In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Ownit AI , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Amazon’s plans to copycat Shein and Temu (Source: CNBC ) Target lowering its in-store theft threshold from $100 to $50 (Source: Bloomberg ) Tesco piloting on-pack, scannable QR codes (Source: Grocery Gazette ) Tiptop adding the new wrinkle of trade-ins to its BNPL offe...
Jul 03, 2024•37 min•Ep 32•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Ownit AI , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , A&M’s Kelly Carey and Jeff Dwyer joined Chris and Anne to discuss: Whether Target is making a smart move in rolling out generative AI so quickly across its store base (Source: Target Press Release ) What Netflix has to get right for its “Netflix House” concept to work (Source: The Verve ) Unileve...
Jun 26, 2024•56 min•Ep 31•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, recorded live from the lovely Marriott in Salt Lake City, and sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Ownit AI , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Whether Kohl’s new return drop is a sign of an ongoing identity crisis within the retailer (Source: Retail Dive ) TikTok going after Google (and Amazon before it) with image search (Source: TechCrunch ) Instacart ...
Jun 19, 2024•44 min•Ep 30•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, recorded live from CommerceNext 2024, and sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Ownit AI , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart rolling out electronic shelf labels to nearly half its U.S. stores (Source: Retail Dive ) TJX asking its sales associates to wear body cameras (Source: CNN ) Tesco building its own third-party digital marketplace (Source:&nbs...
Jun 12, 2024•33 min•Ep 29•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Ownit AI , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Amazon adding Grubhub food delivery for free to Amazon Prime (Source: Verge ) Abercrombie & Fitch’s first billion dollar Q1 (Source: Retail Dive ) Takeoff Technologies filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (Source: Grocery Dive ) Walmart’s “trippy” new online storefront...
Jun 05, 2024•33 min•Ep 28•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: What Wayfair has to get right in the opening of its first large-format store (Source: Chain Store Age ) TikTok lowering the thresholds for creators to earn seller commissions (Source: Bloomberg ) Walmart adding free pet telehealth to Walmart+ (Source: CNBC ) Schnucks par...
May 29, 2024•44 min•Ep 27•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , Mirakl , and Sezzle , A&M’s Truett Horne and Jeremy Levine joined Chris and Anne to discuss: The potential ramifications of Target’s decision to cut prices on roughly 5,000 items (Source: Retail Dive ) Walmart’s two new (and much larger) Neighborhood Market grocery stores (Source: Grocery Dive ) Gopuff’s decision to pri...
May 22, 2024•48 min•Ep 26•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Shoptalk’s Ben Miller stopped by to guest host with Chris and Anne as they discussed: Walmart’s reported job cuts and back-to-office push (Source: WSJ ) The first-ever exchange zone in Atlanta from Harbor Lockers (Source: Harbor Lockers Press Release ) Best Buy’s new mobile app features (Source: Bes...
May 15, 2024•47 min•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Target expanding its wholesale relationship with Hudson’s Bay (Source: BNN Bloomberg ) Instacart and Uber Eats’ intriguing new partnership (Source: Joint Instacart and Uber Eats Press Release ) Walmart’s new in-store AI tools for produce and apparel (Source: CNBC ) Happy Re...
May 08, 2024•40 min•Ep 24•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart’s out-of-nowhere decision to shut down all 51 of its health centers (Source: Bloomberg ) Best Buy’s “groundbreaking” new partnership with CNET (Source: Best Buy Press Release ) Tesco bringing EagleAI’s gamification to its loyalty program (Source: Tesco Press Release...
May 01, 2024•36 min•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart’s new BNPL offering (Source: CNBC ) Grubhub’s Mercato partnership (Source: Chain Store Age ) Amazon’s low cost subscription grocery delivery plan (Source: Reuters ) Instagram getting AI-powered search (Source: Daily Star ) And closed with a look at the WSJ rep...
Apr 24, 2024•42 min•Ep 22•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart Canada’s big store of the future reveal (Source: Canadian Grocer ) Gopuff’s debut of “Powered by Gopuff” (Source: Chain Store Age ) A NYC Chicken restaurant that has replaced its cashiers with Zoom (Source: 404 Media ) Aldi retrofitting a store to become checkout-fr...
Apr 17, 2024•46 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: The real reasons why Amazon would pull its Just Walk Out Technology out of its Fresh grocery stores and Whole Foods stores (Source: Payments Dive ) Target installing cameras above its self-checkout machines (Source: Bloomberg ) Kroger closing its three e-commerce facilities (Sour...
Apr 10, 2024•43 min•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Wiliot, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, A&M’s Abhinav Chandra and Ben Lowden joined Chris and Anne to discuss: TikTok paying creators commissions based on how well their content shows up in search (Source: The Verge ) The serendipitous position Walmart+ affords Walmart in regards to self-checkout (Source: Supermarket News ) Nike’s refocus on wholesale (Source: Retail Dive )...
Mar 27, 2024•57 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, recorded live from Shoptalk in Las Vegas, and sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Macy's launching their "Bold New Chapter" strategy (Source: Retail Dive ) Target going wholesale with their Cat & Jack line at Hudson's Bay (Source: Retail Dive ) Walmart launching another SaaS play for retailers, "Route Optimization" (Source...
