Anne 0:09
Hello You’re listening to the Omnitalk Fast Five brought to you in partnership with the a&m consumer and retail group, firework, Trigo, Sezzle and Silk. Ranked in the top 10% of all podcasts globally, the Omnitalk Fast Five is the podcast that we hope makes you feel a little smarter, but most importantly, a little happier each week too. Today is January 12 2023. I’m your host, Anne Mezzenga.
Chris 0:33
And I’m Chris Walton
Anne 0:34
And we are here once again to discuss all the headlines making waves, not the kind that are trampling people in California, no, the kind that are making waves in the world of omni channel retailing. Chris As you’ll notice, we also have a new sponsor this week Chris.
Chris 0:51
We do Anne. Yes Trigo back in the fold, hitting us up for the NRF push here. Back in the mix.
Anne 0:57
Back in the mix I know so we worked with trigger we did a lot of work with them last year. We travelled the world checking out their stores
Chris 1:05
Been working with them since we went to Tel Aviv in 2019.
Anne 1:08
That’s right
Chris 1:08
Saw them saw their initial store setup and their headquarters in person. It was great. That’s right, but and I gotta ask you how you feel in this morning. You’ve had kind of a rough week you’ve been you’ve been a little under the weather.
Anne 1:18
Yeah.
Chris 1:18
How are you feeling? Like what’s your percentage here? You’re at 80-90
Anne 1:21
I think I am getting I think I’m turning the corner. Yeah, I had a strep. I don’t know the last time I had strep like childhood
Chris 1:27
Licking doorknobs Anne on vacation? What’s going on?
Anne 1:29
Apparently. I don’t know. It was kind of embarrassing to be honest.
Chris 1:33
Yeah. It shouldn be it shouldn be very embarrassing.
Anne 1:35
But no, I’ve got the the penicillin. I’m getting ready.
Chris 1:39
Penicillin, right. Yeah. There’s also antibiotic shortage. Right? Penicillin. Yeah. Wow. But you know, there’s something else it looks different about you.
Anne 1:45
Oh, yeah, what’s that?
Chris 1:46
You know what it is. Well, in addition to the hair, of course, which we always comment we get you get so many comments on your hair. It’s pretty crazy.
Anne 1:52
Yeah.
Chris 1:53
But you were named a top 100 retail influencer again for the second year in a row
Anne 1:57
As were you Chris.
Chris 1:59
Oh, that’s right. Thank you for mentioning that. You know,
Anne 2:02
But do you feel different?
Chris 2:03
Oh, I feel I feel so different. And in fact, I think today I want to give an above average show to our listeners above average,
Anne 2:10
Above average.
Chris 2:11
Yeah
Anne 2:11
I think you know, there’s a top 100 retail influencers and I was joking because there’s only a picture of me and both of our names together. So we’re like 100 and 101 on that list I think. So we just get like half of a half of us is represented
Chris 2:25
And I told you last night is a photographic upgrade of me for sure by just listing both our names under your picture. 100%. Rethink retail knows what they’re doing.
Anne 2:25
They do. They do? Well, and I’m excited because we’re going into NRF leave in two days. countdown is on T minus 48 hours here
Chris 2:42
We are and we have a banger lineup. So for everyone listening we are live streaming from SCS and Maga tags booth.
Anne 2:42
Yeah. 3622 For those of you who are going to
Chris 2:51
3662 If you want to see and stop by watch the student interview live, interviews live. We are kicking the show off Believe it or not with John Ferner and Matthew Shay. They’re currently committed. We’ve got Lowe’s CIO Kamiah Wesley Rhodes of Kroger strg lawn of Albertson. Rena Hearst of shipped and many many more. That’s just to name a few. But we’ve got one hell of a banger lineup, in my opinion. I can’t wait for it.
Anne 3:18
And we’ll be live streaming though. So stay tuned. If you don’t already. Follow on me talk retail on LinkedIn, make sure you go there. And you will get notified when we are going live. And you’ll get recaps of all those interviews as well. So
Chris 3:29
Yeah, and Tim Simmons The Chief Product Officer of Sam’s Club to Sam’s got my favourite retailer Yeah, that’s pretty much
Anne 3:34
Yeah,
Chris 3:35
So So I can’t wait we’re flying out Saturday.
Anne 3:38
Yes.
Chris 3:38
Let’s get this going. Let’s get this trade show circuit started.
Anne 3:41
Let’s do it.
Chris 3:42
All right. Today’s Fast Five headlines and are brought to you with the help and support of our partner Shop Talk. They’re introducing a new component to their 2023 event called meet up in a nutshell they’re opening up their networking programme to everyone at the show and they expect hosting incredible Believe it or not Anne 50,000 meetings in Las Vegas this mark
Anne 4:03
If anybody can pull it off that they can
Chris 4:05
Oh for sure they know how to do this. We hear that’s going to require more than 3000 tables I love that statistic. And the retail world has never seen anything like it. We’ll be there so come meet with us you can learn more at shoptalk.com/us/omnitalk that’s shoptalk.com/us/omnitalk.
