A Macy's Comeback, A Kroger Reset & Better Pizza, Better Delivery At Walmart | Fast Five

Hello, I am Chris Walton, and welcome to this week's OMNITALK Retail Fast 5, brought to you exclusively by the Omnitalk retail podcast network.

J Recruiting's Josh Hahn joined me in this week's guest hosting spot as we recorded from my very, very, very, very, very tiny Paris hotel room across the street from NRF Europe's retail convention.

And this week's episode can best be summed up as better ingredients, better pizza, better delivery via Walmart.

So I got a hot take on this one.

I don't like this at all.

It's kind of solving a need that I don't know actually exists in the marketplace.

And I just think there's danger in Walmart trying to become kind of this everything app.

I think they're investing 90 plus million dollars.

Everybody's expanding into spaces that aren't their niche.

And I've been harder on Macy's than anybody.

Josh, like, you need to work to enable things that already want to.

I can get shapewear and a meatball hoagie in the same order.

I think delivery is like the airline business.

Bonjour, Josh.

Bonjour.

I actually studied a little bit to see if I could figure out some French before, but it's really hard to pronounce.

Did you.

That was terrible pronunciation.

I'm just gonna.

I'm gonna.

I'm gonna speak on behalf of all French people where I am in Paris.

That was.

That was awful.

I was curious, like, what is your history with the French language?

Have you ever been to Paris, number one?

Did you ever take any French in high school?

No, I've never been to France.

I've never been to Paris, obviously, but I would love to go there.

I love French food quite a bit.

Do you?

And they have good wine.

Anything that's made in a lot of red wine or braised in wine, I'm a big fan of.

And so, yeah, I know that's pretty prolific out there, which is something I would love to partake in.

My mom was a French teacher, so she studied.

She studied abroad and in.

In France when she was in high school and taught French for a few years, but I never learned any of it.

Your mother was a French teacher?

That's how you pronounce bonjour, huh?

Not that I'm doing it any great service either.

That's hilarious.

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

But so I take it you love.

I love.

You love cream and butter, too, in your food, in addition to anything cooked in red wine.

100%.

100%.

All right, well, so you may not be familiar with French food, but this is your, your second time with us at Omnito.

So remind us, remind our audience of who you are and what it is that you do.

Josh.

Yeah.

So my name is Josh Hahn.

I work for the J recruiting group or recruiting services.

I've been here, you know, just a few months now, but transitioned out of a long career in retail and now working on the human side of things.

And really most of the work I do is kind of behind the scenes of J recruiting.

A lot of technology, marketing and, and some of the financial stuff.

Right, right.

And so how are you feeling this time around?

Like you've got one under your belt with us, one Omnitalk fast five with us.

You got one under your belt?

Like, are you, did you do anything, I'm curious, did you do anything differently this time to prepare yourself?

Josh, be honest.

Okay, I'll be honest.

I probably prepared a little bit less this time.

Did you?

Okay.

Part of the reason why I'm still ready.

Honesty, I'm still ready.

But the part, yeah, part of the reason is my wife is at WGA right now in Minneapolis, so attending a conference and I'm single dadding it with three kids and a busy schedule.

So my time has been limited a little more so than normal.

Our Omnitalk listeners will respect that because sometimes you just got to do what you got to do, Josh.

100%, I, I, and I have no qualms about that whatsoever.

Plus, it's your second time.

You know your way around the ropes.

You shouldn't work out as much.

Right?

Yeah.

Right.

All right, Josh.

Well, this is that time of the month, whenever you all are on the show from the J recruiting services that we present our serious hardware where we hand out our Omnistar Award.

And our Omnistar award is the award we give out each month in partnership with Corso to recognize the top omnichannel operators out there.

Not the pundits, not the so called experts, but the real life retail operators making a difference in their organizations.

Corso's AI copilot coaches retail leaders to optimize store performance at every level.

And you can transform retail operations from data overload into data powered.

And this week, this week, I'm taking the honors in this month's award and I'm giving this month's award, this month's Omnistar Award to Meredith Klausner, the SVP of retail and services at Best Buy.

This award, Josh.

Josh.

It's a little personal for me because I worked with Meredith in the field back in my target days and we've stayed connected on LinkedIn and it has been fun, incredibly fun to watch her career progress now at Best Buy.

We are singling out Meredith today because she makes an impact on everyone with whom she comes in contact, which is readily apparent by the nearly, nearly.

Josh, this was crazy.

1,000 People that congratulated her on her recent promotion on LinkedIn.

That is incredible.

Meredith, thank you for being a mentor to me and to all those countless other people that you have touched and in their lives.

And cheers to you for being named this month's Omnistar.

All right, Josh, should we get to this week's topics, this week's headlines?

All right, this week's headlines are of course brought to you with the help and support of the A and M consumer and retail group Miracle Corso, Ocampo Capital VAC and RNS Logistics, and this week's Fast 5.

We've got news on Macy's posting strong results and raising guidance as its turnaround takes hold.

Amazon turning Prime Video into a full blown shoppable experience.

Skims teaming up with DoorDash for on demand same day delivery.

And close with a discussion around Kroger trimming its full year sales outlook.

Josh, I can't wait to talk to you about that given that you are much more in Kroger territory than I am.

But we begin today with Walmart's latest delivery land grab as it teams up with Papa John's.

Headline number one is of course brought to you with the help and support of the A and M Consumer and Retail Group.

The A and M Consumer and Retail Group is a management consulting firm that tackles the most complex challenges and advances its clients, people and communities toward their maximum potential.

