Retail Disrupted

Argos has undergone one of the most visible transformations – from being a catalogue retailer to approximately 80% of sales now coming through digital channels. Heni Hazbay, Marketing Director at Argos, joins us for a candid look at how the Sainsbury's owned business is evolving for a digital-first world.  Tune in to hear all about its 'More Argos, more often' strategy. Heni tells us how Argos is...

Why do so few clothes actually fit? In this episode of Retail Disrupted, host Natalie Berg sits down with retail powerhouse Julia Reynolds to uncover why sizing has become fashion's most expensive blind spot - and how AI could finally fix it. With more than 35 years in retail, Julia has led some of Britain's best-known brands – she and her team founded the Florence & Fred brand at Tesco, which the...

Half of UK consumers say customer service feels overly automated, joyless, and exhausting. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, Peter Cross — consultant, speaker, and author of Start with the Customer — joins Natalie Berg to explore how retailers can bring back the human touch. Peter reminds us that "customers would rather wait for good service than get instant bad service," and reveals what leade...

Live shopping is transforming e-commerce. It's a $120 billion global market that's expected to hit $2 trillion by 2030. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, Natalie Berg speaks with Daniel Fisher, Head of Categories, Europe, at Whatnot - the largest live shopping platform in North America, the UK, and Europe. Every week, shoppers watch 340,000 hours of live content on Whatnot, helping sellers gene...

In this episode of Retail Disrupted, Natalie Berg sits down with global retail futurist Ariel Haroush, founder of Outform and the visionary behind Future Stores on Oxford Street. Natalie and Ariel discuss how physical retail should be reinvented for the digital age—where stores move at the speed of culture, powered by data, AI, and immersive experiences. Ariel also shares insights on brand activat...

TikTok is reshaping how people discover, explore, and buy products — and retailers are taking note. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, host Natalie Berg speaks with Paul Mears, Group Vertical Director for Retail & E-commerce at TikTok UK, about how discovery commerce is changing the path to purchase. Together they unpack the findings from TikTok's first UK Shopping Report , discuss how entertain...

Recorded at Manhattan Exchange 2025 in Antwerp, this episode dives into how AI is transforming retail — from search and discovery to customer service and the in-store experience. Host Natalie Berg and guest Ben Sillitoe unpack the biggest tech trends shaping retail's next chapter: agentic AI, post-purchase innovation, gamification, employee empowerment, and customer-controlled fulfilment. Expect f...

Marks & Spencer has just launched its first dedicated resale service on eBay — powered by Reskinned. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, Natalie Berg is joined by Katharine Beacham (Head of Sustainability for Fashion, Home & Beauty, M&S), Jemma Tadd (Director of Fashion, eBay), and Matt Hanrahan (Co-Founder, Reskinned) to unpack this landmark move. 📺 This is a video episode so if you'd prefer to...

Amazon is shutting down its 19 Amazon Fresh stores in the UK — but is this a failure or part of the innovation journey? In this episode of Retail Disrupted , host and retail analyst Natalie Berg breaks down what went wrong, whether Amazon ever really intended to become a supermarket, and what this means for the future of checkout-free stores and grocery e-commerce. Expect sharp insights on retail...

How often do you notice the background music when you're shopping? 🎶 It's not just "noise" - it can shape how long we browse, how we feel, and even how much we spend. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, Natalie Berg sits down with Ola Sars, music tech entrepreneur and founder of Soundtrack Technologies , the world's leading B2B music streaming service. Ola's journey spans co-founding Beats Music...

Menopause impacts 1 billion women worldwide — but retailers are still failing to meet their needs. In this episode of Retail Disrupted, host Natalie Berg speaks with Heather Jackson, CEO & co-founder of GenM , about how brands can better serve menopausal consumers. Discover how the MTick symbol is transforming the way women shop for menopause-friendly products, why this overlooked market represent...

Big changes are happening at Matalan. The 40-year-old British fashion and homeware retailer is making major investments in its stores, products, and digital capabilities as part of a multi-year transformation programme. On this episode, Natalie is joined by Phil Hackney, Chief Operating Officer at Matalan; Katherine Davis, Chief Retail Officer at Matalan; and Martin Ward, Head of Software for the...

A Pilates studio, health checks, biological age testing and free consultation hubs. These are just some of the features of Holland & Barrett's first experience store that opened in Cardiff earlier this year. On this episode, Natalie is joined by Richard Fisher, Design Manager at Holland & Barrett , leading the transformation of over 1,000 stores across the UK, Europe, and the Middle East, and Chri...

We're diving deep into the world of grocery retail in this special episode, dissecting the latest trends and innovations that are reshaping the sector. Natalie is joined by Mark Thomson, Director of Retail & Hospitality Strategy EMEA at Zebra Technologies . This video episode was recorded in a London studio. You can watch the full episode on YouTube or listen on your usual platforms! Mark and Nata...

Camille van Horne is the co-founder & CEO of Highstock , a B2B marketplace that connects big brands with unsold inventory to high quality, global wholesale buyers.  The start-up has raised $5.5 million from lead investor Greylock and Instacart co-founder Max Mullen.  Camille joins Natalie on the podcast to talk about how Highstock is disrupting the liquidation space for beauty and personal care br...

Recorded live on stage at London Tech Week, Natalie speaks to Kuru Subramaniam, Head of Product at Tesco, Francis Castro, Vice President, Global Customer Operations at Unilever, and Saul Resnick, CEO UK & Ireland at DHL Supply Chain. They discuss: From 'just-in-time' to 'just-in-case': how supply chains are adapting to disruption. How digital twins and predictive analytics can help businesses simu...

Whistl's James Hayes joins Natalie on the podcast to talk about the critical role of fulfilment in e-commerce success. They discuss: The evolution of online shopping: with e-commerce now accounting for nearly 30% of UK retail sales, how can retailers evolve to meet shifting consumer demands? The delivery experience: what's the risk of getting it wrong? Returns aren't going anywhere, so how can ret...

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 econ...

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 d...

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 mu...

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. The...

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 mov...

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...

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...

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...