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Patagonia The Robin Report Retail Hit of the Week 9. 26. 26
Experience

Patagonia: The Robin Report Retail Hit of the Week, 9. 26. 26

Unlike a certain President of the United States who offered a bordering-on-bribery $5,000 to anyone who voted Republican in the midterm elections, Patagonia—the iconic, admired outdoor outfitter—is giving up 112,000 customers who sign up three people to vote a $100 discount in its stores or it will make a donation of the same amount to the League of Conservation Voters.

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Warren Shoulberg September 26, 2026
Retail Unwrapped Podcast Art 6
Retail Unwrapped Podcast

Halloween and Hershey’s Are Enduring Traditions

Join Shelley and Stephanie Berman, Vice President of Retail at The Hershey Company as they discuss how Hershey brings memorable moments to life with street fun, new products, and meeting consumers where they are.

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Retail Unwrapped September 25, 2026
The Great Value Reallocation
Operations

The Great Value Reallocation

Spoiler alert: Consumers are not simply trading down. They are reallocating trust, loyalty, and wallet share to brands and retailers that make their value unmistakable. Too many leadership teams still treat this behavior as a temporary pricing problem when the real issue is the company’s value proposition.

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Carrie Barclay September 24, 2026
AI and the Extinction of Retail
Technology

AI and the Extinction of Retail

The creators of AI are sounding the alarm. No regulatory cavalry is riding over the hill to insulate your business from systemic failure. We are the only ones who can save us. If we choose to pave the way to the frontier, we must do so with prudence and unyielding human control—or prepare to be optimized out of our own businesses.

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Barry McGeough September 23, 2026
Mecca Australias Retail Trailblazer
Experience

Mecca: Australia’s Retail Trailblazer

Beauty retailer Mecca hasn’t tried to copy anyone else. It’s critical for every retailer to find its own way based on its leadership, vision, talent, and resources. Beauty retailers, as well as those in other categories, should take inspiration and confidence from Mecca to find their own way toward innovation and maintaining relevance.

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Dana Wood September 21, 2026
Novig The Robin Report Retail Miss of the Week 9. 19. 26
Experience

Novig: The Robin Report Retail Miss of the Week, 9. 19. 26

Hey, we get that wherever Sydney Sweeney goes controversy follows. Companies who have used her in their marketing think they are getting good publicity when she dresses—or undresses—provocatively. But her new campaign for Novig, the sports predictive betting site, is bad publicity and bad for the brand.

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Warren Shoulberg September 19, 2026
Retail Unwrapped Podcast Art 17
Retail Unwrapped Podcast

Can AI Be Trusted?

Join Shelley and Karen Leland, founder of Sterling Marketing Group and author of “The Brand Mapping Strategy,” as they unpack why reinvigorating a brand beats rebranding. They discuss how brand marking is findable, followable, or unforgettable and the risks associated with each.

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Retail Unwrapped September 18, 2026
When Luxurys Brand Ambassadors Become Adversaries
Operations

When Luxury’s Brand Ambassadors Become Adversaries

The luxury industry has traditionally positioned employees as brand ambassadors. But employees cannot convincingly represent a brand they can’t relate to or no longer believe in. When career stagnation, poor management, unfairness, or exhaustion erode that belief, the same employees who once enthusiastically and convincingly communicated the brand’s values can become its most credible critics.

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Glyn Atwal September 17, 2026

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