Spark Plug

Steve Dennis returns for another insightful conversation on the Spark Plug podcast! Steve is a strategic advisor, keynote speaker, and bestselling author, and he is widely considered one of the foremost and influential voices in retail. Steve's groundbreaking book--"Remarkable Retail"--is a perennial international business bestseller. During his career as a C-suite executive at two Fortune 500 retailers, Steve worked with dozens of retail, consumer, luxury and social impact brands to design t...

Dr. Jonathan Reichental is the founder of Human Future, a global business and technology advisory, investment, and education firm. He is a recognized global thought leader on urban innovation, sustainability, and digital transformation. He has written three books on the future of cities and just released his fourth book, Data Governance for Dummies. Jonathan has landed on several national and international lists of top CIOs. He also instructs at several universities and regularly creates onli...

Sravana Kumar Karnati is the SVP and CTO at Walmart International, the world’s largest big box retailer. He has a strong background not only in retail and technology, but also in agile methodologies and software development. Sravana is a former Amazon executive with experience managing global teams and leading technology transformation with a focus on improving IT service levels, product quality testing, and customer satisfaction.Thanks for listening to Spark Plug -- find all our episodes at ...

Jennifer Nolfi is the Executive Director at Center for Retail Leadership, a program within Portland State University’s Business School where students and industry professionals are rewriting the story of retail. Prior to joining PSU, she served as the Director for Partnership Development at Looptworks, a design firm that uses excess premium materials to craft limited edition clothing and accessories. Jennifer counts among her key accomplishments spearheading a public-private research partners...

Michelle Grant is Director of Strategy and Insights for Retail & Consumer Goods at Salesforce. She is a globally-recognized expert in the retail industry, regularly tapped by The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Shoptalk, and World Retail Congress for her insights and speaking engagements. Footwear News honored her as one of 6 Powerful Women in Tech in 2021, and RETHINK Retail named her as one of their Top Retail Influencers of 2022.Thanks for listening to Spark Plug -- find all our e...

Andrew Smith is the Co-Founder & Managing Partner at ThinkUncommon, a company that works with retailers and retail partners of all sizes to build crafted programs to support their innovation agendas. With a background in analysis, retail insights, business development, and more, Andrew is well-versed in creating business and creative strategies as well as predicting consumer trends. He is also an author, educator, on-air contributor, and keynote speaker. Thanks for listening to Spark...

Hitha Herzog is Head of Retail Research and a Chief Retail Analyst at DONEGER | TOBE, “a people-first insights agency delivering consumer, commercial, and creative strategies to keep brands relevant .” With a background in analysis, retail insights, business development, and more, Hitha is well-versed in creating business and creative strategies as well as predicting consumer trends. She is also an accomplished author, educator, on-air contributor, and keynote speaker. Thanks for l...

Paul do Forno is a Managing Director for Commerce & Content at Deloitte, a leading consultancy specializing in audit & assurance, consulting, risk and financial advisory, risk management, tax, and much more. He’s been named one of the Top 100 E-commerce Influencers in the world by Retail Technology Innovation Hub. In this episode, Paul discusses the rise of livestream shopping, how e-commerce and physical retail are merging, virtual shopping, AI in retail and why loyalty matters in re...

Michael Zakkour is the Founder of 5 New Digital, a global retail and digital consulting firm with offices across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. He has worked with hundreds of companies on their retail, eCommerce, marketing, technology, and international growth strategies for more than 25 years. Additionally, Michael is one of “Rethink Retail’s 2022 Top 100 Retail Influencers," the author of two Amazon bestsellers, “The New Retail” and “China’s Super Consumers,” and a 5-time “Alibaba Global Digit...

Spiffy’s Co-founder and CEO, Scot Wingo, is a 4-time serial entrepreneur from the Research Triangle Park, NC region. Scot is an industry thought leader in E-commerce, E-service, and the future of mobility. He has appeared on CNBC and The Today Show, and has contributed thought leadership to the WSJ, New York Times, Forbes, and many other publications. Scot is co-host of The Jason & Scot Show podcast, and regularly speaks about E-commerce and mobility across the country.Thanks for listenin...