Born (to enter) in the USA
We are thrilled to be a part of the ongoing success story that is the Canadian Technology Accelerator (CTA) program by the Consulate of Canada in New York City, focusing on US Retail Tech. For several years now, this program has been a game-changer for Canadian startups, providing invaluable support for their growth. This year, […]
Dynamics
In high school chemistry, our teacher presented a lesson on molecular motion. He showed us the three ways that a molecule moves. Translation: It moves from one place to another. Rotation: It spins around. Vibration: It shakes. And our teacher would act out each one individually. The follow-up lesson was that none of these happen […]
Off-Center
A new drinking game – take a shot anytime someone in retail mentions the term “customer-centric.” Or some variation thereof. “Put the customer in the center of all decision making” “More data, insights and analytics will make us more customer-centric.” “We’re embracing customer-centricity in our buying strategy.” If we translate what retailers are really trying […]
Velocity > Speed
Re-think speed to market. Instead, look at Velocity to Market. In physics, speed has no direction. It’s simply a number. A measure. Of distance over time. But… Velocity has a direction. For brands, that direction is pointed toward the customer. The only time speed = velocity is when there is no change in direction. But, […]
No Sample, No Sale = Nonsense.
As a retail buyer, my vendors loved me. Buying appointments were a breeze. Vendors didn’t have to show physical samples of items already proven to be top sellers or the silhouettes that I knew resonated with my customer. For example, I was in NYC in 2007 for an appointment to buy Burberry. The room was […]
What About The Barn Door?
KPMG recently published its Retail Executive Outlook for 2023. 71% of retail executives are prioritizing supply chain efficiency for this year. How will they accomplish this? Their top priority to improve supply chain is SKU rationalization. Which is a contingent action to remediate bloated product assortments and an inability to forecast demand. The question is, […]
What The Best Merchants Do
Exceptional retail merchants possess these three traits: They know who their customer is. Thus, they know how to serve them with the product they want. They know how to curate a product assortment that drives full-price sales. Possess a thorough understanding of the value of the product assortment to the P&L Deviating from these equates […]
Ending the “End to End”
The typical retail end-to-end process can be visualized, simply, as a line. This makes sense, the end-to-end is very much a linear process. As such, visibility into the product journey diminishes once the customer has product in hand. This leads to issues that affect planning, product creation and merchandising. In turn, there is an impact […]
Forsaking All Others
Retailers use loyalty programs to keep customers coming back to them more often and spend more when they do. There is one more layer to this. Loyalty is about forsaking all others. With loyalty, customers resist promotional offers from competitors and stay with their brand of choice. The trick is staying relevant – being in […]
Statement Over Story
Products don’t tell stories. People do. Product assortments shouldn’t be telling stories – rather, they must have a distinct point of view. It reflects what the brand stands for. There is an expression of values. The assortment (should) clearly state what the brand is all about. Excess inventory is a symptom of a brand not […]