Anne 4:24
All right
Chris 4:25
In today’s Fast Five in this above average show we’ve got news on Amazon expanding buy with prime to all merchants. Babies R Us coming back to life.
Anne 4:33
Oh yeah
Chris 4:33
Nestle launching its first smart fulfilment Centre in China. A new “sip and stroll” law that is soon to take effect in Arizona, can’t wait to end the show that one but we begin today with what I think is the mark that day down news out of Instagram Anne
Anne 4:48
All right, Chris. headline number one meta own Instagram will remove its shop tab from the homepage navigation bar in February according to a post on the company’s Support site. A meta spokesman Rison confirm for retail dive that quote, there will be there will no longer be a dedicated shopping destination. However, people will be able to continue to shop in the moment across feed real stories, explore and add, end quote. Instagram also plans to update its navigation bar placing a content creation button in the centre move the company said is part of an effort to quote make it easier for people to share and connect with their friends and interest and quote Chris, you were like, like knocking down the doors. This is the biggest story ever, probably headline of 2023 running already. But what are your thoughts about this?
Chris 5:37
Yes, after week one, this is the headline of the year and I’m gonna say that right now
Anne 5:40
Not surprised. Neither are the listener.
Chris 5:44
Fair play fair play. It’s funny because it’s true Anne it’s funny because it’s true. Well, I don’t honestly, I don’t see how there’s a much bigger story than this, quite honestly. I mean, this is massive. To me. It’s, it’s launched demise. In fact, I hinted at it on the end of the year show.
Anne 5:57
Yeah.
Chris 5:57
And now it’s official. Instagram only wants to be an advertising company. And plans to leave all commerce revenue behind that is absolutely insane to me. It’s one of the worst managerial decisions I can think of of all time. The experience of Instagram is so built for commerce, and actual like e-commerce merchandising if you get down to it, so it baffles me that they couldn’t figure it out, figure out how to do it or give the effort more than like a two year college try. Like that’s how long they’ve been trying to do this. It hasn’t been that long, right? So I mean, for me, I would go in there every day for the past two years gone. That shopping tab, tried to get inspired.
And I was like, Oh my God, there’s so much low hanging fruit here, if they would just on unleash it, but they can’t. And so now cut now they’re cutting everything cold turkey. It’s just it’s just sad. It’s just to me, it’s a pure overreaction. And you question the motivations here in a lot of ways around all the distractions that are out there?
Anne 6:50
What is that low hanging fruit for you? Like? I’m curious, because I don’t know if that I we’re in agreement here on this move from Instagram. But I’m curious. I mean, you have a much richer perspective and merchandising, like, what is that?
Chris 7:02
Yeah, I think for me, it’s like, it’s it’s pretty straightforward. I mean, you’re on there so much that’s already captivated your attention. You know, like Carter just used to talk about what apps you use at what times during the day. So you’re always in, it’s always got your attention. And so from the Browse and inspiration perspective, it’s super easy to use that as your point of full scale commerce. So like examples, like you’re gonna get the things in the feed, which you’re talking about. Yeah, but that’s a small part. You could go the shop tab, follow all the brands you like. And if that experience was set up for you to shop and still get inspired in the ways of traditional e commerce, merchandising, which it wasn’t and definitely is not.
Now, if you go on the shop talk shop tab right now, it’s not like that. And so I think there was just a tonne of low hanging fruit there to still figure this out. If you put the right resources towards it, the right people towards it. And it’s gonna take time, like there’s no no one knows how to do this in the United States. But there’s something there.
Anne 7:54
So as a consumer, in your mind, what you really want to see is I as the consumer, I’m saying I follow all these brands, yes, I, you know, I’m gonna go to the search tab and type in tote bag and like be served up tote bags from my favourite region.
Chris 8:08
That’s an example.
Anne 8:09
Yes, which you can do right now on the shop tab,
Chris 8:12
I would argue it’s not a great experience.
Anne 8:15
It’s still not a great experience. And I think that what is actually interesting, I actually liked this move from instagram.
Chris 8:22
Wow.
Anne 8:23
Because I think that it’s going to give them time to as my one of my dear friends, Jodie says get their poop in a group, okay, they need to figure out because they’re not removing shopping functionality completely, which I think is a big thing. I think people are reading this headline, and they’re like, oh, shopping is going away, it’s not going away. I think they’re smartly focusing on one making content creation quicker and easier by adding it to the navigation for all the content creators, and then they’re, they’re going to allow a greater presence for reals, which ultimately, like all these algorithms are being fed by the content.
And so I think you need to as Instagram you need to focus on making that experience for these influencers as simple as possible so that they can keep creating content that’s going to get you to be having discovery moments they can still make money on it I don’t I still I agree with you. I just don’t think Instagram is in a position right now to be a destination where I’m going to shop and you still have a customer who’s not in the mindset of going to Instagram and typing in leather tote bag, search execute like they are on Amazon or
Chris 9:30
Search either I think that’s a that’s a misnomer, too. But But yeah, so you see you like this move now that you think it’s a good retrenchment?
Anne 9:37
I do I think I think it’s a good way to for and I, that’s the other problem I have here, like people are saying like, it’s, it’s done, it’s gone like, this is going to be an evolution. You even said it,
Chris 9:48
They can always bring the resources back.
Anne 9:50
Totally. They did this. It’s easy for them to do these changes and figure out like, what is the best experience for the customer and I think the customer is still going to have to rely on and influencers to drive traffic. Now whether or not that’s going to be happening inside of Instagrams domain is another thing. And so I think that’s where we start to talk about like, is advertising a better source of revenue right now is working with the influencers to make content creation a better function for for Instagram right now so that they can start to develop how we’re going to do discovery how we’re going to do shopping on this platform. But Chris,
Chris 10:25
Yes.
Anne 10:26
a&m also wants to know, this is the put you on the spot question?
Chris 10:30
Oh, righ in the beginning. All right.
Anne 10:32
Start off in headline number one with a and put you on the spot question, which is, as has been mentioned, on the show, before the shop page on Instagram always fell short of perceived potential, which we were talking about.
Chris 10:43
Yeah.
Anne 10:44
And it’s apparent that Instagram is losing the battle in social commerce. Do you think this move is indicative of problems in the social commerce space overall? Or rather, is this an Instagram specific decision to focus less on securing commerce dollars, and instead on securing advertising dollars, through a better customer experience?
Chris 11:03
Yeah, I think that’s a great question, because it gives me the chance to reply to you and that I still vehemently disagree with you, because I think this is an Instagram specific decision. Look, I mean, you’ve talked about tick tock on this show about how they should go after commerce, how they should build fulfilment centres to go after commerce. And so at this point, tick tock, if you look at the landscape has no competitive threat in this space to go after social commerce. And I’m not going to be surprised if they borrow from their social commerce roots overseas in China to figure that out and to take the US by storm. The whole issue with social commerce, like I mentioned before, is that it’s a new idea.
The code is still being cracked in United States. No one knows how to do it. But Instagram is crying uncle in my opinion, and that’s their that’s the issue. It’s not visionary at all. And in fact, I think that vision or vision is blinded by Oculus goggles from the leadership right now, and it’s silly, it’s just it’s just asinine to me.
Anne 11:56
Well, I don’t know where I don’t know. I think we’re gonna have to agree to disagree on this one.
Chris 12:00
It’s fine. I love when you do that.
Anne 12:01
I think this is something that is is going to be a critical inflection point on in where Instagram takes shopping. And yes, you know, Tik Tok, I think you’re giving Tik Tok a little bit too much credit to like just because they’re exploring this stuff doesn’t mean that they’re figuring they figured it out either. I think this is going to continually be an evolving thing that these platforms are going to have to try to figure out.
Chris 12:24
I agree so we’re starting out with some above average spiciness and or spicy debating. Alright, headline number one we got to do a bait alright saucy. Alright, headline number two in Amazon plans to extend by with prime to all merchants all repeat All, All.
Anne 12:39
Yes, they’re offering
Chris 12:41
ALL. Again, according to retail dive Amazon will expand by with prime to all US merchants by January 31, allowing Prime members to shop on outside websites, using their safe checkout details and accessing private benefits like free delivery and returns you will remember the feature launch last year by invitation only in April God was that long ago. That’s crazy. per company press release. And to coincide with the launch. Amazon also launched reviews with Amazon, which gives the same merchants the ability to display ratings and reviews from Amazon customers on their own sites for no additional costs. And I know knowing you you went down a rabbit hole on this one for an interview you did with Axio with an Axios report. Yeah,that was kind of cool this week.
Anne 13:22
Yeah Hope King Yeah. Hello,
Chris 13:24
Then who you’d had a call retail influencer top 100 axial speed dial. So what’s your takeaways here on this?
Anne 13:33
Okay, so great for customers. Holy cow. Is this a great thing if you’re a customer shopping across any of the websites on the internet, this is a wonderful thing. You get to have a prime, you get to get packages delivered in return from retailers. I mean, how many times have you over the course of last year even Crispin like oh man, I gotta get over the shipping threshold for this brand. Have you? Has that happened to you? Are you ordering so much Adidas that they’re just like, Chris Walton, you are the VIP customer on the year you get free shipping forever.
Chris 14:02
Hate to admit it, but yes, it’s kind of true. Yeah, actually, it’s true. But I understand what you’re talking.
