The CPG Scoop's Podcast

Tony Fung joins Jennifer and Risa for a discussion covering a lot of ecommerce ground.  Tony started his career on the agency side supporting KC, Frito Lay, Unilever, Danone and more before joining Bob Evans Farms, a Post Holdings company.  Tony discusses the constant evolution occurring within omni-channel commerce, and the importance of staying up to speed at both a macro and micro level.  He chooses "hybrid" as his word describing the current state of commerce; and expands on how convenience is driving hybrid shopping habits, and the importance of putting the consumer at the forefront of the conversation.   

Sam Nehme, Performance Lead at Mediacom, joins Jennifer and Risa for a great conversation talking about the evolving state of commerce marketing.  Sam chats about tapping into new and exciting ways to tap into data to improve performance, how true opportunity comes from the art *and* the technique, balancing all aspects while keeping the brand top of mind, and how continued innovation is leveling up measurement capabilities as walled gardens start coming down.  

Risa & Jennifer welcome Lee Dunbar, SVP of Retail Media at Starcom.  Lee talks about his experience tackling and troubleshooting retail media and commerce over the last decade with curiosity and humility.  Lee looks at "efficiency" as a key word summing up the current landscape.  Lee, Risa, and Jennifer chat about streamlining media with commerce, continuing to build attention and engagement for deeper relationships to offset private label pressures, the hot house of innovation that the retail media landscape has delivered, tying inventory to audiences, and how 'efficiency' may be a big theme with CPG shoppers in the coming year.  

Bob Waibel joins the CPG Scoop to chat all things Commerce Marketing with Risa and Jennifer.  Bob chooses 'Evolving' to sum up the marketing landscape and the changes that it is undergoing.  Bob, Risa, and Jennifer talk about the evolution of the term omni-commerce, and how it was once once aspirational, but is now table stakes.  Bob also talks about new commerce opportunities this landscape has unlocked with Conagra's iconic brands; including the Slim Jim Long Boi game, and Dolly Parton's involvement with Duncan Hines.  They also discuss their cautious optimism using the latest emerging MarTech capabilities like generative AI, and their experience building and empowering more connected teams despite being scattered across geographies.   

Drew Ingram from the Frito Lay Media Team joins Risa and Jennifer on the Scoop.  The conversation covers a ton of ground---from discussion about balancing retail performance with brand goals, making magic while being efficient, aligning measurement to clear campaign objectives, and how at the end of the day culture eats strategy for breakfast.   Drew uses the word 'developing' to describe the constant disruption CPG ecomm is undergoing, how that requires a relentless and passionate team leveraging the right contextual moments, and how consumers will follow the path of least resistance in the constant innovation of ease of use moments.

Suzanne Skop, Head of Agency Partnerships at Instacart, joins us for a great discussion about the latest growth and innovation within retail enablement and how that is transforming how shoppers navigate the online and offline retail worlds. They discuss the latest capabilities spanning APIs, data & measurement, AI powered smartcarts, chatGPT, and even popup ice cream shops.   Listen in to this great window into the maturation and sophistication of retail enablement capabilities and how they are driving greater brand value. 

Co-founders of firstmovr and CPG veterans Oskar Kaszubski and Chris Perry drop in for the latest CPG Scoop discussion with Risa and Jennifer.  Oskar and Chris discuss how the 'The Sea' and 'Insanity' are great descriptors for the tumultuous, yet maturing, ecommerce space.  They expand on how the crazy commerce waters have required different types of sailors and skills, and despite that turbulence there is progress being made in making sense of, and even simplifying, the insanity.  Predictions dropped for the future of CPG include a re-envisioning of metrics, truly digital first portfolios, natural language processing, and a massive shift of who's in and who's out in the broader ecommerce game.  And it's not ALL business; Chris and Oskar expand on their new hobbies and forays that include commerce karaoke and preparing for growing cucumbers in space!  

Imteaz joins the CPG Scoop from sunny Sydney, and talks about his journey to his current role as Director of Performance Marketing at Reckitt.  Imteaz gained broad experience covering sales, ecommerce, DTC, retail media, and more in 12 different roles over 14 years.  He expands on how success follows when brands focus on things of higher order value, how celebrating failure is a crucial component in keeping pace with Accelerated Change, and what excites him most about ecommerce in 2023.  

Mert Damlapinar, Principal of CPG Business Consulting, Digital Commerce Acceleration at EPAM Systems, joins Jennifer and Risa to talk about the impact and evolution of Channel-less Commerce as we head into 2023.  Mert also talks about his career journey that has spanned biotech to CPG, and included leadership roles at Loreal, Mondelez, Sabra / Pepsico, and Cibo Vita to name a few.  Mert has published TWO books showcasing his learnings from his career in accelerating sales growth & digital transformations, and is working on a third.  

Amie Owen, head of shopper marketing for UM Worldwide, joins the CPG scoop in this pre-holiday edition.  Amie talks about her two decades of shopper experience, and how she brings a teacher’s lens to the hot world of commerce media as new consumer behaviors continue to shape the space.  Amie, Risa, and Jennifer also discuss the evolution of retail media networks, standardization of measurements, the botanical walled garden, and Amie’s latest challenge supporting the American Cancer Society: the London marathon!  If you would like to donate, click here.