The Unofficial Most Interesting Retailers List (April) | Reimagining Retail

Summary

Behind the Numbers: The Unofficial Most Interesting Retailers List (April)

Podcast: Behind the Numbers: An EMARKETER Podcast
Host: Sara Lebo
Guests: Arielle Fager, Blake Drosch, Susie David Canyon
Release Date: April 30, 2025

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Introduction

In the April 30th episode of Behind the Numbers: An EMARKETER Podcast, host Sara Lebo dives into the "Most Interesting Retailers of the Month" list. Joined by industry experts Arielle Fager, Blake Drosch, and Susie David Canyon, the panel dissects the latest movements and strategies of prominent retailers shaping the digital media and retail landscape.

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Initial Retailers Ranking

1. Hershey's
Sara Lebo kicks off the discussion with Hershey's entry at number eight, highlighting their ambitious move to produce a biopic about founder Milton Hershey, directed by the same director behind Mean Girls.

Sara Lebo [02:19]: "Hershey's... making a biopic telling the story of founder Milton Hershey. This made the list because I personally thought it was pretty interesting."

2. QVC
At number seven, QVC is recognized for launching the first-ever 24/7 live shopping stream on TikTok. This strategic partnership aims to leverage TikTok's vast and diverse audience.

Arielle Fager [03:43]: "I think it makes sense. I think it's a smart move."

3. Target
Number six spotlights Target, which has been experiencing a decline in foot traffic. The discussion touches on Target's attempts to address DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) concerns by engaging with civil rights leaders like Reverend Al Sharpton.

Arielle Fager [04:24]: "...Target had its 11th week of foot traffic declines... the CEO, Brian Cornell, did meet with Reverend Al Sharpton..."

4. Ben & Jerry's
Securing the fifth position, Ben & Jerry's efforts to separate from Unilever amidst political and social disagreements are examined. Their commitment to progressive politics and brand loyalty are noted as key factors.

Sara Lebo [06:47]: "...people who are brand loyal to Ben and Jerry's because they like the Tonight Dough might not stop eating it even if they disagree with the politics because they like the flavor."

5. Walmart
In the fourth spot, Walmart's expansion of its retail media network, Walmart Connect, is discussed. Their acquisition of Vizio and subsequent move into CTV (Connected TV) advertising is seen as a powerful strategy.

Blake Drosch [08:35]: "I think for Walmart, it's okay... Walmart's got no shortage of money to kind of pull out from, you know..."

6. Sephora
Ranking third, Sephora's partnership with the WNBA's Golden State Valkyries and their top position among Gen Z teens in beauty brands are highlighted. The engagement levels of WNBA viewers with advertising are also noted.

Susie David Canyon [09:53]: "...Sephora... took the top spot among Gen Z teens as a beauty brand on Piper Sandler's semiannual taking stock with survey."

7. Temu and Shein
At number two, Temu and Shein's recent price hikes to counteract rising import costs and tariffs are analyzed. The discussion revolves around the potential impact on their low-price appeal and consumer retention.

Arielle Fager [10:24]: "...Temu and Shein are raising their prices to combat the rising cost of imports and any tariffs that are going to be applied to Chinese goods..."

8. Amazon
Topping the initial list at number one, Amazon's innovative "Buy for Me" feature is explored. This feature utilizes agentic AI to personalize and streamline the purchasing process for consumers.

Arielle Fager [13:39]: "So Amazon's testing a new feature. It's called Buy for Me... Consumer just has to check if it's right and then say buy."

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List Refinement and Strategic Adjustments

In the second half of the episode, Blake Drosch and Susie David Canyon review and adjust the initial rankings based on their insights.

Blake's Adjustment: Lowering QVC
Blake argues that QVC's late entry into TikTok limits its potential impact compared to other retailers.

Blake Drosch [16:26]: "My first move would be to take the QVC TikTok collaboration off the list. To me that seems like something that QVC should have done two years ago instead of now..."

Susie's Adjustment: Elevating Walmart
Susie counters by highlighting Walmart's multifaceted strategies, including enhanced beauty events and advanced delivery technologies that outperform Amazon in certain areas.

