Retail Disrupted

Natalie speaks to Nigel Oddy, currently CEO of the UK and Europe's leading golf retailer American Golf, and previously CEO of House of Fraser, New Look, Matalan and The Range. The video version of this episode is available on YouTube and is part of a special collaboration with the Richmond Retail & E-commerce Directors' Forum . Nigel will be speaking at the event alongside leaders from across the...

Chris Browne , former Global Retail Director at Ted Baker, joins Natalie to discuss: Visual AI and the opportunities for fashion retail    How tech can enhance the shopping experience Addressing the perennial problem of returns What Western retailers can learn from Asia Chris' vision for the future of the high street Prefer video? You can also watch Natalie and Chris' conversation on YouTube . Thi...

Natalie speaks to TV dragon, retail magnate and small business champion Theo Paphitis live on stage at Springfair. They discuss: Digital transformation and the impact on retail Why stores are assets in today's digital era High street struggles - business rates, rents and levelling the playing field Failing fast in business What will retail look like in 2034? Theo is the Chairman and Owner of Ryman...

Prefer video? You can watch Sarah and Natalie's conversation on YouTube . This episode is part of a collaboration with the Richmond Retail & E-commerce Directors' Forum. Sarah Welsh, CEO of Retail at N Brown, gives us a sneak peek into what she'll be discussing at the event on 18 April 2024. She and Natalie explore: What are the barriers to getting women in retail leadership positions? The importa...

Prefer video? Watch Helen and Natalie's conversation on YouTube. Helen Dickinson OBE, CEO of the British Retail Consortium, joins the podcast to discuss the BRC's 2024 manifesto. Topics include:  Business rates: how is the retail industry disproportionately affected and what does reform look like? Retail jobs and impact of AI: how can the industry continue to attract and retain talent? Shoplifting...

Retail analyst and consultant Nick Bubb joins the show to discuss: Christmas trading results - winners and losers. Why electricals retailing is poised for a comeback in 2024. What JD Sports' and Burberry's profit warnings tell us about the state of retail. What went wrong at John Lewis and whether Peter Ruis can revive the brand. Frasers' stake-building strategy - what is the end game for Asos and...

Paul Martin, KPMG's Global Head of Retail, joins Natalie for a wide-ranging discussion on: Bifurcation of retail winners and losers Why consumers will be battening down the hatches in H1 Breaking down the BRC-KPMG December sales data Promotions, margins, and the importance of stock visibility Economic outlook and impact of attacks on container ships in the Red Sea Opportunities for retailers in 20...

Chris Noice, Communications Director at the Association of Convenience Stores , joins Natalie to discuss Britain's shoplifting epidemic. They explore: The scale of the problem and factors driving the growing wave of shoplifting. What motivates shoplifters and is it a victimless crime? Cops in shops – will we see more retailers and shopping centres collaborate with the police for in-store police st...

Richard Lim, CEO of Retail Economics , joins Natalie for a wide-ranging discussion on: The health of the UK consumer and why 2024 will be a year of two halves. Richard's inflation theory (listen to find out!) Combating cost pressures in 2024 - business rates, labour costs and more. November data releases - interpreting the BRC retail sales and Barclaycard consumer spending data - from 'insperience...

Amazon UK boss John Boumphrey joins Natalie on the podcast to discuss: How is Amazon extending the life of returned goods through its Second Chance programme? How can the wider industry overcome the returns challenge? Futureproofing - with more disruption on the horizon, how does Amazon ensure it stays relevant to customers? Consumer outlook - does JB expect consumers to remain relatively resilien...

Retail expert Maureen Hinton joins Natalie to discuss retailer resilience. Which fashion retailers are defying the economic climate and what is the secret to their success? Maureen also shares her views on the state of the consumer and whether the Black Friday deals will sizzle or fizzle. Connect with Maureen: Twitter/X LinkedIn Learn more about our work at the KPMG/Retail Next Retail Think Tank

Love it or loathe it, Black Friday has become a permanent fixture on the UK retail calendar. In this episode, Natalie shares her predictions and general observations around Black Friday 2023. You'll learn: Why Natalie is expecting a strong turnout this year. Black Friday creep - why retailers like John Lewis are going earlier than ever before. Whether the growing skepticism around Black Friday wil...