CRG brings the experienced tools and operator like pragmatism to help retailers and consumer products companies be on the right side of disruption.

Here we go.

Number one, Walmart added Papa John's to Walmart Express Delivery, making it the first national restaurant brand fulfilled entirely from locations outside of Walmart stores.

According to chain Storage, Papa John's orders will be built directly into the Walmart app's Dedicated Restaurants tab.

There's a dedicated restaurants tab and customers can bundle pizza, wings, sandwiches, sides and desserts.

My four favorite food groups or.

Yeah, no, four, Nope.

Five favorite food groups.

Josh.

With groceries and household essentials in the same Walmart order or order Papa John's all on its own.

The move follows Walmart's June 2026 launch of Subway delivery in select markets and its early September partnership with Inspire brands to deliver from 150 in store Dunkin locations with plans to expand to the majority of Dunkin's roughly 10,000 locations outside Walmart stores very soon.

Papa John's delivery begins rolling out in select markets this fall with plans to scale to thousands of participating locations nationwide.

Josh, this is also the A and M Put yout on the Spot Question of the Week.

We are starting out strong.

They're the sponsor of this headline.

They're doing the Put yout on the Spot question of the week just for you to start off the week.

Josh.

So their question is what are the executives at DoorDash or Uber Eats likely thinking and planning right now after seeing this move from Walmart?

I love it.

So I got a hot take on this one.

I think they're saying, yeah, I think they're saying bring it.

Are you.

Oh, wow.

Oh wow.

I don't like this at all, I'll be honest.

So I don't.

Wow.

I applaud Walmart.

Oh my God.

For testing and learning, right.

I'm, I'm all for that.

Like you have to go try things, you have to fail in order to innovate, right?

But sometimes I think you can innovate yourself right into, right out of relevance and really buy.

And I think, I think the reason I say that is because I think they're solving problems that consumers never ask them to solve.

Right.

It just, it just feels to me like a strange place for Walmart to compete from my perspective.

And again, I'm, I'm an audience of one, but I think about DoorDash, I think about DoorDash, I Think about Uber Eats and Grubhub.

You know, they've spent years building out, most importantly, I would say consumer behaviors, right.

Which are the hardest things to change.

But they have driver networks, they have routing technology, they have relationships with these restaurants.

And I just think there's danger in Walmart trying to become kind of this everything app versus the preferred app for what they're great at.

And so I think the other thing is that these are going to have to all become 30 minute deliveries, right?

You're talking about hot pizza here.

And that adds cost, it adds labor, it adds delivery costs, it adds customer service issues that cost money.

They're going to have to invest in tech, they're going to have to do all these things and they're going to have to promote it, which are more costs.

Right.

And, and so I don't see it adding a lot of new customers, which I think is the challenge.

I think It's a great perk for their existing customers, people that are in the app, using it all the time.

But, you know, I had this amazing moment with a consultant years ago in my career.

Okay.

And they made this, they made this comment that they said, you need to work to enable things that already want to happen.

And so I've carried that with me my whole life where instead of trying to create new behaviors.

And so I've always been a fan of that, and I just don't, I don't think it's a great move.

Wow.

Okay, Josh, you're coming in so strong on this one.

This is fantastic.

So you don't, you don't, you don't subscribe to the.

Your margin is my opportunity here, which is basically what Walmart's doing here, which is an Amazon slogan and saying.

But that's essentially what Walmart's doing here.

So you're not, you're not subscribing to that with, in this case, for Walmart?

Not really.

I'll give you an analogy.

Okay, this is like, this is a weird one, but have you ever had like a recipe on the side of like, like a carton of beef broth or like a can of soup?

Yeah, for sure.

Okay, so it's, have you ever used one of those recipes?

Never.

Okay, so.

But why?

Because it's so convenient.

It's right there in front of you.

It's on the carton.

But the reality is there's a better way.

And so like cookbooks and recipe sites and all these things that consumers have, like, grown to adopt.

You're trying to change that behavior by saying, hey, now, order your pizza through Walmart.

Which I, you know, and I think again, I applaud them for trying and I applaud them for trying to, you know, for being innovative and going into the space and testing it out.

But I don't think long term, you're going to shift enough behavior for it to be, like, really profitable.

Okay.

Wow.

Wow.

I don't, I. Jesus, I don't even know where to start.

Okay, let's have this discussion.

Okay, so that's, that's interesting to me.

And I'm trying to keep an open mind too.

Like, that's interesting to me because, like, I've talked about on this show, probably even when you were last on too, because Walmart comes up, it seems like every week.

But I talked about how Walmart is becoming my default go to for the quick delivery.

Like, if I need something quick, I'm going to Walmart.

The only Place I'm not going to it for is restaurant delivery.

So to me, especially with the Dunkin announcement and now with Papa John's, like this thing had me at pepperoni.

Like, I'm like, I'm like ready to try it out and if it works, then I think I'm gonna love it and I'm gonna try it again.

Which does bring more people into the.

What Might not bring more people into the app, but it brings more people into the app more often.

Right, that's, that's the key thing here.

And the whole play here is to ameliorate the cost of quick delivery in general for Walmart.

So I don't, Yeah, I think it's.

Good for Papa John's, I think it's good for Papa John's.

And, and to be fair, like I'm not an everyday Walmart shopper, I don't use the app that often.

I can tell you, like when I go to their website, which I'll, which I'll try every now and then just to check it out, there's a lot there.

And so like I as a consumer prefer simple experiences.

Right.

And I'm kind of, I think I'm just archaic or something and I'm like, no, I want it simple.