Susie David Canyon [19:14]: "I would like to move Walmart up to number one... they're ramping up their beauty event... implementing virtual try on for colors... piloting a 40 store sort of like truly elevated experience with sampling and experts..."

Blake's Wildcard: Introducing ButcherBox and Target Partnership
Blake introduces ButcherBox's collaboration with Target as a strategic partnership that benefits both companies, especially in the growing e-commerce food segment.

Blake Drosch [26:01]: "...ButcherBox collaborating with Target was a good mutually beneficial move for both companies..."

Susie's Wildcard: Adding Lids
Susie adds Lids as a wildcard entrant, commending their innovative hatdrop.com concept and expansion into physical stores, which offers a sleek and personalized shopping experience.

Susie David Canyon [21:43]: "...lids... they just opened one and are planning to roll out 20 completely new custom hubs... it looks so sleek and so easy to navigate and it screams energy..."

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Final Rankings and Honorable Mentions

After the adjustments, the final rankings of the Most Interesting Retailers of the Month are as follows:

1. Walmart
2. Amazon
3. Temu and Shein
4. Sephora
5. Ben & Jerry's
6. Target / ButcherBox
7. Hershey's
8. Lids

Honorable Mentions:

• Costco: Noted for increasing foot traffic while maintaining strong DEI policies.
• Michaels: Recognized for introducing innovative party goods, especially in contrast to Party City’s bankruptcy filing.

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Key Insights and Conclusions

• Shift to Digital and Live Shopping: Retailers like QVC and Walmart are leveraging platforms like TikTok and CTV to reach diverse audiences and enhance their digital presence.

• Brand Loyalty vs. Political Stances: Ben & Jerry's demonstrates that strong brand loyalty can sustain consumer engagement despite political or social controversies.

• Adaptation to Economic Pressures: Temu and Shein’s price adjustments reflect the broader challenges retailers face with rising import costs and tariffs, emphasizing the need for adaptable pricing strategies.

• Innovation in Retail Experiences: Walmart's focus on experiential in-store events and advanced delivery systems underscores the importance of blending online convenience with physical store advantages.

• Personalization and AI Integration: Amazon’s Buy for Me feature highlights the growing role of AI in creating personalized shopping experiences, though its current practical impact remains debatable.

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Notable Quotes

• Sara Lebo [14:21]: "This is so like the future is here. And I get that. I wrote a piece last week on Machine to Machine Marketing..."

• Blake Drosch [08:35]: "...advertisers shift to really hammering performance over brands. So it could be, you know, not super ideal, but definitely a longer term play."

• Susie David Canyon [20:23]: "...they have this sophisticated technology that's new that helps close the gap. So that if you have three Walmart stores that are within a radius, but one store doesn't have everything you're looking for, they can ship it from multiple stores instead of going out to a distribution center..."

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Closing Remarks

Sara Lebo wraps up the episode by thanking guests Arielle, Blake, and Susie for their valuable insights. She encourages listeners to rate and review the podcast and teases upcoming episodes, including another installment of "Behind the Numbers." The episode underscores the dynamic nature of the retail industry and the continuous need for retailers to innovate and adapt in a rapidly evolving market landscape.

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Stay informed and stay ahead with EMARKETER’s insightful analysis. Tune in to new episodes published Monday through Friday wherever you find podcasts.

Transcript

[Sara Lebo]

Connective Media by United Airlines is redefining traveler media with a world first omnichannel network. From in flight to online and in app experience, Best in class tech helping brands engage travelers where it matters most. Ready to make an impact. Discover [e-mail] hello listeners. Today is Wednesday, April 30th. Welcome to behind the Reimagining Retail, an emarketer podcast made possible by Connective Media by United Airlines. This is the show where we talk about how retail collides with every part of our lives. I'm your host, Sara Lebo. Today's episode topic is our April unofficial most interesting retailers of the month list. Before we get into that, let's meet today's guests. Everyone is in studio with me today. Joining me first up is Arielle Fager. Hey, Arielle.

[Arielle Fager]

Hi. Lovely to be here.

[Sara Lebo]

Great to have you. Also with us, Blake Drosch. Hey, Blake.

