to watch out for our discussion on what was not a trend at the show.[00:03:48] I'll give you a hint. It rhymes with metaverse,[00:03:50] Casey Golden: not a hint, [00:03:53] Ricardo Belmar: It's not[00:03:55] Casey Golden: It's not a hint, way to give it away. Um, [00:04:00] Ricardo Belmar: on. Okay. You'll see, you'll, you'll see, there, there's a reason for why that's the case and it comes back again in fact, with the second guest for this episode [00:04:06] Casey Golden: Okay, so don't keep us in the suspense. I mean, I'm, I'm a co-host and I'm in suspense who's, two. [00:04:13] Ricardo Belmar: number two is none other than Krystina Gustafson, SVP of content for grocery shop and shop talk. And if you're like me, you probably remember Krystina from back in her cnbc, retail journalist days. So this is a, a, a real treat of an interview. Krystina and I talk about what makes grocery shop so special, how they put the show together.[00:04:31] What are the key trends from her perspective ,from what they were trying to accomplish? And you know, while they're similar to what we've been hearing from the other guests, there is a bit of a unique twist, I think, to what she offered. So I won't give that away. You'll have to listen. But we do dig into what some of the big buzz was about, what was happening in the expo hall.[00:04:49] And I asked her as well about what's not buzzing, You know, i e metaverse, which was not really buzzing at the show. And of course where retail media is headed because I don't think we can possibly do an episode about grocery shop and not talk about retail media. But it's a fascinating insider discussion that I think listeners will really enjoy.[00:05:06] We have to have Krystina back on the show again. She's so much fun to talk to. [00:05:09] Casey Golden: All right, I'm sold. With that lead in there's nothing left to do, but head straight to the interviews. I'm excited to grab some popcorn, get comfy, grab a notepad, and dive right in. So let's listen together to Andrew Lipman and Krystina Gustafson recorded live and in person at Grocery Shop 2022. [00:05:28] Andrew Lipsman Interview[00:05:28] Ricardo Belmar: and welcome To the retail Razor Show Special Edition episode at Grocery shop 2022. [00:05:42] I'm here at the show in Las Vegas, Continuing our series of amazing retail transformers to talk all things, grocery and consumer goods. I'm here now with Andrew Lipsman, principal analyst for retail and e-commerce at Insider Intelligence. Andrew, it is awesome to have you back on the show again. [00:05:58] Andrew Lipsman: It's great to be back already. Ricardo. [00:06:00] Ricardo Belmar: So of course the existing listeners may have heard or watched our retail media networks episode, they'll already be familiar with you. But for new listeners give us a quick, intro to what you do at insider intelligence. [00:06:10] Andrew Lipsman: Yeah. as you said, I'm a principal analyst covering retail and e-commerce. So I really cover the gamut of all things, retail, whether that's in store e-commerce and Increasingly advertising where retail and e-commerce intersect with other trends. So retail media Has certainly been in my cross hairs and I've also spent a, quite a bit of extra time in the last year or so focusing more and more on grocery and CPG.[00:06:33] Ricardo Belmar: So since we are at grocery shop, let's talk about what some of the big trends are that you're seeing here. And they're getting all the buzz. I know you've spoken a couple of sessions that I attended. One panel was a session about emerging tech in the convenience store space. [00:06:47] So Kind of thinking back to that and anything else you've seen at the show, what, What are let's say two or three big trends that you're seeing here at the show. [00:06:53] Andrew Lipsman: Yeah, well, it's certainly biased towards the sessions that I was in. [00:06:56] And I've been running around. and haven't seen as many other sessions as I would've liked, but convenience does seem to be a bigger trend. They've done a nice job with the convenience track. [00:07:04] And I guess my viewpoint is that it's maybe under appreciated and not talked about quite enough, but it's a pretty formidable retail space. Obviously a lot of brands are flowing through there and there's a lot of innovation happening on a lot of fronts, the tech cashierless checkout. [00:07:20] Retail media are starting to have that conversation and how it's used and deployed in C stores. And then really just the broader delivery and quick commerce space. That convenience is a huge, huge trend. In terms of driving consumer behavior. So I think all those things intersect in interesting ways and I was glad to be a part of that session. [00:07:38] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. I agree when convenience is definitely an interesting one. That's the, one of the things I