Retail Revolution

Xia Feng illuminates the major shifts that are happening in the fashion digital space. She discusses how the Chinese market may hold answers for American and European brands and their quest to connect more authentically, and in real time, with consumers online.

Xia is a rare-to-find native-Chinese, a senior executive in the US fashion and retail industry. Xia studied, worked, and lived in the US and Europe for nearly 20 years. With her superior problem-solving and communication skills, Xia quickly rose to the top ranks within the US and European public and private corporations.

Her work at VF Corporation propelled significant growth for The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Lee and Kipling in China and globally. Because of her in-depth cross-cultural perspectives, Xia has been a well sought-after, trusted voice to the C-suite executives on abroad-set of China-related topics. She continually speaks at global conferences about China.

Xia has devoted most of her career in Ecom growth and digital development in the past decade, mostly in Europe and fast-paced China. She built teams to grow eCom in owned.com, pure-players, marketplace, and new innovative retail channels.

Xia founded The How Consulting to help western companies enter and thrive inChina. With the political and economic challenges between China and the rest of the world intensifying, the bar for competing successfully in China keeps rising. It is her passion to use her background and experience to help western companies, big or small, step up to the China opportunity.

Learn more: www.linkedin.com/in/xiafeng/ | The How Consulting

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

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Brandon Roe provides insight on how luxury brands can better engage customers by understanding the unique cohorts that shop for luxury products and services. He also provides clear steps that fashion brands can take to ensure they manage through the Covid-19 crisis—internally and externally—and come out stronger post-pandemic.

More than seven million people have heard Brandon Roe speak about fashion consumer insights and trends, especially as it relates to the role of technology in today’s hyper-connected world. He has been featured in mainstream media outlets, including SiriusXM, the iHeart Radio Network and the Jim Bohannon show, one of the largest such programs in the country.

Together with consumer research pioneer Dr. Michael Solomon, he wrote Why Fashion Brands Die & How to Save Them. Designed for fashion industry marketers, the book shows how struggling brands can recover and already successful brands be made more lucrative, simply by focusing on the consumer and serving them better.

Over two decades in the business, Brandon has worked with clients in eight countries and three languages, giving a very international perspective to his client engagements. He is the founder of The WestEast Group based in Vancouver, Canada.

Learn more: LinkedIn | The Fashion Consumer podcast (host) | Why Brands Die (co-author)

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

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Meisha Brown shares her deep experience and perspective in multi-label luxury merchandising in a time of major retail disruption. She discusses everything from developing brands on the store floor through thoughtful merchandising to dealing with vendor relationships. She also offers advice to future merchandisers, including the need to understand both retail math and fashion trends.

Meisha has over 15 years of merchandising experience in the luxury retail fashion industry. She most recently worked for Barneys New York, and began her career with Saks Fifth Avenue. Her expertise is in the women’s designer leather goods and contemporary RTW market. She is a strategic merchant with business acumen and a creative vision. Meisha holds a Master of Arts in Luxury and Fashion Management with the Savannah College of Art & Design and a B.S. in Business Marketing from California State University, Long Beach. 

Meisha is Vice President of Department Stores for the Kering Eyewear in North America, and the former Buying Director of Women’s Designer Leather Goods & Accessories at Barney’s New York.

Learn more: LinkedIn | Kering Eyewear

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

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Noam Levavi challenges our concepts of what retail might look like in 3 to 5 years, discussing how the shift into the virtual world will be accelerated post Covid-19 pandemic and how adopting new technologies will unveil new opportunities for brands, retailers and designers. He elaborates how the virtual transformation will allow brands to be more innovative, personalized, efficient and sustainable in how they design, showroom and sell their products and services. 

Noam is a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years of innovations in user experience technologies, including several patents in the area of personalized interfaces. He was the founder and former CEO of YCD, a company that pioneered the in-store media industry with new marketing strategies and digital experience inventions. YCD became one of the world’s leading provider of customer experiences for top Retailers, reaching more than 100 million consumers monthly with personalized content at thousands of venues worldwide. Leading brands are using YCD's technologies to power their customer experiences in-store, including Chanel, Diesel, Estee Lauder, Microsoft, AT&T, Coca Cola, McDonald's and Burger King. YCD also won top industry awards for special implementations at various Fortune 500 companies.

Noam has been a keynote speaker on topics such as consumer behavior, personalized media, shopper marketing and the evolution of digital experiences for The Economist, DLD, DSE and Digital Signage Investor. He has contributed to USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Frost & Sullivan and Platt Retail Institute.