Collins Dictionary has announced that 'AI' is the Word of the Year for 2023. Miya Knights, Retail Consultant and Publisher of  Retail Technology Magazine , joins Natalie to discuss the wide-ranging implications of artificial intelligence. They break down the learnings from last week's first ever AI Safety Summit, held at Bletchley Park, exploring both short-term and longer-term risks posed by the...

In this bumper episode of Retail Disrupted, retail consultant and high street champion Graham Soult joins Natalie to discuss Wilko's return to the high street, Asos/Next results and the opportunities and challenges facing high streets in this digital era. 5m: Business rates 10m: Store closures 14m: Wilko's demise and rebirth: what went wrong and how will the new Wilko stores be different? 21m: Bac...

In retail today, you need to have a laser-clear understanding of your brand and what it stands for. But what if what you stand for is no longer culturally relevant? Can you shed your skin and completely reinvent yourself? Can you BUY your way out of cultural insignificance? The lingerie brand Victoria's Secret has tried to do exactly that and it hasn't worked out so well . They're now ready to dit...

Ben Sillitoe , Founder and Editor of  Green Retail World , joins Natalie in Cannes for a live recap of Manhattan Exchange. How might generative AI be used in warehouses? What are the benefits of giving customers greater control post-purchase? And as consumers deprioritize environmentally-friendly purchases, does Ben think this is just a blip? Or does affordability now trump sustainability?  They a...

George Nott, Technology Editor at The Grocer , joins Natalie to discuss the evolution of quick commerce. They examine the latest Uber Eats/Getir collaboration, how traditional supermarkets are responding to the quick commerce trend and whether the world is ready for AI-powered conversational shopping experiences. Fun Fact: Did you know 'getir' means 'bring' in Turkish? Connect with George: LinkedI...

Live from Paris Retail Week, Natalie speaks to FreedomPay and Worldpay about unified commerce and how payments are evolving to meet customer needs. Panellists include: Chris Kronenthal , President at FreedomPay Barry Stearn , VP Global Program Owner at FreedomPay Lee Reed , VP Partnership Management at Worldpay Tom Essenhigh , VP Retail at Worldpay The panel discussion can also be viewed on YouTub...

H&M is the latest fashion retailer to start charging shoppers for online returns. Jonathan De Mello, Founder & CEO at JDM Retail, joins Natalie to explore whether the days of free returns are really over. Why has bracketing (ie. buy 5 items, return 4) become normalised? Hint: retailers, you created a monster. And will charging for returns will be enough of a deterrent to reverse the buy-to-try sho...

"We hate Amazon. They'll bully us and do horrible things to us. They'll use us, we don't want anything to do with them." - Iceland Managing Director, 2018 Fast forward five years… This morning Amazon UK announced that frozen food specialist Iceland will begin selling groceries on its platform. In this episode, Natalie explores the rationale behind Iceland's shift in strategy and why Amazon is expa...

Richard Hammond, CEO of Uncrowd and fellow retail author, joins Natalie to explore the differences in US and UK grocery retailing. Why have British retailers failed to crack the American market? When is it ok to have friction? Automation - how can retailers balance customer satisfaction and operational efficiencies? And what is the risk of deprioritizing CX investment in the current climate?  List...

It's Amazon Prime Day and the bargains are flying - but will shoppers bite? What's new this year and how has the competition responded? In this episode, Natalie also shares her views on Amazon's latest personalisation efforts. Amazon may be the Everything Store, but it's not exactly the Inspirational Store. How might personalised deals feeds, liveshopping and Prime Day experiences help Amazon to s...

Are the UK supermarkets  profiteering ? Food price inflation remains stubbornly high at 18.4% - its highest level since the 1970s - and now lawmakers want to understand if the supermarkets are lining their pockets at the expense of the shopper. In this episode, Natalie shares her views on why the grocers aren't guilty of greedflation: they have no choice but to remain price competitive, while simu...

Brittain Ladd, former Amazon executive and one of the world's leading experts in retail strategy, robotics, microfulfillment, logistics, and supply chain management, joins Natalie to break down what a potential Amazon-Ocado deal might look like. They discuss: Why Brittain believes that Amazon should buy Ocado. Why Amazon would want to double down on grocery e-commerce just when shoppers are return...

French retailing giant Carrefour has become the first grocery retailer to integrate ChatGPT into its e-commerce website. Its new AI-powered chatbot Hopla will help online shoppers make decisions based on their budgets or dietary constraints. In this episode, Natalie explores the potential for this technology to inject more inspiration into the online grocery experience. Food shopping is habitual a...