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How does the retail frontline succeed, despite leadership dysfunction? The disconnect between corporate decision-making and the frontline reality has reached a breaking point. Store managers are caught holding the bag for supply chain disasters, tariffs, empty shelves, and operational chaos they never created. Join Shelley and Rachel Williamson, founder and CEO of Running Great Stores, as they unpack how frontline operational excellence is compromised when managers are denied the tools, training and authority they need to succeed. Rachel says that great leadership requires continuous investment in self-improvement, honest conversations with supervisors, and a willingness to address both wins and failures. She has spent decades turning around underperforming stores and she's witnessed firsthand what happens when flawed corporate leadership disables store teams. She is candid about the uncomfortable truth that retail has become a revolving door job instead of a career destination. The weakest link? Frontline leaders who lack the mentorship and training they need to develop the capacity for emotional intelligence. Frontline leaders who succeed have learned to take ownership of their own career development instead of depending on corporate training programs. Listen and learn why the retail profession is at risk of a leadership vacuum.

Special Guest: Rachel Williamson Founder and CEO, Running Great Stores

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There is widespread confusion about the popular and overused K-shaped economy meme. General understanding oversimplifies consumers into "haves, have-nots, and have-everythings," when the reality is far more nuanced and fluid. If retail executives make million-dollar decisions based on an incomplete understanding about the K-shaped economy, it's going to cost them. Join Shelley and Katie Thomas from the Kearney Consumer Institute as they challenge conventional wisdom about the economy that's leading retailers to misclassify customers and fail on pricing, assortment, and messaging. Katie reveals that the middle class isn't disappearing but rather is pragmatic and surprisingly mobile, selectively reallocating resources across all categories that makes traditional good-better-best models look obsolete. Listen and learn about the real crisis facing retailers; it isn't about hitting price points; it's about the growing price-value mismatch that risks losing loyal customers who have more options than ever in a marketplace where luxury brands have overpriced themselves and cheapened products at the bottom create an inevitable race to the bottom.

Special Guest: Katie Thomas, Lead, Kearney Consumer Institute (KCI) 

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Traditional fashion and automotive industries are wedded to a leather supply chain that requires 20 toxic processing steps and plastic coatings, while they simultaneously claim environmental leadership. The uncomfortable reality executives don’t acknowledge is that traditional leather production isn't just environmentally destructive—it's becoming economically obsolete. Join Shelley and Stephanie Downs, a biomaterials pioneer and CEO of Uncaged, as they have an honest conversation about how fashion executives who use natural leather are caught between mounting environmental pressure to change and legacy suppliers who resist touching alternative materials. Brands are being forced to choose between tradition and transformation. Meanwhile, major automotive brands including Jaguar and Land Rover are already piloting leather alternatives, responding to reputational risk from environmentally conscious consumers. To strengthen public awareness of leather alternatives, Uncaged just announced a new partnership with Oscar winning actress Natalie Portman who is a longtime vegan activist.

Special Guest: Stephanie Downs, CEO, Uncaged Innovations

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Here is a tale of four female CEOs with contrasting and compelling leadership styles. 

Take Mary Dillon, who led 288% revenue growth at Ulta but is now grappling with the past two years of slower growth at Footlocker. Contrast that with Fran Horowitz, CEO of Abercrombie and Fitch, who has overseen 16% growth in 2023 and a remarkable 10% CAGR since 2019 since 2017.  

Join Robin and Shelley as they delve into two leadership styles and strategic approaches to reveal how these two leaders envision success. Looking forward, Michelle Gass, CEO at Levi’s, and Artemis Patrick, CEO of Sephora North America, are poised for accelerated growth. Listen to the stories about these four remarkable women and how they are reinvigorating retail.

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Fashion ecomm has evolved from customers finding and visiting websites to seek out what they want, to search-enabled discovery, to today’s modern model of bringing fashion directly to you and replicating the excitement of impulse purchasing …online.  The art and science of the shopping experience have also been perfected with the help of influencers who are real and authentic.  

Join special guest Tarek Müller, star entrepreneurial founder of ABOUTYOU along with Robin and Shelley in a lively conversation about how to propel the online fashion experience into a business building success story. 

They will discuss how ABOUT YOU reached €5 billion in GTV* through influencer marketing and international expansion – and how the technology and expertise developed along the way now powers over 140 shops with the SCAYLE Commerce Engine.