I want to have my go to's.

Whether it's, you know, food or whether it's grocery delivery or whatever it is.

When you start mixing them all together, it becomes really complex to navigate, I guess.

And then I'm sure it's complex on their end to just which, which, you know, if anybody can figure out, they can, but it seems a little too complicated for me as a consumer.

Yeah.

Did you know there was a restaurant tab?

I didn't know that.

I haven't had a chance to try it out yet because I've been in Paris all week.

But I didn't know that either.

And like, I'm curious to see how that works.

Yeah, there's not one on the, on the website that I could find, but it might be because of my location, but I didn't look at the app yet, but that was, I mean that'll make it easier for sure.

So I think it's all about the experience.

If they make it easy, you know, if they do a good job on the fulfillment side and they can manage the costs that are going to be required because it's all going to be 30 minute delivery, then more power to them.

Okay, so last question then because you know, I've been talking about this a lot on this show over the past probably year, year and a half, you know, kind of the.

I don't even know if this is the right word to use or phraseology to use, but like the Venn diagram of the Walmart Supercenter, the QSRs in said Walmart strip center and drone delivery.

So, like, you know, if Walmart can light that up and get all of these various QSR partners that are inside those strip malls into this arena over the next five to 10 years, does that make you like this move any more or less?

Yeah, it makes me like it more.

I think it does.

Okay, interesting.

Why?

Because I do think that their stores and their locations give them an advantage because they're so dense and know throughout the US and so I think that gives them an advantage.

But if the Papa John's, I, I mean, I'm sure they're doing it very strategically, but if this thing's like way down the road and it's not next door, it's a little harder to, to manage the delivery time, the fulfillment side of it.

I don't know.

But I do think, yeah, if they can.

When you think about strip malls and you have them close from a geographic, you know, location standpoint, I think it's good.

I think that that will help tremendously.

So does that then, does that then change your response to A and M consumer and retail group's question of like, you know, if I'm Door dash or what do they say?

Doordash or, or Uber Eats?

Like, am, Am I still, like, are you still sitting on the perch of, yeah, bring it?

Or are you like, hey, we gotta figure this out.

We gotta, we gotta, we gotta, we gotta stop this before it happens.

I don't know.

I mean, you can already order a Papa John's Pizza through DoorDash, right?

Or Uber or Uber Eats.

And so you can't.

It's like they're already there.

And so in my mind it's like that you have to have a really compelling reason to go to Walmart instead of, you know, doordash, which you might use every day for more than just pizza.

And so I think it's, it's differentiating that experience.

And that's why I think it's so good for the everyday Walmart shopper, the really loyal ones.

I can see that being a benefit, but I don't think it's going to, like, gain new customers because they now have pizza in their app, I guess.

Yeah, that's really.

Yeah, you've got me, you've got me thinking my take, Josh which is why I love doing this show because like, you know, you got to say, like, okay, can Walmart do this better than DoorDash?

Because DoorDash does a pretty darn good job and we're going to cover them later in the show as well.

And I've been a big proponent of the Dash Dash pass too in the past.

So.

Yeah.

Wow.

You got.

All right, Josh.

Wow.

All right.

I'm going to see if you can keep.

This is great.

All right.

Headline number two, Josh, let's keep rolling.

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Headline two number two, Macy's posted its fifth straight quarter of comparable sales growth and raised its full year guidance.

As CEO Tony Spring says the retailer is now quote, eight different Macy's, which is operating from a healthier position.

According to CNBC, Macy's fiscal second quarter comparable sales rose 2.7% company wide, well ahead of Wall Street's estimate of roughly 0.8% growth.

Growth was driven in large part by Macy's reimagined stores, the revamped locations central to its turnaround strategy.

While Bloomingdale's comparable sales jumped 11.3% and beauty chain Blue Mercury rose 6.2%.

Josh?

Oh man, I have no idea what you're going to say to me on this one.

Is it time to plant the victory flag at Macy's and bow down in homage to Tony Spring, or do you think there's still more work to do?

I don't think there it's time for victory parade yet.

I think the flag is within reach or they can see the flag, right?

So maybe over the river and through the woods they see a flag over there, but it's probably still packed away.

I think Tony Spring, he deserves credit for creating momentum, obviously, and putting the customer back at the center of Macy's strategy, which I think is really important.

But one of the things I read, you know, they're, they're remodeling a lot of stores and closing some of the underperforming stores, which, you know, that it's kind of a short term, you know, focus and strategy, but that comes at a high price.

And what I believe I read was that a lot of those investments are being made from the tariff refunds that they received Right.

So they received 90, I think they're investing 90 plus million dollars out of those tariff refunds, which feels like a little bit of a, a one time benefit versus like this long term operational strategy and brand improvement strategy.

So yeah, I mean I think ultimately they're going to have to ask the, or answer the question which is what is the compelling reason to choose Macy's over their competitors?

And so in retail, as you know better than anybody, right, one strong quarter or a strong year even doesn't erase like years of challenges.

And so I think, you know, the real test is, is can, you know, can Macy's turn it into kind of sustained, profitable growth across the entire fleet?

And one of the things I noticed too was, I know like Bloomingdale's and, and Blue Mercury, right?

Really, really strong quarters and really strong performance.

But I don't think the core Macy's stores have been nearly as strong.

And so I think if, if, if they want to have long term success, I think they have to figure out the core Macy's brand and really drive that.

I, I think I fundamentally agree with you on this point.

You know, I think like, you know, I think number one, and I've been harder on Macy's than anybody, Josh, like you know, pretty, pretty pointed at times, quite frankly.

