The Retail Focus Podcast

By Retail Focus Podcast

Each week, we release a podcast covering the retail world--business developments, trends, and historical perspectives. Podcasts feature news summaries, interviews, and previews of industry goings-on.... more

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FAQs about The Retail Focus Podcast:

How many episodes does The Retail Focus Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 382 episodes available.

The Retail Focus Podcast episodes:

March 31, 2020 Retail Focus 3/30/20 – Consumer Trends in the Age of COVID-19; Retail Layoffs & Furloughs
As we fight to keep up with the now rapid-fire changes in the retail landscape, we start our show with retailers releasing information on what consumer purchase trends look like in the era of coronavirus. From there, we discuss the disappointing (but likely inevitable) news of retail furloughs and layoffs, what the CARES Act may mean for small retailers, and how consumer (and retail real estate) attitudes may change once all is said and done.
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44min
March 24, 2020 Retail Focus 3/22/20 – Writing for E-Commerce; Where Does Retail Go From Here?
In this free-flowing episode, we scrap the rundown and discuss observations surrounding the drastically altered retail landscape, as well as retailers that stand to potentially improve their image post-coronavirus. Our interview guest is Karly Caylor, a performance content writer at VMLY&R, who discusses the research and approach necessary to effectively write for an e-commerce site.
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58min
March 09, 2020 Retail Focus 3/8/20 – Coronavirus & Retail; Dollar Tree’s Initiatives, the Importance of Q1 Customers
We begin the show discussing the potential impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19) on retail, including our discussion with retail store managers and what we’ve heard on various earnings calls. From there, we discuss Costco’s latest earnings, Dollar Tree’s goals for 2020 surrounding different initiatives, and Kroger’s Q4 call. Our interview guest is Cardlytics CMO Dani Cushion, who discusses their data that suggests customers that come back to a retailer in Q1 could be the most important.
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1h 18min
March 02, 2020 Retail Focus 3/1/20 – Home Depot Gears Up for Spring; the State of Gift Cards in Retail
Home Depot leads the show, after they release not only earnings but some interesting merchandising initiatives for their outdoor product lines. We also discuss the new Amazon Go Grocery store and Lumber Liquidators’ year-end earnings report. Our interview guest is Alex Barseghian, author and former head of retail for Blackhawk Network, who joins us to discuss the current state of gift cards in retail and some developments to keep a watchful eye on over the next year-plus.
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1h 10min
February 23, 2020 Retail Focus 2/23/20 – The Year That Was for Walmart; 360° Photography on E-Commerce Sites
As Walmart closes out their fiscal year, we take a look back at some of the initiatives they started during the last 12 months, and look at their sales forecasts for the next 12 months. Additionally, we discuss Floor & Décor’s dramatic growth plans, and how SpartanNash’s numbers suggest strengths in independent grocery. Our interview guest is Jeff Hunt, founder and CEO of Snap36, the leading provider of 360° product photography on major e-commerce sites, who discusses the logistics and technology behind their operations. Our sponsor is Start From Zero; check them out at startfromzero.com/retail.
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1h 8min
February 16, 2020 Retail Focus 2/16/20 – Positive Signs at Food Lion & CVS; The Creation of Anchor Shops
We start with positive news from Ahold Delhaize (as Food Lion showcased solid comps) and CVS (as their front-store comps were up yet again). We also discuss the largest point-of-sale provider in the U.S. in NCR, Quiktrip’s expansion into Alabama, and the shuttering of Brandless. Our interview guests are Shlomo Chopp and Ryan Wolfe of ShopFulfill, who talk about the background behind Anchor Shops, a new brick-and-mortar retail concept and fulfillment mechanism developed to assist e-commerce pureplays and direct-to-consumer brands.
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1h 4min
February 09, 2020 Retail Focus 2/9/20 – Boot Barn’s Continued Success; the Learning Curve for CBD & Retail
We begin with a rare deep dive on the latest from Boot Barn, as they ride their loyal customers to continued sales growth but are endeavoring to draw new customers through exclusive clothing lines. From there, it is on to Natural Grocers, Earth Wise, and pleasant numbers from Simon that show retailers in their malls may be busier than previously thought. Our interview guest is Colby McKenzie, Principal at Enlighten Wellness (enlightenwellness.io), who discusses the retailer and consumer education surrounding the introduction of CBD and alternative wellness products to stores.
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1h 13min
February 02, 2020 Retail Focus 2/2/20 – Tanger Outlets’ High Occupancy; the Experience Economy & Retail
After following up on the newly announced Lucky’s Market bankruptcy, we dive into reasons behind Tanger Outlets’ industry-leading high occupancy rates and whether they will continue into 2020. We also discuss Amazon’s earnings call, Stein Mart potentially going private, and Kohl’s commitment to smaller footprints. Our interview guest is Andrew Park, VP of CX Strategy at InMoment (inmoment.com), who joins us to discuss dynamics of the experience economy as it pertains to retail and gives case studies on why retailers should broaden their understanding of the customer experience.
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1h 2min
January 27, 2020 Retail Focus 1/26/20 – Lucky’s Market Closures & Natural Foods Retail; Location-Based Retail Tech
We lead off with sad news from the natural food retail space, as Lucky’s Market announced closures of over 75% of their store base this week. After discussing potential ramifications, we move on to New York City’s new cash requirements for retail and food outlets, and Mars Retail Group announcing an expansion of their M&M’s retail concept. Our interview guest is Marianne Slamich, Head of Marketing at Pointr, who discusses their progress in bringing location-based retail technologies to U.S. retailers.
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1h
January 20, 2020 Retail Focus 1/19/20 – Gap Calls Off Split; Place-Based Retail & the Future of Sampling
A few big news stories headline our show, including Walmart’s continued rollout of robotics for both the back and front of the store, and Gap calling off their planned split of Old Navy. We also discuss Amazon’s backtrack regarding FedEx Ground, and an investigation at Best Buy. Our interview guest is Marci Weisler, Chief Commercial Officer of Vengo Labs, who discusses bringing retail to non-traditional retail locations and the future of in-store sampling as a retail marketing tool.
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58min

FAQs about The Retail Focus Podcast:

How many episodes does The Retail Focus Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 382 episodes available.