Alumni of “The List of People Shaping Retail’s Future” share what everyone gets wrong about retail, why they believe now is the perfect time to get into the industry and what the future of retail really looks like on this episode of “The List,” made possible by American Express.
How brands and companies go awry is simple, according to ThirdLove Co-Founder and CEO Heidi Zak.
“It’s not putting the customer first,” Zak says.
Bombas Co-Founder and CEO Dave Heath says a creating a positive experience is quite easy. Going “above and beyond” is where there’s a huge payoff.
“If you blow them away with your response to a bad situation, you have that customer for life,” Heath says.
It’s that principle that has made flower delivery company UrbanStems successful, according to its co-founder and chairman Ajay Kori. He learned by watching a company that delivered online diaper orders – specifically with how it handled issues. When a problem arose with shipping, an employee would jump in a car and hand deliver diapers to the customers.
“When you think about that concept, a lot of executives would say that’s not economical,” Kori says. “But what they miss is that yes, it doesn’t make sense on a per unit basis. But overall, if you create the best experience for your customer, they’re never going to go anywhere else.”
Hear more from alumni of “The List of People Shaping Retail’s Future” in the full video above.
“The List” is made possible by American Express and is part of our free, virtual NRF Foundation All Access program helping support students as they prepare to launch careers in retail.
Every Wednesday at noon ET, you can tune in for insightful conversations with retail professionals. We’ve gathered some of the industry’s best leaders to answer questions directly from you, participate in panel discussions and share interesting stories.
Coming up Nov. 18 on NRF Foundation All Access, we’ll sit down with Macy’s Chairman and CEO and NRF Foundation Board Chair Jeff Gennette. What aspects of retail are you curious about? Email FoundationSocial@nrf.com now so we can add your question to our list.