[Blake Drosch]

Hello. Good to be back.

[Sara Lebo]

Good to have you. And finally in studio is Susie David Canyon. Hey, Susie.

[Susie David Canyon]

Least but not last.

[Sara Lebo]

Don't say that.

[Susie David Canyon]

You just said finally.

[Sara Lebo]

Not least but not last. You switched last but not least.

[Susie David Canyon]

Oh, shit.

[Sara Lebo]

Least but not last would be like.

[Susie David Canyon]

Guys, one of these days. Last but not least is what I wanted to say. Please start from the beginning.

[Sara Lebo]

Definitely keep that in there.

[Susie David Canyon]

No in the outtakes. But not.

[Sara Lebo]

Certainly keep that in there.

[Susie David Canyon]

No Talk about my LinkedIn profile posts. Thanks for having me, Sarah.

[Sara Lebo]

Thanks for being here. Let's jump into the unofficial most interesting retailers of the month list. Arielle and I, we're the committee, will present our list in the first half of the episode and in the second half, Blake and Susie will have the opportunity to edit our list. So here is Arielle and my list for April. At number eight, we have Hershey's. Hershey's is following in the steps of Mattel to make a movie directed by the director of Mean Girls. The original one, but unlike the Barbie movie, this one I think is a biopic telling the story of founder Milton Hershey. This made the list because I personally thought it was pretty interesting.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I like it. I think it's fun. I would be interested to see how it comes out. The director of Mean Girls. That's an interesting take on it. So we'll see.

[Susie David Canyon]

Well, and they have some relatively well known people doing it. I think they're leaning into the love story. I didn't know what this was so I looked it up. They're leaning into his love story and it's a bit of a tragedy love story, which I think is I didn't know that is much more. It'll be much more movie friendly than just the history of Hershey's. But it is definitely an expensive way to stay top of mind.

[Sara Lebo]

It is. The talent I recognized was Alexandra Daddario. I did not recognize the male actor I thought it was.

[Susie David Canyon]

He's apparently been in a lot of.

[Sara Lebo]

Things, but it's actually a different Finn.

[Susie David Canyon]

He's been in a lot of movies. There weren't ones that I knew.

[Sara Lebo]

Okay.

[Susie David Canyon]

I just think I'm different.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah. It's an expensive advertising play. So fascinating. At number seven, QVC, which launched the first ever 24. 7 live shopping stream in the US on TikTok. This is interesting to me because for a while we talked about TikTok as like the new QVC, almost as if they were rivals, although clearly. Clearly TikTok has more attention, although it's attention from different age groups. This shows us that TikTok is a distribution channel for QVC so they can have a symbiotic relationship. And TikTok, is that almost like a network for QVC?

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I think it makes sense. I think it's a smart move.

[Susie David Canyon]

It is clever that they're doing a live stream there and they're trying to bring people to this platform and they're using the network effect. What I think is the most interesting part about this is that with the looming ban, they're still leaning in super heavily and they're probably thinking like, whatever, we'll give it a try. If not, we'll at least introduce ourselves to this whole new generation who may then come to our TV.

[Sara Lebo]

TikTok and its partners are behaving like there is no ban. TikTok is readily hiring in the US they're just operating business as usual for the most part. Number six is Target. Arielle, why'd we put Target on the list?

[Arielle Fager]

So this is kind of an interesting and maybe a not so great way. So as of April 7, Target had its 11th week of foot traffic declines, according to Placer AI data. Now, the CEO, Brian Cornell, did meet with Reverend Al Sharpton, who is, you know, a civil rights leader, to kind of discuss the company's DEI policies. Sharpton apparently called the meeting very constructive and candid. So, I mean, obviously Target's taking steps to try to rect this, but I am not 100% sure it's really going to work.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah, Target hasn't had its identity related messaging. Right. In a couple years now. They had a whole like, pride fiasco where they leaned in to pride and Then leaned out of pride. Last year, they abandoned dei. This year, foot traffic diminishing has been attributed to that. So, yeah, this one's on the list. Less because of something Target did. Well, the DEI backup is something Target did, but more because of the impact that it's had. Number five, Ben and Jerry's. Arielle, tell us about this.

