Ahti Heinla is the Co-Founder and CEO at Starship Technologies. Previously, he was one of the founders and developers of Skype. He joins Natalie on the podcast to discuss the rise of autonomous delivery and the future of grocery e-commerce. They explore: Skype’s legacy in transforming modern global communications. The future of grocery delivery: drones in the sky and robots on the ground? The economics of autonomous delivery: just how cost-effective is it for retailers to deliver by robot? Are r...
Jul 01, 2025•31 min•Ep. 83
Rosie Bailey is the CEO & Co-Founder of Nibble , an AI negotiation chatbot which can agree deals in less than a minute on anything from luxury watches to your next broadband subscription. She joins Natalie on the podcast to explain how Nibble allows customers to negotiate prices directly on a retailer’s website, and how this benefits both brands and customers. They discuss the psychology behind digital negotiation (far less intimidating than haggling in-person), what happens if someone offer...
Jun 23, 2025•33 min•Ep. 82
Lisa Weaver-Lambert is the author of The AI Value Playbook , an essential handbook empowering non-technical business leaders to formulate a perspective on how to leverage AI. She joins Natalie on the podcast to discuss the key findings from her book and share her views on AI’s impact on retail. Retail Disrupted listeners can use the code 20RETAIL for an exclusive discount on the book. Purchases must be made before June 26, 2025. Natalie also speaks to Richard Lim, CEO of Retail Economics , about...
Jun 18, 2025•27 min•Ep. 81
Jamil Ghani is the Worldwide Vice President of Amazon Prime, leading product, technology, marketing, decision science, operations, and finance teams that build and operate the membership program for over 200 million members across 26 countries. He sits down with Natalie at the end of the Amazon Prime analyst event in Seattle to discuss the latest innovations and strategic direction of Prime. They explore: The key pillars of Prime: convenience, savings, entertainment. With new Prime markets like ...
Jun 11, 2025•19 min•Ep. 80
Global fashion designer Nadine Merabi shares her inspiring journey, from teaching herself how to sew by watching YouTube to becoming a successful fashion entrepreneur. She discusses the challenges and triumphs of building her eponymous brand, NADINE MERABI, emphasizing the importance of community, sustainability, and empowering women through fashion. Nadine shares the rationale for the brand's move into bricks & mortar retail and the significance of creating a positive company culture. She o...
Jun 02, 2025•22 min•Ep. 74
Pacsun CEO Brieane Olson sits down with Natalie on the sidelines at the World Retail Congress. They discuss: Staying culturally relevant: how Pacsun transitioned from a “house of brands” in malls to a purpose-driven, culture-first youth brand. Are Gen Z and Gen Alpha actually brand loyal? What are the misconceptions of these digitally native generations? The power of co-creation: how Paris Hilton and A$AP Rocky are helping Pacsun to position their stores as culture and community hubs. Physical r...
May 27, 2025•19 min•Ep. 78
Andrew Xeni is the Founder/Chairman of Nobody’s Child and Soreto, and Founder/CEO of Fabacus . He joins Natalie for a video episode which can be watched on YouTube . Andrew discusses the evolution of Nobody's Child, an M&S-backed fashion brand known for its commitment to affordability and sustainability. He shares insights on the brand's transition from pure-play e-commerce to physical retail and the importance of product diversification and brand elevation in order to achieve profitable gro...
May 22, 2025•28 min•Ep. 77
Andrew Busby joins Natalie live from the World Retail Congress to reflect on key takeaways from the event. They discuss why AI is only as good as the data you feed it and why Gen Z shoppers are loyal to trends and not brands, picking up on insights shared by Estee Lauder and Albert Heijn. For the second half of the conversation, they turn to sustainability in fashion retail. Are we doing enough in the West? Is the ease of buying preloved online encouraging shoppers to actually buy more clothes? ...
May 15, 2025•22 min•Ep. 76
Live from Amazon's 'Delivering the Future' event in Dortmund, Germany, Natalie speaks to three Amazon execs about today's announcements: Rocco Bräuniger - Vice President, Country Manager Germany & Expansion Countries EU Nicola Fyfe - Vice President, Amazon Logistics Europe Sarah Rhoads - Vice President, Global Workplace Health & Safety We explore the launch of Vulcan, Amazon's first robot with a sense of touch. This is tech that Amazon says was unimaginable just three years ago and is no...
May 07, 2025•30 min•Ep. 75
Kelly Cook is the newly appointed CEO of David’s Bridal. She joins Natalie on the podcast to discuss how David’s Bridal is embarking on the biggest shift in its 75-year history, transitioning from a legacy bridal retailer to becoming a tech-powered retail, AI, and media powerhouse. 📺 This is a video episode and can be watched here . Kelly and Natalie explore: • How David’s plans to expand beyond wedding dresses to capture a bigger piece of the $65 billion wedding industry, leveraging first-part...
