What Just Happened

In this conversation on "What Just Happened," Christine Russo welcomes Benoit Koenig from Veesion, a company using AI to combat retail theft. Benoit discusses the urgent need to address the rising issue of retail shrinkage due to factors like inflation and increasing theft. He highlights the limitations of traditional security measures like security agents, cameras, and RFID tags, emphasizing that these methods haven't effectively curbed shrinkage. He distinguishes between shrinkage and organized retail crime, noting that Vision's AI technology focuses on gesture analysis using deep learning, specifically targeting shoplifting behaviors. Benoit explains that the technology can detect suspicious gestures associated with shoplifting and alerts store personnel in real time, enhancing the response to potential theft incidents. He also mentions their upcoming shift towards generative AI to further improve detection and generate training data more efficiently. The conversation delves into the practical implications of Vision's technology for retailers. Benoit explains that the AI system provides insights about sensitive areas, days, and times prone to shoplifting, helping retailers tailor their security measures and operational strategies. He shares examples of how their technology has already helped retailers reduce shrinkage by identifying internal theft as well as client theft. The discussion touches on the competitive landscape in AI for retail and the potential of generative AI to revolutionize data-driven decision-making by providing detailed insights into customer interactions with products in physical stores. Overall, the conversation highlights Vision's innovative approach to tackling retail theft and the transformative potential of AI in the retail industry.

In this conversation, Christine Russo interviews Andy Rubin, the executive chairman and founder of Trove, discussing the growth of the resale market and its impact on brands. Trove is a pioneering player in the resale space, helping brands create and manage their resale programs. Andy Rubin highlights that the resale market is gaining momentum, with more brands recognizing the value of retaining control over their secondary market and sustainability efforts. Andy emphasizes the importance of brands being involved in the resale of their products, especially those known for high-quality craftsmanship. Brands like Patagonia and Lululemon have successfully integrated resale into their strategies, reaping benefits in terms of customer loyalty, brand equity, and sustainability. Andy also discusses Trove's role in providing technology and tools for brands to manage their resale programs effectively. They talk about the challenges of grading and authenticating items, and how Trove's technology supports this process. Andy acknowledges the increasing competition in the resale space, highlighting the positive impact it has on the industry's growth and innovation. He mentions Trove's position as a forerunner in the industry, having gained a significant head start and considerable scale. Andy also addresses the shift in consumer behavior towards valuing pre-owned items, driven by the demand for sustainable and unique products. He talks about the evolution of branding through storytelling and customer experience in the resale market, providing brands with more opportunities to shape their narratives. Overall, the conversation explores the rapid growth and potential of the resale market, as well as Trove's role in supporting brands' efforts to navigate this evolving landscape and maintain control over their brand equity.

Paul Foulkes Arellano, Circularity Educator at Circuthon® Consulting - Non-Exec Director - Fundraiser for Bioeconomy Pioneers, is welcomed in this discussion. The conversation begins by acknowledging Paul's strong presence on LinkedIn and his unique approach to sustainability within the retail and fashion industry. Unlike many sustainability influencers who focus on specific aspects like packaging or manufacturing, Paul takes a holistic view, addressing various sustainability facets. He shares how his perspective was shaped by Dr. Chris Sherwin's teachings, emphasizing that every decision impacts nature, drawing parallels to fashion's impact on the environment. Paul critiques the fashion industry's weak defenses for unsustainable practices and calls for a scientific, data-driven approach to sustainability, involving experts and scientific officers within companies. Paul highlights the need for comprehensive change in the industry, urging businesses to integrate sustainability into their entire organization, from supply chain decisions to work policies. He cites financial institutions like EY and NatWest as examples of training their employees in sustainability, a practice absent in fashion. He stresses the importance of training and retraining people within the industry, signaling hope for change through new expertise. Paul's view on the future sees a transition toward more sustainable practices in the coming years, with businesses adopting transparent metrics and embracing circularity. The conversation then shifts to Paul's role as the founder of Circuit On, a consulting firm guiding billion-dollar companies in achieving circularity. He addresses opposition from industry associations like the British Retail Consortium to measures like extended producer responsibility. Paul also shares insights about emerging initiatives in fashion, like software to track garment lifecycles. The discussion ends on the importance of reshaping fashion education to incorporate sustainability from the start, both in universities and businesses. The interview concludes with gratitude for sharing these insights and fostering awareness on sustainable practices.

