BETTER RETAILING PODCAST SEASON 3, EPISODE 6

“Brands need to wake up to what independent convenience can offer”

We're joined this episode by Retail Futures Senior Partner at the IGD, RN magazine columnist and non-league football fan Bryan Roberts, to talk about the future of convenience retail.

We talk with Bryan about what he's learned from his travels to stores across the globe and what he loved, what works well, and what might come next for UK convenience. It's wide-ranging conversation covering GLP-1, the future of the till, the importance of "the credible minimum", retail media, how to make the most of NPD and much more.

In five years' time, Bryan believes, more calories will be consumed out of home, and more calories will be consumed within minutes - not hours - of purchase. How can you take advantage of this change in what you offer to your shoppers? Dive in here to find out...

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BETTER RETAILING PODCAST SEASON 3, EPISODE 5

Support, stigma and soccer

“Call for help – you’re entitled to it!”

It’s a serious topic this week – covered in the BR Pod team's usual light-hearted manner.

To mark Mental Health Week we are delighted to be joined by Kieran Hemsworth, CEO of industry charity GroceryAid. GroceryAid support anyone – from packers to delivery drivers, from store owners to shelf-stackers – who works within the channel, providing many different types of support to those in need.

At a difficult time for retailers and consumers alike, it’s important to know that help – be that financial, emotional or some other form of support – is at hand.

However, we know the stigma involved in asking for support is very real, and how to overcome this is covered here by Kieran and the panel. We also talk about how you can get in touch, and how you can help your staff who might be going through issues with which they need support.

We start, however, with a quick chat on the Local Elections – as well those for the Senedd in Wales and for the Scottish Parliament – that took place recently, and elsewhere, there’s a HUGE announcement from Natalie and Atul about the next step for Retail Family, who are taking over Old Trafford later this month for their first in-person event.

And Kieran is too kind about Atul’s boyish good looks and Stefan’s literary adventures.

We hope we enjoy this important episode.

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There are multiple ways to access GroceryAid’s support. You can go online at  groceryaid.org.uk, from where, through the Get Involved tab, you can order a free independent retailer pack.

You can also contact GroceryAid’s free-of-charge 24hr helpline on  08088 021 122 for confidential in-the-moment support or to talk to a mental health specialist.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 3, Episode 3

"Can I lock a criminal in my shop for two weeks?"

For episode four of season three we have a brilliant conversation about the ongoing menace that is retail crime, prompted by the comments from the M&S Retail Director last week. While we may not know what to do to solve it, we do know the human every day impact of it and how important it is to solve it.

Elsewhere, we also ask whether an investment in retail crime prevention technology is worth it - and look at what it can deliver for stores.

We ask how government and industry can stop rogue traders and cut down on illicit traders; and the team reflect on the incredible chat with Thomas Ennis from the last episode – how he deals with his fresh food, and his hiring, and how he uses his margin on fresh to deliver value across his store.

And we talk on sales data and how you can use it, and how you can look at what data provides stores; and reflect on Easter, including some scintillating chat on the barcodes of Creme Eggs.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 3, Episode 3

"There's nothing else I'd want to do. I, I love it"

For episode three of season three we are privileged to be joined by Thomas Ennis, CEO of The Thomas Ennis Group. Thomas joins us from Dublin and talks over his journey from the butchers' counter to running 13 - soon to be 14 - Spar, Eurospar and Maxol stores across Ireland.

It is a fascinating chat that encompasses successes, failures, focus and, above all, a real love of retail.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 3, Episode 2

"If you waited until April to have your chest infection, you could have got sick pay from day one"

On the second episode of season three, the team ploughs on despite the loss of Aman, who is busy selling condos in Dubai instead of beans in Coventry.

It's an interesting episode that covers crime prevention and how a back to basics approach might help add in a level of crime reduction that you perhaps hadn't thought about; whether the Police and the Government do or do not care about small stores and how they can stay alive in these trying times; and the upcoming sick pay rules and what impact they might have.

Among other things. You should remain thankful that Atul's story about a Chinese restaurant has been cut out; a director's cut is available from Stefan or Louise for the right price...

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 3, Episode 1

“January doesn't have 31 says in retail, it has 200”

Welcome to Series three of the Better Retailing podcast! We start the year with the five of us, but with some sad news - it's Aman's last ever podcast with us as part of the full-time BR Pod team. Go well, Aman.

That might be sad, but we do have the official unveiling of Atul's Big Pot to get us over this tremendous loss. Out with the old, in with the new.

The team talks about how stores should plan for Christmas - and Nat talks about the importance of planning for those "things that will definitely go wrong" moments and getting your stock levels right. Elsewhere, we look at how to analyse sales success in January, the big jobs for the start of the year, and New Year's Resolutions; and there's a great chat on the five year plan and what stores can do to counteract the pressures they feel from increased costs.

There's a great discussion about whether the convenience channel is fast enough to enact change, and Aman tells us how they do it in Dubai. We touch the value of marketing and focusing on your strengths - and going back to basics to stay relevant.

Meanwhile Atul talks us through how his hot food offer of curries, stews and pies is going (and how much time it is taking him), while Stefan reveals that he is the number one buyer of Double Deckers from Penge Sainsbury's.

