Doug Carlson

April's retail landscape presented a varied picture, with consumers selectively investing in areas like home improvement and online shopping. These trends underscore the ongoing resilience of U.S. consumers. Read my latest blog to discover more about the evolving patterns across different retail sectors.

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The Critical Role of Business Development in Growing Our Business As the CEO and Founder of Nielsen Blinds, Shutters & Shades, I've witnessed firsthand how pivotal business development is in driving our company's growth and success. Here’s why business development is essential for any business aiming to expand its horizons: ➡ Identifying New Opportunities: Business development helps us uncover new markets, customer segments, and innovative product offerings. It’s about constantly seeking ways to enhance our value proposition and stay ahead of the competition. ➡ Building Strategic Partnerships: Collaborations and partnerships have opened doors to new opportunities, resources, and customer bases. Strategic alliances have significantly enhanced our capabilities and market reach. ➡ Enhancing Customer Relationships: Our business development strategies focus on building and nurturing relationships with our customers. Understanding their needs and providing tailored solutions fosters loyalty and drives long-term success. ➡ Driving Revenue Growth: At its core, business development is about generating revenue. By identifying new revenue streams and optimizing existing ones, we achieve sustainable growth and improved financial performance. ➡ Navigating Market Challenges: Business development equips us with the tools to anticipate and navigate market challenges. Whether it’s economic downturns, technological disruptions, or competitive pressures, a robust business development strategy ensures resilience and adaptability. In essence, business development is not just a function; it’s a mindset. It’s about being proactive, innovative, and strategic in driving a business forward. For businesses looking to thrive in the long term, investing in business development is not just an option—it’s a necessity. At Nielsen Blinds, Shutters & Shades, we have always been committed to exploring new horizons and building a future where our business not only survives but flourishes. www.nielsenbss.com

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Another reading from the monthly retail sales report. I've probably looked at this report 100+ times in the past few years, but just recently realized how unrealistic Nonstore and Restaurant projections have been coming in. Nonstore Retailers are mostly comprised of eComm-like retailers today. Case in point, Amazon falls under this setting. Additionally, there are certain aspects of some businesses also considered nonstore - those sales can be submitted in a separate survey from the same business. The survey is literally just that - about 4 questions. What's the tax id, how many locations, what are the sales (and is that actual or an estimate), then an open-ended response section. The survey goes out to about 4800 businesses monthly. I put a link to one in the comments because its almost hard to believe. I think its important to put that in perspective (this is a survey of business owners' responses, not actual data) because Online and Restaurants have historically been two of the most challenging channels to track. Now these figures aren't inflation adjusted, so there's a little skew there. One could also make the "Restaurants are close to the trend line" comments...ok, I'll give you that. But doesn't Nonstore look a bit excessive? Don't get me wrong, it's clear eComm has been growing, but it's also clear it was slowing down before the end of last year. More, this projects Nonstore retailers generate MORE dollars overall than restaurants, grocery stores, and gen merch stores (Walmart and Target included in there). That's really what drove my interest here. This line item has been showing massive gains since I've started looking at the report. It has always outpaced the other sectors, and now given its size, is having a significant influence on the larger projections. Imagine this sector has (inadvertently) been over projected, skewing the monthly reads. The impact would be significant. Maybe survey takers haven't been filling the forms out right between store/nonstore. Maybe they've been overstating their eComm businesses. Maybe more Nonstore retailers are getting sampled than before. Maybe none of those... I don't know if there's an issue...it just seems like something's off. Oh well...guess I'll just wait and see how today's reading impacts the market. 🙃 #retailsales #consumerbehavior

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Building the capacity, namely the team, is a unique challenge to tackle for fast growing organizations like Emily McCarthy + Co. Did you get to listen to the conversation with Emily McCarthy ? https://lnkd.in/ev8GZAJr #retailgrowth #retailpodcast #scaleyourbusiness #smallbusinesspodcast

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How Target’s Retail Media Network Is Preparing for the Future (Adweek): By Kathryn Lundstrom. How is Roundel investing in in-store ad placements like digital screens and high-tech sampling? Travis: We’ll be focused on evolving how we leverage QR codes to drive more engagement through what has been more of a static advertising experience. We’re going more full-scale with digital screens in the next couple of months […] #DOOH #digitalbillboards #digitalsignage

