The Millennium Alliance’s Post

How do you succeed in a market transformed by technology? Our full day Innovation Summit in November will tackle this question with some of retail's leading names. Tickets are free for those working at retailers and brands 💡

I'll be discussing how successful brands uncover hidden reasons for product returns and churn at the Retail Innovation Conference & Expo. Stop by booth 1027 to join the conversation! #retail #customerexperience #qualitativeinsights

Reflecting on RICE last week, here are my (extended version) thoughts and takeaways, which center the themes of personalization, empathy, and innovation: - Especially in the context of AI and how to apply AI meaningfully to brand experiences, we have a tendency to put consumers into easy boxes, not because they're real but because they're easy. Then we get confused when people don't act the way we expect them too, but most of those expectations are based on (often problematic) generalizations. One of the clearest applications for genAI that I heard about is creating more specific and personalized experiences not just based on demographic assumptions -Experiential retail still a huge trend that doesn't seem to be going anywhere; rather than a trend, this really is the evolution of store from buying center to being a hub for services, fun, trying something new, a full multisensory experience, and providing an escapist outlet. American Girl was one of the first to do this with American Girl Place and is really prioritizing this pillar in their modern business. Thinking back to the first really strong experiential retail spaces, it's Disney, American Girl, and Lego. There's a magic to this kind of connection that brands need to chase with empathy. -Speaking of empathy, empathy must be at the center of successful retail, especially for emotionally riddled experiences like weddings. A more empathetic experience builds loyalty. Loyalty programs are moving away from cash based programs because the impact on P&L is complex to track and often a huge cost to the business (the Starbucks effect). David's Bridal is leaning on partnerships to exchange advertising/exposure for big, exciting rewards like a free honeymoon, cars, etc., which Kelly N Cook from David's Bridal provided great examples of. Candidly, this sounds amazing but also hard to believe it's attainable for the average DB customer. -On a broader industry basis, what is the purpose and future of broad retail/ecom industry events? There is so much diversity of function and category it's hard to tie together cohesive content for everyone, even if you do have tracks. Without some kind of very clear functional focus (influencer marketing, product innovation, or sustainability to name a few) or a sector specific focus like fashion or home where similar and adjacent brands can learn from each other, the content can feel a little hit or miss, and I also sensed some conference fatigue from brand-side folks who are hearing too much of the same few things

📢GS1 MOs: Ensure to REGISTER today at https://forum.gs1.org/ During the #GS1GlobalForum2024🌍, we invite you to join us on Tuesday, 20 February at 15:00 CET, for an exciting #Retail plenary session: "From cotton to click – The future of retail through the lens of a white T-shirt". Delve into the world of digitalisation and its transformative impact on the #apparel industry, as illustrated by the journey of a white t-shirt. This plenary brings together a group of industry leaders who will share their insights on revolutionising #supplychains, elevating #consumer experiences, and the wider implications for the industry. We would like to thank our dynamic speakers leading this session: Francisco Teixeira e Melo, President Solutions Group Worldwide, Avery Dennison, Keshini Talwatte, General Manager, Group Sourcing & Supply Chain, MAS Holdings, Matthias Wiesmann, Technical Lead, Google and Stina Behrens, Project Manager Sustainable Production & Consumption, Axfoundation. The session will be moderated by Jonatan Tullberg, CEO, GS1 Sweden. 📢GS1 MOs: For this, and many more sessions, register at https://forum.gs1.org/ #Retail #Supplychain #consumerengagement #digitaltransformation #gs1standards #WeAreGS1

A panel discussion during The Retail Summit 2024 titled, “Expanding into the Middle East: What is the Winning Recipe for Entering the Region?”, our speakers discussed critical topics such as joint venture vs. limited partnership, regulatory navigation, and meeting consumer demands in the Middle East retail landscape. Here are some snippets from the panel discussion. #TRS2024 #TheRetailSummit2024 #DubaiChambers #AmbitionInFocus The Retail Summit

Great to see familiar faces and make new connections at the Retail Doctor Group 'Global Retail Innovation' event this morning at the KIRRIBILLI CLUB. Inspiring examples of innovation from around the world, courtesy of the dynamic duo of Brian Walker and Anastasia Lloyd-wallis. The doctors were joined by a great panel to explore the topic of innovation in more detail, with interesting perspectives from the following panelists: 🛒 Tom Leak from Rebel Sport 🛒 Lance Eerhard from BuyersCircle 🛒 Jeremy Krause from THE CUSTOM CHEF™ Innovation needs both new ideas and re-purposing old ideas in new ways, a breaking down of siloes, and often some outside influence - whether from other internal departments, partners, customers, consultants, or technology partners. Appreciate the great event and plenty of innovation in the #retailmedia space too, so if incremental revenue is an innovation topic you'd like to explore further, let me know 👌 #retail #retailnews #innovation #consumers #global #retail #innovation #bestpractice #insights #strategy #operations #training #retailing #ecommerce

We're heading to Paris for World Retail Congress in a couple of weeks to join 800+ retail leaders, to learn, collaborate, and develop strategies around this year's theme, #HighPerformanceRetail. We’ll be hosting this year's Future Retail Challenge which aims to promote tomorrow’s retailers, bringing students’ fresh thinking and new ideas on retail into the Congress itself. This year’s challenge targets reducing scope 3 emissions in the retail sector, urging teams to present disruptive and scalable solutions for a selected retailer's value chain emissions, aimed at maintaining or boosting its market performance. Read more via the link in the comments. Being a high-performing retail leader can be extremely challenging with the continuous growth of technology and increasing stakeholder expectations, meaning capital allocation and the need to keep innovating remains of utmost importance. Through our involvement, we'll be focusing on the traits needed to be truly world-class in today’s retail landscape. If you’ll be at the congress and would like to connect please do let us know as Liam Buswell, Matthew Truman and Danielle Le Toullec will be on the ground and are keen to discuss all things retail innovation! #Retail #RetailInnovation #RetailEvents #WorldRetailCongress2024

Currently at World Retail Congress we have a panel discussion on ‘Winning Business Models: Disrupt or be Disrupted’. With Matt Clark, Partner and Managing Director at AlixPartners, is Peter Pernot-Day, Head of Strategy and Communications, US and UK at SHEIN and Ashley Kechter, Brand President of Fabletics, as they explore the trends that are reshaping retail and what retailers can learn from the disruptors leading the way. Tomorrow AlixPartners and World Retail Congress will be publishing publicly the 2024 report ‘Disrupt or be disrupted: Six Trends Reshaping Retail’, keep an eye out! #WRC2024

I believe the retail sector is at a crossroads and technological innovation is the biggest opportunity to position oneself at the forefront of the industry. How are you remaining competitive? #Retail #Innovation #BusinessGrowth

🎥 The full video of the "The Future of Retail and Supply Chain" event is now live on YouTube! Don't miss out on the opportunity to dive into the latest trends and innovations in the industry. We're excited to share these insightful pespectives with you. Feel free to share and tag your colleagues who might also find this interesting! #Retail #SupplyChain #Innovation #FutureOfRetail