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Tony Spring is creating a bold new chapter at Macy’s and he will inevitably face off with activist vultures. His strength as a strategic marketer should pave the way to a reimagined Macy’s. 

Join Robin and Shelley as they dive into Spring’s strategic shift to close underperforming stores and open local, smaller format stores. They deconstruct how Macy’s will grow with a strategic emphasis on technology, data transparency, and AI-driven marketing to support a consumer-focused transformation.

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There’s a store across the street and thousands more just a key tap away. Consumers are addicted to the explosion of websites, marketplaces, and direct-to-consumer brands flooding cyberspace. The upside for consumers is lower prices and anything they want; the downside for brands is the impact on the environment and a race to the bottom.

 Join Robin and Shelley as they pull the curtain back on the U.S. retail marketplace. Quick preview: U.S. marketplace retail sales grew by an estimated 10.2% YoY in 2023 to nearly $385 billion and represent one-third of all ecommerce sales. Globally, ecomm sales are 19.5% of total retail sales and will grow to 23% by 2027. Amazon, Walmart and Temu lead the pack!

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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One of the hottest tickets this year is the much-anticipated annual edition of Shoptalk in Las Vegas. 

This year’s key topics will not disappoint, with a focus on how AI can transform your business, create unified retail experiences, harness brand power, and build loyalty via seamless customer journeys. 

Join Robin, Shelley, and special guest Krystina Gustafson, SVP of Content for Shoptalk, as they share a sneak peek into one of the most talked about events of the year.

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Here’s a provocative thought: The sum of retail is greater than its parts. Historically, retailers benchmark individual store profit for physical retail as a mainstay of performance measurement. But in a digital marketplace, brick-and-mortar profitability goes beyond the scope of the four walls.

Join Robin, Shelley, and special guest Steve Morris, founder of ASG and a well-known real estate strategist, as they redefine profitability in an omnichannel world. Listen to this insightful conversation on how to measure real success.

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For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Returns have become a huge headache for retailers and a hassle for customers --  and the growth of online sales has exacerbated the problem. The cost of returns continues to skyrocket, impacting the bottom line, and at the same time, the negative environmental impact of returned goods is growing. 

Join Robin, Shelley, and special guest David Sobie, Co-founder and CEO of Happy Returns, a software and reverse logistics company that enables frictionless, no-box, no-label returns for merchants and consumers. Discover why new rules and restrictions around returns may alienate customers and whether technology can help reduce returns in the first place. 

We learn how UPS’s acquisition of Happy Returns is making returns a lot easier for customers and retailers –- not to mention making tremendous strides in positively impacting sustainability efforts.

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The retail environment is moving at lightning speed, making C-suite succession planning more difficult. Case in point? Gap has had a revolving door of CEOs ever since trying to replace Mickey Drexler. 

Leading the retail industry in a digital marketplace and finding the right talent has become an exercise in art and science. Join Robin, Shelley, and Kevin Finnegan from Global Recruiters of Lowcountry as they discuss why understanding frontline workers and moving fast on the tech side are highly sought-after skills for today's leadership. 

Leading brands Under Armour, Footlocker, and Uniqlo top the list of delivering the right balance of high touch and high tech. 

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With the sheer number of retail startups at NRF, you’d think you were at the Big AI Show at the Javits Center in New York last week. 

Clearly, retail tech offers the partnerships, innovations, and solutions required to operate in a digital marketplace. And AI, in its many forms, dominated the conversations at the expo, in the hallways, and on stage. 

Join Robin and Shelley as they debrief on the big ideas and themes that will re-engineer retail. Startups, including JumpMind, Nexite, Amperity, FluentCommerce, and Parcellab are providing AI solutions for retailers, while major companies such as IBM are leaning into massive data analytics and generative AI to help retailers move forward. All told, the big get bigger, and the small keep getting more agile.

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Gen Z and the Alphas right behind them are deeply influencing brands and
workplace cultures. 

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are table stakes for the next gens who have a new set of values and are hyper-socially aware. Retailers and brands that don’t see the importance of today’s cultural movement will be left whistling in the wind. 

