The Retail Tales: Retail AI Podcast

What if the cameras already inside retail stores, warehouses, and corporate offices could tell retailers what's going wrong — right now, not tomorrow? That's the core question, our host, Saurabh explores in this episode with Joe White , CEO of Everseen , one of the world's leading vision AI companies working with some of the largest global retailers. Joe brings over 30 years of enterprise technolo...

In this episode, Saurabh opens with a story about an that will feel familiar to many retail leaders — a senior executive who is exhausted. Not from the meeting, but from the AI use case treadmill. Two years. Dozens of pilots. A growing backlog. And a P&L that barely moved! That conversation became the lens for this episode's central argument: retailers are asking the wrong question about AI. T...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh reflects on his experiences at two major industry events of 2026, Consumer Electronic Show (#CES) and National Retail Federation (#NRF). He emphasizes that CES showcases the future of technology, presenting it as a signal of where the industry is headed, while NRF focuses on the practical implications of these technologies in real-world retail ope...

Scaling AI in retail is not about experimentation anymore. It is about execution. In this episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh sits down with Aaron Berg , Vice President of Digital Transformation at Walmart , for a candid conversation on what it truly takes to move AI from pilots to enterprise-scale impact inside one of the world’s most complex retail organizations. Drawing from Aaron’s jour...

Holiday 2025 is here — and consumers are rewriting the rules. In this episode of The Retail Tales , our host Saurabh Vijayvergia is joined by Brian McCarthy , Partner at Deloitte Consulting and co-author of Deloitte’s 2025 Holiday Retail Survey , to unpack the data behind this season’s trends. They explore how AI and value-seeking consumers are reshaping holiday shopping — from cautious optimism a...

In this unpopular opinion episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia takes on one of retail’s most overused mantras — “start small, show quick wins .” Through a powerful retail story and a pragmatic framework, Saurabh explains why the obsession with quick wins often distracts organizations from their true goal: building scalable, ROI-driven AI capability that compounds over time. He ar...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia takes a critical look at MIT's latest report on GenAI - “The State of AI in Business 2025”. The headlines from this report grabbed attention with claims like “95% of GenAI pilots are failing,” and many major outlets repeated it. But what does the report actually say? Saurabh unpacks the findings in detail and explains why the “failure”...

In this special “ what-if ” episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia departs from his usual format to deliver a fictional yet deeply plausible narrative on the evolution of artificial intelligence - from 2025 to 2030. This isn't your typical podcast on GenAI in retail. It’s a speculative scenario grounded in expert interviews, war games, and academic foresight that challenges how we...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia discusses one of the most transformational frontiers of AI today: Agentic AI . While most retailers are still experimenting with GenAI for content creation, personalization, and automation, forward-looking organizations are already exploring the next big leap - AI agents that don’t just assist but act autonomously, iteratively, and str...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia sits down with Kevin Mahoney , Deloitte Managing Director and one of the foremost voices in AI-driven retail supply chain transformation. Kevin brings real-world insights from decades of experience - from running warehouse operations to leading global retail supply chain transformations powered by AI. Tune in as Saurabh and Kevin dive...

In this episode of The Retail Tales, our host Saurabh Vijayvergia challenges the most common (and flawed) lens through which retailers measure the value of AI - labor savings. Drawing from some real-world examples across fashion, beauty, home goods, and big-box retail, and some of his own experiences, he explores how AI can unlock strategic speed, creativity, decision quality, and cultural shifts...

In this bold and thought-provoking episode of The Retail Tales , host Saurabh Vijayvergia kicks off Season 2 with Danny Edsall , Partner at Deloitte and one of the most forward-thinking minds in grocery retail. With decades of experience advising leading global retailers, Danny shares his journey from building one of the UK’s first online grocery platforms in the '90s to helping today’s grocers na...

In this fascinating episode of ⁠ The Retail Tales ⁠ , our host ⁠ Saurabh Vijayvergia⁠ welcomes Rahul Barge , Global Strategy Director at Amazon Shipping, to discuss the transformative impact of AI on retail supply chains and logistics. With over a decade of leadership experience across Amazon Air, Prime Now, and Amazon Fresh, Rahul shares his insights on the evolving role of AI in optimizing suppl...