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Retail is powered by data. The future of retail is digital. Retail success is dependent on positive customer engagement (digital and physical). If you believe the above statements, why - if you are a retailer - would you deliberately hand over to a third-party your customer engagement, a growing revenue stream, and a source of ever more important first-party data? Yet that’s just what retailers and wholesalers have done by signing on to Instacart’s retail media network. If I’m a retailer or wholesaler, I get it. Instacart is the ‘Easy Button’. A one-stop shop for outsourcing online shopping, digital shopper engagement, and retail media. Choosing a third-party like Instacart removes major headaches and resource commitments for retailers. So I don’t blame retailers and wholesalers for partnering with third-parties like Instacart. But at what cost? As Instacart and other third-party marketplaces grow their influence, traditional retailers will increasingly be delegated to simply putting products on the shelf. CPG marketing funds are rapidly evolving towards digital solutions. How long do you think it will be before traditional trade promotion dollars will be dependent on digital capabilities like sophisticated targeting, digital engagement in the store, and digital offer delivery managed across a growing number of channels? All things Instacart is able to provide. So I get it. Grocery retail is incredibly tactical, the need to obsessively control operating expenses to eke out a profit. Thinking strategically and longer-term is a luxury that many retailers and wholesalers do not have. And I have to give Instacart credit. They saw a market opportunity and went after it, pivoting along the way to provide a growing array of tech solutions to retailers in addition to creating and growing their retail media network. Yet as we accelerate up and out technology’s exponential growth curve, that historical tactical focus, putting out the brush fires to survive another day, becomes increasingly dangerous. And understanding that we now live in a world that has never before existed, a world of exponential change, is now imperative for survival. That’s why I wrote Bionic Retail, my latest book. To help the retail industry understand that it is now in a new world and many of the old rules no longer apply. Succeeding in the exponential world requires new thinking and deliberately letting go of many past practices, processes, and beliefs that increasingly constrain retail and innovation. Maybe the ‘Easy Button’ isn’t going to be so easy after all. The Shelby Report ROFDA Instacart #grocery #groceryretail #grocerystrategy #grocerytech #groceryinnovation #retail #retailtech #retailstrategy #retailinnovation #CPG #CPGinnovation #retailmedianetworks #RMN #supermarket Center for Advancing Retail & Technology (CART) https://lnkd.in/gH93nm3A

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Are retailers moving fast enough as they build out retail media? Are they setting themselves up to be self-sufficient? Get ready for part 2 of our #RetailMedia series on the Middlemen...we talk about how retailers have begun the process of in-housing their technology, and their slow slide toward becoming digital publishers. Why is it happening slowly? Because display ads on retailers never really worked. We also cover Costco's launch of its Off-site retail media offering, and how (this part is a rant) unsophisticated press coverage is stuck treating all retail media capabilities as one monolithic thing, and holding back an understanding of the business. Some shout outs to Mark Williamson of Costco Wholesale and Michael Halverson of Albertsons Media Collective in this episode as well as a lot of talk about the rise, fall and dispersion of talent from Quotient to the rest of the retailers and vendors who are building out retail media. Spotify https://lnkd.in/esFZiWqY Youtube https://lnkd.in/eW_uHuKZ

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Are traditional merchandise financial planning strategies leaving your retail business behind in the fast-paced market evolution? Matt Hopkins, Global Retail Marketing Director, gives his expert opinion on a revamped approach which covers: ➡ Shifting focus ➡ Aligning merchandising with financial goals ➡ A single version of the truth ➡ Scenario planning ➡ Customer-centricity Read more below 👇 #retail #customerstrategies #scenarioplanning #intelligentplanning

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📺 Steve Liesman recently gave a good breakdown on the state of retail, the shopper, the economy on Squak Box. 📊 Full National Retail Federation report for March here: https://lnkd.in/eQS8Vm9a 🛍 In short, consumer spending has been surprisingly solid. There is a risk that it drops, but that is not a weakness as of the latest reporting. 💸 That said, one thing which is a struggle for retailers is MARGIN. Labor costs are up and inflation is hitting supply side hard. Consumers are hunting value right now more than usual, so there is a lot of pressure from both sides squeezing out the margin. This makes it most imperative to align limited resource to sources of value as a retailer. 🔎 I have been developing tools and implementing practices with my data team to empower small business retailers to be able to identify and label the diverse customers in their customer base and execute strategy which acquires, develops, and retains high-value. 💡 We can get through this - we've just got to use our data to focus our resources! #usretail #useconomy #retailbusiness #smallbusinessstrategy

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“The challenges on the in-store side are much different,” says Chris Riegel, CEO of Stratacache, a retail media solutions provider based in Dayton, Ohio. “For online or mobile, we can do a cloud-hosted service, slap on a Google server, and in two weeks with $10,000 worth of services you have a retail media exchange. In-store, the physical structure and merchant categories are much more complex, and the technologies are extremely capital intensive.” Nice article on how to think about your in-store RMN efforts.

