Cracker Barrel is becoming a TRR ongoing miss. Just when you thought its earnings release showing positive numbers was a good thing, a few paragraphs down, there was the classic retail pitfall that has tripped up so many companies over the years.
Cracker Barrel: The Robin Report Retail Miss of the Week, 7.25.26 Read More »
Who’s watching the lettuce? A market that’s learned it can shrug off a cyclospora headline in one quarter is also a market that isn’t anticipating what will happen when the agencies meant to catch contamination early are running at 75-80 percent strength. Retailers and restaurants can no longer assume FDA has their back.
The Hidden Threat of the Cyclospora Outbreak Read More »
Like many people, we want JCPenney to succeed; there are some good pros there and they have been working hard to turn this thing around. But we just saw yet another quarter of dismal financial results: sales off 4.6 percent and a net loss of $65 million.
JCPenney: The Robin Report Retail Miss of the Week, 7. 18.26 Read More »
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.
Kimberly Shenk, CEO, Novi: Service Before Self Read More »
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.
Nordstrom: The Robin Report Retail Hit of the Week 7.11.26 Read More »
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.
Spoiler Alert: Stop Chasing AI and Clean Up Your Store First Read More »
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?
Following the Leader Is Not Leadership Read More »
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?
Kroger’s Consolidation Polycrisis Read More »
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.
Target: The Robin Report Retail Miss of the Week, 7.4.26 Read More »
Store managers need to do the right things more consistently. Excellence requires discipline, resisting the urge to react, instead to proactively lead. Great stores are built from the inside out—through strong leadership, consistent execution, and teams that know exactly how to win.
Are Your Managers Mediocre? Read More »
