The CPG Guys

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by the co founder and CEO of Mend Nutrition, Eziah Syed. From the home page of the company - Mend is the scientifically proven way to heal and enhance your body faster. Our discussion covers preventive healthcare vs. remedial and how natural nutrition may make a difference with lifestyle choices.Follow Eziah Syed on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eziah/Follow Mend nutrition on LinkedIn at:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/mend-nutrition/Follow Mend nutrition's website : https://mend.me/Eziah answers these questions : Your career passes through Deloitte, Citibank, startups and now Mend nutrition. Take us through your career journey and how it led to Mend. Also what advice would you give for others entering natural wellness?1) What do you see as some of the critical challenges in health and healthcare?2) How does mend help to alleviate these challenges?3) Can your behavioral support model be extended to DTC?4) Take us through your portfolio of nutrition products and consumer need states it caters to.5) Talk to me about clinicals. Its not often we hear a natural supplements product using clinical trials - more common for a procedure or drug - take us through the how and why.6) What is different about those nutrition products your just described? Why should a patient subscribe to Mend?7) What’s next for Mend? What need states will you continue to address and expand to?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by repeat second time guest, CEO of Kelso industries, a holding company of over 10 HVAC companies operating in 13 states. We know Steve from his days as director of retail media at Sam's club. He was our guest in the fall of 2020.Follow Steve Carroll on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenhcarroll/ Follow Kelso industries on LinkedIn at:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/kelso-industries-llc/Follow Kelso industry's website : https://kelso-industries.com/Find his first appearance here : https://www.buzzsprout.com/1146830/episodes/6322075 Steve answers these questions:1. Steve, your career intersected with us at Sam’s club and it seemed you were all set to be the next retail media leader in the industry. What prompted you to seek entrepreneurship back in 2022. What advice would you give to someone early in their career in this space seeking to follow in your footsteps from corporate to entrepreneurship?2. Tell us about Grazak mechanical - your first venture. How did you come by it. What was your thought process in acquiring it and what did it take to assimilate in as the owner?3. How did your training in retail and media and the partnerships you had with vendors train you for this ?4. Take us through the portfolio of companies you manage now and how you make decisions on expansion and what matters to you before moving forward?5. In a world of omnichannel consumers where the digital reach of services has exploded in the last 3 years, how are you staying ahead, are there specific advertising methods that drive wins for your companies?6. Let’s go to talent. No organization can be successful without the right people and employees in the field? What makes a good leader - what is their DNA? How do they connect with you and lead this cause of growing these portfolio companies of yoursAny negative surprises along the way?7. The last question on the cpgguys is always ‘fast forward’ - what's next for you and your portfolio ? How can our audience living in the West interact with you for service?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Melanie Babcock-Brown, VP of Retail Media+ and Monetization at The Home Depot, the world’s largest home improvement specialty retailer with over 2,200 stores.Follow Melanie Babcock-Brown on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniebabcock/Follow Home Depot on LinkedIn at:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-home-depot/Follow Retail Media+ online at: https://www.homedepot.com/c/Retail_Media_Advertising_SolutionsMelanie answers these questions:1) What was your vision for Retail Media+ to enhance the customer experience of your shoppers? Is it designed to have relevance to individual shoppers, the contractors who likely represent your most valuable shoppers, or both?2) What would you argue sets The Home Depot's retail media go-to-market strategy apart from its competitors? As part of your answer, would you provide some dimensions to your audience reach & frequency?3) Please walk us through the onsite advertising solutions that RM+ offers to brands and what are the targeting and bidding capabilities?4) Offsite advertising is increasing a desirable mechanism for brands to engage consumers further up the funnel. Would you share the key partnerships you have established with third parties to enable offsite targeted advertising?5) How does The Home Depot ensure a seamless integration of retail media across its various channels and touchpoints and how does it contribute to joint business planning between brand advertisers and your category merchants?6) How do you measure the performance of retail media campaigns at The Home Depot and are your methodologies consistent with what brands are requiring to shift legacy marketing budgets into your platform?7) Can you share with us any success stories stemming from brand advertisers leveraging RM+ and what are the best-in-class recommendations you would make for brands to derive meaningful value from your platform?