Retail by MarketScale

As Amazon pushes into profitability after dramatically altering the shipping and retail worlds, many are wondering about the future of other retailers and the technology they use. Paula Rosenblum, Managing Partner at Retail Systems Research, joined us to help make sense of the current market place, and talk about putting technology in a business context, working on a benchmark for retail innovation, and finally some of the biggest challenges facing the industry.

The founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics was fond of saying: "Nothing happens until somebody sells something". The true power of retail has always been found in the "how" part of the process, not in the "what" part. The way in which a customer experiences the transaction can be even more impactful than the thing they actually purchase. Technology is playing an ever-increasing role in the way that experience is curated. On today's podcast, Sean Heath had a chat with Tony D'Onofrio from TD Insights. They discussed the ways that technology is advancing the retail industry, how Amazon has cracked the retail code for both the online and physical space, and how powerful product knowledge is on both sides of the transaction.

Who isn't mystified, inspired and even a little scared by the cosmos? Bea Doheney felt all of the above when looking up at the stars, and when graduating high school, she decided bringing the solar system down to Earth was the perfect way to connect her and her friends as they parted ways for college. She created the solar system bracelet, a wrap-around piece of jewelry with beads for each planet that represented the size of our solar system. With each bracelet came a note: "Whenever you look at your solar system bracelet, remember that you're out of this world." Fast forward to today, and Bea's crafty bracelet idea has evolved into Astronobeads, a company with international reach that hosts numerous styles of space-themed jewelry, runs a college rep program and has gotten in the hands of influencers from Bill Nye to ISS astronaut Scott Kelly. Bea sat down with us on today's Wildfire Retail episode to share her journey from bedroom to business, the importance of having a mentor on your side, marketing tips on building a brand based around wonder and fun, and how creating a community around your product is the simplest but most effective choice of all.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy

Featured Song: Hella Good (Remix) by Pottsi

Every retailer knows that branding. is. everything. You’ve got to find new and unique ways to spread the message of your company and its products without breaking the bank. Melissa Gonzalez, founder and CEO of The Lionesque Group, has found a solution through the pop-up store, a temporary retail space that can create a customer-brand community. “A lot of the time, people decide to do a pop-up and they think because its short in nature - the duration of it - that the planning can also be short," Gonzalez said. "And that’s incorrect.”

On today's podcast, Sean Heath had a conversation with Ricardo Dos Santos, the CEO and Founder of ...And Dos Santos. They discussed the downside of thinking "big", the increasing value of big data and AI in implementing a business plan, and the danger of thinking that newer generations are "just about the digital." "It's not so much a fear, it's much more the operations that are not ready to really embrace this new way of creating, of innovating solutions," said Dos Santos. Plus, they chatted on the one thing that most consultants know but don't point out to their clients. (Hint: There are highly valuable minds ALREADY working at most companies that never get asked for their input.)

In the UK, Designer Brands are all the rage. From identity to social status, these clothing lines can say a lot about you. Joining us today is Frances Bishop, owner of The Pud Store, who has seen this impact first hand. "Our key market demographic, they feel that the nicer designer brands you dress your children in is a reflection of how well you’re doing. So in the UK, designer brands have a massive pull," said Bishop. On the podcast, she discussed making designer clothing more accessible, how she interacts with her customers, competition on the high street, and how her store manages to thrive in a growing online shopping world.

On today's podcast, Sean had a conversation with Nicole Leinbach Reyhle, founder from Retail Minded. They discussed the importance of the "personal" aspect of retail, how retailers can benefit from thinking globally while also focusing locally, and Nicole shared her secret plan for her own pop-up space. (spoiler: World Cup. That's all I'm going to say.) For Nicole, "the path to purchase is so distinctly different for everyone."

Technology that can give shoppers a shot of dopamine-- that’s the shopping experience that’s now possible with today’s technology, said Trevor Sumner on today's podcast, CEO of New York-based Perch Interactive. In this episode of the Retail Podcast, Trevor shares how Perch’s technology is bringing digital concepts into physical stores and creating unique customer experiences where shoppers are free to touch and pickup products that evoke a feeling.

If you’re a business attempting to get the attention of today’s consumers, a billboard simply isn’t going to cut it. And a television commercial might not do the trick either. The modern customer sits at the intersection of digital and physical storefronts, and in today's podcast, Jeremy Bergstein, CEO of The Science Project, shares how brands can take advantage of this new retail space.

On today's podcast, our host Sean had his second chat with Jackie Werblo, CEO and Head Coach of CONVEX Leadership. Jackie discussed the true definition of leadership, the components that comprise it, the capability of anyone to be a leader, and Jackie shared some interesting examples of just how impactful good leadership can be. For Jackie, "part of being a good leader is also knowing when to step back and be a good teammate."

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