enjoyed in your session on There's a little bit different spin. I think, to how a lot of the technologies and things that, that the grocers are talking about that maybe get applied a little differently in convenience. [00:07:52] Andrew Lipsman: Yeah. And you know, the one that's kind of interesting. cashierless checkout, for example, automated checkout. On the one hand convenience, you kind of want to get in and out, but also lines aren't that bad. [00:08:03] But We talk about it there because it, it kind of started with Amazon Go and that format, and that really was driven by the need for camera technology to be able to work in a space. And it worked better in small format [00:08:15] So I'm curious how that plays out longterm. Grocery store format, everybody hates the checkout line. So that's where, that's where the real strong use case is and now the technology is getting a lot better to enable that. [00:08:26] Ricardo Belmar: You mentioned retail media. And we've talked about that before, and I think that's clearly been a major trend here at the show, you see it everywhere that you walk around the halls with the Walmart connect advertising. What are you seeing in the context of retail media around convenience? [00:08:40] Andrew Lipsman: Well, I mean, I just think about. you know, I'm I'm a big proponent of the trend of in-store retail media. I think it's going to emerge. I think there's a lot of opportunity for digital signage and screens to start entering into the physical space more. [00:08:53] Where I think it's particularly interesting in convenience is that while you've got in most cases, the cooler aisle that is visible, right? When you walk in. So it's not on the periphery. Like it is in a grocery store. And, or in the center aisle. And I think that that visibility. maybe makes it more impactful. [00:09:10] And also. I can just see c-stores really taking to it. And so I'm watching that carefully. to see if, if we start to see a bigger rollout of that in the c-store format. [00:09:19] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. That's going to be interesting to compare how that kind of weighs in against what the grocery is doing now with their retail media networks. [00:09:27] Andrew Lipsman: And I think that's it. When you walk into a, C-store also, you're probably much more open to that brand and you don't necessarily know what you want I'm thirsty, right? Or I'm coming and going into grab beer. That's a perfect time to put that brand impression in front of the customer.[00:09:41] Ricardo Belmar: I did notice some of the speakers talking about how they're either seeing kind of a consumer shift in terms of thinking about, you know, what do I need to buy food wise for the week versus now more thinking around, what do I want to buy for tonight? [00:09:53] Andrew Lipsman: Yeah. Instant delivery and quick commerce space. [00:09:56] I mean that that's so interesting. My, my biggest question here, as we see maybe some consolidation and some players leaving the market, what's going to happen. [00:10:04] Is there enough of a regular use case for most consumers? I've said first time I used goPuff it was amazing. I got my order in 14 minutes. [00:10:12] The second time it was during rush hour. And I got my order in 25 minutes. Still a [00:10:16] Ricardo Belmar: still. Pretty impressive. [00:10:17] Andrew Lipsman: Right. I was in the middle of preparing dinner, so that's good. But I haven't seen a lot of other occasions for me to keep using it. So that's really, my question is how, how often are people going to be doing this. Now?, I'm…

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S2E3b SPECIAL Groceryshop 2022 Part 2 - Lisa Kinney of Albertsons & Dave Steck of Schnuck Markets Oct 11, 2022

Show notes

Missed Groceryshop 2022? Not to worry, we’ve got you covered! Welcome to another SPECIAL EDITION season 2, episode 3, Part 2, Groceryshop recap!We’re bringing you 6 great interviews recorded live and in-person at Groceryshop in Las Vegas, NV, bundled up in 3 episodes with 2 interviews each. For part 2, we hear very unique perspectives from two amazing, experienced grocery retailers. First, we speak with Lisa Kinney, VP of Customer Market Intelligence for Albertsons, who talks about the value of data in grocery, and asks the “why” question in a way that no one really expresses on stage at a show like Grocery Shop. Then we chat with Dave Steck, VP of IT Infrastructure and Application Development for Schnuck Markets. We get into why his approach to emerging technologies at Schnuck Markets is so different from what we hear from other grocers. You'll be hard pressed to find more unique insights and commentary anywhere else in less than 30 minutes!We’ll be back soon with 2 more Groceryshop themed episodes and another 2 amazing interviews!News update! We’re at #21 on the Feedspot Top 60 Best Retail podcasts list, so please keep those 5-star reviews in Apple Podcasts coming! With your help, we’ll move our way deep into the Top 20! Leave us a review and be mentioned in a future episode! https://blog.feedspot.com/retail_podcasts/Meet your hosts, helping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar, a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Influencer for 2022 & 2021, RIS News Top Movers and Shakers in Retail for 2021, a Top 12 ecommerce influencer, advisory council member at George Mason University’s Center for Retail Transformation, and director partner marketing advisor for retail & consumer goods at Microsoft.Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock. Obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, now slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech!Includes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring Swag Tag and Brag, and Overclocked, from the album Beat Hype, written by Hestron Mimms, published by Imuno.The Retail Razor ShowFollow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/TwRRazorConnect with us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LI-RRazorSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/RRShowYouTubeSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RetailRazorShowRetail Razor Show Episode Page: https://bit.ly/RRShowPodHost → Ricardo Belmar,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twRBelmarConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LIRBelmarRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWRBelmarCo-host → Casey Golden,Follow on Twitter - https://bit.ly/twCaseyConnect on LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/LICaseyRead my comments on RetailWire - https://bit.ly/RWCaseyTRANSCRIPTSPECIAL Edition: Groceryshop 2022, Part 2[00:00:00] Ricardo Belmar:[00:00:20] Introduction to Part 2[00:00:20] Ricardo Belmar: Hello, and welcome to season two, episode three, part two of the Retail Razor Show. I'm your host, Ricardo Belmar [00:00:27] Casey Golden: And I'm your co-host, Casey Golden. Welcome Retail Razor Show listeners to our unapologetically authentic retail podcast for product junkies, commerce technologists, and everybody else in retail and retail tech alike. So Ricardo, part one of our grocery shop series was quite interesting. We heard from an awesome startup, Grocery Shopii and their CEO Katie Hotze. She was amazing and really makes me wanna go shop for groceries, which I haven't done in literally years. which is pretty incredible. [00:01:01] Ricardo Belmar: Katie is pretty amazing. You have to love her approach to making grocery shopping easier, healthier, and to me most importantly, faster while saving money. Definitely expect to hear more about Grocery Shopii in the future.[00:01:14] Casey Golden: Absolutely. And then you talked with Stuart Samuel about trends at the first half of the show. No surprise there, retail media networks, just as we predicted at the beginning of the year, were very p rominent [00:01:27] Ricardo Belmar: And no doubt about it. And he also talked about a few other trends around profitability with eCommerce, convenience services and current shopper trends driven by economic conditions. For listeners, if you haven't checked out part one, you definitely need to. [00:01:41] Casey Golden: So Ricardo, what do we have coming up in part two for this episode? [00:01:46] Ricardo Belmar: This episode may just blow your mind. I, I interviewed two experienced retailers in grocery, Lisa Kenney, VP of Customer Market Intelligence for Albertsons, and Dave Steck, VP of IT Infrastructure and Application Development for Schnuck Markets. Each of them gave a very unique perspective on many of the trends we heard about in part one.[00:02:06] In fact, I think you'd be hard pressed to find more unique insights and commentary anywhere else. If you're wondering why I say that, it's because both take a very different view of technology trends in grocery and start by asking one of my favorite questions, and quite frankly, probably one of the most valuable words in any language... why?.[00:02:24] Casey Golden: Wow, that's quite a setup you just dropped. Tell us some more.[00:02:28] Ricardo Belmar: Well, I wanna give everything away, but, Okay. A few spoilers. Lisa and I talk about the value of data in grocery, and she asks why in a way that no one really expressed on stage at the show. She goes into detail on the behind the scenes conversations grocers have at a show like Grocery Shop that you don't normally hear on stage.[00:02:47] And if that isn't shocking enough to listen to, she offers a very different take on retail media networks that may just completely change your perspective on this.[00:02:55] Casey Golden: Okay. Wow. Now I really wanna jump into this. Is your interview with Dave just as juicy. [00:03:01] Ricardo Belmar: You bet. Dave is practically an icon at Grocery Shop. He's been on stage at every Grocery Shop each year talking about emerging technology like robotics, IoT, and more. We get into why his approach and what Schnuck Markets is doing seems to be so different from what we hear from other grocers. And spoiler alert when you hear him explain why, you just might have some flashbacks to our episode with Andy Laudato from the Vitamin Shoppe about his book Fostering Innovation.[00:03:27] It all comes down to corporate culture, and you'll hear what I mean by that. It's pretty powerful.[00:03:31] Casey Golden: Okay, so I thought part one was jam packed with incredible nuggets. Now you're making me think part two is going to top that. [00:03:39] Ricardo Belmar: Well, don't say I didn't warn you. If you wanted to take notes during part one, then you better get some extra sheets of paper out for this one. It's just crazy. This is an episode that I would put under the column of things that make you go, hmm.[00:03:51] Casey Golden: All right. Now you're just going totally over the top with that kind of setup. We better just dive right in and get right to it. I'm stoked. Let's listen together to Lisa Kinney and Dave Steck recorded live and in person at Grocery Shop 2022.[00:04:08][00:04:08] Lisa Kinney Interview[00:04:08] Ricardo Belmar: and welcome to the Retail Razor Show Special Edition Groceryshop Episode. I'm here today with special guest Lisa Kinney, VP of customer market intelligence. for Albertsons. Welcome to the show, Lisa. [00:04:28] Lisa Kinney: thanks for having me. It's a pleasure to be here. [00:04:30] Ricardo Belmar: So you and I were chatting a little bit before we recorded about what seems to be the most interesting here at the show are the things that we're not hearing people talk about on stage. [00:04:39] Almost like a what's behind the scenes, really of interest and value to people in the industry. And we kind of ended up landing on a discussion about data. With which to be fair, right. Has been a big part of a lot of the discussions on stage, but they've all centered around what I would call the outcome of what you do with the data you have that might be customer facing and it might be more B2B facing because as a retailer, I'm going to sell a service around this to someone else, but you had a very unique and interesting perspective about how grocers are looking at the data. [00:05:13] Lisa Kinney: Yeah, I think. There's a few things, Thanks for teeing that up. I think. The things that aren't discussed on it, that are discussed amongst peers, which is wonderful that after 30 years in this business, We have, we have industry peers that work with competitors that work You know, that are in consultancy now. [00:05:33] And we've all been in the data game for quite some time, at least myself in particular. , and so it's nice that the conversations offstage are really about like, are you guys running into this problem too? [00:05:44] Are you worried about what I'm seeing or that isn't being talked about? And it's nice that we can put down the, I work for X company. [00:05:52] And I need to view you as a competitor and we actually then have a lot of off the record great conversations around what's really happening behind. You know, behind the tent per se. [00:06:03] And so on the data space as I was listening to, there's a couple of things first, I'll talk about just this, I think it's, been a revolution of technology. And I think we talked a little bit about.[00:06:13] Look. Yeah. The change that's happened has been out of an uncontrollable demand that really accelerated everyone to solve for things that have been problems for, for quite some time. Perpetual inventory, you know, finding ways to optimize labor, finding a shorter path to distance from farm to table. All of those things have been on the minds for all of us.[00:06:35] for quite some time, but I don't think has been quite as pressing up until now. So. When we think about the data side. Now we have all this new, cool technology like scan and go and new frictionless payment. [00:06:46] Systems and, and the smart cards and, And in my mind, having monetized data for so many years, I'm asking, gosh, I hope all these partners that are working with these new tech companies recognize that really the race is the data race.[00:07:02] it's all about the data. [00:07:04] Ricardo Belmar: all about the data. [00:07:05] Lisa Kinney: And even when we were talking, oh, We were talking offline about the Instacart proposition and it was very clear today that an advantage that they have built through the data that they're collecting and a very challenging channel to understand which is the e-commerce channel. So I look at it like, I hope that everyone is thinking about.