Episodes

Omni Talk Retail is live from eTail West 2026 with coverage powered by NetElixir. In this interview, Anne Mezzenga speaks with Denise Incandela, EVP of Fashion at Walmart, about the ongoing transformation of Walmart Fashion. Over the past several years, Walmart has evolved from a basics driven apparel business into a modern, trend relevant fashion destination. Denise shares how the company has: Relaunched and elevated major private brands Introduced new brands like Free Assembly to fill key ...

Omni Talk Retail is live from eTail West 2026 with coverage powered by NetElixir. In this interview, Anne Mezzenga speaks with Kristin Shane, Chief Merchandising Officer at REI, about the company’s three year “Peak 28: Ascending Together” strategy and what it means for the future of specialty retail. Kristin shares how REI is putting the customer at the center through a differentiated service model powered by its Green Vests, a culturally leading assortment designed to inspire progression into...

Omni Talk Retail is live from eTail West 2026 with coverage powered by NetElixir. In this interview, Anne Mezzenga speaks with Udayan Bose, Founder and CEO of NetElixir, about how AI is shifting from theory to measurable business impact in performance marketing. A 19 year eTail veteran, Udayan shares how the conversation around AI has evolved from buzzword to accountability, with retailers now demanding tangible, quantifiable outcomes. The discussion breaks AI in marketing into two clear cate...

In this Retail Technology Spotlight Series episode from Omni Talk Retail, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga welcome back Grocery Dealz co-CEOs Matt Goynes and Micheal Waldroup to unpack the rapid national expansion of their real-time grocery price comparison app. Now live in 40 states, Grocery Dealz enables consumers to compare grocery prices across retailers in real time before they shop and even push their lists directly into Instacart for delivery. The conversation dives into how the platform ...

In this episode of Confessions of Supply Chain Executives, host Chris Walton sits down with Amir Khoshniyati, Vice President at Wiliot, to break down the five supply chain trends that will actually matter in 2026. Every January, supply chain executives make bold predictions. AI will transform everything. Automation will solve labor shortages. Real-time visibility will finally arrive. And by December, most of those predictions turn out to be wildly optimistic or completely off-target. But 2026 m...

This Lightning Round segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, closes out the show with rapid-fire takes on Fashion Week trends, 2016 nostalgia, Robert Duvall’s Mount Rushmore, and unexpected Olympic curling drama. From the cultural ripple effects of Fashion Week to the one thing our hosts would bring back from 2016, plus strong opinions on Robert Duvall and the intensity of Olympic curling, Chri...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, looks at independent convenience stores deploying AI-powered voice insights across 5,200 locations. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by Jenn Hahn, break down how real-time AI analytics are transforming store operations, workforce monitoring, and frontline decision-making. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #ConvenienceStore #RetailAI #VoiceAnalytic...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, examines American Eagle building its largest creator community yet through a rewards-based micro-influencer program. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Jenn Hahn, discuss how this move reflects shifting influencer economics and why smaller creators may deliver outsized engagement. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #AmericanEagle #MicroInfluencer ...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, dives into Target and Albertsons testing conversational advertising inside ChatGPT. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by Jenn Hahn, debate whether AI-driven conversations could become a scalable retail media platform or remain an experimental marketing play. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Target #Albertsons #ChatGPTAds #ConversationalCommerce #...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, explores Co-op launching a gender pay gap toolkit ahead of new UK regulations. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Jenn Hahn, discuss whether proactive compliance can become a competitive advantage and how transparency may reshape retail leadership strategy. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #GenderPayGap #RetailLeadership #Coop #RetailHR #Workfor...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, examines Converse employees being instructed to work from home ahead of anticipated layoffs as Nike continues its broader restructuring efforts. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by Jenn Hahn of J Recruiting Services, unpack what this signals about Nike’s long-term brand strategy, workforce management, and competitive positioning. ⏩ Tune in for the fu...

Retail’s future winners aren’t defined by hype. They are defined by where consumers actually go. In this Omni Talk Ask An Expert episode, hosts Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga sit down with Ethan Chernofsky, Chief Marketing Officer at Placer.ai, to break down the retailers, sectors, and strategies poised to shape 2026. Drawing from real-world foot traffic data and consumer behavior insights, Ethan shares which brands are gaining momentum, which are in turnaround mode, and how shifting expectatio...