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Imteaz Ahamed, Host of the Applied Intelligence podcast which is at the intersection of AI, people and getting stuff done.Follow Imteaz Ahamed on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/imteaza/Subscribe to the Applied Intelligence Newsletter on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7058063714679152640/Subscribe to Applied Intelligence on Apple Podcasts at: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/applied-intelligence/id1692067628Imteaz answers these questions:1) Let’s start at a foundational level. What is artificial intelligence, how does it relative to the term machine learning and can you give us some practical examples about how AI has been applied in our industry prior to generative AI?2) What is generative AI and what are the most prevalent forms of output for generative AI and why is this technological innovation so important to our industry in particular?3) What are different categories of AI and what makes generative Ai fundamentally different to the prior forms?4) How does generative AI actually work? What are the sources of data input and how is generative AI algorithms “trained” to produce relevant output?5) Let’s dig into the textual-based form of generative AI. How are natural language models applied to generate new forms of content and how is this transforming search from vertical to horizontal in nature?6) How about text to image applications for generative AI? Exactly how do they work and do you have some examples that people might be familiar with?7) What do you see as being the most practical applications of generative AI for the practical application of generative AI?8) What specific tools & applications are you seeing companies leverage to start entering or expanding their use of generative AI fo commercial growth?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

EPISODE 300The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Cara Pratt, SVP of Kroger Precision Marketing at 84.51, the retail data science division of Kroger.Follow Cara Pratt on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cara-pratt-2429614/Follow 84.51 on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/84-51/Follow Kroger Precision Marketing online at: https://www.krogerprecisionmarketing.com/ Follow 84.51 online at: https://www.8451.com/Cara answers these questions:1) Most people think of retail media today as personalized content delivered to customers through digital platform. But Kroger has actually been in the personalized media business for 2 decades. Would you share with us how that started through direct mail, why that format was the first foray and the scale that Kroger was able to enable brands to achieve up and down the marketing funnel?2) In 2015, Kroger brought its retail data science capabilities in-house with the formation of 84.51. What is the origin of the division name and why has it been successful in driving measurable growth for both Kroger and the brands that sell through Kroger’s omnichannel banners? 3) Kroger’s customer insight platform is called Stratum. What exactly is Stratum and how are brands using it to guide their omnichannel strategy at Kroger and beyond? 4) The pandemic caused tremendous growth in grocery eCommerce. How did you set about building best-in-class on-site retail media capabilities to fuel the demand?5) Kroger has enabled brands to move up the marketing funnel through offsite partnerships. Would you highlight those partnerships and what brands are able to do with Kroger customer audiences?6) In-store is where retail media is poised to dramatically expand its offerings. What are Kroger’s capabilities for in-store and should brands be thinking about these solutions as highly personalized or something else?7) As Kroger seeks to attract brand marketing budgets, how does performance measurement play a role, how do clean rooms play a role and what do you make of the growing chorus for standardization in definitions & metrics coming from both retailers and brands?8) You are making a big announcement today at Retail Media Summit as it relates to bringing more of your retail media capabilities in-house. What are the details?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG GUYS are joined in this episode by Jamie Clarke, head of North American retail at Nielsen IQ, the world’s leading consumer intelligence company.This episode is sponsored by NielsenIQ.Follow Jamie Clarke on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-clarke-20943125/Follow NielsenIQ on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nielseniq/Follow NielsenIQ at : https://nielseniq.com/global/en/ Jamie answers the following questions : Let's hit the hottest topic in CPG and retail land - our favorite on the cpgguys - retail media 2023. What’s hot off the press from NIQ’s mind? Is retail media upper funnel, middle funnel, lower funnel ecommerce or full funnel? What tactics do you recommend brands lean on to be successful in great campaigns and ROI? Is search everything? What metrics define success here? iRoas? How about the age old impressions? What’s the secret sauce of success? What are you seeing in - instore retail media? Is a lobby or endcap or a coupon at the shelf in store retail media? Would an FSI qualify and will it make a come back?Where is NIQ investing in capabilities to help brands be successful in their retail media endeavors - planning, MMA, or measurement or all of the above - how so?At cpgguys the last question usually comes back to the future - what future do you see emerging for brands and retail in retail media?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.comRhea Raj: http://rhearaj.