Retail Disrupted

Martin George, former Customer Director at Waitrose, and Jessica Cole, Senior Director Own Brand, Masterbrand, Customer Strategy & Propositions, at Asda join Natalie to discuss the evolving role of marketing in retail. They explore:

• Retail disruption – how has AI impacted retail marketing? How have legacy retailers responded to disruption? Which grocery innovations haven’t stuck?
• Customer centricity – how to embed this in the organization and learnings from other sectors.
• Understanding diverse customer needs and how some low-tech solutions (ie. spending time on the shop floor) can be among the most effective.
• What skills are required of retail marketeers today and how might this evolve in the future?
• Is the CMO role still relevant in retail? Should they have a seat on the board?
• Tesco Clubcard’s 30th anniversary – what is the role of data in retail marketing today and how do you measure success?
• Do customers expect the same experience in an airport as a supermarket (ie. frictionless, self-service, personalization) or are needs more individualized? Martin shares his views from his time as Commercial Director at BA.

📺 You can watch the video version of this episode on YouTube.

This episode was brought to you by the Richmond Retail & E-commerce Directors' Forum. Are you a retailer interested in attending? Email Natalie to secure your seat.

Bios:

Jessica Cole has spent the past 15 years working in the Retail industry and has held senior roles with Morrisons, Selfridges, Accenture Strategy, Monitor Deloitte and most recently Asda as Senior Director Own Brand, Masterbrand, Customer Strategy & Propositions. Jess specialises in setting and executing strategies, leading large scale transformations, building brands and driving profitable sales growth.

Connect with Jessica on LinkedIn.

Martin George is the former Customer Director at Waitrose. He started his career at Cadburys and held a number of senior roles including Commercial Director at British Airways, Group Development Director at Bupa and most recently as Customer Director at Waitrose where he was responsible for Marketing and Customer Experience. He has previously held a number of Non-Executive Director roles as well as setting-up businesses in the hospitality, travel media and healthcare sectors.

Martin is now a Non-Executive Director at Goodwood, Visit Jersey and Trust Alliance Group. He is also a School Governor and working with the Marketing Academy to increase diversity in the marketing profession.

Connect with Martin on LinkedIn.