This segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, features Chris and Anne closing out the show with rapid-fire takes on the lighter (and weirder) side of retail and culture.

The conversation jumps from LEGO’s smart brick ambitions to the rise of toxic mom groups online, plus the internet’s obsession with five-gallon popcorn buckets.

Chris and Anne also weigh in on whether the Stranger Things finale deserves a do-over because no Lightning Round is complete without a strong pop culture opinion.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#LightningRound #RetailFastFive #OmniTalk #RetailCulture #PopCulture #ConsumerTrends #StrangerThings #LEGO

This segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, dives into Schnucks’ reported 100% success rate stopping gift card fraud using Digimarc technology.

Chris and Anne explain why gift card fraud is exploding, why this solution actually works, and what other retailers can learn from Schnucks’ approach.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#GiftCardFraud #RetailSecurity #Digimarc #Schnucks #RetailTech #FraudPrevention #OmniTalk

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, looks at Save Mart’s rollout of Amazon Returns kiosks across more than 140 stores.

Chris and Anne discuss what returns-as-traffic really means for grocers, whether this partnership helps or hurts store economics, and how physical retail keeps getting pulled deeper into Amazon’s ecosystem.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#SaveMart #AmazonReturns #RetailPartnerships #BrickAndMortar #RetailStrategy #OmniTalk

In this segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, the team unpacks Amazon’s integration of instant meal shopping into browser-based Alexa+.

Chris and Anne debate whether this is true convenience or just more friction hiding behind AI, and what it signals about Amazon’s long-term grocery and agentic commerce ambitions.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#Amazon #AlexaPlus #AIShopping #MealPlanning #GroceryTech #AgenticCommerce #OmniTalk

This clip from the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, explores Kroger’s new discount initiative for SNAP recipients.

Chris and Anne discuss why affordability strategies matter more than ever, how grocers are approaching value differently, and whether programs like this can drive both loyalty and impact at scale.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#Kroger #SNAP #GroceryRetail #RetailStrategy #FoodAccess #RetailNews #OmniTalk

This segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, breaks down Instacart’s decision to shut down its AI-driven pricing tests after consumer backlash.

Chris and Anne dig into why pricing transparency still matters, how quickly trust can erode, and what this means for AI-powered pricing across grocery and retail. A sharp conversation on where experimentation crosses the line.

⏩ Watch the full episode here.

#Instacart #AIPricing #RetailAI #GroceryDelivery #PricingTransparency #RetailTech #OmniTalk

In this 5 Insightful Minutes episode, Richard McKenzie, Chief Executive Officer at Veloq (a division of the Rohlik Group), joins Omni Talk to reveal how they've cracked the code on profitable online grocery delivery. From achieving 30% annual growth to maintaining an 88 NPS score, Richard breaks down how Rohlik delivers full-basket grocery in 3 hours profitably, why their automation approach succeeds where others have failed, and how building technology "customer backwards" creates operational excellence.

If you've ever wondered what actually makes online grocery work financially, this episode is for you.

🔑 Topics covered:

✅ How to achieve profitability in online grocery delivery

✅ Why full-basket strategy drives sustainable unit economics

✅ The importance of right-sizing automated fulfillment centers

✅ Building grocery-first technology vs. adapting warehouse solutions

✅ Managing complexity across 7 picking zones in 30 minutes or less

🎧 Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more retail tech insights!

#onlinegrocery #retailtech #grocerydelivery #fulfillmentautomation #omnitalk #ecommerce #supplychain #retailinnovation #Rohlik #veloq #retailpodcast

*Sponsored Content*

Join Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga for their second annual NRF must-see tech preview, showcasing five breakthrough retail technologies solving critical operational challenges. From AI employees autonomously negotiating supplier contracts to overhead RFID achieving 99% inventory accuracy, discover the solutions delivering measurable ROI and transforming how retailers operate in 2026.

Featured companies and innovations:

Gain - AI employees Natalie and Bob executing end-to-end supplier negotiations and replenishment, closing deals from repair parts to $2-3M agreements

ESW - Cross-border commerce platform reducing international duties by 60% and enabling launches across 200+ countries without the $2.5-4.5M per-country build cost

PervasID - Overhead RFID technology (Trackmaster 3X) delivering 98-99% stock accuracy with 6-8 month ROI and 5-10% sales increases through improved on-shelf availability

Diebold Nixdorf - Visual AI at checkout reducing shrink from 3% to under 1% through intelligent nudging, with 80% of shoppers self-rectifying when prompted about missed scans

Cleveron - Robotic parcel lockers deployed in 300+ Zara stores across 38 countries, eliminating click-and-collect friction with QR code scan delivery in seconds

Whether you're a retail technology executive planning your NRF booth strategy, building your 2026 technology roadmap, or looking to move beyond pilots to production deployments, this preview delivers real deployment data, ROI calculations, and operational insights from retailers like Zara, H & M, Calvin Klein, and other major CPG companies already scaling these solutions.

#RetailTechnology #NRF2026 #AgenticAI #CrossBorderCommerce #RFID #ComputerVision #RetailAutomation

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, Quorso, and Veloq, Chris and Anne discussed:

1. Instacart ending its controversial price testing program (Source)
2. Kroger launching a new discount program for SNAP recipients (Source)
3. Amazon integrating instant meal shopping into browser-based Alexa Plus (Source)
4. Save Mart placing Amazon Returns kiosks across 140+ stores (Source)
5. Schnucks seeing 100% success preventing gift card fraud with Digimarc (Source)
6. And Veloq CEO Richard McKenzie stopped by to give us five insightful minutes on how the Rohlik Group does E-commerce grocery profitably - and how they're bringing that technology to other grocers.

There's all that, plus LEGO smart bricks, toxic mom groups, five-gallon buckets of popcorn, and whether the Stranger Things finale needs a do-over.

Music by hooksounds.com

#RetailNews #Instacart #KrogerGrocery #AlexaPlus #AmazonMealPlanning #RetailTech #GiftCardFraud #RetailPodcast #OmniTalk #GroceryDelivery #EcommerceGrocery #Veloq

This segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, features Chris and Anne tackle the fun side of retail as we head into NRF 2026.

Ryan Reynolds keynotes NRF this January... Chris shares the one question he'd ask about Blake Lively's best film role. Anne reveals her son's elaborate Google Slides pitch for an F1B goldendoodle and her puppy yoga compromise. The hosts preview Calvin Klein's new SoHo flagship as a must-see NRF store tour stop, and pay tribute to the late Rob Reiner with their Mount Rushmore picks: Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Stand By Me, A Few Good Men, and Spinal Tap.

⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/RjBUyfWgxzY

#RyanReynolds #NRF2026 #retailconference #keynote #retailmarketing

This segment of the Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Infios, and Quorso, examines Ashley Furniture's groundbreaking partnership with Perplexity that enables complete transactions—from product recommendations to payment—in one conversation.

Chris loves this move, calling it brilliant because Ashley can bypass marketplaces and leverage its brand recognition directly in AI search. Anne agrees but criticizes retailers for announcing features that don't work yet, sharing her frustration trying to actually use the Ashley-Perplexity integration. A must-watch for understanding agentic commerce strategy!

⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/RjBUyfWgxzY

#AshleyFurniture #PerplexityAI #agenticcommerce #AIshop ping #answerengines #retailstrategy #furniture #ecommerce