Apr 03, 2025•27 min•Ep. 73
With extensive experience in merchandising, Beatriz Ciraudo has worked with global brands such as Lacoste, Salvatore Ferragamo, Louis Vuitton, Dior, and Chloé. Her career spans Brazil, France, and Italy, giving her a unique international perspective on merchandising and retail strategy. Now, as a Presales Consultant at Centric Software , Beatriz helps retailers and brands leverage cutting-edge AI-driven planning, pricing, and market intelligence solutions to optimize decision-making and drive pr...
Apr 01, 2025•27 min•Ep. 72
Mohsen Ghasempour is the Group Director of AI at Kingfisher . He joins Natalie on the podcast, live from the Retail Technology Show press briefing, to discuss how Kingfisher is utilising AI to drive operational efficiencies and improve the experience for customers. They discuss: AI-powered markdowns and promotions. How AI enabled Kingfisher to quickly scale its marketplace from 55,000 SKUs to over one million. How visual search and genAI chatbots are improving the customer experience. Sustainabi...
Mar 25, 2025•19 min•Ep. 71
It’s Neurodiversity Celebration Week. Natalie shares her own neurodiversity journey and speaks to fellow ADHD-er and founder of The Sole Supplier, George Sullivan. George is a 34-year-old founder, born and bred in London. Ten years ago, whilst working in recruitment, he started a platform to help people find shoes. Since then, that online community has grown into an 8-figure global business and a key strategic partner to some of the world’s biggest brands like Nike, Adidas, Converse, Puma, and m...
Mar 20, 2025•19 min•Ep. 70
Kirsty Keoghan is responsible for eBay’s global fashion business. She joins Natalie to discuss the evolution of the fashion category on the platform, emphasizing the importance of a frictionless experience for both buyers and sellers, and the trust built through authenticity guarantees. Kirsty shares how the competitive landscape is evolving and the impact of eBay’s decision to remove fees for private sellers. The discussion also touches on how consumer attitudes towards preloved are changing, w...
Mar 18, 2025•23 min•Ep. 69
Hash Ladha, CEO of Jigsaw and former CEO of Oasis and Warehouse, joins Natalie to discuss fashion retailing, the resurgence of accessible luxury, and lessons for the next generation of retail leaders. 📺 This is a video episode and can watched on the Retail Disrupted YouTube channel here . Hash and Natalie explore: Accessible luxury – with competition intensifying, how does Hash see the sector evolving? Why there hasn’t been a “normal” year in retail since the Brexit vote in 2016. From the Budge...
Mar 11, 2025•35 min•Ep. 68
Stuart Trevor is the Founder of AllSaints and STUART TREVOR, his eponymous sustainable fashion brand that launched in 2023. He joins Natalie to talk about why he decided to launch a clothing brand that doesn’t produce any new clothes. They discuss: What inspired Stuart's move into sustainable fashion. A founder’s vision and being clear on what makes your brand special: AllSaints was a success in part because “there was nothing else like it”. Why longevity, not price, is the key to unlocking valu...
Mar 05, 2025•17 min•Ep. 67
Jane Mustoe, Senior Technology Director at Tesco, joins Natalie to discuss how Tesco is using tech to redefine both customer and colleague experiences. They explore: Tesco's recent innovations – GetGo and frictionless shopping, gen AI chatbots, digital twins, mobile apps for store associates, and more. All about the margins – the importance of achieving marginal gains in a low-margin industry. Always keeping an eye on future innovations and finding pockets of “reality” amongst the “hype”. Why ov...
Feb 26, 2025•25 min•Ep. 66
Martin George, former Customer Director at Waitrose, and Jessica Cole, Senior Director Own Brand, Masterbrand, Customer Strategy & Propositions, at Asda join Natalie to discuss the evolving role of marketing in retail. They explore: Retail disruption – how has AI impacted retail marketing? How have legacy retailers responded to disruption? Which grocery innovations haven’t stuck? Customer centricity – how to embed this in the organization and learnings from other sectors. Understanding diver...
Feb 18, 2025•32 min•Ep. 65
Nazim Cassim is a retail veteran who served on the Massmart board during the Walmart acquisition. Today, he splits his time between South Africa and Dubai in his current role as CEO of QVWi Retail , MEA. Nazim is also a Founding Member of the Retail Institute of South Africa (RISA), whose mission is to empower the country’s retail workforce through professionalization and training. Nazim joins Natalie to discuss: The Walmart acquisition and why the retailer is doubling down on Africa. Why some b...
Feb 12, 2025•24 min•Ep. 64
What happens in the digital afterlife? Do you even need to be alive to be a consumer? Should retailers and brands be thinking about a post-death strategy? VML’s Naji El-Arifi and Hugh Fletcher join Natalie on the podcast to discuss all of this and more: Digital avatars and virtual goods – what are the opportunities for brands? Why retailers need to be paying more attention to gaming. The evolution of AI and delegation of purchasing tasks. Grocery e-commerce – addressing perennial challenges with...
