Podcast
The Modern Retail Podcast
Hosted by Digiday · EN
The Modern Retail Podcast is a podcast about all the ways the retail industry is changing and modernizing. Every Saturday, senior reporters Gabi Barkho and Melissa Daniels break down the latest retail headlines and interview executives about what it takes to keep up in today’s retail landscape, diving deep into growth strategies, brand autopsies, economic changes and more
38episodes
Episodes
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P.F. Candle Co.’s Made in America strategy (RERUN)
6d ago00:35:26Tap to summarizeIn honor of July 4, this week the Modern Retail Podcast is revisiting an episode featuring P.F. Candle Company, which produces its candles in Los Angeles. Co-hosts Gabi Barkho and Melissa Daniels talked to founders Kristen Pumphrey and Thomas Neuberger about the advantages of and challenges of making products in the United States. Last year, the made-in-America debate was heavily tied to importing tariffs. But interest in American-made products is still high, as the founders highlight in the conversation on domestic production.
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Listener mailbag: How AI and Substack are changing affiliate marketing
2w ago00:32:00Tap to summarizeFew areas of digital marketing have exploded in recent years as much as affiliate marketing. What's more, it's actually proving effective: eMarketer in September said that affiliate marketing would drive more than $210 billion in US e-commerce sales that year. By 2028, that figure is expected to hit over $287 billion.But with that growth comes a myriad of questions about implementation and how brands can actually get results.This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, co-hosts Gabriela Barkho and Melissa Daniels answer listener questions around affiliate best practices and how it's changing amid changes in shopper behavior and media consumption.The conversation gets into: How to ensure authenticity in partners How AI is reshaping affiliate marketing The role of Substack and new media channels Balancing workload across channels
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Is Prime Day still worth it?
3w ago00:40:23Tap to summarizeAmazon Prime Day isn't as essential as it once was. But for some brands, it can still provide a meaningful sales boost.On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Podcast, special projects editor Melissa Daniels spoke with Katherine McKee, the fractional head of growth at Morphology Consulting, to break down the pros and cons of participating in the four-day sales event that is scheduled for June 23 through June 26.The two discuss: How Prime Day is resonating in 2026. The margin math of Prime Day. How brands can calculate their specific cost of participation and what gains they may be able to reap.
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Why the World Cup is a make or break moment for retail this summer
4w ago00:38:07Tap to summarizeOn this week's Modern Retail Podcast, senior reporter Gabriela Barkho is joined by executive editor Anna Hensel to talk all things World Cup marketing. This week, Modern Retail ran an editorial series on how retailers and brands of all sizes are taking advantage of the biggest-ever FIFA World Cup this summer. Malls are turning into hubs for fans, while retail media networks are looking at this as a critical moment to win over more advertiser dollars. As Hensel explains, this highly anticipated World Cup comes at a precarious moment for the industry, as retailers continue to worry that rising gas prices will lead consumers to cut back spending. The World Cup, then, will be a critical test for how resilient consumers actually are. Later on in the episode, Alyssa Grigg, senior director of marketing and communications for Evergreen Goodwill of Northwest Washington, joins the show to discuss how its Seattle store plans to capitalize on matches happening on its home turf. Seattle is hosting six World Cup matches, and the stadium happens to be minutes from the largest Goodwill in the world. So the thrifting nonprofit is hosting several activations and events throughout the tournament to drive tourist and fan traffic. In this interview, Grigg speaks to: How thrifting has become a major tourism activity. Creating buzz through live, local-artist screen printing and vintage soccer merchandise. Turning the 70,000-square-foot Goodwill store into a "treasure hunt" destination, with help from local influencers and social media campaigns.
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The next era of Pride Month marketing
Jun 600:39:24Tap to summarizePride Month is underway, marking a season of celebration that's become a mainstay for some brands. But earning the trust of LGBTQ+ audiences goes far beyond rainbow merch or a few social media posts. This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, special projects editor Melissa Daniels interviewed LGBTQ+ marketing specialists Matt Tumminello and Matt Wagner of Target10. Their conversation centers on earning trust with LGBTQ customers long before it's time for a Pride collection, starting with the ways companies used to show up and how that's changed over the years. The conversation gets into: How "Pride marketing" is in its third act as cultural winds change How earning trust with LGBTQ+ consumers takes more than a one-time campaign Winning strategies that start with authentic moments and messages
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Pacsun's CEO on how the brand cracked its Gen Z strategy
May 3000:38:43Tap to summarizeYoung consumers have always been a sought-after demographic for retailers — but what they value is always changing. Over the past several decades, Pacsun has sought to maintain a strong pulse on the evolving tastes of teenagers. From viral jeans to strategic partnerships with creators, the mall-based retailer is once again winning over young people. For the first time in 18 years, the company is opening more new stores than it is closing. Pacsun's digital strategy is heavily weighted toward customers’ personal interests and influences. The brand says it remains relevant through four key pillars: fashion, music, sport and art. And so in 2025, the company began releasing an annual Youth Report and announced its Youth Advisory Council. The two programs are an example of Pacsun leaning into customer participation and what it calls “consumers as co-creators.” On this week’s Modern Retail Podcast, senior reporter Gabriela Barkho is joined by Pacsun CEO Brie Olson, who recently released a new book called “Co-Created: The Cultural Strategy That Redefined Pacsun.” In this interview, Olson discusses: The brand’s early bet on TikTok Shop. Pacsun’s new Youth Advisory Council and Youth Report. The brand's latest investment in a new mobile app as a hub for product drops and rewards.