And I gotta give credit where credit is due.

I mean five, five straight quarters of comp growth is saying something because you're actually anniversary yourself.

I mean you've been in retail a long time and that, that is the tell point when you're like, okay, you know, you're doing something at least better than you were doing before.

It shows how good your good is when you can comp your comp, so to speak.

So it's definitely nothing to sneeze at.

But Josh, to your point, and I don't know when the last time you were in Macy's was, but I went in there this past weekend and because I was kind of like, okay, you know, what's in the water?

Like should I be drinking this Kool Aid?

You know, like.

And I went in there and I was kind of like, I don't get it.

Like I left confused.

I was uninspired.

I wanted to buy stuff and I didn't get, you know, hooked to buy anything.

So I don't know.

I just.

In general, there's still some skepticism from me in terms of how much the dissolution of other competitors is still having on the numbers, particularly in the department store space.

But with that said, the one caveat I would make to my Argument is, I think Tony Spring likely gets that.

He understands the rub, so to speak, and is following his plan very methodically.

And the great news is that the wound, you know, to put it in my terms, the wound has been cauterized and at least the bleeding has stopped, which is saying something that I. I, for one, and I'll.

I'll call it like it is, I never thought that we were going to see that even.

And so that is a remarkable achievement in and of itself, especially as you look back at the history of my commentary on this show.

So that's my take, Josh.

But, you know, you know, maybe, hopefully, you know, for the sake of Macy's, they can all prove us wrong.

Yeah, Yeah, I was.

I've been a Macy shopper.

I've had a Macy's credit card before in the past, but every time, I've had it multiple times.

And then I've closed the credit card and I'm like, I'm just not coming back.

You know what I mean?

And so, like you said, there's no, like, differentiation that I've experienced.

Now, to be fair, I haven't been there in probably the last year, but I would have to experience something new next time I go to a Macy's or I Visit, you know, Macy's.com to be like, oh, you know what, they've changed.

Right?

You gotta.

You gotta.

You wanna feel something palpably different.

Yeah, I wasn't seeing that.

Now the question becomes, like, you know, do you.

For.

For good retailing, do you need to see something palpably different, or do you just need to.

Palpably different, if that's what I'm trying to say?

Or do you just need to be, like, better at what you do every single day?

And that's probably where the jury's still out.

I don't think either one of us know the answer to that question yet, do we, Josh?

I don't think so.

Yeah.

All right, well.

All right, well, kudos to Tony Spring, though, for doing a heck of a job for the first five quarters or the last five quarters of his tenure.

All right, headline number three.

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Headline number three.

Amazon has expanded the shopping features built into Prime Video, growing its shop the show tool from roughly 1300 titles to more than 8000 and adding new visual search and in app shopping capabilities.

According to Chainstorage Shop, the show lets viewers search for and buy products related to what they're watching.

Producer Ella probably loves this.

From movies and shows to live sports like nascar directly through the Amazon Shopping app without on screen interruptions or extra logins.

Amazon also added a Shop tab inside Prime Video's X ray feature and launched Shop the Scene, which uses the Amazon lens tool to let shoppers snap photos from their camera roll to find products like on screen outfits or home decor.

Jesus, I'm already lost.

Customers can trigger the experience by pressing up on their remote.

Oh my God.

Scanning an on screen QR code or searching Shop to show in the Amazon app with automatic syncing when devices are signed into the same account.

Amazon Prime Video VP of Shopping Michelle Rothman said the company has seen, quote, incredible enthusiasm, end quote, from customers discovering products inspired by what they watch.

Josh, do you share Amazon's purported incredible enthusiasm for its new Shop the Show technology enhancements?

I think this is potentially a good move from a business standpoint.

Okay.

I don't love it from a viewer standpoint.

Like I'm there for the entertainment.

I don't really want to get that interrupted too much.

But so my comments, I guess, and my like for this idea assumes like this frictionless and easy experience and I do not know what the experience is actually going to be like.

So just know that that's what I'm assuming here.

So with that said, I would say, you know, the biggest opportunity I see for Amazon's sake here is not necessarily more product sales, but retail media.

And so I think, you know, as Amazon, you know, creates this content, they can, they can offer sponsored products featured in the content.

They could target consumer, you know, specific customer audiences, they can measure closed loop, you know, from an investing standpoint.

So I think it's really smart on that side of thing, that side of things.

But again, that's assuming the viewing experience is not compromised.

If they screw that up, I think they're going to have a different problem on their hands because if people start walking away from Prime Video, they have a different advertising, you know, revenue problem to solve.

And so that's kind of my take on it.

I think it's cool.

But yeah, as long as it doesn't mess with that viewing experience.

That's a really interesting point.

Yeah, I mean that's, that's where I am not the person for this.

Like, that's me, like, you know, To a T. Like, if I'm watching something on prime video, like a video, I'm locked in on that video because I'm a big movie, like a movie fan, Like, I just love movies.

The last thing I want to do, or shows even, like, the last thing I want to do is be, like, consuming product in the moment where it takes me out of that experience.

So, yeah, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm.

I'm not sharing the incredible enthusiasm on this, but I'm just, you know, a sample size of 1.

But I do feel like this is a little bit of an outgrowth of the move towards live shopping and Amazon not being able to make a definitive inroad on that in relation to its competitors and trying to do this as a way to kind of gin up that same excitement or enthusiasm with its best step forward that it can do in a way that kind of seems Amazonish.

