With the penultimate episode of Season 5 we pause briefly to celebrate reaching our 100th episode milestone, before taking an insider's view of the dynamic world of retail tech and consumer investing with Al Sambar, a deeply experienced industry executive who now serves as a General Partner at XRC Labs.

We get a fast-paced primer on how venture capital works and XRC's particular focus on early stage investing. Al helps us understand the process for discovering and sorting through those start-ups with the greatest disruptive potential before getting a behind the scenes view of how XRC's investment thesis has evolved over the years. We then take a look ahead at what trends will shape retail innovation in the future, with key take-aways for retail executives, budding entrepreneurs, and venture capital investments.

But first we dip into the week in retail news, including how the holiday season seems to be unfolding, perhaps to a game of what Michael calls "discount chicken." We make a return trip to the Wobbly Unicorn Corner and news of some serious stumbling as well as promising signs from the likes of Stitch Fix, Rent the Runway, Chewy, Blue Apron, and Getir. We close highlighting the remarkable results from Lululemon and the staggeringly high valuation of Fanatics.

Catch Steve and Michael at NRF's Big Show

About Al

As XRC Labs’s General Partner, Al Sambar leads business strategy and development for the NYC tech accelerator. A leader in innovation, Al previously held the role of Managing Director at Kurt Salmon’s North American Retail and Consumer Group. For more than 20 years, Al has been providing retailers and consumer companies with strategic planning, organizational design, consumer insights and operating performance improvement services, with deep specialization in omni-channel retailing and global brand management.

About Us

Steve Dennis is an advisor, keynote speaker and author on strategic growth and business innovation. You can learn more about Steve on his       website.    The expanded and revised edition of his bestselling book  Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption is now available at  Amazon or just about anywhere else books are sold. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a      Forbes senior contributor and on       Twitter and       LinkedIn. You can also check out his speaker "sizzle" reel      here.

Michael LeBlanc  is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice.   He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career.  Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast,       The Voice of Retail, plus  Global E-Commerce Tech Talks  ,      The Food Professor  with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois and now in its second season, Conversations with CommerceNext!  You can learn more about Michael   here  or on     LinkedIn. 

Be sure and check out Michael's latest venture for fun and influencer riches - Last Request Barbecue,  his YouTube BBQ cooking channel!

About Us

Steve Dennis is a strategic advisor, board member, and keynote speaker focused on strategic growth and transformation and the impact of digital disruption. He is the author of the bestselling book Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption and the all new Leaders Leap: Transforming Your Company at the Speed of Disruption , now available for purchase in the U.S. and available for pre-order at book retailers elsewhere. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a Forbes senior contributor and on social media..

Don't forget to join Steve's new Linked Group for his new book.

Michael LeBlanc  is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur.  He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. He has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Secure conference with leaders from The Gap and Kroger talking about violence in retail stores, keynotes on the state & future of retail in Orlando and Halifax, and at the 2023 Canadian GroceryConnex conference, hosting the CEOs of Walmart Canada, Longo's and Save-On-Foods Canada.   Michael brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.

Michael also produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in North America, Remarkable Retail,

Canada's top retail industry podcast; the Voice of Retail; Canada's top food industry and the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor, with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois.

Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail influencers for the fourth year in a row, Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer, and you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.

Available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state of the retail industry in Canada and the U.S., and the future of retail.