The Business of Retail
Canadian discussions - a global retail perspective. As the world entered lockdown in March 2020, a small, diverse group of Canadian thought leaders gathered virtually to speculate, collaborate and share their insights on the waves of disruption facing retailers. "The Business of Retail” podcast emerged as an unflinching strategic alternative to the conventional discourse. Listen or watch as root causes are revealed and new paths forward for the wider retail ecosystem are explored.
Episodes
34 episodes
Re-Innovating Retail
While the Pandemic Triage is well in the rearview of retail executives, we have been hearing of the need for sharing and discussion around more deep challenges facing the sector. New in 2023, TBOR is tackling the next round of compl...
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25:24
Retail Careers in Flux in 2022
Arguably the top buzzword of 2021 is “The Great Resignation”. Catchy as it sounds, it's an incomplete story. Many are leaving, but others are staying and new will come - for the right opportunities. A recent Fast Compa...
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Episode 31
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28:12
"Shop Local" - What Does It Really Mean?
This time of year in particular brings urgent calls to "Shop Local". Individually and collectively, the TBOR Crew has been a vocal supporter of independent retail and foodservice from the earliest days of the pandemic.
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Episode 30
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24:58
Hard Truths in a Retail Staffing Crisis
Some fire showed in this 24 min episode. All agree that the retail front of house staffing model for stores is broken. There are quick patches for Holiday 2021, but the underlying issues are not going away. The question is whether t...
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Episode 29
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24:16
Working Through The Supply Chain Disruption - In-store
Another shorter segment (22.35 min).The Supply Chain issue has many facets. This episode focuses on what can be done at the store level in face of stock unpredictability and shortfalls. Independents might be hard hit with su...
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Episode 28
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22:35
The Path to 2022
As we head into the last quarter of 2021, the crew looks to the retail CEO's path to 2022. Each of us brought our top one or two priorities to the discussion. What must be tackled now, while continuing to solidify foundations for 20...
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Episode 27
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20:46
Wake Up And Smell The Supply Chain
We know Amazon has been buying planes while chip shortages are creating shortages in car rental fleets. Gary notes that 2020/21 backlogs might take a year to catch up give...
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Episode 26
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51:56
Exploring The Challenge Of 50% Retail Sales Online by 2025
We have heard much about ado about how we have “gained 5 years in 5 weeks”, evolving rapidly through the pandemic. There are pundits claiming soon 50% of retail will flow online. At #thebusinessofretail we love an intriguing hypothesis t...
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Episode 25
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26:38
Exploring The Challenge Of 50% Retail Sales Online by 2025 (Trailer, 1.27 Min)
Gary had come across a push-piece calling for #ecommerce to comprise half of all retail transactions by 2025."No way!" we thought. Yet, we dissected it to contemplate implications and conditions for this to occur. Here is a ...
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1:27
Grocer Power Plays Send Ripples (w/ Sylvain Charlebois)
Imagine drive-through meals at every Loblaw's supermarket, with President's Choice on the menu board?. Or retailers taking over the better meal prep kit plays. Will grocers unleash their vision of the future? Or will they just test ...
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Episode 24
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1:02:24
Grocer Power Plays (Trailer, 3:33 min)
Canada's Food Professor is back! Dr. Sylvain Charlebois covered Foodservices a few months ago and returns to reveal the big shifts happening in our large grocers that are sending ripples through our Food Retail sector.Here is a sn...
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3:33
Sales & Service - The Lost Art of Retail
There ha s been much trumpeting of "customer experience" over the past decade. However, the experiential foundations of the past 100 years are still these: sales and service. Have we forgotten what exceptional sales and serv...
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Episode 23
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1:11:13
Sales & Service - The Lost Art of Retail (Trailer, 4:08 min)
Our resident CEO George Minakakis, MBA pushed the crew to revisit a bedrock fundamental of retailing that has been eroding for years: the art of exceptional sales and service.Listen here to a 4 min sneak peak... and subscribe in order t...
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4:08
Scaling Innovative Food Brands (w/ Arlene Dickinson)
In Episode 22 we are joined by Arlene Dickinson - Canadian business leader, investor, author and television personality. General partner of
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Episode 22
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54:36
Scaling Innovative Food Brands (Trailer, 1.28 min)
As we continue this June to explore the opportunities and challenges for new brands to scale, we are delighted to discuss the issues in a food context with one of Canada's most respected business people, resident Dragon on CBC and all-around su...
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1:28
Implementing Purpose (Trailer, 2:08 min)
This is a sneak peak at Episode 21. If you like it, please download the full discussion.
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2:07
Implementing "Purpose", With Purpose (w/ David Labistour)
“Purpose” in business is a daily topic in our newsfeeds. We expect much as shoppers, but are our values and commitments to do right by society and the environment in the way of our desire for what's new in fashion, technology - and the econo...
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Episode 21
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50:58
The Challenges of Scaling Young Lifestyle Brands (w/ Christine Day)
We have been seeing a surge in new fashion and lifestyle brands even as the bigger players in this subsector seem to struggle. Yet making it through to profitable scale remains elusive for many. The TBOR team are joined by Canadian retail...
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Episode 20
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56:47
How Will Hard-hit Foodservice Come Back? (w/ Sylvain Charlebois)
This time we are unpacking the tumult that has swept through the foodservice sector in Canada. Our dine-in restaurants and bars have borne the brunt of the pandemic, while some formats have thrived. Lots of losses here have been gains for...
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Episode 19
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55:16
The Great Digital Divide - Are Spending Levels Sustainable?
There is an escalating war of engagement by brands in an overcrowded and noisy consumer marketplace. We can’t compete without digital and we can’t afford to get it wrong. But beyond the hype, are current levels of spend sustainable?...
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Episode 18
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48:27
Waking Up From The Big Sleep
George and Gary wanted to get real about what might happen to the retail sector whenever we get to a point of full return, no restrictions - and what might be a very serious concern that dampens the mood of at least some the sector....
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Episode 17
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38:46
Retail Real Estate Transformation - Part 2: The Future (w/ Claude Sirois)
The TBOR team invited guest Claude Sirois, the forward-thinking former President of Retail at Canadian Shopping Centre giant Ivanhoe Cambridge, to a two-part discussion. Part 2 takes a look at what the future of “physical” f...
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Episode 16
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47:20
Retail Real Estate Transformation - Part 1: Trends through COVID (w/ Claude Sirois)
The TBOR team invited guest Claude Sirois, the forward-thinking former President of Retail at Canadian Shopping Centre giant Ivanhoe Cambridge, to a two-part discussion. Part 1 reviews the deep, persistent shifts in the real...
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Episode 16
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48:02
Retail's Data Literacy Challenge (w/ Bryan Pearson)
Perhaps this should be titled The High Cost of Data Illiteracy in Retail. In fairness, retail is very literate about a narrow range of data: skus and sales. But how many retail leaders have a vision and roadmap behind stateme...
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Episode 15
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49:49
