IADS Retail Park

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park 🎧, Maya welcomes Selvane to unpack the untold story of Riyadh’s retail revolution—and why department stores are missing out on a market worth $270 billion and counting. 🏙️🛍️ Step inside the Saudi mall boom as our hosts walk through time-capsule classics like Olaya, entertainment giants like Panorama, and the ultra-luxury labyrinth of VIA Riyadh. But whe...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🏢, Maya and Selvane explore KaDeWe Berlin’s spectacular transformation into Europe’s most ambitious luxury department store. 🛍️✨ How do you reimagine 60,000 square meters of retail space while keeping 80% local customers engaged? Discover OMA’s architectural genius, the power of forty simultaneous pop-ups, and why thirty restaurants on one floor changed ev...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🧘‍♀️, Maya and Selvane explore the wellness revolution transforming department stores worldwide. From Galeries Lafayette’s 3,000-square-meter Wellness Galerie to Saks Fifth Avenue’s Botox services, discover how retailers are reimagining traditional beauty salons. 💆‍♀️✨ What happens when department stores become wellness destinations offering hyperbaric ch...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park 🎧, Maya and Christine pull back the velvet curtain on Saks Global’s high-stakes transformation—where American luxury takes one last swing for the fences.🛍️💸 How do you merge two titans with a $2.65 billion deal, outpace overdue vendor bills, and stay glamorous when Amazon’s knocking and Costco’s calling? 💼✨ The hosts dissect Saks Fifth Avenue’s bold...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎧, Maya and Christine take listeners inside Mecca’s ascent from local Melbourne boutique to powerhouse beauty authority. Find out how Mecca flipped the script on global competition—capturing over 30% of the Australian market even as Sephora set its sights Down Under. The hosts reveal Mecca’s secrets: brand-agnostic strategies, immersive flagship concepts, a...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park, Maya sits down with Selvane to explore I.A.D.S.’s groundbreaking experiment with Web3 technology. During their 2022 General Assembly, the association issued POAPs to member CEOs and Academy graduates, diving headfirst into digital assets to understand their practical applications for retail. 🚀 The conversation reveals the ambitious brainstorming proces...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park, Maya explores Dubai’s department store landscape with Selvanne following I.A.D.S.’s research visit to Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates. They examine how international brands like Debenhams, Harvey Nichols, and Galeries Lafayette thrive through franchise partnerships with local operators. 🏬The conversation reveals striking contrasts in execution, fro...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎧, Maya and Anchita dive deep into the premiere edition of the IADS Global Retail Risk Index 2025 —a groundbreaking tool that’s reshaping how retailers approach global expansion. Join them as they explore why North America still reigns supreme despite political upheaval, how East Asia is bouncing back stronger than ever, and why Sub-Saharan Africa might be...

How does a 109-year-old French lingerie brand transform every customer interaction into a sales opportunity? In this episode of IADS Retail Park 🎙️, Maya explores Etam's groundbreaking approach to omnichannel retail with Christine Montard , author of our latest IADS Exclusive . Discover how Etam's internally developed clienteling app 📱liberated sales associates from cash registers, turning them i...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎧, we explore how the word " sustainability " rings differently across India, China, and the West. Join Maya and Anchita as they unpack why fast-growth markets like India and China care more about sustainability than mature markets, yet approach it through completely different lenses. Discover how L'Oréal masterfully adapts its global sustainability initiat...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park 🎧, Maya and Christine explore how Fortnum & Mason defies department store orthodoxy through food-centric specialisation, generating 63% of revenue from categories others treat as secondary. From royal warrant heritage to AI-powered innovation, discover why strategic restraint creates more sustainable competitive advantage than scale expansion 🏪. Uncove...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎙️ , Maya sits down with Selvane to explore the innovations showcased at EuroShop 2023, the first post-pandemic edition of Europe's premier retail trade fair. With 1,830 exhibitors from 55 countries demonstrating the future of retail technology, this massive German event revealed four critical trends. From Amazon's "Just Walk Out" checkout-free technology to...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park, Maya teams up with Anchita to explore the ChatGPT phenomenon that captivated retail leaders in early 2023. When OpenAI's groundbreaking chatbot first launched, it promised human-like customer interactions and automated content creation - but our team's hands-on testing revealed both exciting possibilities and serious limitations. 🤖 They dive into why C...