Anne 14:07
I love this for the customers. It’s super easy checkout. Also, we have to give a little shout out to our friend Nicole netland Our former targetere who was lead lead has been leading this effort so congrats Nicole on this big launch. But here’s what I talked with Axios about and what I have a few questions about that. I will try to hit Nicole up next time we have happy hour. Here’s what I’ll be watching one I want to see what retailers jump into this because for me this is almost comparable to like just walk out like just walk out got Hudson news. That’s a major retailer they’re getting you know, this community grocery stores launched with Amazon just walk out so who are the retailers that are going to be bringing this on platform and getting in bed with Amazon?
And like so far I was gonna say the mix of of brands that they’re talking about in the press release was like trophy skin wise and hype and hydrolate which are brands that you know are smaller brands not familiar with them yet quite smaller, but when are we going to start to see in? Are we going to see some of the enterprise brands?
Chris 15:04
Yeah.
Anne 15:05
Second question. Second question I have is, how much will this cost retailers? And does it require retailers to be storing product with Amazon? Because especially when you’re talking about smaller retailers, that’s a shift to operations. And in, you know, while it is bringing a 25% increase in basket size, does that pencil when you’re looking at all the other operational costs of working with Amazon? And finally, yeah, this is actually my biggest question around that. What happens, what happens with reviews? Okay, because I want to know, see, I, you know, if I, if I’m wise, and I don’t have a page, I’m not selling on the Amazon marketplace right now. But somebody is selling my wise products from a third party seller on Amazon, and they get they give a bad review on Amazon. Now, those reviews are showing up on my why’s own brand .com site.
Chris 15:58
They might do something in to prevent that. Who knows?
Anne 16:00
They might. That’s what I’m asking. We don’t know this yet. But hypothetically, if I’m a retailer, that’s something that I want to be thinking about. Because the retailers, as far as it says in the press release and the research that we’ve seen from CNBC and others, sellers cannot control the reviews that are showing up on their their websites. So if there’s a negative review, because I bought something from a third party, will that show up? And will I be held to having that review from somebody that’s not my company selling my products? I’m sure they’ve got that figured out. I know Nicole, but
Chris 16:30
My hunch to do is Yeah, and if anyone listening, I know that we have a lot of Amazon fans, if you can give us the info on that.
Anne 16:35
Yeah.
Chris 16:35
411. That’d be great. I don’t know. I mean, I don’t have much to add on this one. You know, I think it’s a big move. I like the move specifically for this reason. It takes advantage of economies of scale. It’s what Amazon does best.
Anne 16:47
Yeah,
Chris 16:47
They can do it at a relatively low cost. It just gets them more skill into their operation. Your point about just walk out and licencing that as the same thing. That’s why That’s what Amazon’s really good at. They’re good at being the backbone for retail, the infrastructure for retail.
Anne 17:01
Yeah.
Chris 17:01
Which is why I think we’re seeing the slowdown and the layoffs in physical retail, because they don’t get that they don’t have the muscle memory for that. Right. But they have the muscle memory for this. And they know how to make that money dropped to their bottom line by helping others.
Anne 17:15
Yes. And I think that’s so funny. I also love some of the headlines. I was reading and researching this story that were like, well, Amazon’s laid off a bunch people so now they’re launching by with prime like, dude, Amazon is so far ahead of us. They’ve been working on this for two years at least like this is it’s hilarious that you think that they’re just like, well, let’s let’s go back into the workshop and figure this out.
Chris 17:36
You’re Right Like yes, connections that get made in the media are just so funny. Okay, just because this happened in the same week as there’s a connection right?
Anne 17:43
All right, Chris. Let’s move on to headline number three babies R Usis coming back with the opening of a new flagship store on the American Dream Mall. According to fellow Forbes, senior contributor, Joan Burnin
Chris 17:54
Shout out to Joan
Anne 17:55
At Forbes WHP Global which acquired a controlling stake in the Toys R Us brand names and intellectual properties after the bankruptcy and liquidation of the giant toy retailer. Earlier this week said it plans to return the brand which has licenced stores in other countries to United States shoppers. The first babies are a store will be located in the very same American dream while we’re WHP Global relaunch the Toys R Us brand with its very own flagship Toys R Us store. But that isn’t all that is the same either. Yehuda Schmidt Aman chairman of WH P Global also told Vernon that the first step he said will be the opening of a 10,000 square foot babies Eros flagship at American Dream followed by the announcement of a national retail partner similar to the partnership toys R Us has with Macy’s. Chris you were really big on this babis R Us thing. What’s what’s what’s going on?
Chris 18:48
Yeah, I love this move. I love it. I have no idea where you’re gonna come down on this. I can’t wait to see if we argued this one too. But I like it so much. And I would even consider coming out of retail operator retirement for this one. Almost
Anne 19:01
okay.