But to your point, it's, it's, it's going back to your question, you know, or not your question, but your point at the outset with the first headline with Walmart, it's kind of solving a need that, I don't know, actually exists in the marketplace.

Do you agree with that, Josh?

I do agree.

I think, like, the marketing geek in me thinks it's, it's really cool.

And, and this is why.

So when you think about, like, the traditional marketing funnel, right, you have.

Yeah, right.

Awareness, and then you have consideration and doing research and figuring out if you want to buy something, then you have conversion, right?

And so it's like, the cool thing about this is they're taking the whole funnel and putting it in one ecosystem.

So it's like they're driving awareness, they're driving consideration, and they're converting all in one spot.

And so it's kind of disrupting, like this traditional marketing funnel where you're like, oh, I saw it on tv and then I research online, I went to the store and bought it.

And so that part is kind of cool, but I don't like it.

Like, personally, I don't want to.

I don't want my, my, you know, entertainment interrupted with advertising.

Probably because I've done marketing and advertising for a long time, but, but I'm like, you're jaded.

Jaded, right, Right.

Yeah, I know.

You know, like, I think, like, you know, like, I don't know why this is a show that always comes up to me when I talk about this topic, but, like, you know, like Friends, like, you know, if the Friends episode was being you know, streamed through Amazon.

I could see what they were wearing or what products they're drinking or, you know, having fun with.

Like, yeah, there's probably a lot of people that that would appeal to.

So that's why, like.

Yeah.

I just don't know which way I come down on this, but, but I don't, I don't think it's, I don't think it should be as hyped as we're as, as the Amazon executive was trying to make it.

I agree.

You agree?

All right.

All right, Cool.

All right.

Headline number four.

Headline number four is brought to you by Ocampo Capital.

Ocampo Capital is a venture capital firm founded by retail executives with the aim of helping early stage consumer businesses succeed through investment and operational support.

You can learn more@ocampo capital.com headline number four.

Skims.

Skims has partnered with DoorDash for its first ever on demand delivery offering, making more than 23,000 styles.

23,000 Styles from its US stores available for delivery in under an hour on average, according to a DoorDash press release.

Skims is available on the platform from 17 stores across 11 states and Washington, D.C. with nine additional stores coming soon.

And DoorDash is Skims first on demand delivery partner.

Skims is the first brand on DoorDash to offer a full range spanning undergarments, everyday clothing and outerwear.

Its complete wardrobe approach, its quote.

Complete wardrobe approach.

Excuse me for missing the quote.

Rather than a narrower category, Josh does.

On demand delivery via DoorDash.

Do you think it helps or hurts a brand whose whole appeal like Skims has been built on exclusivity?

I'm noticing a theme today, by the way.

Chris.

I know, right?

Yes, there's a theme going on here.

So anyway, I don't think it hurts them at all.

No.

I think DoorDash wants to expand more into general merchandise.

Right.

Most of their, their business today is obviously in the food, food area and Skims wants more distribution channels.

So overall, I think it's fine for both of them.

Like, I don't think it's going to damage either one of them.

I think the question is, is less about kind of the brand impact and more about the potential upside, which in my mind is pretty limited.

It just seems like such a specific occasion based purchase.

Right.

So for me, when I think about DoorDash, I would ask two questions.

It's like, how often do I need it and how quickly do I need it?

And to me, this doesn't necessarily meet that criteria.

I mean, I, I don't just on a whim, say, oh, I need some underwear, or I need a, you know, pair of shorts in, like, 30 minutes.

It just doesn't happen that often.

And so I think that's.

Yeah, exactly.

Exactly.

Right.

I think.

Yeah.

I think the consumer has to be like, oh, yeah, you know, in the moment, I can get skims on doordash.

And that has to be kind of ingrained in people's mind in order for it to be successful long term.

But for me, yeah, I would focus more if I have doordash.

I'm focused more on, you know, consumables in the GM space.

Like, if you run out of toilet paper, that's an emergency, right?

Yeah.

But when you need a new pair of shorts, it feels like less of emergency, I guess.

I guess.

Unless you don't have any toilet paper, then maybe it becomes more of an emergency.

But, yeah, I think.

I think it's a win for the brands.

I don't know if it's a win necessarily for the customers.

So I'm curious.

So first of all, what.

What is the theme you're seeing?

Because I want to come back to that statement.

What is the theme you're seeing so far, today's show?

Well, everybody's expanding into spaces that aren't their niche.

Right, right.

Okay.

That's what you're seeing is the thing.

That's what I'm seeing.

And it's kind of happening across the board today.

When you think about some of the headlines and that, I don't know, like, me personally, I don't like that, but I might just be, you know, a crotchety old man that's like, yeah, please stop changing things, you know, your Gran.

Torino, get off my lawn.

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

I think maybe that's what's happening.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And that movie was filmed in Michigan, too, if I'm not mistaken.

But, yeah, no, I mean, that's funny.

I'm glad I asked you that, because, like, for me, the theme was really just the continued move towards quick delivery.

But I think you've taken it up a level which is really, really smart.

And it's an interesting way to think about it.

Interesting lens through which to evaluate all the topics we've discussed on the show.

So my next question for you is, do you think.

Do you think this is a bigger win for Skims or for Door Dash that this partnership is happening?

I think it's a bigger win for Door Dash just because.

Yeah, because I think that, you know, they have been more exclusive, I think, in the past in terms of what, you know, where they're selling.

And so I think it's a win for Doordash.

Gives them some brand notoriety.

But I think, like, ultimately, I think Doordash can do a lot more general merchandise really well, outside of, like, what.

Outside of apparel, I guess.

Yeah, yeah.