[Arielle Fager]

So this is actually kind of interesting opposite almost to Target. Ben and Jerry's part of Unilever currently, but they want to be separate from Unilever. They are trying to find some investors to buy the Ben and Jerry's brand to separate. And this is all kind of stemming from a lot of disagreements about politics and where they stand on certain social issues. And I just think it's really great to see a brand that is so, you know, the social justice is embedded in what they do. Really standing up for themselves and for the messaging they want to put out there.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah. Progressive politics has always been part of Ben and Jerry's brand. Classic Vermont brand. They're like the Bernie Sanders of ice cream. Something that our colleague Emmy said to me was, she was like, I wonder if Ben and Jerry's can get away with more of this behavior because it tastes so good. I think that's an oversimplification, but I also don't think it's wrong. Like, people who are brand loyal to Ben and Jerry's because they like the Tonight dough might not stop eating it even if they disagree with the politics because they like the flavor.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah. I think Ben and Jerry's has such a loyal cult following that, you know.

[Susie David Canyon]

It is interesting that Target probably thought the same and it didn't work out for them.

[Arielle Fager]

That's true.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah.

[Susie David Canyon]

I'm just surprised it's on the list because Ben and Jerry's is a quick service restaurant. Just saying.

[Sara Lebo]

Ben and Jerry's is a food brand.

[Arielle Fager]

They're a food brand. I would call that a food brand.

[Susie David Canyon]

Would you?

[Arielle Fager]

Yes, I would.

[Susie David Canyon]

Chipotle sell.

[Arielle Fager]

They're sold in stores.

[Susie David Canyon]

I'm sure Chipotle sells random CPG things.

[Arielle Fager]

No, Blake, but Ben and Jerry's is a very well known, well documented product in stores.

[Susie David Canyon]

Just asking for a friend.

[Arielle Fager]

I appreciate you.

[Sara Lebo]

The debate we're having here is that we try to avoid having quick service restaurants on this list. Susie's accusing us of breaking our own rule. We'll move on. Number four, Walmart.

[Susie David Canyon]

Now I'm definitely gonna lose. You're welcome.

[Sara Lebo]

Walmart's retail media network, Walmart Connect is now letting advertisers buy on CTV inventory from Vizio, which it bought last year. This was kind of the whole point of buying Vizio both to sell retail media inventory on the CTV network and also probably in store as out of home retail media advertising. So it's not super surprising to see this, but we're definitely seeing what we expected to be Walmart's play in action.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, not a surprising move, but certainly a very powerful move and something that's going to serve Walmart's retail media business well.

[Blake Drosch]

Interesting timing though because there's a lot of speculation that CTV ad spending is going to be hit pretty hard by the impact of the tariffs as as advertisers shift to really hammering performance over brands. So it could be, you know, not super ideal, but definitely a longer term play.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I think for Walmart it's okay. You know, Walmart's got no shortage of money to kind of pull out from, you know, and invest in these types of things. I would say if it was a smaller network I would be a little more concerned. But I think for Walmart you've got to have kind of all of your bases covered and CTV is certainly an important base.

[Sara Lebo]

We should check back in on CTV in a couple of months because we're not projecting it to be hit as hard as linear, which is not surprising. And I was told by someone on our research team that what's happening with CTV is incredibly complicated right now. And then I did not get a follow up on that. So we should definitely check back in and see how it's reacting. Number three, Sephora. Sephora partnered with WNBA team the Golden State Valkyries for advertising. Marcus talked with Nielsen on a podcast a few weeks ago about the WNBA's AD potential, which is really strong. We're seeing this with Sephora. We're also seeing this with Coach, which became the unofficial handbag of the wnba. The other reason Sephora is on this list is it took the top spot among Gen Z teens as a beauty brand on Piper Sandler's semiannual taking stock with survey. That happened even as Ulta and Target lost share with that group.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, women's sports, it's hot. It's what's now makes sense and I love it.

[Sara Lebo]

If you haven't listened to that episode with Marcus, you should give it a listen. Something that Charlene Polite Corley from Nielsen said that was interesting is that they have data that shows that while there are fewer WNBA viewers than the NBA, those WNBA viewers are more engaged with advertising and more likely to react to ads they see. Number two, we have Temu and Shein. We also broke our rules by putting two brands on the list. Arielle. Why did we do that?