Join Robin and Shelley as they face the issues head-on. A&F and Lululemon have recovered from former leadership tone-deaf statements about customers and employees, but Victoria’s Secret may be headed down the wrong path. Listen and learn about why next gens canmake or break a business with its values-based consumer power.

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Full disclosure: Don’t ever underestimate the power of weather and its impact on retail. There is no other external driver that influences the consumer as frequently, meaningfully, and continuously as the weather. In fact, it influences more than a trillion dollars in retail sales on an annual basis. Join Shelley and Evan Gold of Planalytics as they discuss the fact that the weather is more volatile now than it ever has been before with extreme weather events occurring in the U.S. every three weeks. Evan explains that retailers need to proactively plan with demand forecast accuracy that can increase overall profitability up to 30 percent. Smart retailers incorporate weather analytics into their planning, so they are more weather aware and proactive instead of being reactive with flexible strategies in place as simple as putting weather-driven items in more prominent locations and ensuring the right staffing levels. The holiday selling season is subject to the weather since many retailers do 20% or even more of their annual sales in the month of December. Evan says the good news is that the first few weeks of December in the U.S. are going to continue with persistent, cold temperatures that are going to keep customers in that winter holiday mindset. Listen and learn why weather's a very emotional topic and when retailers can get all functions of their business on the same page by proactively strategizing weather’s complex nature, the outcome is more profitable. 

Special Guest: Evan Gold, EVP, Global Partnerships & Alliances, Planalytics

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The Robin Report Retail Radicals celebrate the icons and iconoclasts that are reinventing legacy retail. Each of these remarkable brands has a deep brand ethos, appeals to a multigenerational customer, and stays true to their brand strategy. They survive and thrive in disruptive marketplaces with enlightened leadership. Join Robin and Shelley as they share the back stories of what makes the 2023 Radicals so great with details on impressive innovations and unique customer experiences while outpacing their competitive peers in delivering high-performance financial results.

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Preemptive distribution is pushing retailers to go local with assortments, services,
and indigenous products. Advances in retail technologies will enable localization with
precise customer preferences and more relevant product assortments, while marketplaces and strategic partnerships will continue to grow.

Marketing becomes hyper-personalized through robust AI analytics, and retail media network and ad spending will soar. As a top priority, retailers will need to up their efforts in becoming the employer of choice. Join Robin and Shelley as they dive into these game-changing structural changes that will require outlook and foresight from retail executives. 

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Retail accounting provides a snapshot of real-time profit margins, but it may lead to an overstatement of profits since the practice is based on retail pricing. 

With fluctuations in selling prices, is cost-based accounting really a better measure of performance for the retail industry? 

Join Robin, Shelley and Paula Rosenblum, co-founder and managing partner of RSR Research, as they discuss why many companies are looking toward moving to cost-based accounting away from a practice that is centuries old. They debate how retail-based accounting, the industry standard, can be a dangerous practice and why should retailers be thinking differently.  

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What’s the story behind organized retail crime? 

It has commanded national headlines and resulted in many stores being transformed into locked vaults. Join Robin and Shelley as they deconstruct the situation, discussing that the narrative about organized retail crime has been exaggerated. 

The backstory is the advocacy to build greater support for national law enforcement and more coordinated efforts across agencies alongside more stringent legislation. Companies may be using ORC as a cover for poor performance and store closings. 

Tune in to learn more about the growth of retail theft and why the numbers are murky.

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What it means to be a brand today goes beyond the single dimension of yesterday’s mono-brand definition.

Now, savvy brands use past successes and morph them into an evolved, multifaceted branding experience.

Join trends expert Leslie J. Ghize, EVP of DONEGER TOBE, with Robin and Shelley in a riveting conversation about the new branding imperative and what is top of mind for consumers heading into 2024. Stay tuned as Leslie shares her insights about the lingering emotional and psychological impacts of COVID-19 on kids and young adults. To be clear, the kids are not allright.

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How is Holiday 2023 going to end up? Even when customers are facing turbulent,
 unpredictable market trends and world events, they continue to spend. 
It could be just “Doom Spending” to cope with stress about the economy and external global factors. 

The bigger question is: Will consumer spending keep growing into 2024?  

Join special guest Nick Mangiapane, Chief Marketing Officer at Commerce Signals, Robin, and Shelley as they discuss retail consumer spending patterns and predictions for this holiday.