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Keerat Sharma, Chief Technical officer at Flywheel, the eCommerce Services division of Omnicom.Follow Keerat Sharma on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keerat/Follow Flywheel on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/flywheel-digital/mycompany/ Follow Flywheel online at: https://www.flywheeldigital.com/ Keerat answers these questions:1) What is a clean room and why is it considered a powerful mechanism for the mingling of data sets between retailers and brands?2) What are the key features and capabilities of a clean room, like Amazon Marketing Cloud?3) Some folks say that clean rooms will federate and finally provide a way to measure across all walled gardens. Is this true?4) What tools and resources are available for campaign management within Amazon Marketing Cloud?5) How are you building out solutions at Ascential that support your brand clients? What are the primary use cases that your team is supporting for enablement?6) How would you recommend that brands not already leveraging AMC to start getting engaged in this platform? CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Ibraheem Basir, Founder & CEO of A Dozen Cousins, a natural food brand that makes convenience side dishes inspired by traditional Creole, Caribbean and Latino recipes. Their product lines include authentic ready-to-eat beans and rice.Follow Ibraheem Basir on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ibraheembasir/ Follow A Dozen Cousins on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a-dozen-cousins/ Follow A Dozen Cousins online at: https://adozencousins.com/ Ibraheem answers these questions:1) Your career has some elite brands in your background but you decided to be an entrepreneur. Take us through your days in Brooklyn to IVY leagues and now as founder of A dozen cousins . What advice would you give to someone early in their career in this space seeking to follow in your footsteps from corporate to entrepreneurship?2) How did A Dozen Cousins  get founded did you start digitally-native or in physical retail -  and how you spend your time on it ? What is the role of education and content in the brands mission: to inspire families of all backgrounds to eat better food and live longer more vibrant lives.3) As a minority founder (like Inhave been)and  leader trying to grow and compete with giants in the food space, how does your everyday thinking go - what drives you and what constitutes success? How do you interact with retail everyday?4) Take us through the portfolio of product categories that a consumer may choose from in your brand. What makes each product unique and why is it better than the rest available in supermarkets and online?5) In a world of omnichannel consumers where the digital reach of food has exploded in the last 3 years, how are you staying ahead, are there specific advertising methods that drive wins for you and the brand?6) What are your current year distribution goals and are you setting a 3 year strategy? How will you measure success? How large is your distribution?7) No organization can be successful without the right leaders and brand stewards? What makes a good leader - what is their DNA? How do they connect with you and lead this cause of brand equity growth for A dozen cousins ?8) The last question on the cpgguys is always ‘fast forward’ - what's next for you and A dozen cousins ? How can our audience interact with the brand and taste it?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys co-hosts PVSB & Bryan Gildenberg are joined by Allume Group CEO and #Fresh4 co-host Andrea Leigh recording in Chicago at the Path to Purchase Institute Retail Media Summit 2023.Follow Andrea Leigh on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreakleigh/Follow Allume Group on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/allumegroup/Follow Allume Group online at: https://allumegroup.com/Follow the Path to Purchase Institute online at: http://p2pi.orgAndrea, Bryan & PVSB recap key themes that were discussed at this year's event.Thanks to P2PI for inviting us to speak in numerous sessions and providing us space to record several episodes of the podcast.CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of theCPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Sravanthi Muppidi, VP of Engineering at Albertsons Media Collective, the retail media division of Albertsons Companies.Follow Sravanthi Muppidi on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sravanthi-muppidi/Follow Albertsons Media Collective on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/albertsons-media-collective/ Follow Albertsons Media Collective online at: http://albertsonsmediacollective.com  Sravanthi answers these questions:1) The last 14 years of your career have been deeply rooted in supporting retailer capabilities. Would you start by sharing with us some of the pivotal roles you held where you developed skills that have prepared you for leading the engineering team at Albertsons Media Collective. 2) Let’s get into your role at Albertsons. Our first guest from Albertsons Media Collective was Evan Hovokra, the VP of Product & Innovation. Specifically, how does your team interact with Evan’s group in prioritizing, developing & delivering commercial ad tech solutions?3) Evan first introduced our audience to the concept of Albertsons Media Collective’s late-mover advantage in delivering a best-in-class suite of ad tech solutions. How have you gone about identifying what constitutes best in class? 4) Albertsons Media Collective has established quite a number of partnerships for off-site retail media solutions with companies like Pinterest, The Trade Desk and Citrus Ad. How exactly does your team make these integrations work? 5) Privacy is a major concern in the ever-expanding world of digital commerce. How does the concept of privacy impact your ability to deliver audience addressability solutions to brands? What types of processes do you put in place, particularly when it comes to clean rooms that enable brands to leverage your customer data to drive insights?6) Claire Wyatt has been a very strong advocate for robust performance measurement and marketing science underpinning your commercial offerings. How is your team involved in delivering the measurement components of ad tech?7) How does the ability for brands to create meaningful ad campaigns come to life in the work your team does?8) Would you share with our audience some of the key capabilities that your team is currently focused on for future enhancements to the ad tech solutions at Albertsons?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Scoop Website: http://CPGscoop.comNextUp Website: http://NextUpisnow.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.  CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.