Episodes

In this Retail Technology Spotlight Series episode, Doron Hazan, Director of Data, Product, and AI at Wiliot, joins Omni Talk to discuss the concept of "physical AI" and how it ultimately improve retail operations from the ground up. From ambient IoT sensors to real-time inventory intelligence, Doron breaks down how battery-free Bluetooth pixels are creating self-aware supply chains, how retailers can start small and scale strategically, and why the future of retail operations is about connecti...

In this 5 Insightful Minutes episode, Ashley Hubka, Senior Vice President of Walmart Business, joins Chris and Anne to reveal how Walmart is shaping B2B e-commerce for businesses, nonprofits, and government entities. From discovering millions of organizational customers already shopping Walmart to building a dedicated B2B platform with business-specific tools, Ashley breaks down how Walmart Business saves organizations time, money, and hassle. Learn about unique features like business printing ...

Advent calendars are the hot holiday trend...from Skims to fishing lures to ice cream. Chris reveals his dream: 28 days of Nikes. Sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso. In this Lightning Round: • Are slop bowls officially dead as sandwiches stage a comeback? • The White House drops 120 pounds of gingerbread • And how Mariah Carey turned one song into $60M For the full episode head here #adventcalendar #nike #holidaytrends #specialtyretai...

Amazon is testing "Amazon Now," a new 30-minute delivery service in Seattle and Philadelphia, repurposing former Amazon Fresh sites into rapid delivery hubs. But is this innovation or desperation? This segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, analyzes Amazon's grocery struggles. Chris reveals the shocking stat: Despite owning Whole Foods and having Amazon's infrastructure, Amazon's grocery share is still only 4%. He sees this as a defe...

McKinsey and Business of Fashion report predicts smart glasses are set for a breakthrough year in 2026, with Ray-Ban Meta glasses already the top-selling product in 60% of EMEA stores. But Chris and Anne aren't buying it. This segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, questions the hype around smart eyewear. Anne argues that smart glasses are too visible and fashion-forward for mass adoption—unlike discrete smartwatches and rings. Chris...

Walmart is quietly testing a new ad format called "sponsored prompts" inside its Sparky AI shopping engine and both Chris and Anne agree this is exactly the right move. This segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, breaks down why retailer-owned AI is the smart play. According to Wall Street Journal reporting, Walmart's new ad format integrates sponsored content directly into Sparky conversations with click-to-buy options. Anne loves i...

ChatGPT just launched shopping research that does the product hunting for you, but should retailers be worried or relieved? This segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores the real implications of AI-powered shopping tools. Anne is bullish, arguing that AI shopping tools provide unprecedented price transparency and will change how consumers shop for everything from snacks to electronics. Chris pushes back hard: only 30% of searc...

Black Friday 2025 just hit $11.8 billion in online sales... up 9.1% from last year. But Chris questions whether AI's 805% traffic surge is actually impressive or concerningly slow compared to other tech adoption curves. This segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, dives deep into what the numbers really mean. Anne argues that 25% of purchases involving AI agents shows tremendous growth potential, especially since we can't even transac...

In this Fast Five episode, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga break down the biggest retail stories from Black Friday 2025, including record-breaking online sales, AI's growing influence on shopping, and what it all means for the future of retail. From ChatGPT's new shopping research tool to Walmart's bold move to monetize Sparky with ads, Chris and Anne debate where retailers should focus their AI investmen...

This Lightning Round segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, gets personal with the Omni Talk crew's Thanksgiving and Black Friday plans! Anne and producer Ella gang up on Chris's love of jarred gravy (spoiler: they're both anti-gravy). The team shares their Black Friday shopping strategies from Banana Republic to luxury consignment pop-ups. Plus, Anne weighs in on Bianca Censori's Kanye-fun...

This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, examines Bath & Body Works' decision to launch on Amazon early next year. With $60-80M in unauthorized gray market sales already happening, the company will test a curated assortment to control its brand and capture revenue. Anne argues LLM search makes marketplace presence essential for discovery and conversion. Chris believes Bath & Body Works s...

This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, celebrates Gap's 7% comparable sales surge after its viral "Better in Denim" campaign featuring KATSEYE. Anne praises Richard Dickson's entertainment-first approach for making Gap culturally relevant again with Gen Z and millennials. Chris remains cautiously optimistic, questioning whether flashy marketing alone can drive repeat purchases if the p...