It's a big start to the year in a lot of ways.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 2, Episode 9

“Starting arguments is the best way to start a following”

Welcome to Episode 9 of Series 2 of the Better Retailing podcast. We are delighted to be joined this week by Amit Patel, formerly of Go Local in Sandiacre but now a man with more than 240,000 TikTok followers and, in his own words, a legion of “fans” online for his social media coverage.

Amit joins us through his new Meta glasses, Aman is in Dubai, Natalie is in her house and Atul is behind the counter telling us how much he’s taking in real time. It’s a real cavalcade of retail settings.

Amit talks about who inspired him, the thinking behind his decision to sell the store, and how he is making social media work for him. In a wide-ranging and fun chat – which also features the unboxing of some mushroom coffee – Amit outlines why social media shouldn’t be the first thing a retailer does, but once you get it right it can really pay.

And finally, we talk about some very sad news around the passing of Sue Nithyanandan, formerly of Costcutter in Epsom. Sue was an inspiration to a lot of us, and she will be dearly missed not just by us, but many people within the UK convenience retail family.

If you would like to make a donation in lieu of flowers in memory of Sue Nithyanandan, the family asks that you support Myeloma UK (registered charity no SC026116).

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Retail-Family-Online-Safe-Space-61568103505510/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 2, Episode 8

“Get someone else to peel the spuds”

Welcome to Episode 8 of Series 2 of the Better Retailing podcast! Aman is in jail this week, so Atul, Natalie, Stefan and Louise hold the fort for an energised chat about some of the biggest issues of the day.

Natalie tells us about why she has removed her parcel service – a move which has helped improve the mental health of her store, led to her customers feeling less pressured and rushed, got more tasks accomplished in store and even increased her basket spend.

Elsewhere the team talk about the fact that it is two years to the implementation of the Deposit Return Scheme, whether small stores will be exempt, and how to handle dealing with a service like this in a smaller store.

And then there’s a heated (AND NOT BORING!) discussion about the tobacco and vapes ban, and the impracticality of the “ill thought-out legislation” that could see stores near schools being denied the right to sell tobacco.

And finally, there’s a chat about the importance of looking after yourselves as retailers first and foremost, which will help sort. As Nat says, sometimes it’s about letting things go and giving yourself a bit of slack that can help you refocus on the important things.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit Natalie’s LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-lightfoot/

Find out more about and register to attend the Better Retailing Festival & Awards in October https://www.betterretailing.com/br/event/better-retailing-festival-and-awards-2025/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 2, Episode 7

“You’ve really opened a can of worms here”

Welcome to Episode 7 of Series 2 of the Better Retailing podcast!

Natalie is unfortunately away this month, but don’t worry – Atul and Aman have more than enough chat to go around. Rather brilliantly, to make up for Natalie’s absence we’re joined by multiple-award winning retailer Julie Kaur.

In this episode the team has a very interesting debate about the proposed legislation on energy drinks, bringing lots of different thoughts to the table and looking at all the sides of the argument. It’s a really great chat that will resonate with all legitimate convenience store retailers.

Elsewhere, we hear Julie’s story and how she got where she is today – including some great details on her recent full-store refit and how she went about it, and what she’s shifting her focus to look at now.

Julie also tells us how she manages to find time to operate as a great community retailer as well as being a trustee of various charities, a parish councillor and a marathon runner. Honestly, it’s exhausting just to listen to!

Hopefully the stories in this episode resonate with retailers out there – please do share your own stories and feedback with us via any of the methods below.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit Natalie’s LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-lightfoot/

Find out more about and register to attend the Better Retailing Festival & Awards in October https://www.betterretailing.com/br/event/better-retailing-festival-and-awards-2025/

You can see Coca-Cola’s “The Bosses” campaign via their YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at8tT5zvEtU

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better Retailing Podcast: Season 2, Episode 6

“We don’t judge!”

Welcome to Episode 6 of Series 2 of the Better Retailing podcast with award-winning retailers Natalie Lightfoot, Aman Uppal and Atul Sodha.

In this episode we talk about three things that have kept the team busy in the last month.

Aman reflects on his experiences judging award entries, and how adding retailers to the process – as happens at the Better Retailing Awards – is a key part of the jigsaw and help ensure there’s an experienced voice in the room.

Atul talks about a difficult time in store over the last month with an abusive customer and less-than-satisfactory response from his local police force. An awful situation that I’m sure will resonate with many listeners.

And finally, Natalie talks about the Main Street Pavement Festival that she ran outside her store. Thousands raised for charity, hundreds of attendees, and one lucky winner walked away with a raffle prize of a will. Find out who, in part three of the podcast!

Hopefully the stories in this episode resonate with retailers out there – please do share your own stories and feedback with us via any of the methods below.

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To hear more about the Retail Family Online Safe Space, visit Natalie’s LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-lightfoot/

Find out more about and register to attend the Better Retailing Festival & Awards in October https://www.betterretailing.com/br/event/better-retailing-festival-and-awards-2025/

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To get in touch with us, ask a question of our retailer panel, or get involved with any of the conversations, please email [email protected], or send us a message via Newtrade Media on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.