Chris 19:02
And the reason I say that is my favourite merchant job ever.
Anne 19:05
Okay,
Chris 19:05
was when I led the baby department at Target.
Anne 19:07
It is a fun campaign. Like I worked on that campaign.
Chris 19:09
Yeah, you did. It was so much fun. I loved it. There was a new customer every single day.
Anne 19:14
Yeah.
Chris 19:14
And I love that because you have 4 million new people born in the US every single day. So it’s awesome. And Babies R Us was a juggernaut at the time. They were the competition. So I think there’s still a place for this. They were the market leader. And it’s far more than toys r us because I think having a baby is a high consideration event for first time moms and dads.
Anne 19:35
Yeah.
Chris 19:35
So at the end of the day, you still want a place where you can go
Anne 19:39
Agree
Chris 19:39
to get help, which is why byebye baby was talked about being spun off from Bed Bath and Beyond.
Anne 19:45
Yeah, biggest possibility right
Chris 19:47
because it was still a viable business. So So I think having a place to go with the largest storm and we can get everything done all at once. Takes a psychological load off people and getting ready for a baby is a job that has to be done.
Anne 19:58
Yeah,
Chris 19:58
That’s the last point I would make. We To me is the root of everything that we talked about in retail, what’s the job you have to be done? And that’s the saddest, saddest part of the TRU dissolution, so to speak and going out of business was that the baby in this case Babies R Us got thrown out with the bathwater, see what I did there and God and that was sad to hear. So I’m so excited that I came up with that analogy. And so I’m excited that Babies R Us is coming back.
Anne 20:22
I can tell. Okay,
Chris 20:23
But do you agree?
Anne 20:24
I have come around on this a bit. Because I think that when I first read it, it was talking about this flagship store and American dream. And the first thing I thought of and maybe some listeners will agree, but like as a new mom the thought of like having to haul all my crap and my kid and like finding a parking spot at this giant Mall. It’s a fairly giant space to get like three more, you know, bottle nipples that have a wider airflow. Like, that seems really daunting to me. It does. But I think then the other side of me is like, okay, but to your point, like, this is an experiential thing. Like if if they, if they go like double down on experiential and like really making this a cool space, like they have the stroller track and whatever, like this could be a destination. And that makes sense in the American dream all but what I really want to follow is what this retail partnership
Chris 20:24
Yeah, I was just
Anne 20:46
because I think that is for me, that is like the clincher here is like who is this going to be? Is it a grocery store? You know, is it like a big box retailer? Like how are you really going to bring this brand together to make it convenient to because right now. And when we had kids we didn’t have like Amazon as readily available with as many products as we do, or even Target and Walmart with their curbside pickup like we do. So this competition here. So I’m curious how they’re going to find their place. But yes, I agree there is a is a need for baby destiny.
Chris 21:46
Those are really, really interesting points, because they bring up two things I haven’t thought about that I want to bring up which is one your point about opening an American Dream mall is dead, right? Because it’s a first time mom that your mom and dad that you’re trying to hit here. So this is probably not the right first location for this. And it could actually prove to be a false negative. If it doesn’t do well. But your point about who’s going to open this. It actually makes me think the way they’re talking about this. They already potentially have Macy’s on the hook for this because Macy’s has been they’ve been singing the praises about the Toys R Us partnership. And it feels like a perfect fit like everything else Macy’s has been doing goes right along with this. And so actually, I would like that move for Macy’s because it gets traffic into your store with first time moms and dads and reintroduces them into your assortment for the long haul. And honestly, it just makes them more like Walmart and Target which it feels like they’re trying to do anyway.
Anne 22:36
Yeah, that’s a good point. It’s probably going to be Macy’s.
Chris 22:39
I think it could be it very well could be or Kohl’s would be the dark horse but I don’t think Paul’s feels right to me.
Anne 22:44
We gotta move on topics this is making me depressed.
