Hello Omni Talk Fans! I am currently 30,000 feet above the Atlantic, jet-lagged more than ever, and running on the remnant fuel of a week-long diet of currywurst and pilsner. Whoever said moderation is the spice of life certainly never bumped into me at a retail conference.
Fortunately, knowing what was in front of me, I brought in a big gun, Shelley Huff, to help co-host this week’s podcast. Shelley is a former 14-year Walmart merchant, the former CEO of Serta Simmons Bedding, and someone who isn’t afraid to call it like it is.
Here’s a taste of what Shelley and I got into on this week’s podcast:
- An AI named Luna is running a real store in San Francisco: Luna hired the staff, signed the lease, designed the store, and manages her human employees via Slack. She also massively over-ordered candles.
- Best Buy is getting a new CEO: Corie Barry is stepping down after seven years, and 27-year Best Buy veteran Jason Bonfig takes over on Halloween.
- Party City is back . . . sort of: It’s relaunched inside 700+ Staples stores, and Shelley poured some serious cold water over what initially sounded like good news. Low velocity, commoditized inventory, and Amazon lurking at every turn. You can’t just build it and they will come. I pushed back a little, but she’s probably right.
- Dairy Queen’s voice AI at the drive-thru is actually working: I can say this firsthand because I go to Dairy Queen every Tuesday with my son after drum practice (yes, really). The tech is crisp, accurate, and, here’s Shelley’s best line of the episode, “This is the worst the technology is ever going to be.” Buckle up, QSR industry.
- Walmart wants to turn its stores into same-day fulfillment hubs: The pilot is running in Dallas and could cut marketplace delivery times to three hours. I love the move. Shelley had a lot of questions about whether the juice is worth the squeeze at scale. She may have flipped me by the end. Listen and decide for yourself.
There’s all that, plus Godfather references, and Shelley and I also go to great lengths to share our love for our home state of Arizona.
Listen to This Week’s Fast Five Podcast
Be careful out there,
— Chris and the entire Omni Talk team
P.S. What did the blanket say when it fell off the bed?
Oh, sheet.
Omni Talk® is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton founded Omni Talk® in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail.