George Soleas, President & CEO of the LCBO shares their journey to modernization and navigating the COVID-19 crisis, and Canadian Master Sommelier Jennifer Huether on top wine trends

Welcome to the The Voice of Retail, I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.

In this special episode an exclusive interview with the President and CEO of one of the largest wine and alcohol retailers in the world right in my back yard, George Soleas of Ontario’s LCBO.   In a two part interview, the first part one recored in mid March in LCBO’s Toronto boardroom pre-COVID-19, the second part recorded online during the peak of the crisis, George shares the ins and outs of the art and science of his personal journey, and work done to modernize the LCBO, work that is being pressure tested today as an essential service.  Next he shares tips for retailers of all formats as they work to craft the playbook to open their stores and operate in the new “business as unusual” Coronavirus retail environment .

Next Jennifer Huether, one of Canada’s rare Master Sommeliers and one of less than 300 in the world with her designation is my guest from backstage at the Restaurants Canada trade show in early March.  We talk what it takes to be a master som, trends in wine and Jennifer shares her top tips for finding an amazing bottle to enjoy.

But first, let’s jump right into my conversation with George Soleas from the LCBO

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Thanks to George and Jenifer  for a unique pairing on this episode. We’ll return in the weeks to come with the top retail stories from  Retail This Week.

That’s a wrap on this edition of The Voice of Retail.  If you liked this podcast you can subscribe on Apple iTunes or your favourite podcast platform, please rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the retail industry.

I’m Michael LeBlanc, Founder and President of M.E. LeBlanc and Company Inc. and you can learn more about me on www.meleblanc.co or of course on LinkedIn

Until next time, have a safe week!

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.