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All marketers face the challenge of adapting to changing consumer expectations and behaviors, regardless of industry. But Eric Creel, Loyalty Program Manager at shoe retailer Journeys, notes that this challenge can be especially tricky to navigate in his industry. 

“In a weird way, I'd say one of the biggest challenges is also one of the things that I find the most interesting, and that’s how shoe retail is very much driven by trends and what's hot in the moment,” he said. “Our customers are constantly evolving with that, and we have to be able to recognize that as quickly as we can and then make the necessary adjustments to stay relevant to them and deliver the experiences they're looking for.” 

Whether it’s a seasonal trend, a new shoe drop, or a certain style that has become trendy on social media, Creel and his team must stay abreast of trends and what’s new in the footwear space. This requires meeting the customers where they are through social media or other channels and then reacting to what they are looking for now.  

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Brands across nearly every industry face a similar challenge with their loyalty programs: how to give consumers a meaningful reason to engage more often that also keeps them coming back. For adtech firm adjoe, connecting mobile gaming to loyalty programs is an effective way for brands to drive engagement because it taps into something millions of people already do, mobile gaming, and connects it to rewards programs they already value and engage with.  

When adjoe works to integrate major games such as Monopoly or Candy Crush into a brand’s rewards program, it will connect the brand’s currency, such as points or cashback, as it relates to a dollar. Based on what the gaming providers are spending, adjoe converts that spend into the brand’s currency so that users can transparently see how much they can earn from level to level. Once loyalty members hit a milestone, adjoe communicates back to the brand with the number of points to be added into their wallet. 

Michael Corigliano, US Team Lead, Partnerships at adjoe, notes that the games actually fund the entire rewards experience. For mobile gaming companies, participating in a brand’s rewards program gives them a high-quality user acquisition channel.

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In this episode of Leaders in Customer Loyalty: Brand Stories, RBC’s James Lombardi explores how Avion Rewards has evolved into a broad loyalty ecosystem open to all Canadians. He discusses RBC’s approach to strategic partnerships, the continued importance of travel rewards, and how AI and hyper-personalization are helping the bank deliver more relevant value and experiences to members.

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Since joining TGI Fridays in January 2025 as Director of Global Marketing, Christopher Houston has made it one of his priorities to ensure that the company’s digital platforms serve as a conduit for the brand, rather than a barrier. 

Houston is focused on innovating to create a digital guest journey that is streamlined not just for TGI Fridays’ current guests, but also the next digital-first generation. This means making sure all the digital touch points reflect the energy that the restaurant’s guests feel when they visit Fridays, according to Houston.

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When Anthony Chiulli talks with lifecycle marketing teams, he rarely hears marketers having a shortage of campaign ideas. Instead, he hears about the campaigns that never get the chance to launch. 

According to the Product Marketing leader for lifecycle at Hightouch, marketers don't struggle with creativity. They struggle with the lengthy workflows, approvals, and handoffs required to turn ideas into customer experiences. 

"The workflow itself was the problem. ," Chiulli said. 

As an agentic marketing and customer data platform (CDP), Hightouch helps organizations activate customer data to power personalized marketing across channels. After more than 16 years in marketing technology, Chiulli believes AI represents an opportunity not simply to create marketing faster, but to fundamentally change how marketing gets done end-to-end. 

"What's different this time is the pace," he said. "AI is innovating so quickly and changing so rapidly that it's forcing change at an unprecedented rate." 

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Catalyst Brands is redefining what it means to build a modern retail portfolio. Formed in early 2025 through the merger of JCPenney, Aéropostale, Brooks Brothers, Lucky Brand, and Nautica, the company has spent the past 18 months bringing together five iconic brands with distinct customer bases and rich histories. Now, the focus is shifting from integration to growth, with loyalty, customer insights, and personalization playing a central role in that strategy. 

For Marika Bigler, Vice President of Customer Growth Strategy at Catalyst Brands, the opportunity extends far beyond operational efficiencies. While the merger created opportunities to streamline processes across the organization, the bigger goal is finding new ways to connect customers with more of the company's brands, create more engaging shopping experiences, and deliver greater value across the portfolio. Loyalty is one of the first major steps in bringing that vision to life.

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When Paul Flemr is asked about the advice that he would give brands looking to improve their customer loyalty experience strategy, the Senior Vice President of Incentive Marketing Solutions at Group O has a simple message for them. 

“Engage with passion and purpose,” Flemr said.  

The way Flemr sees it, engagement is the strength of loyalty, the thing that will drive the program’s success. This requires brands knowing their end goals and objectives and building that engagement into the base of their loyalty program. 

Although Group O offers support for specific needs clients have with their loyalty programs, the company especially prides itself on being an end-to-end solution provider for clients who need a more hands-on approach. This includes everything from program design and development to implementation and ongoing execution, and then ultimately fulfillment and customer care throughout the life of the loyalty program. 

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With more than 30 years of experience in the travel industry—including five years as CFO of Hertz and another five as CFO of Hilton Worldwide—Tom Kennedy brings a deep understanding of traveler expectations and the evolving needs shaping the industry.

And so, when Kennedy became President, North America of rental car company SIXT nearly six years ago, he was focused on improving the customer journey. He had seen firsthand how slowly the car rental industry had modernized. Travelers could book flights from their phones, yet renting a car still often required waiting in line at an airport counter.

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Brands have understandably been focused for years now on improving the digital experience of their loyalty programs by launching or redesigning their apps, recognizing how much customers prioritize convenience today—and how convenience often means being able to do everything on their phones. 

However, Sallie Williams, Sales and Marketing Director of Gift and Loyalty at MTL Card, thinks the brands creating the best loyalty programs are not choosing between digital and physical customer experiences, but combining both. Rather than just focusing on an app, the most successful programs are focused on creating a unified omnichannel experience that offers seamless customer touchpoints across both digital and in-person experiences. 

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When Candice Troupe, the Senior Vice President of Marketing & Partnerships at Scene+, assesses the loyalty space in Canada, one word comes to mind: crowded. She notes that the average Canadian has about 15 loyalty cards in either their physical or digital wallet.  

While this growth in loyalty is a welcome development for Canadians, an increasingly crowded marketplace can also make things a little more complicated for consumers to find the rewards and benefits that fit their needs. This is where Scene+ comes in.  

Started almost 20 years ago as a partnership between Cineplex and Scotiabank, Scene+ has grown into a 15-million-member customer loyalty ecosystem spanning entertainment, grocery, fuel, home improvement, travel, and more.  

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