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PODCAST

Retail Fast Five

Omni Talk Retail

The Omni Talk Retail Fast Five podcast is your weekly dose of retail industry insights and trends in a quick and digestible format. Hosted by industry experts, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, this podcast delivers the top five news stories each week that are shaping the digital and physical retail landscape. Each episode breaks down the most important developments in retail, from the latest innovations in technology to consumer behavior shifts, emerging market trends, and beyond. Whether you"re a

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All Episodes

42:35

AI Hits Black Friday, Amazon Tests 30-Minute...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/03

In this Fast Five episode, sponsored by theA&M Consumer and Retail Group,Mirakl,Ocampo Capital,Infios, andQuorso, 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 investments

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04:24

Lightning Round: Turkey Day Hot Takes, Black Friday...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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07:14

Bath & Body Works Plans Amazon Launch | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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03:44

Richard Dickson's Gap Revival Continues | Fast Five...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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04:45

Kroger's $2.6 Billion Automation Retreat | Fast Five...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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07:31

Target Bets Black Friday on ChatGPT Shopping | Fast...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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03:33

Target's Four-Year Sales Stagnation | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/12/01

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

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46:07

Target's ChatGPT Gamble, Kroger's $2.6B Pivot & Gap's...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/26

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group,Mirakl,Ocampo Capital,Infios, andQuorso, Chris and Anne discussed:A roundup of the latest retail earnings announcementsTarget 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)And AWS's

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05:20

Lightning Round: Holiday Hacks, Hot Cocoa & Dick Van...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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

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04:32

Target and Starbucks Create Exclusive Frozen...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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

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08:09

Can Google's AI Shopping Revolution Challenge ChatGPT...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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

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02:54

Primark Joins the Buy Now Pay Later Revolution | Fast...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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 shares

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04:02

Grocery Dealz Unlocks Same-Day Delivery Through...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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

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06:23

The Furner Era Begins: What Walmart's CEO Transition...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/24

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

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46:19

Walmart's Got A New CEO, Google Will Call Stores For...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/19

In this week’s Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by theA&M Consumer and Retail Group,Mirakl,Ocampo Capital,Infios, andQuorso, Chris and Anne discussed:Doug McMillon retiring as Walmart CEO, with John Furner taking over in February (Source)Grocery Dealz integrating with Instacart’s Developer Platform for on-demand delivery (Source)Primark introducing Buy Now, Pay Later options with Klarna and Clearpay (Source)Google launching new AI shopping features including conversational search and

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04:10

Lightning Round: Ulta Discounts, Andy Garcia &...

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/17

The lightning round gets personal as Kelly reveals she'd trade her data to Ulta for holiday discounts (with three sisters and multiple gift exchanges, who can blame her?), Waqas picks "Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead" as his favorite Andy Garcia film, and the panel mourns the potential disappearance of Italian pasta from US shelves.Plus: middle-aged men are revealed as the biggest holiday spenders, Waqas's dishwasher crisis becomes his entire holiday budget (German vs. Korean appliance

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08:05

Dollar General's AI Leadership Move | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/17

Dollar General has appointed Travis Nixon as SVP of Artificial Intelligence, tasking him with using AI to optimize supply chain, store operations, and merchandising. But how long before every retailer has a Chief AI Officer—and is this even the right approach?Waqas Khan delivers a masterclass on why standalone AI roles may follow the same fate as Chief Digital Officers, most of whom lasted less than two years before the role dissolved. The panel discusses why Dollar General's SVP approach (rather

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07:48

Target's "10-4" Service Controversy | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/17

Target's new "10-4" policy requires employees to smile and wave at customers within 10 feet, and personally greet them within 4 feet. Is this explicit instruction necessary for today's workforce, or a forced, performative approach that signals deeper cultural problems?Former Target store manager Chris Walton shares insider perspective on why this policy reveals how far store culture has declined, while Anne argues that explicit direction is needed for first-time workers entering the retail job

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05:32

Bath & Body Works Scents the Holidays | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/17

Bath & Body Works is bringing Fresh Balsam to Grand Central Terminal, movie theaters, and interactive mall kiosks in what beauty expert Kelly Carey calls "my favorite marketing campaign of the year." But is piping fragrance into public spaces genius brand awareness or an invasive marketing tactic?Kelly breaks down why this campaign is perfectly timed to recapture awareness in a booming fragrance market, while the panel debates the opt-in vs. opt-out question when scent is thrust upon consumers

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09:51

Amazon vs. Perplexity Legal Showdown | Fast Five Shorts

Retail Fast Five ·

2025/11/17

Amazon is suing Perplexity AI over its Comet shopping agent, claiming it "covertly accesses Amazon customer accounts" and interferes with the curated shopping experience Amazon built over decades. But is this defensive move from the e-commerce giant actually a sign of things to come?Waqas Khan from A&M breaks down the technology protocols at stake, why this feels like a classic incumbent vs. disruptor battle, and how advertising revenue is driving Amazon's aggressive response. Chris argues this

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