In our hyper-connected retail landscape, a single supplier slip can put an entire department store’s operations and reputation at risk ⚠️. This episode, Maya and Anchita break down why your own cyber defences may not be enough, recount the cascading hacks that hit iconic UK retailers, and discuss how industry leaders are closing the value chain gaps. From supporting smaller vendors to treating cyb...

Join Maya and Selvane as they explore Boyner's remarkable transformation journey from traditional Turkish retailer to innovative lifestyle company. Discover how they used customer research, AI integration🤖, and community-building to capture younger demographics and achieve a 162% growth in their target segments over just three years. 👉 Click here to read the full exclusive . For more insights an...

In this episode, Maya and Christine embark on an eye-opening journey into the world of shared capitalism in retail . They break down how industry giants like John Lewis, REI, Système U, and Walmart are reimagining what it means to own a piece of the retail action. From time-tested partnership models to innovative consumer cooperatives, discover the real impact these models are having on companies,...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎙️, Maya and Selvane go behind the scenes of Printemps Haussmann’s sweeping transformation. Discover why this Parisian icon—fresh off a bold rebrand, new logo, and vibrant color palette—is pivoting to “less retail, more experience,” blending rooftop escapes, secondhand shopping, immersive spaces, and even the metaverse. With new concepts such as “La Coupole...

Step onto Oxford Street and into what might be the most hyped IKEA in the world—where the familiar meatballs aren’t the only thing on offer and the stakes for city-centre retail couldn’t be higher. In this episode of IADS Retail Park 🎙️, Maya and Christine break down IKEA’s ambitious Oxford Street flagship , pulling back the curtain on a project many say defines urban retail’s next phase. Christin...

Join Maya and Anchita as they pull back the curtain on IADS's innovative transformation of retail content through AI-powered podcasting. Discover how the International Association of Department Stores is leveraging artificial intelligence to create intimate, engaging audio experiences that make complex retail insights more accessible and memorable. From voice cloning to emotional resonance, learn...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎙️, Maya and Selvane take you on an exclusive tour of Tokyo’s three headline stores— Isetan Shinjuku , Ginza Six , and Parco Shibuya . Discover how these retail powerhouses are shattering the old rules of department store zoning, turning vertical layouts into engines of discovery, and monetising every minute of customer experience. From Isetan’s heritage-dri...

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park 🎙️, Maya and Anchita unpack the tech breakthroughs and big ideas from VivaTech 2025 in Paris—Europe’s ultimate playground for innovation. From digital sovereignty and AI-powered personalisation to the evolving world of second-hand commerce, discover how startups and global brands are reinventing every step of the customer journey. We’ll explore why contr...

Why do New Jersey’s malls draw millions, while feeling so different from the world’s most celebrated shopping destinations? 🛍️ In this episode , Maya and Selvane take you on a guided tour of the American Dream and Westfield Garden State Plaza, exploring what makes these suburban giants tick, what they reveal about American consumer culture, and why even luxury brands can’t always deliver a luxury...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park 🎙️ — brought to you by the International Association of Department Stores — Maya and Selvane dive into the world of digital product passports and what they mean for the future of fashion and department stores. Drawing on IADS’s exclusive research, the hosts explore how these virtual tags can drive sustainability, unlock new customer relationships, and power...

Meet Generation Alpha: the tech-savvy, trendsetting kids born between 2010 and 2024 who are already shaking up the world of retail. With a projected economic impact of $5.46 trillion by 2029, these digital natives are more than just future shoppers—they’re influencing what their families buy today and setting new standards for brands everywhere. Join hosts Maya and Christine as they unpack how Gen...

In this episode of The IADS Retail Park, Maya and Selvane unpack how Gen Z is rewriting the rules of retail and putting traditional department stores to the test. Drawing on exclusive IADS research, they explore why brands like Deciem, H&M, and Shein are winning over young shoppers with their mix of affordability, speed, and authentic values. Discover how Gen Z’s demand for transparency, instant g...