This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, analyzes Kroger's decision to shut down three automated fulfillment centers with a staggering $2.6 billion write-off. The grocer is pivoting to in-store fulfillment and third-party delivery partnerships to improve digital profitability by $400M in 2026. Chris questions the scale of the initial investment error, while Anne explores how evolving cus...

This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores Target's bold move to enable shopping through ChatGPT just days before Black Friday. Anne sees it as a necessary first step into LLM-powered commerce and applauds Target for testing publicly. Chris calls it a "big nothing burger"... questioning why Target launched an incomplete beta feature during their busiest week, especially when their...

This segment from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, dives into Target's disastrous Q3 earnings. While Walmart, TJX, Ross, and Best Buy raised their outlooks, Target's four-year sales stack turned negative—meaning zero growth since 2021. Chris argues Target is the "real turkey" of earnings season, while Anne questions what anyone expected during a CEO transition and 1,800-person layoff. Is this rock...

For this month's Retail Tech Startup of the Month, AWS's Daniele Stroppa returns to spotlight SymphonyAI, a groundbreaking computer vision solution that's improving how retailers tackle the costly out-of-stock problem. SymphonyAI leverages existing in-store cameras to deliver something retailers have been missing: actionable, prioritized worklists that tell associates exactly what to fix first to maximize sales impact. No more drowning in dashboards, just clear direction that drives results. Da...

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, Chris and Anne discussed: A roundup of the latest retail earnings announcements Target enabling mobile app shopping within ChatGPT (Source) Kroger closing some of its automated fulfillment centers (Source) Gap's recent sales surge after viral 'Milkshake' denim ad with Katseye (Source) Bath & Body Works planning to launch on Amazon early next year (Source) A...

In this inaugural episode of Confessions of a Supply Chain Executive, host Chris Walton teams up with Richard Stewart (EVP of Product & Industry Strategy) and Eugene Amigud (Chief Innovation Officer) from Infios to conduct a forensic deep dive into retail's most persistent challenge: out-of-stocks. Despite billions spent on technology, the average retailer still faces an 8-10% out-of-stock rate. But here's the truth most won't admit: the problem isn't getting better. It's just getting different...

The lightning round brings holiday cheer and nostalgia to close this episode! Sponsored A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso. Chris reveals he'll use "Santa GPT" (ChatGPT for holiday shopping) to find gifts for his mom, though she already told him she wants a Brita water pitcher. Anne shares her family's Black Friday strategy: setting alarms for discounted ski passes rather than shopping for traditional items. Celebrating Dick Van Dyke's upcoming 100th birt...

Target and Starbucks have partnered to create an exclusive frozen peppermint hot chocolate available only at Starbucks cafes inside Target stores nationwide. This episode, Sponsored A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores why this seemingly small move could signal Target's merchandising mojo is returning. Chris loves this idea, calling it "smart merchandising that leverages a true differentiation point." Target Circle 360 members get 24-hour early acc...

Google is rolling out major AI shopping features including conversational search, agentic checkout, and an AI that calls stores for you. This episode, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, sparks a fascinating debate about the future of shopping search. Anne argues Google's comprehensive data ecosystem... from Gmail to Maps to Calendar, gives it an edge over ChatGPT and Perplexity. She believes Google could leapfrog competitors by leveraging...

Primark has introduced Buy Now Pay Later options through Klarna and Clearpay... marking a major milestone in BNPL's journey from innovation to mass adoption. This episode, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores what this means for retailers. Chris declares that BNPL has officially "crossed the chasm", seven years after it first emerged at Shop.org in 2018. When you can buy $4 shirts on installments, there's no turning back. Anne shar...

Grocery Dealz has integrated with Instacart to power same-day delivery directly from its price comparison app. This episode, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores why this partnership could be a game-changer for consumers. Anne and Chris rate this announcement an 8 out of 10, explaining how it justifies delivery fees by maximizing savings through price comparison. Imagine shopping at three different stores for the best deals without...

Doug McMillon is retiring as Walmart CEO, handing the reins to John Furner in February 2025. This episode, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, explores McMillon's incredible legacy... 400% stock gains, $576 billion in added market cap, and a cultural transformation that made Walmart a leader in retail innovation. Chris shares a personal story about meeting John Furner and why he believes Furner is the perfect successor. Anne highlights the...