The latest episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast is a little different. Recorded live at the Olympia in London, I’m joined by a whole host of guests from The Retail Technology Show.   The magic of retail could be seen and heard on every stage and at every booth! With key themes of creating meaningful experiences for the retailer, the customer and the employee, this was retail at its best.  So grab your cup of tea, sit back and listen… This episode features:         Matt Bradley, Event...

In the latest episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who has always had an eye on what’s coming next and exciting ambitions for growth.  Anthony Gallagher, Founder and Managing Director of Petstop. Having started out as a trainee with Penneys, Anthony has since gone to set up one the first pet superstores in Ireland.  This experienced retailer took note of what pet stores across the pond were doing to develop his own successful business model. This is an honest,...

In the latest episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who believes in creating more value & less waste from every purchase through innovation & technology. Kiran Gange is the CEO and Founder of RapidPricer. The author and entrepreneur has over 18 years of experience launching innovative technologies around the world. Kiran has the ability to connect with multicultural teams and has trained on entrepreneurship, internationalisation and pricing at several...

In the latest episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by three special guests to explore how working together has brought a well loved brand to life, in its forever home. I’m joined by Aoibhín Garrihy and Sharon Connellan, the founders of BEO. The nationally renowned lifestyle brand blends live events promoting self-care with their product line which offers thoughtfully curated collections from sustainable and ethical sources in the West of Ireland. I’m also joined by Ciara Petty...

In the latest episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I speak to a retail trailblazer! Linda Johansen-James is the Founder and CEO of International Retail Group. The “Billion Dollar Brand Maker”, specialises in brand launches, in-store design, sales training, franchising, and has a track record of generating $1.7 billion in revenue and attracting top brands. Linda’s years of experience shines through in this episode, as she discusses everything from shaking up shopping malls to training...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who really understands frontline retail. Brian Librach is  author of The Retail Leader’s Roadmap. He followed in the footsteps of his Father and Grandfather having been brought up around retailers and merchants. With a career that saw him climb the corporate ladder (and fall down it a few times), Brian worked for Urban Outfitters, Pacific Sunwear and Old Navy. Brain’s approach to leading a retail team is practical...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who is a creative entrepreneur, having spent most of her career as a leading Irish fashion designer. Aideen Bodkin is founder of StylAi . Throughout her successful career Aideen has been an advisor, trainer and mentor to many SME’s and creative individuals. Her expertise includes Fashion Design, Design Thinking, Sustainability for Creative Businesses, Digital Entrepreneurship and Product Development. In this...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who really knows ecommerce. Vinny O’Brien from Vinny & Co works with some of the world's biggest brands in strategy and training roles and has delivered training to over 1000 companies over the last few years. Vinny also has in-depth knowledge of DTC channels thanks to DTC brand, Crua Outdoors, selling in the US market. Last year he joined an analyst firm in New York, RMW Commerce as their content producer and...

My name is Melissa Moore, The Retail Advisor and Rethink Retail Top retail expert for 2024. This season I’ll be joined by industry experts, retailers and brands to dispel the myths, share their knowledge and give you an insight into the retail industry. Coming up on season 6: This season opens with an incredible ecommerce expert; it’s an unbelievably honest conversation with best best practice, fantastic examples and great ideas for you to take away.I speak to one of Ireland’s leading fashion...

Each week on season 5 of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’ve be joined by industry experts, retailers and brands to decode the myths, share knowledge and give you a better insight into the retail industry. In this final episode of season 5, I give you a quick recap of key moments from 2023. So grab your cup of tea, sit back, relax and listen in! If you have enjoyed the podcast, please subscribe and share it.  Remember you can also listen back to previous Retail Tea Break episodes on your...

On this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast I’m joined by a guest who has a retail framework that boils down to implementing the basics, focusing on cashflow and profit. Alvin Narsey is a business coach and consultant with over 25 years of experience in the retail pharmacy industry. He has bought, grown and sold large pharmacy businesses in Australia and is now passionate about helping retailers achieve their business goals.  Grab a notebook, Alvin shares lots of golden nuggets in...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who is passionate about taking a consumer centric approach. Ciara O'Keeffe is Chief Operations Officer at Peachylean. Over the last few years she has ensured brands make the right decision to drive consumer awareness and reduce friction in the shopper journey.  Ciara has worked with a broad number of B2B retailers across EMEA; focusing on being where the consumer shops, and bringing the best of the brand to life...

