Show Notes – S2 Ep1 – The State of Retail Today

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Special Guest: Shelley E. Kohan

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Retail Done Right.

We’re in a new age of retail – the era of the Customer Channel – where Shoppers’ rule.  This requires retailers to be empathetic and supportive of their customers, in every way.

We kicked off 2nd season with a return appearance by one of our favorite guests from Season 1, Shelley E. Kohan.  Retail is evolving so fast, driven by a continued change in consumer behavior and the fact that we have not been able to fully put the pandemic behind us, so we wanted to set a base line regarding the health of retail today and what to expect this Holiday shopping season.

OUR GUEST

Shelley E. Kohan is a contributor to Forbes.com and a retail pundit. She’s a professor at Fashion Institute of Technology and Syracuse University and was recently recognized as a Top 100 Global Retail Influencer. She has been quoted in the press many times as an expert in the industry. And before all of this she spent 25 years in the industry as a senior executive. Currently, Shelley is working for The Robin Report as Chief Strategist.

THE STATE OF RETAIL TODAY

Retail sales are back and there seems to be no shortage of demand. Even though online sales are higher than pre-pandemic, they have fallen from their pandemic heights. And consumers are flocking back to brick-and-mortar stores.

But we have Labor disruptions. Supply chain disruptions. It’s a wild ride… As we enter the 4th quarter, and so many mix of messages, we talk about the state of the retail industry today.

We are in the Holiday shopping season now! Some of the issues that have plagued the industry today start with supply chain – which really started at the beginning of the pandemic. And while many of us thought it would let up coming into 2021, it simply has not.

The other major issue is the unpredictability of the consumer spending. It has been a seesaw for over a year and a half with unknown demand, planning merchandise assortments becomes more difficult and provides a higher opportunity of getting it wrong.

We discussed all this and referenced numerous articles and reports.

RESEARCH AND LINKS

CONCLUSION

Retail is a $5.6T industry. It accounts for 1 in 4 jobs and, if we factor in wholesale and manufacturing related to the goods sold, retail is likely the 2nd largest contributor to GDP.

The projections on the Holiday shopping season look strong with the National Retail Federation (NRF) reforecast annual sales in June from its 6.5% prediction to 10.5% to over 13%. This leads us to believe the tailwinds for Holiday are strong.

Let’s go shopping!

Jeff Fisher & Cristene Gonzalez-Wertz

https://retaildoneright.net/

#RetailDoneRight

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Show Notes – S1 Ep8 – Retail is our Economy

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Special Guest: Shelley E. Kohan

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Retail Done Right. These Show Notes accompany our Season 1, Episode 8 podcast, “Retail is our Economy.”

We’re in a new era of retail – the era of the Customer Channel – where Shoppers’ rule.  This requires retailers to be empathetic and supportive of their customers, in every way.

The scale of retail is awesome.  My sense is that retail isn’t well understood.  Having made my career in retail, I have always found this industry to be incredibly interesting, a bit underappreciated and maybe a bit misunderstood. In fact, let me go on record and say that Retail is a key driver of our economy.

I think we lose sight of this incredible industry of which we are a part. It’s not like it hasn’t been in the news…  Is it even possible to think pre-pandemic? Remember what seemed to be daily reports of a Retail Apocalypse?

Then the pandemic hit – and there was radical disruption again to Retail. Essential Retail versus non-essential retail.

Now, we are reopening. And the retail numbers are strong. We explore current retail performance, trends and insights that make this industry so awesome.

OUR GUEST

Shelley E. Kohan is a contributor to Forbes.com and a retail pundit. She is also a professor at Fashion Institute of Technology and Syracuse University and was recently recognized as a Top 100 Global Retail Influencer. She has been quoted in the press many times as an expert in the industry. And before all of this she spent 25 years in the industry as a senior executive. She is currently working for The Robin Report as Chief Strategist.

Our conversation is wide ranging and covers current performance of Walmart, Target, Kroger and more.  In addition, we go deeper into grocery, a segment that has tremendous untapped opportunities (do they take our return visit for granted?) to leverage the vast amount of data grocery retailers have on their customers.  And Shelley includes a prediction that Amazon will apply tremendous pressure on the entire grocery segment.

We discuss the recent partnerships in the department store with key Beauty players, including Sephora in Kohls and Ulta in Target.

Don’t miss the conversation about RH. We consider Gary Friedman a genius in how he has transformed RH into a home powerhouse. This is a perfect example of the Customer Channel as well as the relevance of physical retail today.

RESEARCH AND LINKS

CONCLUSION

Retail supports 1 in 4 US jobs.  Our federal government has sent us multiple stimulus checks with the intent that we shop.  If we factor in wholesale and manufacturing related to the goods sold, Retail is likely the 2nd largest contributor to GDP.  These are all clear signs, statistics and messages that Retail is extremely important to jobs, to us, to our economy.

The triple bottom line – people, planet, profits (or, prosperity) – is more relevant than ever. Ethics, culture, values, inclusion, sustainability… all are critically relevant today. As we discussed in Retail Done Right 4, we vote with our dollars. We are Citizen Shoppers.

Today, Retail is strong, dynamic and alive. Not only all that, but it’s also a significant part of our lives and our economy. It’s about you. It’s about me. It’s about the Customer Channel.

I stand by my statement… Retail is our Economy.

