Episode 231

full
Published on:

15th Mar 2025

Fast Five Shorts | A Ride Or Die Lightning Round

In the latest edition of Omni Talk’s Retail Fast Five sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Alvarez & Marsal, Mirakl, Simbe, Infios, and Ocampo Capital Chris Walton, Anne Mezzenga, along with guest hosts from the Alvarez & Marsal Consumer and Retail Group Chris Creyts and David Schneidman break down the week’s retail news. In this short, they cover: A Ride Or Die Lightning Round

For the full episode head here: https://youtu.be/zoe5hsCC9jU



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Transcript
Speaker A:

A recent study conducted by Dalhousie University and cattle claims that eight in 10 Canadians are willing to switch brands or stores for better deals, given the current economic climate.

Speaker A:

Dave, what's one product that you won't switch stores or brands for?

Speaker B:

This is.

Speaker B:

This has been my new product of.

Speaker B:

Of choice.

Speaker B:

It's.

Speaker A:

Oh, gosh.

Speaker B:

You're like, what's.

Speaker B:

What's next?

Speaker B:

Ollipop.

Speaker B:

You know Olipop.

Speaker C:

Oh, yeah.

Speaker A:

Oh, yeah.

Speaker C:

So prebiotic soda.

Speaker B:

Yeah, I.

Speaker B:

So I.

Speaker B:

I didn't realize I liked soda because I just stayed away from soda, but I realized I really like soda, and I.

Speaker B:

And I think Olipop is a great alternative.

Speaker B:

And.

Speaker B:

And I.

Speaker B:

And I hit my fiber goals.

Speaker B:

Just don't tell my wife that there's caffeine in it because we have it at night.

Speaker B:

And if so, she finds out there's caffeine and that she probably won't be, you know, having with me.

Speaker B:

With me anymore.

Speaker A:

So you're not.

Speaker A:

You're not going to the good and gather Target brand of Olipop.

Speaker A:

You are an Olipop loyalist.

Speaker B:

I am an Olipop vintage cola fan.

Speaker C:

Okay.

Speaker B:

We drink a lot of those.

Speaker B:

We don't do other types of sodas.

Speaker B:

We don't do other probiotic brands.

Speaker B:

We are an Olipop vintage cola.

Speaker B:

So shout out to that one.

Speaker B:

The other ones are good, but I love.

Speaker B:

We love that one.

Speaker B:

So that's.

Speaker B:

That's one thing.

Speaker B:

Prices are relevant.

Speaker C:

Next thing you know, and Dave's gonna tell us he has the Olipop app on his phone.

Speaker C:

All right, back to you.

Speaker B:

You know I'm for sale, guys.

Speaker C:

All right, back at you, Dave.

Speaker C:

Speaking of tariffs, President Trump yesterday said he plans to double his planned steel tariffs on Canada, which begs the question for us.

Speaker C:

Are you more a man of steel or blue Steel?

Speaker C:

If you could only choose one.

Speaker B:

Well, I'd love to say I want to be a man of steel, but since I'm not an Ambit Turner, clearly I'm a Blue Steel guy.

Speaker B:

Ambiturner.

Speaker B:

You remember Zoolander can't turn left.

Speaker B:

And I mean, you know, I've been in beauty some of the face like this.

Speaker B:

Clearly I got to be Blue Steel.

Speaker C:

Got to be Blue Steel.

Speaker C:

Yeah, Yeah.

Speaker C:

I picked that question just for you, my friend.

Speaker A:

All right, Chris, you get the next one.

Speaker A:

Best Buy announced last week in an earnings call that they will be opening up influencer and creator storefront capabilities on their website.

Speaker A:

What would be the first Best Buy product on your influencer storefront?

Speaker D:

Okay.

Speaker D:

And I'm coming back at you with another food focused recommendation to try and build on my quest chips here.

Speaker D:

They have something called Sauce Moto.

Speaker D:

Now, it's an accessory for your car, and it hooks into your air conditioning vent and it's a little holster for your Chick Fil A sauce so you can dip your nuggets in it.

Speaker A:

Oh, my God.

Speaker D:

That would be my primary, my first front runner.