[Arielle Fager]

So as of last Friday, Temu and Shein are raising their prices to combat the rising cost of imports and any tariffs that are going to be applied to Chinese goods coming into the U.S. it's a really interesting question because the reason that so many consumers have really flock to these marketplaces is because of their low prices. And it's really, we don't know what was, what's going to happen if now the prices are rising. Will consumers still stick with these? Will they still shop there? So it's a good question.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah, I'm not really sure why they would. Temu and Shein's advantage is that their prices are so cheap, but the goods take a while to get here and they're not particularly high quality. Once the prices go up, there's not as much reason to shop there.

[Susie David Canyon]

Though you could argue that everybody's prices on that random tchotchke will also go up. So yeah, why not get it from here? Instead of being $2, it'll be maybe max 4 if we go with 200% increase.

[Arielle Fager]

I do wonder though, I mean, or 100, obviously.

[Susie David Canyon]

Take out my math, please.

[Arielle Fager]

I wonder though if, if there's going to be a more US Forward sentiment that plays into this as well. I mean, obviously Temu and Shein have, you know, Chinese associations, Amazon's products also from China. But because Amazon is a US company, I'm not sure if that's going to make a difference in, in how people shop.

[Susie David Canyon]

So it's. So it's such an interesting point because we were talking about this the other day when we were prepping for something else, that there are many more, including Walmart commercials talking about American made or manufactured here or American branding. But at the end of the day, I really think if there is a recession and people's budgets are tight and they need a plastic pot and it's cheaper at one of these companies, I think they're going to have no choice but to do it or forego the pot altogether.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I think you're right. I think the question is going to be who can offer the cheapest price.

[Sara Lebo]

Some of these American made or American manufactured companies are also under fire. Tesla most recently for saying their cybertrucks are manufactured in America, assembled in America. That's what it is. Because even if they're assembled in America, what does that mean about the materials?

[Blake Drosch]

Yeah, I mean a lot of the, there are a lot of just Raw materials that are simply just impossible to source in the US Even if they wanted to. So these companies that are continuing to rely on maybe American manufacturing so they can slap a tag are still going to be susceptible to tariffs on the raw goods that are coming into the US So it's not necessarily going to make the end cost for the American consumer any cheaper because those tariffs are already happening. Plus the, you know, additional labor costs that are associated with, you know, things being assembled in America is going to mean that basically that manufactured in the USA label is going to come with a pretty hefty price tag along with that.

[Sara Lebo]

Okay, at number one, we have Amazon Arielle. Why Amazon?

[Arielle Fager]

So Amazon's testing a new feature. It's called Buy for Me. And so essentially what this feature is is if a user goes on to the Amazon mobile app and types in, you know, Hanes underwear, some of them now will get a button that says Buy for Me and that essentially will buy make a purchase for the consumer that is off of the Amazon site. And so it's using agentic AI to process their size and all of that and then fill in the payment details, the mailing address. Consumer just has to check if it's right and then say buy.

[Sara Lebo]

This is so like the future is here. And I get that. I wrote a piece last week on Machine to Machine Marketing which you should check out on our website at the same time. Is this not just the I'm feeling lucky button, but for buying a good on Amazon? I guess it's not because it doesn't give you the first thing, it gives you the thing that's tailored for you.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I think it's a little more personalized. But I do agree that there could be some, some trial and error that happens. I think that's why it's currently in testing mode. But this does build on their, their other tests that they have been doing, which is including outside links in their, in their search results. So seem like they're really just trying to get everyone to start their shopping search on Amazon, whether or not they're actually making that purchase there.

[Blake Drosch]

But I agree, it's like how much time is that realistically going to save? Because when I go on Amazon now, I can basically find the product I want and buy it within one click because it already has all of my information and a lot of the time if it's something that I'm restocking that I've already purchased and it requires even less time for it to find it. So I see maybe there's a World where, okay, Amazon knows what type of toothpaste I use because I bought it there before. So I type in toothpaste and it buys it for me, which is saving me a couple of seconds out of my day, which sort of like seems like pretty marginal when you think about, you know, all of this potential that we're talking about with agentic AI. It's like the use case in its practicality right now doesn't really seem that revolutionary.

[Sara Lebo]

Let's keep moving into our second half. This is the time where Suzy and Blake get to tell us where we went wrong. Each of them will have a chance to move a brand up or down our rankings and to add a new company entirely. Also in our honorable mention spots we have Costco for actually having foot traffic pick up as they hold strong to DEI and Michaels for introducing party goods, which is interesting as Party City files for bankruptcy. So Blake, why don't you go first and make a move?

[Blake Drosch]

My first move would be to take the QVC TikTok collaboration off the list. To me that seems like kind of something that QVC should have done two years ago instead of now and it's like a little bit too little too late. I also don't really understand what QVC is really bringing to the table here because their brand is not super well known among TikTok users, I would imagine. And it's not something that is like really super alluring. They're not necessarily bringing like, you know, recognizable personalities onto the platform. So I'm just really not sure how fruitful this partnership is going to be unless, you know, TikTok live shopping really continues to ramp up and QVC can sort of ride that wave. But I don't know if that's really a certainty at this point still.

[Susie David Canyon]

So I actually wonder if they're doing it now and not two years ago because TikTok didn't want them on. Right. They weren't cool enough for TikTok. But now that the ban is looming and potentially there are people walking away from, by people I mean brands walking away from TikTok. This is like a no brainer for them. There's the potential of a new audience that's not already coming to TikTok. Plus QVC is getting maybe, although unlikely because it sounds like even though it's net new original content, it's still not quite Gen Z and Alpha.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah. The reason I would argue to keep QVC on is first of all because it could help bring more boomer women to TikTok and also because this is something that sky, our colleague, is really bullish on. Is TikTok adopting live shopping in the US the way it's been successful in China? And the 247 aspect of that is really important to that, I think. So if you are strolling in the middle of the night and you see that the only content on in the middle of the night is qvc, you might be watching it.

[Arielle Fager]

I don't know. I am a little more on Blake's side. I do think that this is something that they should have done two years ago, to Susie's point. Maybe it wasn't possible for many other reasons, but I just. I don't think that the audience that scrolls on TikTok in the middle of the night is gonna be the same audience that's gonna buy something from a QVC live stream.

[Sara Lebo]

I don't know.

[Arielle Fager]

Boomer.

[Sara Lebo]

Women are having trouble sleeping often, but.

[Blake Drosch]

Why do they need to change the medium if they're already watching it on tv?

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah, I mean, that's fair. I am fine with moving qvc down to 8th place and moving Hershey up.

[Arielle Fager]

Okay, all right, I'll allow it.

[Sara Lebo]

So QVC has been moved down. Susie, make your move.

[Susie David Canyon]

I would like to take Ben and Jerry's off because I think trying to spin yourself back into your wholly owned company is kind of like, been there, done that. Lots of brands try and do that for many different reasons. But I would really like to move Walmart up to number one, because although yes, the Vizio ads is interesting to see what they're doing. I don't know if you guys caught that. They're doing two in the recent weeks. They're doing two really new things that I think are really important to highlight. They're ramping up their beauty event. It's not new, but they're trying to elevate the beauty category at Walmart, which is not known for through their marketplace, but also getting some. Some premium brands that are part of their core assortment. And they're implementing virtual try on for colors. They're doing sampling. They're piloting a 40 store sort of like truly elevated experience with sampling and experts and a bunch of other things. And I thought that was very, very cool. And it's from April 18 to May 31, so there is some sort of sense of urgenc, go see it. And they're also doing a whole new thing. I don't know if you saw the delivery where they're doing some sort of grid work. Whereas before it was. Yeah, whereas before I didn't see this.

[Sara Lebo]

Tell me about this.

[Susie David Canyon]

So before one store delivers and then it's probably a distribution center, but now they have this sophisticated technology that's new that helps close the gap. So that if you have three Walmart stores that are within a radius, but one store doesn't have everything you're looking for, they can ship it from multiple stores instead of going out to a distribution center, which is very different than the way they were doing it now. Which means that you'll have as a shopper, if you shop Walmart, you'll have access to way more SKUs for same day delivery than ever before.

[Sara Lebo]

Okay. Susie's breaking the rules by trying to do two things.

[Arielle Fager]

We've broken the rules though.

[Sara Lebo]

We broke the rules already.

[Susie David Canyon]

I stand behind Walmart moving up to number one. I think they're doing some very cool things.

[Sara Lebo]

Let's talk Walmart. I don't have much to say other than that you convinced me with all that.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, I think all of those things all add up to some, some really interesting stuff. Less on the beauty sale itself, but definitely on the more experiential in store stuff and the delivery faster because I think fast delivery is one of the places. Amazon really still holds power over Walmart and so if Walmart can speed that up, it could make a big difference.

[Sara Lebo]

Okay, so Walmart's up to number one. Knocking Amazon, Temu and Shein and Sephora down a peg. That's fine with me. So let's now hear what your wildcards are, Suzy. What is your wild card?

[Susie David Canyon]

So I wanted to add lids, which I know very well because they have shop in shops at Macy's, but they're also doing some very cool things. A couple years ago they launched a hatdrop.com website that was all about limited editions and collectibles that they have now turned into physical stores. And they just opened one and are planning to roll out 20 completely new custom hub, sort of. So it's like two different types of stores that they're leaning into. These like customization hubs where they understand that people who are buying for the most part sports memorabilia are probably not super budget conscious. And so they're willing to pay for more personalized items that are localized, that are really part of a whole experience and that are like the space. If you saw the pictures, I sent the article to Sarah. If you guys see the pictures, it looks so sleek and so easy to navigate and it screams energy and I just think it's cool.

[Blake Drosch]

I'd be interested to see some research on if people are wearing hats as much as they used to.

[Arielle Fager]

I feel like it's.

[Sara Lebo]

Why do you think people are wearing hats less?

[Blake Drosch]

I feel like you don't see.

[Sara Lebo]

Is it because they're all getting hair transplants now?

[Blake Drosch]

You don't. Maybe. But I feel like you just don't see many as many people wearing baseball hats.

[Sara Lebo]

I'm always wearing a baseball.

[Blake Drosch]

Used to. I really. Around the city, it's really only like Europeans wearing Yankee and dyed hats.

[Susie David Canyon]

But you know what, it's an interesting question because their HD the hat drop concept is all about hats. So they started online. They're clearly getting enough traffic that they're putting it into stores. And they did a lot of research. Like the whole piece that I read in, I think it was chain store article age. Sorry. Chain age was around how they use their customer research to see what are the different adjacent categories too. So the store isn't just about the sports merch, but also like this new concept store, which I didn't catch the name of the new store, but I.

[Sara Lebo]

This is like, very hard for me to weigh in on because I'm not super familiar with sportswear or streetwear. Podcast producer Stu, does this sound exciting to you?

[Blake Drosch]

Yes.

[Sara Lebo]

Oh, Stu said yes. If you didn't get that.

[Blake Drosch]

I've also noticed that podcast host Marcus Johnson wears less hats than he used to as well.

[Sara Lebo]

But he's European, but he lives in.

[Blake Drosch]

The us not on the continent, though.

[Sara Lebo]

Yeah.

[Arielle Fager]

For me, my like. And this is like, you know, we don't judge things on how successful they could be. But I feel like this time period, I mean, I know you said, you know, people who are enthusiasts of sportswear are not necessarily going to be budget conscious. Cause that's how they're choosing to spend their money. But considering, like, where we're going in terms of tariffs and budgets, it just feels like kind of an extravagance that I don't know if it's gonna really take off.

[Sara Lebo]

It's also why it's interesting though, I.

[Susie David Canyon]

Would put them in store look so nice. You know what? I thought maybe the objection would have been that, like, how many Yankees hats do you need? Which is where I was gonna come in and say, but they're personalized, so that's gonna make you keep buying more random hats.

[Blake Drosch]

And there's also the sports leagues are constantly like, there's this new thing in the MLB over the last couple of years, which is Connect jersey, which is basically an alternative jersey that they wear also.

[Susie David Canyon]

They do.

[Blake Drosch]

That is a whole new reason to.

[Sara Lebo]

Go out and buy I'm always buying memorabilia from weird minor league sports teams.

[Arielle Fager]

So the fact that we've been talking about this for a while, I'm going.

[Sara Lebo]

To say let's put them at number eight and knock off qvc. Honestly, it was Stu saying yes that made this happen. Blake, make what is your wild card?

[Blake Drosch]

My wild card. So what is currently eight right now?

[Sara Lebo]

Eight is lids.

[Blake Drosch]

Okay. I feel. I almost feel conflicted because I think Susie put forth a really good argument for lids. So can you tell me what's seven?

[Sara Lebo]

Hershey's.

[Blake Drosch]

Okay, Hershey. I kind of like predicted that in my 2025 retail trend, saying that brands are going to use more of their intellectual property to create premium video content. So I kind of have to keep that in there. What's six Target?

[Susie David Canyon]

Oh, that's all right.

[Blake Drosch]

See, this is. This is even more confusing.

[Sara Lebo]

Tell us what you want to.

[Blake Drosch]

I wanted to talk about Butcherbox and Target selling on Target, which I think so I'm going to keep Target where it is, but I'm going to say the reason is I'm going to turn the negative into a positive and say that Butcherbox collaborating with Target was a good mutually beneficial move for both companies because Butcher box, which is a subscription meat company, subscription E commerce has been on the outs for a long time time. People just do not want to pay for these subscription prices for these routine deliveries that they don't want to commit to. I think economic hardship is going to probably pull down this industry even more. Butcherbox actually is doing fairly well given the economic climate for subscriptions. They have 400,000 subscribers, which is a lot.

[Sara Lebo]

Is it like Omaha Steaks?

[Blake Drosch]

Yeah, it's basically Omaha Steaks. It's just meat delivery, but they have these subscribers. But now they want to grow by going on doordash and Target's marketplace and not having any subscription aspect. You can just go on one off by the box, which I think is smart for them because if you look at emarketer forecast frozen and fresh foods, E commerce is the fastest growing segment of food and beverage. And on Target side they've been sort of struggling a little bit in their the digital grocery race. And having a more diversified offering can really only help them. And it's a marketplace offering. So I thought it was interesting. I mean it's not going to be a huge needle mover, but something that's just a good example of a partnership that adds a little bit of value to both sides.

[Sara Lebo]

I'm saying yes to this for two reasons. The first one is you found a backdoor way to get it on the list without really shifting anything around, which was just.

[Arielle Fager]

Just good strategy of this episode of Breaking Rules.

[Sara Lebo]

The second one is that we put Costco in the honorable mentions as like a juxtaposition for Target on dei. I was at my parents house a few weeks ago and I discovered that once a month or so they go to Costco and they buy so much frozen meat to put in the freezer. And this is like kind of a play against that by Target. So I think it's a smart move. So yeah, I'll give it to you.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah, it's a yes for me.

[Sara Lebo]

Okay, so that gives us a final list with honorable mentions, Costco and QVC at the bottom. Then we have number eight, lids number seven, Hershey's number six, Target Slash Butcherbox number five, Ben and Jerry's number four, Sephora number three, Temu and Shein, number two, Amazon and number one. Wow. So once again, Walmart and Amazon take the top.

[Arielle Fager]

Yeah.

[Blake Drosch]

What a world.

[Sara Lebo]

Thank you so much for being here, Suzy.

[Susie David Canyon]

Thanks for having me.

[Sara Lebo]

Thank you, Blake.

[Blake Drosch]

Always a pleasure.

[Sara Lebo]

And thank you, Arielle.

[Arielle Fager]

This was fun.

[Sara Lebo]

Please give us a rating and review wherever you listen to podcasts. Thank you to our listeners and to our team that edits the podcast. We'll be back next Wednesday with another episode of Reimagining Retail, an emarketer podcast made possible by Connective Media by United Airlines. And on Friday, join Marcus for another episode of the behind the Numbers show. And if you're my parents, sorry I brought up your Costco shopping habits.