[00:07:25] Who's really trying to, is it really about providing a service that's going to meet the needs of customers? Or is there an underpinning of data. that has high profitability, really high margins, and ultimately is really what they're going after. So I just think we have to be a little careful. [00:07:41] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. It's part who do you choose as the partner and then part, once you've chosen the partner, how do you define the relationship? [00:07:48] Lisa Kinney: How do you define the relationship? And I think one of the the most telling questions anyone could ask is how do you make money? [00:07:53] Ricardo Belmar: Right. What's their business model.[00:07:55] Lisa Kinney: What is your, like how do you make money? And ultimately when you start peeling the layers, you might find that it might even be not profitable at all. But they are banking on, you know, and I'm not, I'm not speaking disparagingly of[00:08:07] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah, right, right, right. [00:08:08] Lisa Kinney: But, but I just think it's something that's woven throughout all of this. That's not necessarily Front and center in the discussion. [00:08:15] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. And it's so something you have to think about to see how it solves your problem. Right.[00:08:19] Yeah. Yeah. Oh, so along those lines, one of the other things we were talking about before that, that very directly relates to everything about data is what's happening around retail media networks. What are your thoughts there? [00:08:32] Lisa Kinney: Yeah. And so I'll speak. And As a reminder. and disclaimer, I am only speaking as Lisa Kinney. 30 years of being around the block a few times. And so this is just my opinion.[00:08:44] So my opinion is something's going to disrupt this whole retail media ecosystem that's being developed right now. I think every retailer is looking for ways to drive alternative revenue. I think that's of no surprise. I think the data game was really it 20 years ago. I think Kroger obviously, and, you know, having worked with them in that space. [00:09:05] In the very beginning. When that was being developed. it was a data play for a long time and then it, And then it's become a media play. And I think every retailer is my audience is bigger than your audience. or my partner is better than your partner. So, you know, I can I can now do. attribution and get brand dollars and the, in the digital TV world and I can do right.[00:09:26] Ricardo Belmar: right. Yep. All about making it more attractive to the [00:09:28] Lisa Kinney: Yes. Yes. And as a brand, having been a brand long, long ago. so really long time I start thinking about. okay, so now. I'm a trade planner. I'm in trade marketing. Where does. Where does. Retail media fit in to that? I know, I used to say it doesn't come out at trade dollars. I mean, that was my selling profit. That it doesn't come out a trade, it's it's, this is brand funded. [00:09:55] And perhaps it's a bit true, but as a brand then, so now I'm the brand owner, so I'm, I own brand X. And I've got to make a decision on how I take my media plan that I want to develop for my brand and now I've got to go sell it in and try and figure out how to activate. Against all these retail audiences and quite frankly. just so that we all understand. These audiences are all overlapping. [00:10:18] Ricardo Belmar: Right.[00:10:19] Lisa Kinney: It's an 80% of the cases. I'd say they're the same. So, So are you going to pay four times to reach that? So it's interesting. I mean, maybe I'm being too simplistic about it, but I'm like, I wonder, I wonder. Who's going to come in and say, you know what, don't worry about going direct to retail. Don't worry about each individual. RMN We've got the solution for you. I don't know if it's in the payment space.[00:10:43] I don't know if it's going to be, I mean, I hate to name company names, but I really feel like someone's going to come in and say, this is a really fragmented world to talk to the same shared common customer. And Somebody has access to that shared common customer And it might actually not be the retailer. [00:11:01] Ricardo Belmar: Yeah. [00:11:01] yeah, but they can kind of give you an aggregated view [00:11:03] Lisa Kinney: Sure [00:11:04] Sure [00:11:05] Ricardo Belmar: retailers, right? Because they know who they may know who the customer is. They may have a better data point that, that kind of fingers out at you. It's this customer [00:11:13] And they visit these four stores or these four different retailers. So I can help you target them much better than the individual retailers [00:11:20] Lisa Kinney: correct! Cause you're going to pay 10 X and that particular person's. to the highest bidder, like, [00:11:25] Ricardo Belmar: Exactly. I think It's a fascinating. point because it kind of brings us almost back full circl…

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