Speaker B:

Oh, my gosh, your caramels smell good.

Speaker D:

Oh, it's terrible.

Speaker A:

So we covered, we covered, like, luxury car fragrances on one lightning round, and now we're going in the exact opposite direction today.

Speaker A:

Chris, thank you for enlightening us with this product.

Speaker D:

Gotcha.

Speaker C:

Yeah.

Speaker C:

We've learned that Chris eats regularly at Portillo's and Chick Fil A.

Speaker C:

All right.

Speaker D:

But I'm ashamed, but I'm too ashamed to have the apps on my phone.

Speaker A:

Get a discount on the product.

Speaker A:

No, no, no.

Speaker B:

People that he doesn't know.

Speaker C:

That's what he wants to do.

Speaker C:

All right, Chris, back to you.

Speaker C:

Southwest said yesterday that it will begin charging customers a check bag fee.

Speaker C:

Hold the phone on that one.

Speaker C:

Given this news rank order, your now current three favorite US Airline carriers.

Speaker C:

As a consultant, I think you probably have some great perspective on this question.

Speaker B:

Yeah.

Speaker D:

This is like asking me what finger I want to cut off.

Speaker D:

Like, no part of this is like an easy.

Speaker D:

It's like they're all terrible.

Speaker D:

The easiest is to go from the back forward, though.

Speaker D:

Like, American dead last.

Speaker D:

I just.

Speaker D:

Terrible.

Speaker D:

I love, I actually enjoy flying Delta.

Speaker D:

Delta and Alaska have to be my top two.

Speaker D:

Alaska's probably number one.

Speaker D:

Delta's number two.

Speaker D:

And American just has to be abysmally last.

Speaker B:

Clearly, you're not going to be working with American anytime soon.

Speaker A:

Or maybe you will.

Speaker A:

Maybe they're in the last, so they need the most support.

Speaker B:

The answer is clear.

Speaker B:

It's Delta, Delta and then Delta.

Speaker D:

I'm in a deeply captive market here in Charlotte, and an American knows it, and just that's not a good experience.

Speaker C:

We, and I ride or die with Delta too.

Speaker C:

Alaska's a good.

Speaker C:

Is a good, is a good grab, though.

Speaker C:

I, I, I, I can't remember the last time I flew Alaska.

Speaker C:

It just doesn't hit the routes that Adam and I frequent all that often.

Speaker D:

But yeah, you gotta be out on the west coast for that one.

Speaker B:

The Minnesota Delta terminal's nice.

Speaker C:

Yeah.

Speaker D:

Oh, they put a golf simulator in there.

Speaker D:

That's, that's really cool.

Speaker C:

I had not heard that.

Speaker C:

Ann, I'm sure that, I'm sure you probably were aware of that.

Speaker C:

No, Anne, wasn't aware of that either.

Speaker B:

Wow.

Speaker C:

No golf simulations.

Speaker C:

All right, well, have to check out the Minnesota airport again, which I will do in a couple of weeks on our way to shop talk.

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About the Podcast

Omni Talk Retail
Omni Talk Retail provides news, analysis, and commentary on the latest trends and issues in the retail industry
Omni Talk Retail provides news, analysis, and commentary on the latest trends and issues in the retail industry. It covers a wide range of topics related to retail, including e-commerce, technology, marketing, and consumer behavior. The podcast regularly features industry experts, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga, as well as retail thought leaders who all share their insights and perspectives on the latest developments in retail.

About your hosts

Anne Mezzenga

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Anne Mezzenga is an entrepreneurial Marketing Executive with nearly 20 years in the retail, experience design, and technology industries.

Currently, she is one of the founders and Co-CEOs of Omni Talk.

Prior to her latest ventures, Anne was most recently the Head of Marketing and Partnerships for Target’s Store of the Future project. Early in her career, Anne worked as a producer for advertising agencies, Martin Williams and Fallon, and as a producer and reporter for news affiliates NBC New York and KMSP Minneapolis.

Anne holds a BA in Journalism from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities.

When Anne is not busy blogging, podcasting, or sharing her expertise with clients, she loves spending time with her husband and two boys and partaking in all the Minneapolis food scene has to offer.

Chris Walton

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