It's.

In a lot of ways, it's a great marketing move for Doordash to signal, hey, we've got more than just restaurants, basically.

Right?

Restaurants are quick delivery, traditional quick delivery items.

Like you were saying.

I mean, like, this was probably my favorite headline of the week to talk about.

Like, when I saw this announcement, I was.

I was actually stunned.

I couldn't believe that this partnership was happen or.

Sorry.

That this partnership happened.

Because for me, like.

Like, I can now get.

If you stop and think about it, you just step back, Josh, like, to your point about, like, the themes of the show, I can get shapewear and a meatball hoagie in the same order, essentially.

Like, I could order one and double dash the other.

That's just.

That's just crazy to me.

And so, like, the fact that Doordash is here in this position to be able to even be able to sell skims, which, you know, has the Kardashians all over it, tells you something about where Doordash is trying to go with this.

And I've said it for a while on this show, too, that the Dash pass is one of the more compelling subscriptions that I own, at least until Walmart copies them.

Which is going back to our first headline, Josh.

Right.

Like, you know, maybe that's the play there too.

But so, you know, going back to the question that I asked you as well, like, does it hurt skims to do this?

So, like, Doordash, I think you and I both agree, big coup for them.

Right.

Does it hurt Skims, though?

I don't think it does because.

Yeah, go ahead.

No.

What do you think?

I. I don't think it does either.

I think it's.

It's hard to know.

Like, I. I would need to look at, like, brand equity study at Skims to know, like, how people feel and think about the brand and everything else and who the people are that are buying.

So it's hard to answer that question, but it feels fine.

Like, it doesn't.

Like, it doesn't seem out of place, I guess, to me.

Because they're both so wild.

Yeah, because I know it is wild, but Doordash is a big company, and so they're doing a lot of good things.

And so I Could see, you know, why the partnership could work.

I did notice it was only like 17 stores or something that they're going to be able to fill out of out of the gate.

So it's a small.

It's more of a test, I guess, than anything.

But, yeah, I still think it's cool.

They don't have that many stores, too.

Yeah.

This story is really interesting Me too, as I'm listening to talk, because it shows how much of our mind, how much our minds have changed or shifted in terms of how we think about prestige and exclusivity.

Because the.

The reason I don't think Skims has anything to fear is, as I've said oftentimes on this show too, is I think delivery at the end of the day is like the airline.

I'm curious your take on this, Josh.

I think delivery is like the airline business.

We don't care how our packages get to our doorstep, as long as they get to us reliably with confidence.

And we will always choose the cheapest option when we're buying airline tickets as long as those certain thresholds are met.

And DoorDash has shown that they can do that every day.

Every day at a tremendous scale.

And so the average person doesn't care.

I mean.

Yeah.

I mean, do you.

I don't care, Josh.

You care if your underwear is delivered by FedEx, UPS, or even Carrier pigeon?

As long as it gets you on time?

Yeah, I could care less.

I think that's a great.

That's such a good point, Chris.

Because it's like those brands protect the way their brand is viewed or presented in stores.

Right.

Or online.

They aren't protecting how their brand is delivered.

Like, Right.

You know, and.

And like DoorDash seems fine.

Like you said, FedEx doesn't matter.

UPS, I don't care.

Like, the.

The box is different colors, but it's the same thing.

So.

Yeah, I agree.

Right.

Unless you.

Yeah.

Unless you're putting on white gloves to deliver it to my house.

Like, you know, like, who cares?

Like, so that's.

That's the thing, I think that's what's so fascinating about this announcement to me is I think we finally arrived where that thesis has been validated, that, you know, delivery, delivery's a dime a dozen, and you just gotta get it to the people.

And so it's about just getting your.

This is omnichannel retailing.

It's about getting your product in position in such a way where it's accessible by the people that want to access it.

And there may be some of those people on DoorDash, there may be some of those people on another marketplace.

And that's what it's all about.

And so yeah, we'll see where skims goes next.

Like do they start looking at Amazon as a partnership or Instacart?

You know, who knows?

But yeah, it's really interesting to me.

All right, Josh, great show this week.

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Kroger cut its full year Same store sales outlook now expecting identical sales excluding fuel to grow just 0.2% to 0.8% which is down from a prior forecast of 1% to 2% growth according to Supermarket News.

The reduced outlook includes an estimated negative 140 basis point hit from lower pharmacy pricing tied to the Inflation Reduction Act.

And CEO Greg Foran said a cyclospora outbreak tied to recalled leaf lettuce cost the company roughly 35 basis points of total comps in the back half of the quarter.

Not all the news was soft and I use air quotes intentionally there, Josh.

E Commerce sales grew 20% with the second straight quarter of profitable E Commerce growth.

And retail media revenue was up 24%, its best quarter since 2021.

Josh, what does Kroger cutting its sales outlook say about the state of traditional grocery when the bright spots are the businesses layered on top of the core store sales performance?

I'm not hitting the panic button yet, but I would say talk to me again next year at this time.

Greg Ferrand continues to share that they're investing in price, both price transparency and also just reducing prices more promotions for customers.

Right.

So I think if they deliver on on this, I think it's going to be fine.

And you know, value right now is such an important strategy that you know, overall value perception is something that is not going to change overnight.

So I know he's been in seat for a little bit of time but I think it's just something that takes a while to change and in today's economic environment like out the door, costs matter so much, especially with the cost of fuel and what's happening there.

I did see they mentioned in the earnings call that they're keeping profit targets the Same, despite the lower sales outlook.

Right.

So I think they're banking on a few different things.