In this interview, Christine Russo speaks with Scott Case, the Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability at the National Retail Federation (NRF). They discuss the progress and challenges of sustainability in the retail industry. Scott acknowledges that while there has been significant progress, it is not happening fast enough. He highlights a generational shift in executive leadership, with new leaders recognizing the interconnectedness of sustainability issues and embracing organizational change to address them. The conversation delves into the complexity of sustainability challenges in retail, such as packaging, resource usage, oversupply, and materiality, among others. Scott emphasizes the need for collaboration and systemic thinking within retail organizations to integrate sustainability into their core operations. Instead of having separate sustainability departments, Scott advocates for embedding sustainability thinking in all aspects of the business, turning employees into sustainability contributors. He emphasizes that continual improvement and incorporating sustainability considerations are crucial for the future of retail.

Brian Hennessy, CEO of Talkoot, a process management system for retail and brand teams, discusses how AI has impacted Talkoot and the copywriting industry in general. He notes that while AI can be effective at repackaging existing language, it struggles to explain why consumers should buy trend-leading products and still requires human writers. Talkoot uses a specialized model based on high converting product copy and offers professional editing tools that allow customers to use AI while staying on brand. Additionally, the company offers a brand check tool that ensures content aligns with a brand's language. The article discusses the importance of regulatory and legal language in e-commerce and the need for brand language checkers to ensure that the language used is compliant with regulations and does not violate any platform policies. The article emphasizes the importance of building trust with customers through honest and transparent communication, and the need for brands to focus on delivering products that meet the needs of their customers rather than relying on loyalty programs or shortcuts. Hennessy notes that while some brands may not be ready to embrace this approach, it is becoming increasingly important for building lasting relationships with customers. He also discusses the importance of product storytelling and imagery in reducing customer confusion when shopping online. With the removal of many other frictions in e-commerce, companies are realizing the need to communicate correctly to build trust with their clients and create a long-term relationship that prevents returns. Brands are using AI to generate multiple versions of product descriptions to find the most effective wording, but the quality of the output tends to decline after three generations. Learn how the platform was developed to provide deep product stories using language that creates authority and trust. The tool is getting traction in the food and beverage industry, where changing content seasonally can increase sales, but using humans is too costly and time-consuming. AI can be used to change content quickly and rank higher in Amazon and Google search engines, ultimately driving traffic and sales. Companies can also use machine learning to adapt web content based on who is coming to their website.   www.talkoot.com

Deloitte believes that consumers and consumer companies are moving towards a more utopian future, despite the dystopian impacts that exist today. Consumers are demanding reliable, safe, convenient, sustainable, socially just, and personalized goods and services, and companies are responding by leveraging technology to build more powerful and relevant consumer connections while making commitments to a broader set of stakeholders. Together, they are "buying into better," which means fusing profit with purpose and addressing all of the things that are important, including impacts on the environment and society. Deloitte's approach to understanding the future of the consumer industry involved engaging individuals and having over a thousand conversations to identify the market shifts that will have consequences on businesses in the next five to ten years. Instead of taking a crystal ball approach, they focused on the next five to ten years and identified three primary business dimensions impacted by six forces with nine implications. Deloitte recognizes that human centricity is critically important, and that a lot of what's important to humans goes beyond the products and services provided. The impact that companies make on the environment and society is also important to consumers, who are looking to place their dollars where they can have an impact on change. The framework for thinking about the future across three business dimensions: markets, models, and mechanics has been developed. The six forces impacting markets, models, and mechanics are shifting and broadening consumer bases, diversifying life journeys, exponential technology and AI, everything-as-a-service climate change, and geopolitical turmoil. Models and mechanics serve the market by delivering the unique customer experience or the unique product. The three Msms have emerged as an easy way to engage client executives and identify opportunities. The implications of the three business dimensions, buried throughout the three dimensions, affect organizations. Mass-to-micro is an example of how the three Msms are related.   The report emphasizes the importance of organizations outsourcing parts of their business to increase efficiency and meet demand. It also highlights the need for long-term strategic plans as current business models may not work in the future. The six forces in the marketplace are rapidly changing and converging, creating new risks and opportunities for organizations. Digital goods and services are growing exponentially, and organizations must be mindful of these changes to take advantage of growth opportunities. The report suggests that organizations need to focus on the markets, models, and mechanics of their business to respond effectively to the changes in the marketplace. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJt2wp2C09Y&t=1s  

