Retail insights at the intersection of now and next. Unfiltered. Unbiased
Kimberly Shenk has never taken the expected path. A data scientist and former Air Force captain, she has carried the military’s ethos of service before self and its belief that discipline as a habit leads to excellence into a career. She says employees, investors, and stakeholders yearn for a leader and leads with a clear vision, refusing to put a limit on what’s possible.
New systems cannot replace bad processes and a misaligned culture to compete for success. When owning a process matters more than solving a problem, and the stated mission is not the rewarded behavior, AI cannot correct these dysfunctions; it only amplifies and accelerates them. The tool is never the question; the diagnosis is.
It’s a celebration on so many levels, and Pete and Erik Nordstrom are the hosts, with heartfelt thanks to their loyal customers. Any other retail brand might sound disingenuous, but these guys really mean it.
Join Shelley and Mark Cohen, TRR contributor and former Director of Columbia University’s Retail Studies Program, as they challenge the industry’s obsession with technology and make an unapologetic case for getting back to basics.
Why do results worth admiring almost never look like wins when the bet is placed? What happened along the way that transformed a perceived loss into a victory? And why does the boldness behind that bet get mistaken, in hindsight by others, for a playbook anyone could have run?
For many retailers, removing fitting rooms would risk customer frustration and dissatisfaction. However, Brandy Melville has never operated like most retailers. Detached and apathetic customer service is intrinsic to the brand. Oddly, its success suggests that shoppers are willing to tolerate inconveniences and blatant disregard as a trade-off to be part of an inner circle. Abusing customers to earn loyalty is a unique approach.
Another grocery chain, another acquisition. Now that Kroger has bought Giant Eagle, is it a smart consolidation, or a company desperately spending money it doesn’t have?
Creating calm: How can retailers produce better retail spaces and experiences with a sound mind?
We like many of the things the new CEO over there at Target, Michael Fiddelke, is doing to try to wake up this sleepy retailer from the self-imposed stupor it’s been in for the past few years. But the company veered backwards this week when it announced a new system of what are essentially a dozen demerits for employees who show up late—or not at all—that leads to getting fired for the worst offenders.
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