Episodes
🥳 SEASON FINALE! Today is our final, regular programming for Season 2 of Resilient Retail. Today, our host Kristen LaFrance is walkig us through the three pillars of community-led retail, aka- the next era of successful commerce. Tune in to hear her thoughts, emotions, and heartfelt response to this season. But don't worry- we'll be back with a wrap up episode soon. Cheers!
Published 07/01/21
Published 07/01/21
Today Steph Laposta is joined by Jeremy + Julie Brown of Province of Canada for the last episode of Real Life Retail, a weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. To finish the season off they talk about the creation of Province of Canada, the patience it takes to build a business, their thoughts on having a physical retail store versus online, and their dreams for the future of Province of Canada!
Published 06/30/21
REI needs no introduction. They’ve been a juggernaut in the outdoor retail industry for decades, and most of us already know that their customer experience is absolutely unmatched. In this episode, Chief Experience Officer Curtis Kopf digs into the ways that REI builds community, adventure, and sustainability into every touchpoint. That means amazing experiences in their physical stores, online, and everywhere in-between.
Published 06/29/21
This Friday, Kristen is joined with Kat Cole to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. Sadly we have reached the finale of Resilient News! To finish the season off we chat about leading through change, having empathy as a business owner, and staying on track with the mission.
Published 06/25/21
So much of Resilient Retail this season has been about the importance of brand. But what happens when you take brand out of the equation? Well, you get Italic. They’re rethinking the basics of commerce by connecting top-tier manufacturers directly to customers at the lowest possible markup. It’s a more radical move than you might think. This episode is all about a fundamentally different approach to growth based on a simplified supply chain and a membership model.
Published 06/24/21
Venus ET Fleur is a husband-and-wife-led luxury brand disrupting the flower industry - not least by offering roses that last a full year with minimal upkeep. That alone would set them apart. But they’ve also nailed an exciting, innovative approach to meeting their customer’s needs, no matter how they enter the funnel. Maintaining pitch-perfect operations is important for a brand like VEF. After all, they’re dealing with living, breathing products that need special care to arrive on customers’...
Published 06/22/21
DTC subscription and in-store retail often feel like they’re coming from opposite ends of the shopping spectrum. So what happens when you combine the two? Shane Pittson, VP of Growth at Quip, is all about creating a shopping experience that helps customers build healthy oral care habits in the most convenient ways possible. This episode digs into the relationship between retail and subscription, Shane’s innovative rewards program, and how Quip has hit an 80% response rate on their...
Published 06/17/21
Join Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. Today we have a special episode in celebration of PRIDE month! Joined by Queeriosity folks Eli Holtz and Kai Joseph, to chat about starting Queeriosity, the struggles of going through the production process, getting their product sold in retail stores, and we even get a little taste of the game, Queeriosity: The LGBTQ+ Social Game!
Published 06/16/21
Most entrepreneurs would have balked at the decision to launch Neighborhood Goods in late 2018. After all, many department stores were barely surviving by the end of the 2010s, and the department store retail model appeared to be on the verge of collapse. But against all odds, co-founder and CEO Matt Alexander has leveraged amazing growth in changing economic times. So what sets Neighborhood Goods apart? It all comes down to a creative rethinking of the in-store experience. They start by...
Published 06/15/21
🚨BREAKING NEWS: Arpan Podduturi, Director of Retail Product here at Shopify joins the show for a surprise announcement of a new Shop App feature that will have a massive impact on local retailers. You don't wanna miss this episode.
Published 06/11/21
Emanuel Edwards took a big risk when he transitioned to managing his curated vintage brand The Goody Vault full-time in early 2021. Thanks to the fact that he’d already been building relationships via his one-on-one showroom experience for a couple years, he was ready to hit the ground running when the Vault moved from side hustle to main attraction. Emanuel’s success is rooted in his understanding that fundamentally, people buy from people. He crafts every in-store experience for maximum...
Published 06/10/21
Join Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Jenna Lam, from Early Bird & Warm and Nest & Hatch, joins us to chat about starting a private label, the challenges of not being able to plan, and the rollercoaster of owning a business.
