2020 to 2026: How DEI became retail's legal minefield

The layer nobody talks about — until It breaks

They're not in the keynotes. They're not in the strategy decks. But when a retail transformation actually lands — when AI gets adopted, when a store team holds together under pressure, when corporate strategy turns into something a frontline team can actually use — there's almost always a middle manager making it happen. In this episode, Maya [https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-sankoh/] sits down with Christine [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinemontard/], to unpack why middle managers are retail's most underestimated asset — and what happens when you stop investing in them. 👉 Read the full exclusive here ! [https://iads.substack.com/p/iads-exclusive-middle-managers-the?r=1rowmw] For more insights and updates, follow us on LinkedIn at International Association of Department Stores - IADS [https://fr.linkedin.com/company/international-association-of-department-stores], check out our Substack [https://iads.substack.com/], visit our website at www.iads.org [https://www.iads.org/] for additional resources, and learn more here [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Association_of_Department_Stores]! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit iads.substack.com/subscribe [https://iads.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

The 2024 IADS Academy: AI Readiness for Department Stores

In this episode of The I.A.D.S. Retail Park 🎧, Maya [https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-sankoh/] and Christine [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinemontard/], explore the 2024 IADS Academy’s work on AI decision-making for retailers. A cohort of next-gen executives tackled “machine customers,” built the AIRI readiness framework, and created Lola — a retail-specific AI chatbot. 🤖 👉 Read the full exclusive here ! [https://iads.substack.com/p/iads-exclusive-2024-iads-academy?r=1rowmw] For more insights and updates, follow us on LinkedIn at International Association of Department Stores - IADS [https://fr.linkedin.com/company/international-association-of-department-stores], check out our Substack [https://iads.substack.com/], visit our website at www.iads.org [https://www.iads.org/] for additional resources, and learn more here [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Association_of_Department_Stores]! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit iads.substack.com/subscribe [https://iads.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

40,000 people, 1,000 exhibitors, and one question: Is any of this real?

Every January, retail's biggest names descend on New York for the NRF Big Show 🎙️ — and 2025 was reportedly a record edition: 40,000 attendees, 1,000 exhibitors, and more AI claims than you could count. In this episode, Maya [https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-sankoh/] sits down with Selvane [https://www.linkedin.com/in/selvanemohandas/], who was on the floor and in the rooms. They cut through the noise together — from agentic AI and "fantailing" to Target's culture strategy, Macy's bold transformation, and what Foot Locker's 50th anniversary says about where retail is actually heading 🌊. 👉 Read the full exclusive here ! [https://iads.substack.com/p/iads-exclusive-nrf-big-show-2025?r=1rowmw] For more insights and updates, follow us on LinkedIn at International Association of Department Stores - IADS [https://fr.linkedin.com/company/international-association-of-department-stores], check out our Substack [https://iads.substack.com/], visit our website at www.iads.org [https://www.iads.org/] for additional resources, and learn more here [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Association_of_Department_Stores]! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit iads.substack.com/subscribe [https://iads.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

How Boyner turned AI readiness into a 30% efficiency gain

Zara has closed 600+ stores since 2019—but total selling space has grown. Their new flagships look like "monobrand department stores" with local architecture, cafés, and luxury-grade design. What can department stores learn from this transformation? Maya [https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-sankoh/] and Selvane [https://www.linkedin.com/in/selvanemohandas/] explore the "fewer, larger, better" strategy, the experience trap, and where Zara's limits create opportunity for department stores. 🏬🌍 👉Click here to read the full exclusive. [https://iads.substack.com/p/iads-exclusive-zara-competitor-benchmark] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit iads.substack.com/subscribe [https://iads.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

The $10 trillion management problem

In this episode of IADS Retail Park 🎙️, Maya [https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-sankoh/] and Selvane [https://www.linkedin.com/in/selvanemohandas/], Managing Director of IADS, dissect this week's exclusive on the $10 trillion cost of manager disengagement. Drawing on Gallup's 2025 and 2026 State of the Global Workplace reports, Maya unpacks why $40 billion in enterprise AI investment is producing near-zero returns — and why both failures trace to the same layer. ➡️Click here to read the full Exclusive! [https://iads.substack.com/p/iads-exclusive-the-10-trillion-management] For more insights and updates, follow us on LinkedIn at International Association of Department Stores - IADS [https://fr.linkedin.com/company/international-association-of-department-stores], check out our Substack [https://iads.substack.com/], visit our website at www.iads.org [https://www.iads.org/] for additional resources, and learn more here [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Association_of_Department_Stores]! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit iads.substack.com/subscribe [https://iads.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]