Noam Levavi is the co-founder and CEO of ByondXR.

Learn more: LinkedIn | ByondXR

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this short, bonus episode, Jordana Guimaraes discusses the hopes and fears that fashion industry professionals are grappling with during the Covid-19 pandemic. Notwithstanding the real issues the pandemic has created, she posits that a time of crisis creates opportunity to design innovative solutions.

Jordana Guimaraes has over fifteen years experience as a Marketing, Sales & Public Relations Director in the lifestyle & fashion industries. Recently, she co-founded FASHINNOVATION, a platform showcasing innovations via technology that shapes the fashion industry. Much of her work includes a strong focus on issues of sustainability, women empowerment and inclusivity. 

Learn more: LinkedIn | FASHINNOVATION

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kevin Thompson shares his perspective on the changing landscape of retailing, particularly as it relates to brick & mortar operations and design. He also discusses the marketing needs of a fashion brand and how communication is a two-way street, wherein customers must have a voice.

Kevin has executive leadership experience in marketing, management, project development, operations, training, and sales forecasting working in luxury fashion/marketing, real estate, and in several public institutions. He has proven track record in managing complex campaigns guide brand management projects and public relations. His expertise centers around concept development and execution for national/international teams incorporating multiple corporate and brand partnerships/stakeholders.

Kevin was the former Chief Marketing Officer at Sotheby’s, Vice President of Customer Service & Development at Barneys, and Manager of Moncler at Gucci.

Learn more: LinkedIn

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lauren McGuire discusses sonic branding and the use of sound overall in retail environments, online and onsite. She focuses on how sound impacts the shopping experience, and shares her insight on how sound might be used after we reach the end of the pandemic.

Lauren is an expert in sonic Branding, music for television and experience sound design. She is a frequent speaker on sonic branding and emotion-based brand strategy and research.

Lauren is the president of the global sonic studio, Man Made Music, creating music and sound to solve business challenges, including The Superbowl on NBC, IMAX, 30 for 30 on ESPN, CBS News, as well as the sounds of AT&T, Citi and AmEx.

Learn more: LinkedIn | Man Made Music

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Claire Mitchell discusses the evolving role of technology in fashion retailing, sharing her predictions for their term. She also discusses the implications of technology in fashion, everything from how customer's shop to issues of sustainability.

Before beginning her own consultancy practice, Claire was the Director of VaynerMedia’s emerging tech division, VaynerSmart working at the intersection of media and innovation. Previously, she led product design of IoT application development platform Temboo, designed automotive interfaces for the future, and led creative development for a VFX and commercial production company. Claire holds a master’s degree from NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program and a BA in Philosophy from St. Edward’s University. In her free time, she thinks about patterns, bits and beats (textiles, coding and drums, respectively).

Learn more: LinkedIn

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Niz Safrudin shares her insight regarding the intersection of physical and digital space and the real challenges of “omni-channel” retailing. She also discusses the potential opportunities brands may have to reset after the pandemic.

Ex-social scientist & global citizen, with the experience of living & working in Australia, Asia, Europe & now in the US. I lead customer engagements with a team of designers – we solve business challenges through a deep understanding of human needs. Our goal: Delivering purpose-driven innovation at scale. Niz specializes in re-imagining new business models and processes through applied research; leveraging emerging technologies, including augmented, mixed & virtual reality with Intelligent Technologies (Internet of Things, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics, Blockchain); orchestrating design-led innovation & digital transformation; and bridging the experience gap between the physical and digital worlds.

Learn more: LinkedIn | SAP.com | SAP AppHaus

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Stacy Graiko shares her perspective on customer shifts and expectations for retailers, from a psychological perspective with a focus on Millenials and GenX, as well as short term considerations related to Covid-19. She also discusses the need for more gender parity and representation of woman in the fashion and retail industries.

Stacy is a GenXer, mom, research geek, believer in positive psychology and brand champion. She is passionate about helping brands create high quality connections with consumers. Her expertise is in brand strategy through qualitative research for CPG, health and beauty, food/beverage, fashion, automotive and service brands. She works collaboratively with Kantar resources to bring best minds thinking to clients.

Stacy is the Managing Director of Qualitative Research at Kantar. She is an advocate for women’s leadership, and author of the best-selling book Your Brand, The Women Entrepreneur’s Guide to Getting Paid to be Bold, Brilliant and Unapologetically You.

Learn more: LinkedIn | Kantar

Hosted by: Christopher Lacy, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Produced by: Joshua Williams, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design

Executive Producer: Fashion Consort

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @RetailRevolutionPodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices