Reality Check: AI, CX and the new role of stores in Unified Retail with Nikki Baird

Beyond the Top 1%: Building Sustainable Brand Loyalty in an Omnichannel World with Claire Hugill

In this episode of Looped In: The Retail Re-Engagement Podcast, Ines sits down with Claire Hugill (Atelier Consultancy; ex-Harrods, Alexander McQueen, Bottega Veneta, and Global Sales Director of Private Client at Farfetch) — a luxury retail leader with a true 360° view of stores, service, and high-touch sales. Claire shares what she learned scaling VIC programs where ~1% of customers can drive ~30% of sales, why mid-tier customers are the most overlooked growth engine, and how to turn clienteling insights into organization-wide action. We dive into: * VIC vs. mid-tier reality: nurturing tomorrow’s top clients and reducing over-reliance on the elite 1%. * Voice of the Customer that travels: bringing stylist insights from WhatsApp and shop floors into merchandising, product, and board-level decisions. * Close the data loop: unifying e-com, store, and social signals for a single customer view — in real time, not “last week’s report.” * Enable the front line: “spoon-fed” customer context and product cues that fit the cadence of an associate’s live conversation. * Personalization beyond demographics: cohorting by lifestyle and intent, not just look-alikes. * Community as loyalty’s engine: how pop-ups, collabs, and small, genuine touches create retention at scale. * KPIs and incentives that help (not hinder): aligning attribution, BOPIS/BORIS, and save-the-sale with how customers actually shop. * Risks for 2025: pipeline fragility, trend-chasing new demographics without a strategy, and treating “data” as a project instead of a practice. If you’re rethinking clienteling, building a mid-tier growth plan, or trying to make store and digital finally work as one, this conversation is a practical playbook from someone who’s lived it across department stores, mono-brand luxury, and global marketplaces.

Reality Check: AI, CX and the new role of stores in Unified Retail with Nikki Baird

In this episode of Looped In: The Retail Re-Engagement Podcast, Ines speaks with Nikki Baird (VP of Strategy & Product, Aptos), a leading voice on unified commerce and the evolving relationship between stores, data, and AI. Nikki breaks down what unified commerce truly means (hint: start with the store), why AI is reshaping the power dynamic between customers and retailers, and how brands can protect customer insight in a world where LLMs may soon “own the cart.” We dive into: * What separates unified commerce from omnichannel—and why the store is the anchor. * The “LLMs own the cart” risk: losing not just sales, but the customer journey insights that drive personalization and product strategy. * Turning the store from a data black box into a source of actionable, structured signals. * Equipping associates with AI “spoon-fed” insights (customer context, product attributes, review summaries) to restore their edge. * The foundations for AI that actually works: clean customer, product, and sales data—and why “data is a lifestyle, not a project.” * Incentives and KPIs that sabotage save-the-sale, BOPIS/BORIS, and attribution—and how to realign them. * Department stores, marketplaces, and curation: rebuilding value across third-party channels without losing the customer. Whether you’re safeguarding first-party data, rethinking store KPIs, or mapping your AI roadmap, this conversation offers a clear, practical reality check on how CX, data, and physical retail must come together—before someone else owns your cart.

The Future of Phygital Retail: Blending Experiences, Tech and Customer Journeys with David Blakeney

In this episode of Looped In: The Retail Re-Engagement Podcast, Ines speaks with David Blakeney, a retail veteran whose 40-year career spans House of Fraser, Arcadia and beyond — shaping everything from store development to pop-up innovation. David shares how physical retail has evolved in the wake of COVID, why omnichannel is now a non-negotiable, and how pop-ups, fitting rooms, and community-driven concepts are redefining the role of the store. We dive into: * Why in-store insight capture remains the industry’s biggest blind spot. * The resurgence of physical stores — and why DTC brands need them. * How pop-ups are becoming powerful storytelling tools, not just short-term sales drivers. * The fitting room as a conversion engine and customer experience hub. * Why community, authenticity, and service quality will separate winners from laggards. Whether you’re rethinking store strategy, experimenting with omnichannel models, or just curious about where the future of physical retail is heading, this conversation is packed with perspective from someone who has lived retail’s reinventions firsthand.

How are CRM and Clienteling intertwined? With Eleanor Thadani

In this episode of Looped In: The Retail Re-Engagement Podcast, Ines sits down with Eleanor Thadani, a seasoned leader in CRM, clienteling, and customer experience whose career spans iconic brands from J.Crew and Michael Kors to LVMH, Zegna, and Jimmy Choo. Eleanor shares how her journey from the e-commerce boom to luxury clienteling has shaped her view on personalization, why CRM and clienteling are “two sides of the same coin,” and what retailers often miss when they separate data from customer relationships. We dive into: * How luxury brands pioneered clienteling and what mass and DTC brands can learn. * The untapped opportunity in mid-tier customers — beyond VICs. * Why store-first perspectives matter when building CRM journeys. * The messy but critical role of messaging channels (email, WhatsApp, text, Instagram DMs). * How qualitative in-store feedback can unlock smarter merchandising. * AI’s potential — and pitfalls — in scaling personalization. * Whether you’re a retailer exploring omnichannel engagement or just curious about how luxury brands have long mastered one-to-one relationships, this episode is packed with practical insights and future-facing questions.

Customer Obsession in an Omnichannel World with Emily Brauer Gill

What does it really mean to be customer-centric — beyond the buzzword? In this episode of Looped In, I sit down with Emily Brauer Gill — Chief Revenue Officer at Margaux, Former SVP of Customer at Reformation, ex-Apple & Stitch Fix — to explore how brands can hard-wire the voice of the customer into every decision, from product design to distribution strategy. Emily shares lessons from her 15+ years shaping iconic consumer businesses: * How Stitch Fix combined tech and fashion to build data-driven customer insight loops. * The test-and-learn cadence that Reformation used to balance agility, sustainability, and customer demand. * Why customer segmentations often fail — and how to actually make them drive product, marketing, and growth decisions. * Building a true omnichannel culture: aligning retail, e-comm, and wholesale under one customer-first P&L. * The opportunity in turning anecdotal store feedback into structured data that informs both CX and merchandising. * Why AI-driven discovery could become the next Facebook ads moment for retail — and how to prepare. Packed with actionable takeaways, this episode is a masterclass in scaling while staying close to the customer.