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Hits and misses from Q1 earnings season
May 2300:32:35Tap to summarizeLate May saw a slew of first-quarter earnings reports that reflected meaningful growth for companies like Target and Walmart, but also revealed some bigger shifts in consumer behavior and operational costs. While shoppers dealing with higher fuel costs are pulling back in some areas, like DIY home projects, they're also showing up to treat themselves for limited-edition collabs or deals at off-price retailers. This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, special projects editor Melissa Daniels is joined by reporter Mitchell Parton to unpack some of the biggest hits and misses of earnings season, from Target's comeback to the threat of rising fuel prices.
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Why every brand is now their own media company, featuring Prince Street Pizza
May 1600:40:57Tap to summarizeIn the era of the viral vertical video, there is a seemingly endless appetite for new content. And brands are getting in on original content trying by creating their own series for social media. In January, Gap Inc announced it was creating a new role, a chief entertainment officer, where Pam Kaufman will lead their “fashion-tainment” strategy. This year, David’s Bridal launched “Breaking Bridal,” a series documenting nontraditional weddings. And since September, New York-based Prince Street Pizza has been putting out episodes of “Delivering Happiness,” a YouTube series starring actor Nick Turturro. Lawrence Longo, the CEO of Prince Street Pizza and Irv’s Burgers, is the brainchild behind “Delivering Happiness,” having gotten his start as a film producer before getting into the restaurant industry. Prince Street Pizza is in the middle of expanding nationwide – new locations are opening soon in Nashville and Charleston – and the show is part of the company’s brand awareness strategy. This week, Longo joins senior reporter Gabriela Barkho and special projects editor Melissa Daniels on the Modern Retail Podcast. Longo breaks down his approach to storytelling and why he’s bullish on original content fueling Prince Street’s growth. "I think every brand is their own media company," Longo said. This episode gets into: The time and investment needed to create consistently viral moments. The logistics behind pulling off a project like “Delivering Happeniness." Why brands should not expect authentic content to drive instant sales.
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The tradeoff economy: Why stressed shoppers are still spending
May 900:32:01Tap to summarizeFor this week's Modern Retail Podcast, co-hosts Gabriela Barkho and Melissa Daniels were joined by Katie Thomas from the Kearney Consumer Institute to discuss how shoppers' financial stress is showing up in their shopping habits. KCI recently released its latest Consumer Stress Index, which monitors 24,000 consumers across 12 countries. It looks not only at consumers' financial picture but also at their stress related to geopolitics and government, innovation and technology, food and the environment, and health and education. What's different this year is that it's not just one factor causing consumers to feel stressed. It's the compounding effect of inflation, geopolitical instability and overall uncertainties. "Put these two analyses together — historic stress levels and a population that feels starved of joy — and you get a consumer landscape that continues to defy the standard recessionary playbook," the report said.
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How TikTok Shop is winning over major brands
May 200:33:52Tap to summarizeOn this week's episode of the Modern Retail Podcast, co-hosts Gabriela Barkho and Melissa Daniels are joined by Modern Retail's platforms reporter Allison Smith to dig into why TikTok Shop is becoming a more legitimate sales channel in the eyes of bigger brands. Less than three years old, TikTok Shop now makes up roughly 20% of all social commerce sales, according to data from eMarketer. The rest of the category is dominated by Meta. Last year, the company drove $500 million in sales during the four-day stretch from Black Friday to Cyber Monday.In response, more established legacy brands and mid-sized companies are popping up on TikTok Shop. Smith reported this March that sales from big-name brands — those with at least $30 million in annual revenue — increased 97% year-over-year on TikTok Shop.The conversation discusses: How affiliates and discounts are powering acquisition. What it's like operating on TikTok Shop as a big corporation versus a smaller startup. What it takes to succeed on TikTok Shop.
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