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Black Friday Creep has moved over $5 billion out of November and December into October. 

Join Robin and Shelley with guest Angela Thompson, Principal of Thompson Marketing Consulting, as they look at the broader impact of Pre-Black Friday sales. Pressure on retailers to perform and comp year-over-year sales have a flip side. 

While daily deals might be exciting for some passionate shoppers, they may be overwhelming for others -- especially if it becomes a race to the bottom. Angela will reveal what happened with pre-holiday sales this year, the results of Black Friday and what to expect in 2024.

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The U.S. has one of the highest per capita consumption of plastics in the world, driven principally by packaging.

Enter a Swedish inventor Åke Rosén with Biodolomer, an alternative that looks and acts like plastic, but is renewable, biodegradable, compostable, convertible to renewable energy, gives off virtually no CO2 emissions, and does not generate microplastics. 

Too good to be true? 

Join Robin and Shelley with brand strategist Kristoffer Reiter, Principal of Cohesive Whole and Nils Andersson from Gaia Biomaterials (home for Biodolomer) as they reveal breakthrough advances in bioengineering and the potential end of plastics as we know them. 

This wide-ranging conversation is inspiring about how ingenuity and imagination of applied science can change the world for the better.

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Prepare to have your perspective on multicultural marketing forever changed, as we unravel the vast potential and rapid evolution of diverse audiences in the retail marketplace. We're joined by none other than Imani Laners, the VP of Multicultural Partnerships at Zeta Global, who lends her expertise to our discussion, urging marketers to re-evaluate their strategies and seize the growth opportunities presented by the shifting demographics. 

We pull back the curtain on how luminaries like Sephora and Ulta Beauty are forging a path for others by aligning their employee demographics with their customer base, and making a conscious effort to feature minority-owned brands. Let's not forget the captivating case study shared by Imani, highlighting how Zeta Global helped a non-profit identify its multicultural donor base, thereby revolutionizing their future marketing campaigns. Join us for this enlightening conversation and gain a clearer understanding of the future of marketing!

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Join Robin and Shelley and guest expert Dr. Read Hayes, leading criminologist and law enforcement pro, as they go behind the scenes of retail crime. Learn from Read how he has been using AI to help organizations worldwide, including Target, Home Depot, Bloomingdales, Coles Meyer, Disney, Proctor & Gamble and Walmart on loss prevention strategies.

Artificial Intelligence combined with IoT-enabled science can take a bite out of retail crime. Retail shrink hit $94.5 billion in 2021 and is currently on an upward spiral. Not to mention, ORC was up 27% in 2021. 

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Sometimes it takes tenacity combined with fearless confidence to launch a retail brand. That’s how Hulken achieved what most brands consider impossible: Pitching Target in June and landing their rolling totes on the shelves by November. Join Shelley and Hulken co-founder Alex Schinasi to learn why the most successful omnichannel strategies aren't about being everywhere, but about identifying the few channels significant enough to actually move the needle on revenue. Alex shares how a lean team of six full-time employees operates with surgical precision, why they spent two years perfecting the product before spending a dime on marketing, and how their industrial packaging background created a competitive moat that fashion-forward competitors can't replicate in Hulken’s popular rolling totes. One key lesson for D2C brands? The shift from 95 percent direct-to-consumer selling to physical retail-focused growth requires brands to make sure that the margins and distribution can support the scaled business model. Alex shares that selecting the right retail partners is essential for D2C brands to scale by navigating complex vendor requirements and operational standards.

Special Guest: Alex Schinasi, co-founder, Hulken

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Here’s a conundrum: Should bad behavior be tolerated when profits are soaring? The Ye and Adidas relationship is a cautionary tale about the temptation to trade erratic behavior for crazy revenues. During a near decade-long partnership between Kanye West and Adidas, the Yeezy brand brought in Adidas a billion dollars a year and made Ye a billionaire. But at what cost? 

Join Robin and Shelley as they dissect the business risk of doing business with controversial celebrities. 

Why did Adidas put up with inappropriate, off-the-rails behavior? 

And why was Adidas hostage to Ye’s downward spiral of hate speech?  Motivated by pure profit? 

And then there’s the anti-Ye, everyone’s role model: Michael Jordan and Nike. Listen to this fascinating conversation about complex business decision-making that pits profits against ethics.