Published 06/09/21
Jennifer Fisher has styled for clients from Miley Cyrus to Rihanna, but her jewelry brand’s major break came in 2006, when Uma Thurman wore one of Jennifer’s custom necklaces on the cover of *Glamour* magazine. Since then, Jennifer Fisher Jewelry has exploded. Her creations have appeared in *Vogue*, *Variety*, *People*, *Elle*, and more. She’s expanded into a culinary line and the brand has recently opened retail locations in New York and Beverly Hills. Jennifer’s spent the past fifteen...
Published 06/08/21
Join Kristen and Halie LeSavage to cover the hottest industry news and trends of this week. Sadly it's the last episode with Halie around but we’re here to chat about Amazon Prime Day and back to school shopping, Etsy’s acquisition of Depop, the power of physical retail, and Bed Bath and Beyond’s new changes.
Published 06/04/21
A pizzeria isn’t generally what comes to mind when we think of retail, but General Assembly Pizza (also known as GA Pizza) isn’t exactly playing by the rules. Since 2017, they’ve been rewriting the playbook for fast casual. Founder and CEO Ali Khan Lalani has built the brand around truly seamless customer experiences. That means focusing on the connections between technology and the range of mediums customers use to interact with the brand- online, dine-in, and everywhere in-between. This...
Published 06/03/21
This week on Real Life Retail, Steph LaPosta is joined by Jeff St. Pierre, Retail Launch Engineer at Shopify, for an honest, candid conversation about what he’s learned in his own successes of working in retail, how to create a brand vision, and creating smart partnerships.
Published 06/02/21
This episode of Resilient Retail is a little different. Brik + Clik has spent the last eight months testing out a range of much-hyped technologies in their California location. Co-founder Hemant Chavan is here to tell Kristen what worked, what didn’t, and what to expect from the next decade in retail. So here’s the name of the game: Kris quizzes Hemant on a range of technologies, and he talks us through what’s here to stay. This episode is loaded with actionable insights from one of the most...
Published 06/01/21
This Friday, Kristen is joined with Kat Cole to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week we’re talking all things travel! As travel restrictions are lifting we’re seeing a trend in hospitality, immersive experiences, and the opportunities in the hospitality market.
Published 05/28/21
Hill House Home has exploded over the past couple of years, especially in the wake of a truly viral product known as the “Nap Dress.” Through it all, founder and CEO Nell Diamond has balanced customer demand and her own personal vision to craft a brand that’s both responsive to its customers and true to its founding aesthetic. So how did Hill House grow from a Yale University incubator into a brand with a truly fanatic fan base? It comes down to Nell’s deeply humanistic approach to business....
Published 05/27/21
Join Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Tim Guram, Founder of 100 Years of Love joins the show to talk about the passion behind 100 Years of Love, the thought process behind a rebrand, and why the approach of being open and honest is important.
Published 05/26/21
What’s the central nervous system of your business? For Goorin Bros controller, Aaron Wyse, it’s the logistical tools that underpin your operations. That means looking at the interplay between technology and human labor to build workflows that hold up under pressure. Goorin Bros has pivoted to new forms of omnichannel shopping over the past couple years, which opens up a ton of challenges and opportunities. Aaron digs deep into the questions brands should be asking as they scale and connect...
Published 05/25/21
Join Kristen and Halie LeSavage to cover the hottest industry news and trends of this week. With not a heavy news week, they talk about Macy's Q1 earnings and their shift to category expansion, the growth of livestream shopping and Facebook’s launch, and Knix’s amazing round of funding.
Published 05/21/21
SuitShop might come from humble beginnings, but you’d never know that looking at them today. The men’s formalwear brand is an incredible example of a digitally native brand that’s grown by prioritizing the customer every step of the way. That started with crafting a great online shopping experience, but it has also meant a surprise pivot to retail and groundbreaking new approaches to omnichannel selling. SuitShop’s success comes from a willingness to shift, bend, and change based on customer...
Published 05/20/21
Join Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Bo Hong from Lou-Lou's Flower Truck talks mobile retail and pop ups, the importance of social media, and pivoting the floral industry in the midst of COVID.
Published 05/19/21