Chris 22:46
Is it really? Oh, I’m excited. I love this. I love this show. Okay, well, let’s keep it above average Anne, let’s not get depressed. But before we get to the next headline and I also want to tell you about a new trade show in our travel plans this year and that is commerce next e commerce growth show. You can join us at the Commerce next e commerce grow show on June 20 and 21st in New York City. We’ll be live streaming from the show and there will also be over 120 industry leading speakers across more than 50 sessions. Scaled retailers and brands get free admission go to commercenext.com/conference and just use VIP code Fast Five to register for your complimentary ticket today. Check out the link in our show notes too if you want to learn more
Anne 23:29
I’m more excited to go to New York in June than I am next this coming weekend. I think the weather might be nice
Chris 23:35
Oh my god yes. Oh my god there’s not there’s never been a statement more true in my entire life. All right, headline number four Nestle launches its first smart direct to consumer fulfilment Centre in China with Alibaba logistics arm the kind now network. According to an Alibaba company blog post, Kai now supplied 40 AGV robots to replace manual product picking and sorting facilities, which is estimated to quadruple fulfilment centre efficiency compared to Nestle’s other warehouses, which utilised human workers only and that the fulfilment centre will quote support Nestle’s expansion into the DTC sector, while supporting order fulfilment across all of Nestle’s e commerce operations in China, including the Starbucks at home line from the Seattle coffee chain end quote. Anne your thoughts on this one,
Anne 24:21
You know, this was sort of a dark horse for the first five this week. But I thought it was important because I think that we need to look at as we’ve seen more brands, you know, offering direct to consumer fulfilment options all General Mills, like we talked to Carter Johnson, again, about back at grocery shop, we have to know that, you know, that’s going to require fulfilment centres and operations to change the way that they’ve been working for years. It can’t just be, you know, sending giant pallets to their biggest retailers. They’ve got to be thinking about how to execute on these smaller one to one orders. And so I think that it’s good for us to start paying attention to what Nestle is doing with this move and how they’re leveraging these robots. We talked last week too about super duper. And these are the same type of robots.
The the video is pretty cool, because right now everything’s manually picked, like going in grabbing something out of a giant pallet. But these robots are like moving around and making this idea of the large brands fulfilment centre to be like, micro write much more insight. Yeah, micro, I just made up that word micro. But but it was really cool to see how they’re they’re thinking differently and the tools and the robotics that they’re using to make this happen. So I think this is really cool to stay on top of go check out the video.
Chris 25:39
Yeah, it’s pretty neat. Yeah, I mean, for me, my quick take on this is, you know, you’ve got the biggest CPG in the world. Yep. In the biggest market in the world, saying direct to consumer is important. Yep. And I think that in itself makes this a big news.
Anne 25:52
Yep.
Chris 25:53
But the implications of the questions I have around it are where does it go next? And that’s the important thing here is right, how does this extend Nestle’s reach? It doesn’t mean So my questions are, does it mean Nestle can flex its e commerce operation better across marketplaces like DoorDash and Instacart? In the long run, right, right to doesn’t mean they can flex it better via dropship on smaller retailers or grocers, e commerce, websites, or even convenience stores. Yep. And then third doesn’t mean that Nestle can sell directly to consumers better off its own site,
Anne 26:22
Which I think is the intent. I imagine.
Chris 26:24
I think if Nestle’s smart, they’re looking at all three of these because there’s not going to because my last question as interesting is as the last one is to be, it’s not as important in the long run as the other two, because you still have the question of how you’re getting traffic to the Nestle site relative to the other places where Nestle sells its products. But the option value alone on all three of those is enough for me to want to watch how this unfolds going forward. So
Anne 26:47
They are not selling them on Instagram shopping.
Chris 26:50
Well, they could though and that’s the thing that’s that’s all this goes. Right. I mean, nice dig but yeah, I mean, that’s the point, right? Like, yes, you could Yeah, and and Facebook, you get the advertising revenue from that as opposed to the
Anne 27:03
All right, let’s go to headline number five Chris, a new sip and stroll law is set to take effect this week at Arizona shopping centres, shuttled to nodular chi and one of the listeners of the show, I wonder if she was involved in this. I know she’s very involved in the Arizona shopping district centre and I would love to walk around and sip and stroll with nodular sometime
Chris 27:24
Yeah,
Anne 27:24
but according to chain store age Beginning today, January 12. shopping centres with at least 400,000 square feet of gross leasing area will be able to obtain licences that allow customers to leave bars and restaurants and explore the properties with everything from pints to pina coladas in hand, Desert Ridge and Tempe Marketplace. You know a little
Chris 27:44
Shout out Yeah, dude, I grew up like 2 miles
Anne 27:47
I know. Were you lobbying for this law to go through we’ll find out
Chris 27:51
I might have had some influence indirectly.
Anne 27:53
Alright. Both of those. Those facilities are owned and operated by WSR who will be the first to implement the new law and for context, Desert Ridge is also the most visited Shopping Centre in Arizona.
Chris 28:04
Yeah, that’s huge.
Anne 28:05
Tenants there include Kohl’s AMC Theatres, Dave and Busters, h&m, Barnes and Noble Ross and Old Navy. And even more than that
Chris 28:12
Normal cast of characters
Anne 28:13
Was that where you hung out was desert,
Chris 28:15
No Desert ridge is new that’s that wasn’t there when I was actually the temp the Tempe Marketplace is new too I was hanging out at Fiesta mall Anne which is a completely abandoned and still exist. It’s like sitting in Mesa. It’s huge mall and just nothing is going on there.
Anne 28:30
I just imagine like crumbling paint from like Dudley’s structure.