This week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast is sponsored by Salesforce, the world’s #1 CRM. I’m joined by two amazing guests to discuss how employee experience together with customer experience supports the growth of incredible brands. Sarah Esler is the Digital Product Lead at Brown Thomas Arnotts and Natasha Beegan is a Principal Solution Engineer at Salesforce.  Looking through the lens of digital transformation, Natasha explains the research that supports the need for retailers to...

This week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast is sponsored by TruRating, unlocking the voice of every customer. I’m joined by a former lawyer, who became fascinated with how to measure, understand, and predict human behaviour. Georgina Nelson is the CEO and Co-Founder of TruRating, the award winning, rapidly growing, global tech start-up. Retailers and brands using TruRating average an 80% response rate on questions asked. This is accomplished by asking a single, rotating question...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a true retail people expert. Maeve McCleane is Chief People Officer & Board Executive for Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland. She is a passionate, commercially focused and experienced leader with huge expertise leading and developing a range of teams across operational, technical and strategic retail topics. She has headed up a number of industry-leading initiatives within the retail sector, many of which she talks about...

On this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast I’m joined by a guest who is a gift-maker and a businesswoman. Maria Porter is one half of Duffy and Porter, an Irish family run business specialising in personalised gifts. Having started her career in a very different field, Maria and her husband Melvin realised that they were not happy with their jobs. They wanted to do something more meaningful and fulfilling, something that would bring joy to themselves and others. This episode is...

Today’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast is sponsored by Salesforce, who bring companies and customers together. I’m joined by an incredibly experienced businessman, who’s company provides the backbone to the retail industry. Niall Rock is Managing Director of Storage Systems Limited, one of Ireland’s largest commercial fit out companies. Founded in 1979, the business has grown to be the leading provider of storage solutions that make the maximum use of space.  Over the years, Niall...

In this week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I’m joined by a guest who is a global eCommerce and digital transformation leader. Dean McElwee is the author of ‘eCommerce for CEOs’. From omnichannel to marketplaces, B2B eCommerce, and Direct to Consumer, Dean has had a varied career covering local, regional and global roles across both emerging and developed markets. Before joining The Stanley Black & Decker Company, Dean held roles at The Kellogg Company, The Coca-Cola Company,...

This week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast has not one, but 4 guests! Sara Allbright, Elaine Hooper, Neil Amer and Anna Berry are Co-Founders of Retail 100 Consulting. Together they have over 100 years of retail experience at senior levels across buying and merchandising. With expertise and knowledge ranging from homeware, gifting, toys, seasonal & beauty they have a multitude of insights to offer. This episode really does dispel the myths about buying and merchandising (not to...

This week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break Podcast is sponsored by StoreHero, the profit dashboard for ecommerce companies.  I speak to Thomas Gleeson, the Co-Founder of StoreHero, who alongside his Co-Founder Karl O’Brien want to empower retailers through their ecommerce analytics platform. Having grown up watching and supporting the family DTC business grow, Thomas now helps ecommerce brands grow their businesses bridging that gap between marketing and finance. The company’s mission is to...

This week’s episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast is sponsored by Salesforce, the world’s #1 CRM. I’m joined by an internationally recognised expert in the retail industry, a seasoned researcher who helps global organisations build the future of their business. Michelle Grant is Director of Strategy and Insights for Retail & Consumer Goods at Salesforce. She has shared her thoughts with the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the Financial Times. Footwear News honoured as one of...

It’s back! Season 5 of The Retail Tea Break Podcast is dropping on Thursday 14th September.  Each week I’ll be joined by industry experts, retailers and brands to decode the myths, share knowledge and give you an insight into the industry. In this trailer I give you an insight into what’s coming up over the next few months… Season 5 is packed full of incredible guests, I really do hope you enjoy it. In the meantime, listen back to previous episodes on your favourite podcast platform or...

Grab your cup of tea, sit back and listen in as I look back at the first 50 episodes of The Retail Tea Break Podcast. Topics: Customer Experience In episode 3, Cristiane Ross from Sparc Consulting explains that the emotional connection with your customer matters. As the customer’s relationship with your brand deepens, they become more valuable to you.In episode 14, Ian Scott describes the new era of physical retailing. He asks the question “Is your physical store speaking to your ideal...

In the 50th episode of The Retail Tea Break podcast, I speak to a passionate retailer. Rachel Davoren is Managing Director of Portwest Ireland. As well as working in-store, Rachel’s experience of buying, operations and strategic decision making, has helped her deal with the demands of the industry. In this episode we hear about Portwest’s 4 retail stores in Ireland, which sell outdoor clothing and equipment and how the brand also supplies workwear & PPE to retailers nationwide. Rachel...