Mar 22, 2024•39 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, recorded live from Lululemon at the Mall of America, and sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart expanding express delivery into the wee hours of the morning (Source: Chain Store Age ) Aldi’s aggressive U.S. expansion plans (Source: Fox Business ) Kohl’s new partnership with Babies R Us (Source: CNBC ) Mi...
Mar 13, 2024•43 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Wendy’s about face on surge pricing (Source: KTLA-5 ) Target’s new paid membership program, Circle 360 (Source: CNBC ) The RealReal’s store expansion plans (Source: WSJ ) Sam’s Club’s new design thinking studio (Source: Chain Store Age ) And closed with an examination...
Mar 06, 2024•50 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Macy’s bold decision to close 150 stores (Source: CNBC ) Why Amazon’s move to offer scheduled grocery delivery could be one of the most important headlines of the year (Source: Chain Store Age ) Microsoft's decision to fortify its Gen AI position by investing in Mistral AI (Sourc...
Feb 28, 2024•38 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , A&M’s Joanna Rangarajan and Cassie Ryding joined Chris and Anne to discuss: Why in the world Walmart would acquire Vizio (Source: CNBC ) Whether Target’s new brand, “dealworthy,” is actually noteworthy (Source: PR Newswire ) Starbucks new loyalty partnership with Bank of America (Source: Chain S...
Feb 21, 2024•52 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Avalara’s Kris Rabideau stopped by for 5 Insightful Minutes on 2024 tax changes, and Chris and Anne discussed: The rumors that Target will roll out a paid membership program (Source: Bloomberg ) If IKEA’s use of generative AI indicates that generative AI-based search may be more applicable to home f...
Feb 14, 2024•47 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne were live from Manifest as they discussed: Amazon’s new AI-assistant Rufus Grabango’s large scale autonomous store installation with Aldi near Chicago Gap Inc.’s hiring of Zac Posen Lowe’s and J. Crew's recent Apple Vision Pro endeavors And closed with a look at Starbucks new late night delivery partne...
Feb 07, 2024•36 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Wiliot, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, Shoptalk VP of Original Content & Strategy Ben Miller joined Chris and Anne to discuss: The rash of recent layoffs across retail and what they mean for how the average retail executive is thinking about 2024 Walmart’s big announcement this week that its store managers can make over $400K per year Some absolutely startling statistics on self-checkout fr...
Jan 31, 2024•54 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , A&M's Michael Prendergast and Manola Soler joined Chris and Anne to discuss: If Macy's made the right move rejecting its buyout offer this week Whether innovation labs, like Walmart's Store No. 8 , are ever a good idea How Wayfair's CEO can ever get the egg off his face in light of recent leaks and layoffs Estima...
Jan 24, 2024•54 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five Podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart’s new Gen AI search announcement at CES Amazon implementing its Just Walk Out technology at hospitals Walmart’s Texas drone expansion plans CVS closing “dozens” of pharmacies inside Target stores And closed with a look at Sam’s Club’s brilliant new use case for computer vision, i.e. for exit rec...
Jan 17, 2024•41 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Wiliot , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne: Discussed Instacart serving up advertisements on its smart carts Split on Peloton and TikTok’s new partnership Lauded Starbucks for allowing customers to bring their own cups Debated the merits of fit tech through the lens of Amazon's new fashion AI enhancements And closed with another salute to Walma...
Jan 10, 2024•43 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Firework, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, Chris and Anne discussed: Walmart’s bold and beautiful move to put BNPL via Affirm at self-checkout Amazon’s confounding decision to test an additional $9.99 per month fee on top of Amazon Prime for grocery delivery Why Macy’s shareholders should take a hard look at their buyout offer on the table Google’s second brilliant move over the last two months i...
Dec 20, 2023•40 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Firework , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle ,, David Ritter and David Brown, from the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, stopped by to help Chris and Anne hand out this year’s retail awards. All told, they gave out awards across 10 categories and also made some predictions for 2024, including: Retailer of the Year Headline of the Year Retail Technology of the Year Retail ...
Dec 14, 2023•55 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Firework, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, Chris and Anne: Discussed what really could be impacting shrink in light of NRF’s softening on its previously stated impact from Organized Retail Crime Disagreed about whether the world really needs Uber Store Pickup Lauded DoorDash for once again fortifying the strength of DashPass with its new Best Buy relationship Showed tempered enthusiasm for Walmar...
Dec 06, 2023•50 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five retail news roundup, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group , Firework , Avalara , TGW , and Sezzle , Chris and Anne discussed: Discussed why Etisalat’s new telecom store with Trigo is such an important mark in the evolution of retail Got excited for the merger between Foxtrot and Dom’s Threw shade at Allbirds for its apparent attitude and timing in selling on Amazon Explored what Nuul...
Nov 29, 2023•44 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Firework, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, Anne and Chris: Got really geeked up about Amazon selling Hyundai online Pulled the caution flag out on all the Gap turnaround headlines Lauded Walgreens for its decision to close an e-commerce fulfillment center in favor of shipping more from its stores Feared we can already start to smell the smoldering dumpster fire at Kohl’s And closed with an in-person review of the ne...
Nov 22, 2023•49 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast 