Chris 28:34
That is what it is. Yeah, it’s terrible. Like, I don’t know, when they’re gonna redevelop it. I think the plans that we’ve developed are coming soon. But, ya know, I mean, like, shout out to my home state of Arizona for being, you know, they’ve got their priorities in order on this one, you know, you know, for the first time Well, I can, you can ask a lot of questions about Arizona. But you know, on the one hand, okay, here’s my thoughts on this. On the one hand, I love this, because it gives the operators and the retailers an answer the question of why come to my physical play shop why come to a location to begin with, which is always an important question. Being able to shop with a glass of wine in hand or a beer has long been a dream of mine, and I’m guessing countless other moms particularly as well. But on the other hand, I do worry about some of the operational consequences for this.
So for example, things that came to mind for me would be, you’d have a lot more spillage, so you can have a lot more product that gets ruined. And the other part to me that I think is interesting in this is, from a staffing perspective, it’s going to require a new task for the retailers, they’re gonna have to watch whether or not they want to allow very drunk people into their store to shop, which you already know the staffing pressures, you already know the training pressures. That’s a thing that I don’t know that many retailers are going to want to take on.
So I’m guessing the mall operator in this case is going to have to lean pretty heavily into that for this to work and net net, it could come out on top, but there’s just concerns that I have thinking about it. I don’t know that I wouldn’t do it. I think it’s a cool idea. It’s worth trying, especially at the early stages that it is now but those are my thoughts.
Anne 29:59
I think your work case scenario planning, which is not a bad thing. Definitely there are going to be some situations but I mean, Chris, one look at Vegas and New Orleans like this is already a thing happening like there’s there’s ways to make this happen successfully. So I think that it’s, it can be all the things you’re talking about can be solved. The drunk people like I don’t know you’ve got restaurants in every mall in the country right now where people could be getting drunk in the restaurant and then travelling through and you have the same mall security that handles those issues, you know, or people could be coming from home I think there’s there’s some extremes but I do love this with the right safety precautions in place. And I think it could be really good for the retailer’s like I’ve made plenty of purchase that I wasn’t planning on after you know, a store is invited me in and given me a glass of wine to drink while I’m shopping. Like yeah, you get more excited about the experience.
My husband certainly will be coming along with me wherever shopping in Arizona, which I think is a good point again to your earlier point, like brings up this now as a destination like this is a place where yes, on a on a date night like my husband and I would now would be going to that together versus before when he would be like I want nothing to do with your shopping trips. No way. But now if you can have a beer and like hang out and it can be more of a social experience. I think this could be bringing more people to
Chris 31:17
Sit on the sofa in the name or apparel brand store with a beer while you try and close and he gives you your his opinion. Yeah, right. I think it’s real,
Anne 31:27
I think Vegas is such a great analogue for that because they do it so well. Like they they have TVs set up playing a golf tournament so that my husband can sit there and drink a bourbon and watch a golf tournament while I’m shopping for something
Chris 31:38
I think it is the only point I’d make about Vegas and then we’ll close out the show is like Vegas is everyone’s in a different mindset number one psychologically and to the margin structure of the casino works differently than the margin structure of the mall operator and the retailer. So I think that affords them more ability to put in place some of the guardrails here to make this successful. That’s one thing I’ll say but I I still think I love it, I would test it I’m curious to see what it is and net net I think the things you’re talking about are very promised
Anne 32:04
But in this case the operators can also get the licences so they can be getting the revenue from selling beard wine too that was part of this as well. Which I think is some is that also pplays into where there’s benefits here for them to make
Chris 32:16
High margin category.
Anne 32:18
40% right?
Chris 32:18
Alcohol and beer. Oh God, I don’t even know. Liquor is probably even better. I don’t know off the top my
Anne 32:23
Alright Chris.
Chris 32:24
Alright, let’s let’s close out this above average show
Anne 32:27
Netflix will exclusively air 2024 Screen Actors Guild Awards show in its first partnership with an award show and its next step into live broadcasting. Chris, what actor do you think should win an award via Netflix live stream in February?
Chris 32:42
Oh, that’s a good question. Yeah. So if I assume they were going to livestream this year, I would. I’d actually go with the guy that won the Golden Globe Colin Farrell. I think Colin Farrell.
Anne 32:50
Is that the what’s the Banshees of
Chris 32:52
Banshees of ensuring? Yes. Anne
Anne 32:54
Did you see that?
Chris 32:54
I’ve seen half of it? I need to finish it. I unfortunately had to something.
Anne 32:58
Colin said It was so good. He saw half.
Chris 33:00
But no, it’s so good. Anne no, I watched the recruit again, which came out in like 2003 with Colin Farrell and Bridget Moynahan. Yeah. He was so good in that. So Al Pacino was terrible, but he was so good and so underappreciated as an actor. Honestly, he’s really good.