I think they're banking on, like you mentioned, some of the businesses that are performing better, you know, the digital growth.

I think they're cutting some costs and creating some cost efficiencies.

I did see they revamped their, their loyalty program to be able to, or their fuel points program to be able to allow people to cut dollars off their grocery bill as well if they want, rather than just fuel.

And so I think, you know, longer term their price competitiveness is going to be hopefully.

I think they're banking on it creating more trims.

Right.

And earning more customers back.

And I, I, you know, I, I can't emphasize value enough and how important it is right now.

If you look at like the Aldi's of the world, the dollar generals of the world and the dollar trees, like these retailers are expanding so fast.

They're building hundreds of stores across the US this year.

And so brick and mortar, I guess traditional grocery, at least in that sense, is still working.

But as retailers, you have to give the wallet some love right now or you're going to have a harder time than those retailers that are.

Yeah.

God, Josh, there's so much there that we have to unpack on the show.

Okay, so let's talk about the pricing side of this first.

I'm a little worried that they're entering a battle they can't win because you're going against price on Walmart, Aldi.

Amazon even plays in that realm.

So it's going to be really hard for you to compete in the long term on the margin structure that Kroger has traditionally operated on.

But the thing that I stop and think about when I say that is I don't know that they have any other choice because the other impact here is the coming of agent E Commerce and the more widely visible price transparency that I've hypothesized or theorized is coming to the marketplace anyway.

So you kind of have to go in this direction.

To your point, the second thing that has me a little unnerved by this announcement is the digital performance.

On both fronts.

The digital performance sounds strong, but it's really not.

When you look at the brick meets glass click data, which has become my bible on this show whenever it gets reported.

It's actually not keeping pace with the Joneses.

And, and that's important for a couple of reasons, for a number of factors.

One, like Walmart and Amazon are crushing it based again on quick delivery, which has Been another theme of this show so far.

And then the fact that, you know, online delivery is just more convenient and again, it's more price transparent.

So yes, I think net.

Net.

I think Kroger investing in price probably a good decision even though you're going right into the lion's den.

But the part that I'm worried about too is the retail media number because Josh, you've got more experience here than I do.

What do you think of the disconnect between growing retail media to such an extent when your store sales are lagging behind?

Is that a win or is it actually a pyrrhic victory at the end of the day?

Like, I don't, I don't know that that's something to write home about because it doesn't tell me that the in store experience is aligned to what your customers really want and your potentially eyes are on another prize.

Yeah, I think, you know, retail media is, it's becoming less sexy.

I mean, obviously everybody's still doing it right than it was a few years ago because the expectation is performance more than there's ever been, especially when, and it's very hard to get the closed loop measurement when you're talking about investing online in retail media and understanding what's happening in the stores.

And to your point, like if sales are struggling in the stores and those, Those manufacturers and CPGs aren't seeing the return on the retail media investment, like they're going to invest less and they're going to go invest with Walmart or somebody else that's, that's showing better results.

And so I think you're exactly right.

Like they can't bank on retail media if the sales aren't coming in store or online.

And so it's, yeah, I mean it's, it's a challenging time right now, I would say for traditional grocers.

Right.

There's no question about that.

And the solution, you know, a lot of it is leaning into value right now.

But that could change.

Like if prices come down, if, you know, inflation slows, if fuel prices come down, then maybe Kroger seems more appealing again or another one of these groceries, you know, that aren't really value or everyday low price focus becomes more appealing again.

But then you, you can't lose too many customers in times like this because if they're having a great experience somewhere else, it's that much harder to bring them back.

Yeah.

The other exacerbating factor, what you just said is like if you're growing your retail media business to the extent that you are.

That means the CBG brands are betting and investing in your retail media side at the expense potentially of your store sales, which isn't going to help anything in the long run, especially if you're not even keeping pace with the average growth rate of the digital space in general.

100%.

Yeah.

I mean, you're always balancing as a retailer, like, how much are you pushing?

I did see.

I think their own brand product is doing okay, too.

I think that was one of the other numbers that I saw.

So you're always bouncing, like, what are we pushing this retail media when we could be pushing, you know, our.

Our own brands or something else that maybe drives better.

Better sales, better margin, et cetera.

And so it's a hard balance that you have to strike when you're that retailer sitting in that spot to figure out, like, how much of this is retail media that we're pushing versus the media that we need to push to drive our business.

Right.

Yeah, maybe that.

Maybe this is the galvanizing rod where Greg Forest stands up in front of the supplier community and says, hey, we need more investment into our store side and price.

Like, you guys help us with this if we're going to try to reposition ourselves in the market.

The other point I'd make, and then we'll move to the lighting round, is the honeymoon's almost over here for Ferran.

Like, he started in February, so, like, you know, he's got maybe another three to six months where, you know, this kind of performance is going to pass.

But, you know, come February 1, 2027, for sure, like, it's put up or shut up, you know, in terms of.

In terms of the sales results, is it not?

Yeah, it'll be interesting to see.

Like I said, they kept their earnings kind of target the same, and so if they hit that, that people will feel a little bit better.

But man, if that.

If that falls short significantly, I would be, you know, there's going to be some interesting conversations taking place about what to do next year.

Yeah, no doubt, no doubt.

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All right.

Josh, my first question for you today.

After 20 years split between Sports Authority and Meijer, which one prepared you better for a career in recruiting?

Sporting goods or grocery?

Both of them for sure.

So I think, you know, again, I mentioned earlier, I'm kind of behind the scenes guy doing a lot of marketing system, financials at both of those companies in the roles that I held there.

