In this captivating episode of The Voice of Retail, host Michael LeBlanc sits down with Cameron Conn, CEO of Champlain Apparel, to explore an extraordinary career journey that spans Las Vegas casinos, tech startups, and Canada’s emerging entry-level luxury menswear scene.

Raised in a third-generation casino family, Cameron’s early career in hospitality taught him the art of customer service, loyalty, and operational excellence. From developing multi-million-dollar casino projects in Edmonton and Vancouver to launching a successful compliance tech company, his path was anything but conventional. After selling his tech venture, a chance reconnection with friend and custom suit retailer Jonathan Richard sparked his entry into fashion — and the birth of Champlain Apparel.

Cameron shares how Champlain revitalizes timeless menswear staples — from polo shirts to shawl-collar cardigans — blending heritage sport aesthetics with modern fit and quality. He explains their focus on “entry-level luxury” pricing and how a meticulous, methodical wholesale strategy landed the brand in iconic retailers like Harry Rosen in their first season — a rare feat for a new label.

The conversation dives deep into wholesale vs. direct-to-consumer strategies, with Cameron candidly discussing why wholesale has been their most successful growth driver, complemented by targeted DTC efforts. He also emphasizes the importance of cultivating retail partnerships, understanding merchants’ needs, and empowering front-line sales staff to become passionate brand storytellers.

A major highlight — Cameron previews his upcoming Retail Council of Canada’s Retail West conference appearance on September 25, where he’ll share the stage with Shannon Stewart, Chief Merchandising Officer at Harry Rosen. Their session will explore brand storytelling, customer engagement, and loyalty — and how these principles create the “math and magic” that makes retail partnerships thrive.

From Brooklyn trendsetters to Vancouver’s style-conscious shoppers, Champlain’s appeal is growing fast, supported by Cameron’s belief that the best retail relationships are built on trust, shared vision, and mutual success. His advice to other brand founders? Approach retailers as your customers, understand their business as well as your own, and make the math work so you can deliver the magic.

Whether you’re an emerging brand, retail executive, or simply love a great founder story, this episode offers valuable insights into scaling in the competitive fashion market, balancing creativity with business discipline, and building a brand narrative that resonates far beyond the showroom floor.

The Voice of Retail podcast is presented by Hale, a performance marketing partner trusted by brands like ASICS, Saje, and Orangetheory to scale with focus and impact.

Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career.

Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.

Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.

Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

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