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For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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The iconic Vans brand is seeing its profits racing down fast as competition heats up in the sneaker category. 

What’s going on here? 

Vans innovation has stalled, and consumer demand is veering to more traditional sneakers. Join Robin and Shelley as they debate whether new VF Corp leadership can turn the business around for Vans and the rest of the VF brands. Or will it be another tough year for the company? 

If Q1 results are any predictor, it’s going to be a rough ride with Vans revenue dropping 22% and wholesale down a whopping 40%.  Who can save the iconic Vans brand? And how?

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In the second half of our conversation, we learn from Lindsey the importance of the bigger brand work and how it could significantly reduce customer acquisition costs. She urges CMOs to challenge businesses around issues that matter to customers, like sustainability and privacy. Wrapping up, we delve into the power of social media, emphasizing the value of customer engagement and audience involvement in framing your content. Don't miss out on this riveting discussion that offers a deeper understanding of the AI-driven marketing world.

Get ready to unravel the mysteries of marketing with AI as we chat with Lindsey Scheftic, the visionary founder of CMO Sidekick. Lindsey brings her expertise to our table, shedding light on innovative AI companies shaking up the landscape, why authenticity in messaging matters, and the evolving role of the Chief Marketing Officer in the age of AI disruption. She cautions about the pitfalls of releasing too much content too fast - a valuable lesson in the current fast-paced tech environment.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Join Robin and Shelley with AI expert Lindsey Scheftic, Founder of The CMO Sidekick, for a candid conversation about AI in Part 1 on this topic.

With in-depth marketing expertise at Amazon/Ring, Red Bull and Vans, Lindsey gets real about the future of the CMO and how marketing will be transformed by AI. 

Our dynamic discussion hits on the velocity of change in the marketing world, what executives should be thinking about, and a cautionary tale of getting too much content out to the market too fast.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Traditional succession planning may be a thing of the past for retailers. The new trend is identifying the next CEO by looking outside the four walls and mining executives from different industries. And technology IQ is becoming a key skill required in the C-suite.  Join Robin and Shelley as they debate what it takes to stay at the top. How did major brands Starbucks, Ulta, Gap, and Under Armour break the CEO mold? 

Find out if bringing in outside leaders is brilliant ...or crazy.

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Spoiler alert: Costco has become dinner table conversation. It’s the hottest-selling wholesale haute couture brand in the U.S. market catering to its 120 million members, representing $227 billion in revenues. 

With a location strategy that hits higher-income markets and its social media frenzy #costcofinds trending on TikTok, it’s no wonder that it’s an American beloved brand. Join Shelley and Robin as they unpack Costco’s phenomenal success as the brand levels up its appeal to affluent shoppers. 

What’s more, their highly engaged and well-paid workforce helps drive Costcoholics’ loyalty, the backbone of this world-class business.

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Has the retail world gone mad? Acquisitions, partnerships, collaborations, buy-outs,
and buy-ins. Some make perfect sense, and others make us say, "What were you thinking?" Just to get started: Gap and Macy's; Tapestry and Capri; Shein and SPARC. These don’t make sense. But there’s: Target and Ulta; Nike and Footlocker; LVMH and Tiffany; Macy's and ToysRUs. They all make perfect sense. Robin and Shelley take a no holds barred look at the collabs they think were good ... maybe not so good ... and potential disasters. 

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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The data-oriented power of direct-to-consumer (DTC) models has a leading edge over traditional retail. The collection of all user data and interactions, along with their preferences, wants and needs becomes critical for increasing engagement with existing customers and acquiring new ones.

While the retail industry is learning how to use AI-based models to drive better experiences, DTC is leading the way. Join Robin, Shelley, and special guest Michael Challinger, CEO of DTC kitchen sinks and fixtures brand Houzer, as they dig into why CEOs who come from the tech side of the business have a decisive competitive edge.

It’s the art + science of ecommerce. 

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Retailers are facing a potential economic event, and the wildcard is predicting what consumers will do. Most Americans are in credit card debt, prices are higher than last year, pandemic savings are dwindling; and student loan repayments hit in October, just in time for holidays. 