In this 5 Insightful Minutes episode, Maia Josebachvili, Chief Revenue Officer of AI at Stripe, joins Omni Talk to break down what retailers are really saying about Agentic Commerce — and how the conversation has shifted dramatically in just six months. From fraud concerns to discoverability challenges, Maia explains how Stripe is helping merchants navigate the AI agent landscape with the tools they need to stay in control, stay competitive, and sell through AI agents without rebuilding their e...

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, guest host and resident talent expert Jenn Hahn, joined Chris and Anne to discuss: Converse employees being instructed to work from home ahead of layoffs and restructuring at the struggling Nike brand (Source) Co-op launching a gender pay gap toolkit ahead of new UK regulations (Source) Target and Albertsons testing conversational advertising inside Cha...

This Lightning Round segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, closes out the show with rapid-fire takes on luxury travel, Valentine’s Day spending, and one very unexpected McNugget caviar moment. From the continued boom in luxury hotels to billions in Valentine’s retail projections and the internet’s obsession with fast food meets fine dining, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by Shoptalk’s...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, explores Spotify’s partnership with Bookshop.org to sell physical books. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo, unpack why this move feels like a natural extension of Spotify’s ecosystem and what it means for omnichannel reading behavior. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Spotify #BookshopOrg #RetailStrategy #Omnichannel #Reta...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, breaks down Albertsons’ expansion of cart tracking technology to measure retail media effectiveness. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo, discuss whether dwell time truly correlates with incremental sales and what this signals for the evolution of in-store retail media. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Albertsons #RetailMed...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, explores Anthropic’s Super Bowl campaign pledging that Claude AI will remain ad-free. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo, debate whether ad-free AI is sustainable, what it means for monetization models, and how AI platforms may shape retail and commerce. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Anthropic #ClaudeAI #OpenAI #AIAdver...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, examines Target’s decision to cut 500 roles while increasing investment in frontline store staffing. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo, break down the labor math behind the move and debate whether this represents meaningful operational change or a strategic reset. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Target #RetailLabor #Stor...

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, explores Kroger’s appointment of former Walmart executive Greg Foran as CEO. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, alongside Shoptalk’s Joe Laszlo, unpack what this leadership change signals for Kroger’s competitive positioning, ecommerce ambitions, and long-term strategy against Walmart. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #Kroger #GregForan #GroceryIndustry #...

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, Shoptalk's Joe Laszlo joined Chris and Anne to discuss: Kroger's appointment of former Walmart executive Greg Forin as new CEO (Source) Target cutting 500 jobs while investing in frontline store staffing (Source) Anthropic's Super Bowl ad campaign pledging Claude AI will remain ad-free (Source) Albertsons expanding cart tracking technology to measure r...

In this Retail Technology Spotlight Series episode, Chris Walton sits down with Experion Technologies' Mahesh Vijayaraghavan (VP of Retail & Consumer Goods) and Siraj Alimohamed (Global Head of Data & AI) to cut through the AI hype. From platform-first strategies to the pilot fatigue epidemic, Mahesh and Siraj break down why AI is overhyped at the dashboard level but underappreciated where it matters most, i.e. in 6 a.m. inventory decisions and real-time store operations. Learn why building AI...

This Lightning Round segment of the OmniTalk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, closes out the show with rapid-fire takes on culture, fashion, and the lighter side of retail. From Ralph Lauren’s Olympic uniforms and Cracker Barrel’s employee dining rules to winter travel escapes and Kelly Clarkson nostalgia, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by A&M’s Ken Cochran and Jon Malankar, keep things moving with quick...

This OmniTalk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, looks at BJ’s Wholesale Club’s experiment with smaller-format stores. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, joined by A&M’s Ken Cochran and Jon Malankar, discuss whether clubs can win quick-trip shopping missions, who should be most concerned, and how this move could reshape regional grocery competition. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here. #BJsWholesale #ClubSto...