I was managing all of those things and with various different people.

And so I learned a ton, especially on the people side.

Right.

You got to see what makes companies successful, what types of people make companies successful, what types of people can drag companies down or backwards.

And I think that that's helped tremendously.

And also all the regular day to day management and financials and P Ls and all that stuff, that's helped a lot too.

But I did that both places.

So I would say both, all of it's been beneficial for me.

Nice.

Are you ready, Chris?

Question number two.

AI models are now writing full screenplays, creating art, and even composing songs.

So what daily chore in your life do you wish AI would step up and take over for you tomorrow?

Oh, my God, this is funny.

I think my answer would be.

And this is funny because producer Ella and you and I were talking about this before we started, but I think I need to get coffee into my body as soon as I wake up.

Like, there needs to be an AI for, for coffee injection, Josh.

Like, that's the thing.

I don't know that that could ever happen, but man, I wish somebody could figure it out.

Like, just like immediately upon wake up, there's coffee or caffeine inserted into my body.

That's what I would love.

I. I am so surprised you didn't pick something that was harder to do.

Right?

Like, right.

Yeah, it's not hard to make a cup of coffee.

Yeah, I want AI to do my dishes, man.

Like, do your dishes.

Yeah, yeah, that chores.

Yeah, that's probably true.

Sometimes making a cup of coffee in the morning feels like a chore because I gotta wait five minutes for the Keurig to heat up.

But anyway, all right.

Earlier in the show we covered Walmart.

That's a good one.

Walmart teaming up with Papa John's for delivery.

What is the next QSR you would love to see added to the Walmart restaurant tab, which would maybe make you a convert too, Josh.

None.

No, I'm just kidding.

No, if I had to answer, I would say Jersey Mike's.

I love Jersey Mike's.

It's my Jersey Mike's guy.

My favorite Philly around now.

I haven't had some of the Phillies on the east coast, like original Phillies, you know, but.

But I love Jersey Mike's Philly and I love their Italian sandwich.

So Jersey Mike's is a very easy answer for me.

That's the one I would choose the white American cheese.

I'm with you.

I'm with you.

I see what you're throwing down.

I like that too.

You've experienced some of this lately too, Chris.

So airline travel and airport culture have been in the news a lot of as you've seen lately.

So what is your absolute non negotiable rule for airport etiquette that you wish was just written into international law?

Wow.

What a great question.

Oh, man, I. I got to think about that.

I think I've got two, two rules of airport etiquette or travel etiquette.

One is you should not be allowed to put your seat back at all.

Like, they should just not make that something you can do.

Like every seat should just stay in the same position because it drives me crazy because I'm relatively tall and I can't stand it when people put their seat back on me.

Drives me nuts.

But probably even more important to me, Josh, is it should be federally outlawed to take off your socks on a plane.

I can't stand when people, especially dudes, and maybe even if it's.

This may even be a gender specific rule, if you're a guy and you take your shoes and your socks off on a plane, you should be immediately taken off the plane, Josh.

That's what I think.

So you're okay with shoes, though?

That's a good question too.

But you're flying internationally, so are you going to take your shoes off when you come back from France?

No, definitely not.

Definitely not.

I don't even take my shoes off in my house, which I get.

I get grief for all the time.

Like, I'm not one of those people that takes their shoes off and they.

Whenever I go to somebody's house, I have to take my shoes off.

I hate it.

But no, so.

So that's a really good question.

Yeah, maybe it's actually, you can't take your shoes off on a play.

That would be my thing, but that might be a little too extreme.

But you take your socks off, I'm out.

Like, you are the worst person in the world to me, Josh.

Do you agree with me or no?

I agree with you.

I'm definitely agree with you on the seat.

You do, But I could.

A lot of people do.

Yeah, I did.

When we, when we flew to Italy over the summer, I did take my shoes off, but, you know, I had clean socks.

Just had put them on that morning.

Like, you know, I felt fine about it.

But I hear you on socks.

Like, that would be a next level if I saw socks on the ground and shoes.

I think you're right.

I can't believe people.

I've seen people literally go into the airplane restrooms in their bare feet, which is just the absolute most disgusting thing I can ever imagine.

All right, on.

On that fun note, thank you to Ella Seuryard for producing this week's podcast.

She does a fabulous job, as always.

And happy birthday today to Mickey Rourke, Nick Jonas, and posthumously to my father, Charles Walton, who would have turned 78 today, believe it or not.

And remember, if you can only read or listen to one retail blog in the business, make it Omnitalk.

Our Fast five podcast is the quickest, fastest rundown of all the weeks that top news and our daily newsletter, the retail Daily Minute, tells you all you need to know each day to stay on top of your game as a retail executive and also regularly feature special content that is exclusive to us and that we all take a ton of pride in doing just for you.

Thanks as always for listening in.

Please remember to like and leave us a review wherever you happen to listen to your podcast or on YouTube.

You can follow us today by simply going to YouTube.com omnitalkretail Josh, if people want to get in touch with you or anyone at JRecruiting Services, what's the best way for them to do that?

Yeah, the best way would be to visit jrecruitingservices.com we fill out a contact form or you're welcome to email me joshrecruitingservices.com awesome.

Awesome.

Well, Josh, thank you.

That was a ton of fun.

I had a great time on this show.

Great vibe, great, great insight.

Great.

I loved how you said this is what the show's about, too.

No one's ever done that before, Josh, so kudos to you for that.

And so, on behalf of Josh, producer, Ella, myself, all of us here at Omnitok retail, as always, be careful out there.