Lectra develops state-of-the-art solutions that combine software, equipment, services and data. Premium solutions and technologies for fashion, automotive & furniture markets worldwide.  Industry 4.0 - The 4th Revolution in Production. We also touch on near-shoring and on-shoring.  Lectra helps customers plan better so they're not producing. Product that won't sell and they have to destroy it or write it down.    Companies now are focused on not just a sustainable process, but producing a sustainable product to last. analyzing sales and understanding what the assortment is and making sure the right assortment is there and the pricing is in line with the competition.    Lectra helps clients and their sustainability ecosystem because clients are reducing material waste, reducing labor, and educing electrical footprint of production. Also, this allows for data to be passed with that value stream in an efficient way so there's less waste.

Listen to Micky Larosse - Head of Content the Fabricant who oversees and creates the Fabricant brand narrative and storytelling and the philosophy. -The Fabricant spirit and attitude has always been to be a disruptor, but a disruptor with intention. - Their mission is always been at the forefront when they were founded in 2018, nothing like has existed and everything they stood for and still stand for was swimming against the tide of the traditional fashion industry. Just declaring that garments didn't need to be physical to exist four years ago when this conversation wasn't being had by anyone was quite a radical position to take.¬¬¬ And we've always stood by what we believed in which is a big, rich perspective of what they believe in. This idea of building an industry that's more sustainable, more democratic more equitable for everybody that participates. And really elevating creators in this space to give them power and make it a creator led industry. And hear about Wholeland - A new multi chapter digital fashion storytelling project, which builds on this huge story, which is based around the idea of embracing your shadows to become whole. So really digging deep into who we are via digital fashion and exploring who we can be via the virtual space. According to Larosse: Wholeland is about "using the digital world in ways that probably we wouldn't use in the physical world. Maybe things that we'd be shy of talking about or exploring or expressing in the physical world where creating this environment through Wholeland, where you can really kind of dig deep into who you are, maybe look around in the, the darker corners of your personality and really bring those into the lights. It's a world building project."

Corporate Entrepreneur with passion for Innovation, Ecommerce, Supply chains & Emerging technologies! Nabil leads the Global Ecommerce strategy & product development at DHL Supply Chain and also as VP DHL’s Customer Solutions & Innovation where he had the chance to lead the development of innovative logistics projects to support fortune 500 companies working and developing multiple growth initiative related to new technologies & trends such as: E-commerce, digitalization, big data, drones, autonomous vehicles, automation & robotics. Nabil is specialized in the field of E-commerce & Logistics. Prior to his current position, he served as Director Latin America & Asia Pacific overseeing teams across the regions and around the world, developing customer commercial strategies to grow their business in the region.

Listen to CEO Donny Ouyang talk about Blackcart - the Try Before You Buy Saas solution. Try Before You Buy is an effective tool in the toolbox of ecomm enablement technologies to drive AOV and drive down CAC. It also serves as a sustainability solution to reduce returns. Learn more here.