In this thought-provoking episode of ⁠The Retail Tales⁠, our host ⁠ Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ sits down with Jalaj Hora , a transformative leader with two decades of experience spanning iconic brands like Nike, Burberry, and Target. Jalaj shares his unparalleled insights into how AI and GenerativeAI are revolutionizing product creation, fostering sustainability, and driving innovation across the retai...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , and continuing the c-suite leader focused mini-series within the podcast, our host ⁠Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ brings the second and the final installment of the 2-part episode series on how a CTO of a retail organization could play the role of a strategic catalyst and harness the power of AI to enhance efficiency, foster innovation, and ultimately drive shareholde...

Continuing the c-suite leader focused mini-series within the podcast, our host ⁠ Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ focuses on the role of a Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of retail companies in this episode of The Retail Tales . In this highly anticipated episode, Saurabh shares his thoughts on how the CTO of a retail company could serve as a strategic catalyst in leveraging AI and Generative AI capabilities...

In this episode of ⁠ The Retail Tales⁠ , our host ⁠ Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ sits down with Roland Ehigiamusoe (a.k.a. Roe), a seasoned partner at Deloitte Consulting, to discuss the path to data readiness for AI and Generative AI in Retail. Roe shares his insights on how AI and Generative AI are transforming the retail industry, from personalized customer experiences to fraud detection. He then dive...

In this episode of ⁠ The Retail Tales ⁠, our host ⁠Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ explores the journey of AI-enabled internal transformation for retail companies through a conversation with Scott Holcomb , a seasoned partner at Deloitte and the firm's Generative AI Transformation Leader. Scott starts with sharing his professional journey and where he draws his passion for consulting and advising clients fr...

In this episode of ⁠ The Retail Tales ⁠, host ⁠ Saurabh Vijayvergia ⁠ shares a personal shopping story that sets the stage for an in-depth exploration of how Generative AI (GenAI) is reshaping the retail landscape. As retailers face a rapidly evolving marketplace, this episode unpacks the top 5 game-changing applications of GenAI that are already making a difference. But it doesn’t stop there! Sau...

In this episode of The Retail Tales , our host Saurabh Vijayvergia explores the transformative world of AI in retail with Ievgen Miasushkin , the founder and CEO of tur.ai. Ievgen shares his remarkable journey from a software engineer to the head of a groundbreaking AI automation startup that is reshaping how some of the Fortune 500 retail companies operate. Ievgen provides a unique perspective on...

In this episode of The Retail Tales (TRT) , our host Saurabh Vijayvergia dissects a thought-provoking CNN article titled "Customers Didn’t Stop Spending. Companies Stopped Serving.", published on Friday August 9th, 2024. He explores the article's applicability to the retail industry and highlights a crucial shift in consumer behavior—customers are prioritizing value over price. While exploring how...

In this episode of The Retail Tales, host Saurabh Vijayvergia takes us on a journey through one of his recent client workshop experiences, shedding light on the intricacies of GenAI governance. Drawing from real-world scenarios, Saurabh unpacks the nuances of the GenAI governance process and shares invaluable insights on how to make it more agile and effective. The episode is focused on: Understan...

With this episode of The Retail Tales, host Saurabh Vijayvergia kicks off a mini-series within the podcast, focusing on the roles and responsibilities of different c-suite executives on the AI transformation journey of a retail company. This episode is focused on exploring the role and responsibilities of CFOs of retail companies. To keep things simpler, the episode is categorized in three section...

Our host, Saurabh Vijayvergia , is joined by fashion retail industry expert - Karla Martin . Karla is a true visionary who has guided CEOs of Fortune 500 companies through their most critical decisions in the past. She brings over 25 years of experience to the table, and she has held key roles at organizations such as Deloitte, Google, Booz Allen Hamilton, and even co-founded a tech incubator. Kar...

In this compelling episode of The Retail Tales, host Saurabh shares an intriguing encounter with a board member from one of the top five U.S. retailers. Saurabh provides an in-depth narrative of their discussion during this chance meeting where he ended up formulating five essential questions for retail board members to pose to their C-suite leadership. These questions address critical areas such...