Feb 06, 2025•32 min•Ep. 63
Matt Hopkins, Founder of IND!E , joins Natalie to discuss the evolution of pop-up shops, the role of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) brands in driving innovation, and the significance of storytelling in retail. Matt shares his views on changing consumer expectations such as the heightened demand for authenticity and ethical shopping. They also delve into the trend of digitally native brands moving into physical spaces and highlight some of the challenges faced by SME challenger brands in...
Jan 30, 2025•24 min•Ep. 62
Did you know that over 80% of the U.S. population lives within a 10-mile radius of a Goodwill store or location? Live from the NRF Big Show in NYC, Natalie speaks to the CEO of Goodwill, Steve Preston. He discusses the organization's strategic priorities, why the perception of thrifting is evolving, and the impact of digital. Steve also shares his views on what’s driving the surge in the resale market today and how Goodwill’s proximity to the customer allows for deeper community engagement. Bio:...
Jan 21, 2025•20 min•Ep. 61
Live from the NRF Big Show, Co-op’s director of technology Ian Cox joins Natalie to discuss: NRF highlights and practical use cases for AI in food retail. How Co-op enacted digital transformation to innovate faster, scale resources, and stay agile in a rapidly changing market. The importance of service availability as a convenience retailer: delivering transformation projects with minimal impact on the customer. The relevance of quick commerce for convenience retailers. Ian’s Bio: Ian Cox is the...
Jan 14, 2025•14 min•Ep. 60
How did a family-run confectionery shop in Devon become the UK’s #1 seller of sweets on TikTok? George Robinson, Managing Director of SoSweet , shares the retailer's remarkable TikTok journey which started with a Gavin & Stacey inspired clip that went viral in 2020. The business is now making millions on the platform. George and Natalie discuss: The SoSweet story – how a pandemic pivot unlocked a lucrative new channel for the family business. Monetizing your audience – how SoSweet’s early Ti...
Jan 09, 2025•49 min•Ep. 59
On the final episode of 2024, Natalie is joined by authors Mark Abraham and David Edelman to discuss their new book, Personalized: Customer Strategy in the Age of AI . 📺 This episode is also available as video, so head over to the new Retail Disrupted channel on YouTube to watch the conversation unfold. David, Mark, and Natalie discuss how customer expectations are evolving in this digital era, why businesses often get stuck and don’t go far enough when it comes to personalization, and how gene...
Dec 16, 2024•35 min•Ep. 58
Rich Honiball is the EVP and Global Chief Merchandising & Marketing Officer for NEXCOM (Navy Exchange Service Command). He joins Natalie on the podcast to discuss: The unique role of military retail, the importance of having a clear mission, and other lessons for traditional retailers. Learnings from the launch of the world’s first Toys R Us department on a military base. Self-checkouts, frictionless experiences, and the importance of customer choice. The power of community and how Gen Z sho...
Dec 10, 2024•36 min•Ep. 57
Murvah Iqbal, co-CEO and co-founder of HIVED , is on a mission to revolutionise the delivery industry. Founded in 2021, the all-electric delivery start-up has already distributed millions of parcels across London for major brands including ASOS, Uniqlo, Nespresso and Zara, and is backed by investors like Maersk Growth, Pale Blue Dot and Planet A Ventures. In this episode, Murvah shares her entrepreneurial journey, which began when she took over marketing and branding for her uncles’ fast-food ch...
Dec 03, 2024•27 min•Ep. 56
Marc Vicente, Group Digital Director at Kingfisher, joins Natalie for a comprehensive discussion around e-commerce, AI, marketplaces, retail media, and more. They explore: Why omnichannel retailers are now embracing the marketplace model The role of physical stores in e-commerce Innovative partnerships: Deliveroo and the importance of speed The significance of Black Friday for Kingfisher and why it starts earlier every year Retail media: monetizing the marketplace and understanding the 3 stages ...
Nov 26, 2024•45 min•Ep. 55
Boris Planer, Founder and Managing Director of Future Consulting, joins Natalie to discuss the news that Amazon is terminating its online grocery service in Germany. They discuss: What went wrong for Amazon Fresh in Germany, what does this tell us about Amazon's global grocery strategy, and where next? (It’s all about the partnerships.) Inherent challenges of grocery retailing in Germany. Did you know that 98% of German consumers live within 10 minutes of a discounter?! The Amazon Effect - how c...
Nov 21, 2024•19 min•Ep. 54
Paul Edney, Technology Director Channels at Primark, and Jeanette Copeland, Technology Director at Ann Summers, join Natalie to discuss lessons from their digital transformation projects. They explore: The rationale behind Primark’s click & collect roll-out and how it’s enabling the retailer to engage with new customers. How Ann Summers completed a 12-month transformation project in just four months. 2025 strategic priorities for both businesses. Working backwards from the customer, testing ...
Nov 18, 2024•26 min•Ep. 53
