Oct 20, 2026

Wayfair’s President Jon Blotner on Going Physical, Plus Aritzia’s Blowout Quarter & Grocery’s Mushy Middle

Inflation runs hot, and so do the winners. Costco, Aritzia and Uniqlo keep pulling away while LVMH stumbles and Kroger and Albertsons struggle to escape grocery’s mushy middle. Then Wayfair President Jon Blotner explains why a two-decade online pure play is betting on 150,000-square-foot stores, how merchants narrow a catalogue of millions to one floor, and what the store halo is really delivering.

Listen Now

Oct 13, 2026

Keeping the Soul in the Sole: Birkenstock Americas President & Managing Director, David Kahan on Constantly Reinventing a 250-Year-Old Icon (E)

In this special Encore episode, we're revisiting one of our favourite conversations from last year: David Kahan, President and Managing Director of Birkenstock Americas, on keeping a 250-year-old brand relevant. Steve opens with what’s changed since: revenue up 15%, DTC outpacing wholesale for the first time, 13 new stores last quarter, and community-driven concepts in Malibu and Berlin. David then shares lessons behind the brand’s run: never deviating from the footbed, engineered distribution, localized stores, and turning customers into missionaries.

Listen Now

Oct 06, 2026

Consumer Spending Still Defies Gravity, Luxury Retail Winners and Losers & Untangling AI Shopping Agents

Consumer spending keeps defying gravity, even as sentiment hits a 12-year low and mortgage rates climb. Steve Dennis and Michael LeBlanc dig into Nike's struggles, Sephora's move into Marks & Spencer, and a luxury check-in on two of Steve's predictions, from the fragile Saks-Neiman reset to Hermès and Coach pulling ahead. Plus: Walmart's pledge to "price the product, not the person," and Steve's four types of AI shopping agents and why trust will pick the winners.

Listen Now

Sep 29, 2026

Seth Godin: Solving the Unsolvable, Plus Costco Surges & the AI Backlash

The Remarkable Retail podcast Episode 313 opens with the news: Costco's fuel-boosted gains, J.C. Penney's deepening slump and Stitch Fix's stalled turnaround in the return of the Wobbly Unicorn Corner. Then bestselling author Seth Godin is back on the podcast to discuss his new book, The Knot, on why organizations get stuck and how telling the truth untangles them. Plus Adobe's holiday forecast, Neiman Marcus closing its historic downtown Dallas flagship, and on our radar screens AI's mood swing, Canadian & Chinese beer and the state of U.S.global trade.

Listen Now

Sep 22, 2026

The Race to the Doorstep Escalates, Plus Bloomingdale's Record Comp & Diesel Drama

The Remarkable Retail podcast turns six. Steve Dennis and Michael LeBlanc mark the milestone by discussing the Fed's latest move to increase interest rates, record diesel prices, and early holiday forecasts from Deloitte and Bain. They also explore Bloomingdale's record 11.3% comp, Coresight's store opening and closing data, Toys R Us expansion, and earnings from Inditex and Kroger. Steve unpacks his Substack article on whether the race to the doorstep is a race to the bottom, and the “On The Radar Screen” segment covers the Target Beauty Studio launch and the ROI of AI.

Listen Now

Sep 08, 2026

Lululemon Slides, Five Below Sizzles & Anthropic Enters Commerce, Plus Guest co-Host Anne Mezzenga Goes Undercover

Guest co-host Anne Mezzenga, Founder & CEO of Retail Field Report, joins Steve and Michael for a macro check on fuel, rates and tariffs, then earnings from Five Below, Victoria's Secret, Lululemon and Kohl's. Anne takes us inside her flex retail shifts, hospitality-first store roles and a Target walk with executives, before the trio debates Anthropic's Claude Commerce Agents and Shein's Hong Kong debut. On the radar: Quince's brick-and-mortar ambitions, and JBS's beef imports — boon or burden for grocers?

Listen Now

Aug 25, 2026

Walmart Stalls, Target Stirs & Amazon Flies, Plus Bain Capital's Scott Friend and VMG's Indy Guha

Walmart posts its weakest U.S. comp in six years, Amazon takes flight in 500 U.S. cities, Target shows early signs of life, Ross runs hot, and Simon Property Group proves great malls are thriving. Then, live from the CommerceNext Growth Show in New York, Steve and Michael talk venture capital, AI, and brand durability with Scott Friend, Partner at Bain Capital Ventures, and Indy Guha, General Partner at VMG Partners. Plus, on the radar screen rising Treasury yields and Canada's Roots sold to Marquee Brands, paving the way for global expansion.

Listen Now