Join Robin, Shelley, and TRR’s own reporter Pam Danziger who is an internationally recognized researcher, speaker, and author. Check out her article on TRR’s site, Get Ready for the Weather to Turn. They discuss why the current economic landscape is worrisome for retailers. Listen in and learn how to prepare for a rocky fall/winter selling season.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

A look back at retail 2025 reveals that consumer behavior volatility has reached unprecedented levels, with shopping patterns shifting hour-to-hour rather than seasonally. Most C-suite leaders are woefully unprepared to handle this level of velocity. Join Shelley and RJ Hottovy from Placer.ai as they discuss a range of consequential retail shifts. Holiday promotions now start in September as retailers panic to lock in sales before consumer confidence erodes. Mobile commerce will capture 56.5 percent of ecommerce sales, fundamentally altering the role of physical stores. AI's real retail impact isn't chatbots—it's transforming in-store sales associates into product experts. And an anticipated $1 trillion holiday season arrives as retailers face flattish foot traffic but rising online fulfillment center visits. They also weigh in on leadership succession at Walmart. Incoming CEO John Furner faces opportunities to scale Walmart’s retail media business; attract more younger millennials and Gen Z families, not just traditional bulk buyers; and serve higher-income consumers who are increasingly shopping at Walmart. Listen and learn how 2025 will preview another unpredictable retail year.

Special Guest: R.J. Hottovy, Head of Analytical Research, Placer.ai

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Tapestry is no LVMH or Kering in its acquisition of Capri. The aspiration to play in the luxe space is nearly impossible; for starters, Jimmy Choo and Versace are too niche and too small. 

Add to that Tapestry’s mainstream brands are outlet mall darlings, at one point, driving about 70% of revenues. Join Robin and Shelley as they deconstruct the deal as potential culture clash and overburdening debt load in Tapestry’s vision to become a luxury powerhouse.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Is Amazon on a downward retail slide? It’s backing off physical stores (except grocery) and its Amazon Go technology hasn’t gained traction. And then there’s Walmart down every American’s street that continues to up its game. 

So, Andrew Jassy is focusing on Amazon’s emerging technologies including Amazon ONE biometric payment tech and heavy investments in generative AI.  Amazon also has big plans to increase its B2B business from $35 billion to over $100 billion and process improvements to reduce costs. 

Join Robin and Shelley as they dig into Amazon’s continuing success (Q2 overall revenue up 11%)  and possible downfall. Listen and learn.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Join Robin Lewis and Shelley Kohan as they dig into Supreme’s recent history, armed with Robin’s invaluable insights. They dissect the crucial role of company culture and its direct impact on brand acquisitions. 

Be prepared to get a grip on the inner dynamics of the investment community and how it pressures a corporation’s image and performance. And then, what impact does company culture have on its acquisition, and how is that received by its target customers? 

Brace yourselves to dive into the challenges large public companies face under Wall Street’s scrutiny and its positive and negative trickle-down effects on its customers.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Imagine a world where legacy retailers, once terrified by the concept of ecommerce, are now leading the charge, leveraging multiple distribution channels to connect with their customers. 

Join us, Robin Lewis and Shelley Kohan, as we dissect this seismic shift from the wholesale to the retail model. We'll delve into the hard truth of skyrocketing customer acquisition costs and why the data collected from selling directly to consumers has become an invaluable resource.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Ever wondered how to tackle the billion-dollar problem of organized retail crime?

Join us for an engaging chat with George Shaw, founder and CEO of Pathr.ai, as he sheds light on the magnitude of this issue, with the prediction of $100 billion in losses looming over the retail industry in 2023. In the face of these challenges, we dive into the transformative power of AI and open-source technology.

We also explore data privacy and the potential bias in asset protection, highlighting Pathr.ai’s data collection strategy as a beacon of consumer data protection. As George elaborates, the future lies in the innovative collaboration between tech and retail experts. 

So, don’t miss out as we navigate the complex landscape of AI and its groundbreaking impact on the retail industry.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Tom McGee believes there is a bright side for retail in the suburbs; it has benefited from shifting consumer behaviors. 

Join us as Robin, Shelley, and Tom discuss suburban retail, Gen Z, and the return to physical spaces including outdoor malls. They also discuss how higher interest rates and remote work have put a damper on the urban retail landscape, leaving a plethora of office spaces empty with no expectation of commercial real estate values to recover until 2040.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Brian Field, Global Leader of Retail Consulting for Sensormatic Solutions, joins us to provide a breakdown of their 2023 Annual Consumer Survey. 