Jeff Fisher & Cristene Gonzalez-Wertz

https://retaildoneright.net/

#RetailDoneRight

Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn

Connect with Cristene on LinkedIn

 

Show Notes – S1 Ep4 – Sustainability in Retail

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Special Guest: Neliana Fuenmayor

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Retail Done Right. These Show Notes accompany our Season 1, Episode 4 podcast, “Talking Sustainability with Neliana Fuenmayor.”

We’re in a new era of retail – the era of the Customer Channel – where Shoppers’ rule.  This requires retailers to be empathetic and supportive of their customers, in every way.

Sustainability. There isn’t a more relevant topic today. Corporations of all shapes and sizes are speaking about it. Investment firms are starting to require companies they invest in to include a Sustainability Platform in their guiding principles. And retailers and brands are touting their efforts on this front. The Circular Economy is alive and well.

But is it?

Much of this is driven by consumers, or should I say, shoppers.  It’s clear that when we act as consumers, we vote in some way, acting as citizens. As a result, Brands need to be leaders. And we need to “vote” responsibly.

Citizen Shoppers.

OUR GUEST

Neliana Fuenmayor gave up a passion for design to redesign supply chains. As the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of A Transparent Company, she now helps fashion businesses shift from linear thinking to an open, transparent mindset in support of making the transition to sustainable innovation – the circular economy.

We have evolved from a linear to, now, a circular economy. Neliana’s vision, and this is what she is working toward, is an infinite economy – one with the Customer in the center of everything we do.

  • The left loop is the story of how the product is made. The supply chain. Everything and everyone that brings the product to the store.
  • The right loop is the moment of purchase, repurchase, rent, resell, repair, recycle – essentially the circular economy.
  • The center is where the loops close and meet… at the customer – the citizen – the sweet spot of the infinite.

RESEARCH AND LINKS

·        Coresight Research: “Weinswig’s Weekly: Sustainability: What European Retailers Are Doing

·        Nike launches refurbishment program in 15 stores

·        Lululemon to launch resale program for ‘like new’ products

CONCLUSION

It’s about the Customer Channel. Shoppers are requiring sustainability from brands and retailers. This requires brands and retailers to be transparent in their business practices, their sourcing strategies and their supply chains for their sustainability initiatives to be understood and valued by consumers.

Neliana, via her company, A Transparent Company, has been involved in multiple MSIs (Multi-stakeholder Initiatives) including ZDHC Foundation (Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals) and SAC (Sustainable Apparel Coalition) as well as working with the UN, specifically the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to develop a structure – a platform – that utilizes blockchain technology to help to make transparency possible for any retailer or brand to use.

We, as shoppers, are an integral part of this. Shoppers as Citizens.  We hold the power, our purchasing power.

There’s plenty more to come on this topic and we will revisit this soon.

Jeff Fisher & Cristene Gonzalez-Wertz

https://retaildoneright.net/

#RetailDoneRight

Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn

Connect with Cristene on LinkedIn

Show Notes – S1 Ep3 – The Role of People in Physical Retail

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Special Guests: Jackie Culp & Lou Chestman

INTRODUCTION:

Welcome to Retail Done Right. These Show Notes accompany our Season 1, Episode 3 podcast, “The Role of People in Physical Retail.”

We’re in a new era of retail – the era of the Customer Channel – where Shoppers’ rule.  This requires retailers to be empathetic and supportive of their customers, in every way.

Have there been changes in the role of the physical store? No doubt…

  • Mission-driven shopping
  • Fewer store visits
  • Less traffic (which was already a trend pre-pandemic)
  • An educated consumer who has researched extensively online prior to coming to the store
  • New shifts like fulfillment in store and from the store as well as curbside pickup

We’re still shopping in stores. And, as a % of in-store versus online, the vast majority happens in-store. – 84%, according to the most recent US Census Bureau statistics.

Technology and the transformation in consumer shopping habits gets most of the press right now…  But I think we are missing something here. It’s not about the technology. It’s about the people that make this happen. All the people – from behind the scenes to the front-line team.

OUR GUESTS:

Our guests are former colleagues from Sunglass Hut, and who are now principals with Next Performance Horizon, Jackie Culp and Lou Chestman.

PEOPLE WORK FOR PEOPLE:

The conversation began with the guiding principle that People Work for People.

As Jackie shared, “I believe in SERVANT LEADERSHIP; the practice of putting the needs of the employee first, of empowering others; allowing them to be their very best. It is important to meet people where THEY need to be met both professionally and personally. You need to be present and pay attention; when you ask someone “How Are You?” you need to take the time to LISTEN with Empathy and connect with their response. This helps to build trust in the relationship. “

Lou built on this, “If you are a leader, you are in the relationship business. Relationships are fostered when people feel listened to and valued, but listening takes a lot of practice. You have to be present in the moment; ignore internal noise and preconceived thoughts. You have to listen with an attitude of genuine curiosity and interest in the other person. Finally, listen with empathy in hopes to sense the other persons perspective, feelings, actions and desires. “

The physical retail experience is people + people + stuff.  Great retail managers work not just to create a great customer experience, but a good staff experience too. You know when you walk into a well-run store – especially at closing time when people are cleaning but not too busy for customers as there’s a sense of purpose around the action.

RESEARCH AND LINKS:

CONCLUSION:

We ended with a conversation about energy. As Lou stated, “At the epicenter of the customer experience and the associate experience is energy.” It’s that simple.

It’s about the Customer Channel. And in physical retail, the staff is a key differentiator.

Jeff Fisher & Cristene Gonzalez-Wertz

https://retaildoneright.net/

#RetailDoneRight

Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn

Connect with Cristene on LinkedIn