Anne 33:17
Okay, I don’t I don’t understand how you find your movie selections on the weekend. It’s very puzzling to me. But that’s what Netflix algorithm is for.
Chris 33:24
Right? Well, no, this is on cable. Like cable. That’s why all right. PepsiCo brands. Plus, PepsiCo brands plans to extend its iconic brands, Doritos and Cheetos into new categories like pretzels crackers and beef jerky. How much would nacho cheese beef jerky wet your whistle?
Anne 33:42
Oh, gross. Not not beef jerky, but Cheeto or Dorito? Pretzels and crackers bring them?
Chris 33:48
Yeah, that sounds awesome
Anne 33:49
Oh, it’s so good. I have another PepsiCo question.
Chris 33:52
All right. Two in a row.
Anne 33:53
The brand has debuted a lemon line spray competitor that they believe will help increase their favour with a younger Gen Z audience that they’re calling starry. Not sure what it all makes us different from Sierra Mist But I digress. What was your favourite go to soda as a young lad?
Chris 34:10
Well, I’m gonna talk to you as my nan Lucien I’m just gonna you know this but I only started drinking caffeine in like 2013.
Anne 34:16
Okay,
Chris 34:17
And so I never had as a kid so my go to soda was actually seven up on cola Anne
Anne 34:22
The un cola. Yeah, well, that’s good seven up as a trustee or seven up would make a comeback. It just doesn’t seem like it’s actually to you know what I was just reading this week. Dr. Pepper is like the strongest cola Of all the cola brands, and it can be sold in places that sell Pepsi products or Coke products because it’s like,
Chris 34:41
Right, it’s like the third party.
Anne 34:42
I feel like that’s the un cola.
Chris 34:44
Yeah, it kind of is on
Anne 34:45
Yeah,
Chris 34:46
It’s a cola. That’s like a different cola. All right. All right, cool. Speaking of Colas let’s go to Kohler. Kohler recently released a new smart toilet that 2.0 currently price hit believe it are not $8,650 And that’s a discount from its $11,000 list price. I went on the website yesterday to look at it. Which of the following features would you want in your toilet the most? A all these are real ambient coloured lighting, B a built in audio speaker system, or C hands free opening and closing.
Anne 35:21
Well, I’m surprised especially after I was in California, we had a bad day in California.
Chris 35:26
Those are nice. Was it a good one?
Anne 35:27
Yeah, it was like an electric one. Why isn’t that in here? I want that. But if I had to pick maybe I have to pick up all these things. I definitely want hands free opening and closing and flushing like I just want to be like I waved my hand and you’re there you are.
Chris 35:42
You do you want so you want it like the airport toilet but
Anne 35:45
Especially the seat down and and lid down.
Chris 35:48
Yeah. Okay. Yeah.
Anne 35:50
I live with three boys. Yeah,
Chris 35:52
It should have image recognition, actually to be able to see you.
Anne 35:54
That would be wonderful.
Chris 35:55
That little can of worms there. All right, that causes us. Happy Birthday today to Mary J. Blige, the man who would certainly make my wife unfaithful to me, Olivier Martinez. And for all you Seinfeld fans out there, the woman who gave us schmoopy Alexandra Alexandra Wentworth. And remember, if you can only read or listen to one retail blog in the business, make it Omnitalk. Our Fast Five podcast is the quickest, fastest rundown of all the week’s top news. And our twice weekly newsletter tells you the top five things you need to know each day. And it comes with special content that exists is exclusive to us and we do it just for you. And we try really hard to make it all fit in the preview pane of your inbox. You can sign up today at http://www.omnitalk.blog.
Thanks as always for listening in. Thanks for sticking with me as I tried to get through this read but please remember to like and leave us a review wherever you happen to listen to your podcasts or on YouTube. So until next week, and on behalf of all of us at Omni talk, be careful out there.
Anne 36:52
The omni talk Fast Five is brought to you in association with the a&m consumer and retail group. The a&m consumer and retail group is a management consulting firm that tackles the most complex challenges and advances its clients, people and communities for their maximum potential. CRG brings the experience tools and operator like pragmatism to help retailers and consumer products companies be on the right side of disruption. And firework. Firework is a largest video commerce solution built for the world’s leading brands. They empower brands with shoppable and livestream video on their own websites where people like to shop. Put your commerce in motion with firework find out more@firework.com And Trigo. Trigo tech powers grocery stores with market leading frictionless checkout and digitised operations. To learn more visit Trigoretail.com And sezzle. Sezzle is an innovative Buy now pay later solution that allows shoppers to split purchases into four interest free payments over six weeks. To learn more visit sezzle.com. And finally, silk. The silk cloud DB virtualization platform is a virtualization layer between your workloads and the Cloud helps you scale your cloud without scaling your visit silk.us to learn more
Omni Talk is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga founded Omni Talk in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail. 