Join us as Robin, Shelley, and Brian talk through some of this year’s key findings and what they mean across the industry segment.

Brian also offers his insights on the impact of Amazon Prime Day on brick and mortar and his thoughts on why consumers are returning to these locations with increasing regularity.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

This week’s podcast addresses the impact of AI in retail, delving into how AI is currently reshaping and will continue to shape the retail industry, from personalized shopping experiences to supply chain and inventory management, real-time pricing optimization, and beyond. 

What are companies like Levi Strauss, American Eagle, and Puma doing with AI today? 

Whether you’re a seasoned retailer, a tech enthusiast, or just a curious listener, join us as we journey into the future of retail transformed by AI.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

In October, an estimated $10 billion a month is being taken away from 2023 holiday purchasing when the student loan forgiveness program ends.

Combine that with ongoing rumors of the “R” word, along with Amazon Prime Days, and you see why we believe retailers may be up for a wild second half with millennials and Gen Zs having less money to spend on fashion goods.

Join Robin Lewis and Shelley E. Kohan as they debate how retailers anticipate ending 2023 with some workarounds to overcome a Black Friday in October and shrinking wallets for next gens. Are we really looking at holiday selling starting in September this year?

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

For mid-tier fashion specialty retail, it’s gone, baby gone. This sector is really struggling. With the proliferation of the internet and so many fashion startup companies, the democratization of fashion has become ubiquitous. Join Robin Lewis and Shelley E. Kohan, TRR’s chief strategist, as they dig into the potential demise of mid-tier fashion specialty stores. 

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

The retail frontline sales staff is often an untapped, but highly valuable resource.  Everyone wants to know that they matter and can make a difference. So, how do retailers empower their store associates, their most critical customer-facing ambassadors? In an increasingly tech-driven business, new digital tools are designed to create lasting customer relationships that match loyalty with employee job satisfaction. This is especially powerful in small retail businesses where personal loyalty is the gateway to beating the competition. Join Leigh Sevin, co-founder of Endear, and Shelley as they discuss how modern CRM platforms transform data into authentic customer connection. They explore how AI in partnership with employees can enhance personal outreach and make a brand relevant and meaningful. They also discuss the future of personalization that pairs the message with the individual, informed by sales associates who know their customers best. Their conversation reveals how software, analytics and data can propel a retail business through the insights of its frontline sales ambassadors. Learn from this actionable discussion how tech empowers and inspires store associates to level up service, play a more positive strategic role, and find renewed purpose by using AI to make their jobs easier and strengthen their customer relationships. 

Special Guest: Leigh Sevin, Co-Founder of Endear

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Even with the addition of Sephora and Amazon return centers, will it be enough to turn the struggling retailer around?

Heavy inventory coming out of 2022 and a loss of $19 million to the bottom line make 2023 a challenging year. Meanwhile, CEO Kingsbury wants to pull back on couponing, which is a key driver for its loyal, high-frequency customer. Will this land them on the same road as Bed, Bath, and Beyond?

Join Robin Lewis and Shelley E. Kohan, TRR’s chief strategist, as they dissect what is happening at Kohl’s 

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

What drives loyalty, provides new revenue streams – and most importantly, responds to customer needs and wants? Ancillary services are more than meets the eye: they are a portal into building an ecosystem that supports customer wellbeing. Costco is the poster child, offering 25 different services delivering the practical (gas and hearing aids) and the aspirational (travel services). What’s next?  Join Robin Lewis and Shelley E. Kohan, TRR’s strategist, as they discuss the next wave in services focused on healthcare.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

We'd love to have your feedback and ideas for future episodes of Retail Unwrapped. Just text us!

Organized Retail Crime is growing and a $95 billion problem, not to mention its impact on putting employees and shoppers at risk. These crime syndicates resell stolen goods and use the money to fund other illegal activities. Join Robin Lewis and Shelley E. Kohan, TRR’s strategist, as they discuss how ORC is keeping retail CEOs up at night, is eating away at already-stressed margins, and is becoming a safety issue for the workforce and customers.

For more strategic insights and compelling content, visit TheRobinReport.com, where you can read, watch, and listen to content from Robin Lewis and other retail industry experts, and be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.