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Retail media is no longer "set it and forget it" for Co-op! Check out how it's changed, and more with Dean Harris, Head of Memberships - Commercial, in this #RetailMediaThursdays episode: https://okt.to/mBI2Eo

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🛠️ Mass production transformed how we create, advertising evolved to reach the masses, and the birth of department stores & catalogues like Sears revolutionized shopping. This era set the stage for the modern business landscape, followed by progressive interactive digital. 📢 Let DMG transform your advertising: https://lnkd.in/esC5g533 #IndustrialRevolution #MarketingHistory #DMG #TeamDMG #Windsor #Troy #YQG #Marketing #MarketingEvolution

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In today's constantly changing retail landscape, staying ahead of the competition is crucial to captivating the attention of modern consumers. Retail displays play a pivotal role in this dynamic environment, acting as the platform where brands convey their narratives and engage with their audience. #Retail #Audience https://lnkd.in/g4iYsZv7

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Brilliant couple of days at The Consumer Goods Forum in Chicago this week. Here’s my take-outs and observations: - e-commerce 2.0 is here. Tech and AI improvments in picking, fulfillment and consumer service are driving the next growth push for true omnichannel shopping - Retail Media is still hot. And the in-store channel is starting to get enough inventory to start scaling. Nicely explained by Criteo board member Marie Lalleman in a session with VusionGroup - Social commerce is coming, and fast. Driven by GenZ, but not only, the Americas and EMEA are starting to catch up with APAC - Speaking of East and West, the gap on digitisation of shopping has mostly closed. The East remains ahead on some trends and technology, but so does the West - Progress on sustainability is real, but not enough yet. The industry is showing some fantastic examples of what can be done, and has set targets, but we need to still do better showing how thosee targets will be met - Last, but not least, after what felt like a year dominated by talk about AI, it was refreshing to hear many CEOs talking about the need to focus on the consumer again (or still ?) This was a great edition, and we are looking forward to Amsterdam next year. #retailmedia #retail #CPG #AI #ecommerce #sustainability #customerfirst

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This might even be an understated estimate. As #retailmedianetworks (RMNs) continue to expand capabilities to rival more traditional #DSPs and publishers, more pressure can and will likely be placed on #CPG brands that want to keep the same levels of shelf-space within brick and mortar stores. Yes, in-store #retail still exists and is critical for some categories. As RMNs continue to leverage 1st party data and added tech stack like #RCS and #CTV, it will be more difficult for brands to continue with 3rd party DSPs and data providers without sacrificing in-store opportunities. https://rb.gy/d0u7zy

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Our Retail Media Working Group has kicked off a Q&A series to discuss the hot topics and help demystify some of the common market questions. The first in this series looks at trade versus media budget allocations for retail media and how different business objectives and team structures can impact these investments. Thanks to Lachlan Brahe from Cashrewards and Michael Levine from Uber for their contributions to this piece. What other questions would you like the Retail Media Working Group to tackle? #retailmedia https://lnkd.in/gFqJJG2p

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After 25 incredible years consulting with giants like Kohl's, Walmart, and Scheels, I've genuinely appreciated the dynamic world of retail marketing. Every day presents a new challenge and a fresh opportunity to connect with consumers. In retail, marketing isn't just a part of the business—it's the heartbeat. The need for constant innovation keeps us on our toes, and if we don't adapt quickly, the consequences are immediate. This high-stakes environment is the ultimate training ground for any marketer looking to hone their skills and make a real impact. #RetailMarketing #MarketingLife #BusinessGrowth

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A great assessment on the launch of a retail media network at Costco from our partners at Skai... While today Amazon commands 77% of retail media ad spend we see that trend changing as more truly incremental retail media solutions emerge. 74% of CPG executives we surveyed indicated they would be increasing their RMN investments at Big Box only 56% indicated a need to meaningfully increase their investment at Amazon... Your RMN strategy MUST be optimized to support Amazon and your partners need to be investing in toolsets that allow your brand to thrive in this emerging landscape..

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As the landscape for financial solutions evolves, it’s crucial for #CPGbrands to find reliable and flexible funding options that align with their growth trajectories. With the recent news of Ampla facing some challenges, we want you to know, if your CPG brand is navigating through these changes and looking for funding, Kickfurther is here for you. At Kickfurther, we understand the unique challenges faced by growing CPG brands. And we offer an innovative financing solution that puts you in control of your brand with flexible payment options and funding when you need it. Reach out to us today to see how we can help. #kickfurther

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