Melissa Minkow on Agentic Commerce, Loyalty, Consumer Habits, and Retail’s Future

In this episode of the Retailgentic Podcast, Scot Wingo sits down with Melissa Minkow, Global Director of Retail Strategies & Insights at CI&T. Melissa shares her perspective on consumer behavior, why ingrained shopping habits stick, and how agentic commerce will shape the future of retail.

We cover:
- Why consumer habits are so hard to change, even in grocery shopping
- Exclusive sneak peek: fresh survey data showing 75% of consumers now use AI in their path to purchase
- How agentic commerce could transform loyalty, pricing, and even group buying
- Lessons from Target Canada and why back-office AI matters more than flashy consumer tools
- Why TikTok might be the blueprint for agentic retail experiences

Retail is changing fast and the agentic future is already here. Subscribe for more conversations, insights, and data shaping the next chapter of commerce.

Timestamps:
00:00 – Consumers are routinized: why habits stick
01:08 – Introducing the Retailgenic Podcast
02:15 – Guest intro: Melissa Minco of CI&T
04:06 – Melissa’s background: from Anthropologie to Target to CI&T
08:52 – Target Canada lessons & retail systems breakdown
12:00 – Apps vs. consumers: adoption, trust, and pushback
15:00 – Agentic commerce: inside vs. outside view
19:00 – Will consumers build their own shopping agents?
23:00 – Exclusive data: 75% of consumers now use AI in their path to purchase
28:00 – Sponsored GEO and consumer trust
33:00 – Agent strategies: retailer, consumer, and third-party
36:00 – Best practices: getting your “back office” right first
40:00 – Checkouts, marketplaces, and the future of digital retail
46:00 – Loyalty in the agentic era: Gen Z, UK vs. US, and discounts
50:00 – Group buying, negotiation, and dynamic pricing
56:00 – Reading the tea leaves: websites, zero-click, and consumer control
01:00:00 – Melissa’s “personal agents” vision of the future
01:05:00 – TikTok as a model for agentic commerce
01:08:00 – Wrap-up & closing thoughts

Report drops at CI&T website soon: https://ciandt.com/us/en-us

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