Welcome to Supply Chain now, the voice.

Of global supply chain.

Supply Chain now focuses on the best.

In the business for our worldwide audience.

The people, the technologies, the best practices and today's critical issues, the challenges and opportunities.

Stay tuned to hear from those making.

Global business happen right here on Supply Chain now.

Hey, hey.

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening wherever you may be.

Scott Lewton and the one only, Corinne Versa with you here on Supply Chain now.

Welcome to today's live stream.

Hey, Corinne, how you doing today?

I'm doing great, Scott.

How are you?

I am doing wonderful, wonderful.

Fresh off a great business slash personal trip to Dallas Fort Worth, the metroplex there.

And it's amazing what they've got going on in Dallas.

Corinne, have you been lately?

It's been about three months, but I always enjoy going to Dallas Fort Worth.

Yeah, I do too.

I do too.

Stay tuned as we got some interviews with some rock and roll business leaders there coming out soon.

But folks, speaking of rock and roll business leaders, we have got a big show, big episode of the Buzz for you here today where every Monday at 12 noon Eastern Time we discuss a variety of news developments across global supply chain across business.

Big topics today, big but expected tariff actions over the weekend.

Right.

That ripple effects continues to play out.

Hey, how are automotive manufacturers finding new efficiencies?

Right.

We're going to talk more about that plus special events programming.

But Corinne, Corinne, at 12:15pm Eastern Time we got a very special guest joining us, Mark Urban, executive vice president and chief supply chain officer with Best Buy.

He's going to be here.

We're going to find out how Mark and the Best Buy team are making real traction when it comes to supply chain sustainability and other things.

Corinne, should be a great show, huh?

Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it, Scott.

You know, it is a great time to be in supply chain and may we all live in interesting times because they're certainly here and supply chain is essential to really thriving in the face of so much change.

That's right.

Well said, well said.

And it is a intriguing, intriguing but also rewarding time to be in global supply chain as is Corinne Bursa's mantra.

I love that.

Hey, two things folks before we get started in this jam packed show here today.

Hey, give us your take in the comments.

Right.

Just like Trish who's always behind the scenes, her and Amanda helping make things happen says happy Buzz day.

Hey, let us know where you're tuned in and watching from.

We welcome that.

We're gonna be also dropping some resources and some articles right there in the chat as well.

So stay tuned for that.

And if you enjoy the show today, we'd love for you to share it with a friend and your network.

They'll be glad you did and smarter because you did.

I hope that's right.

All right, Corinne, you ready to dive in?

I'm ready.

Let's go.

All right.

We want to start with the newsletter we dropped over the weekend.

It's our latest with that said, our almost weekly newsletter.

We touched on tariffs, of course, as well as offered a few perspectives.

There we talked about how Honda, goodness gracious, Honda is investing billions into the state of Ohio.

That is an interesting new story.

Hey, Deloitte Data says retail leaders are expecting industry to grow in the mid single digits in 2025.

Now that's different than in recent years where everyone kept anticipating a downturn.

We included some of our upcoming events including live breaking news now, interviews on hot topics such as the tariffs and deep seek talk about things that move markets last week.

So you can check out with that said right here.

We dropped a link in the chat.

Let us know what you think.

Corinne, did you get a chance to check out with that said edition over the weekend?

I did.

It was a great read.

It was packed full of information this weekend.

Lots of different links to dive deeper into a number of these topics as well.

But I think just outlining Scott, what's happening in the industry, our opportunity to prepare in advance or at least evaluate scenarios around what may or may not happen for all of us.

But good stuff.

It was a really good issue.

Hey, I appreciate that.

If you're getting a rubber seal of endorsement from Corinne Bursa, you're doing good things in global supply chain, I promise.

And we try to jam pack it, folks.

You all know how important it is to be learning something new every day.

These times right now we should ramp that up to learning something new every hour, right?

So that's what we try to do with.

With that said, we dropped a link right there in the chat.

Okay, let's get to work.

Let's tackle an important news story and development that of course rippled out as expected over the weekend.

And then we're bringing on Mark Irvin with Best Buy.

So folks stick around for that.

First, let's talk tariffs.

As everyone has heard by now, the White House has issued the long talked about tariffs over the weekend as reported here by supply chain dive, 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico, 25% on imports from Canada, 10% on energy coming in from Canada, oil, natural gas, electricity, and an additional 10% on goods coming from China.

All set.

This is important.

All set to come into effect Tuesday, February 4th.

Now, according to the Associated Press, as of right now, there's no mechanism in place to grant exceptions to US Importers.

And as they released as they signed those tariffs into law on Saturday, Canada and Mexico responded with their own tariffs.

No moves as of yet from China.

But get this, as of an hour ago.

That's right.

An hour ago, John Gold with the National Retail Federation was reporting that the White House has delayed the Mexico tariffs for one month after agreements were made on border troops and some of the security down there.

And the U.S.

is set to continue negotiations with Canada today at 3pm Eastern time.

So, Corinne, a lot going on here, right.

But one thing is assured.

Even as everyone's trying to understand the ripple effects and the impact on their supply chains or business, you name it.

What's inarguable is we're kind of giving folks a headache across global supply chain.

Your thoughts?

I guess my first thought, Scott, is it's not a surprise.

These moves have been telegraphed for months now.

And so my hope is that as supply chain practitioners, we've been working on alternate scenarios for our businesses, that we've been using our digital supply chain capabilities to really model the impact and some what if analysis so that we at least have a playbook that can be put into action.

Now, I'm really excited that talks are actively in progress between the US And Mexico to, you know, discuss some of the concerns that are being addressed.

And I think that that's progress.

I think the fact is we are moving faster in a number of areas than these things typically move.

Right.

We're doing days and weeks and months versus years.

So we need to be more resilient and responsive to what's happening in the market.

Well said.

And you're right.

Your starting point there, it's been telegraphed forever.

Feels like it feels like 17 years, you know.

But also want to echo the good news, there is active negotiations.

Nothing doesn't happen without dialogue.

Right.

Dialogue with your allies, which we find across North America in this very unique region of the world when it comes to trade and commerce and allyship or dialogue with folks that you've got bigger challenges with.

Right.

But dialogue is so important and we're going to keep our finger on the pulse of this ever moving, very consequential story.

And we'll be sharing right along.

All right, Crane, good stuff there.

T Square says as always, he holds down the Fort Force on YouTube.

Bring on the nourishment.

I hope I didn't let you down in my southern pronunciation there.

T squared.

Great to see you.

And Professor Mohib is back.

Good morning from a warm and sunny Wichita, Kansas.

It's been too long.

Professor Mohib, great to see you.

I hope you're doing big things there at Wichita State University.

Okay.

Hey, one more quick note, Corinne, right.

On a related note, right, everything, it's all related trade tariffs, you name it.

The Panama Canal, right.

There's been a development there here in the last couple of days.

There's been a lot widespread concerns about Chinese influence over this critical supply chain infrastructure.

Recent talks have led to Panama's Raul Molino, the president, stating that they would not renew their participation in China's Belt and Road Development Initiative.

And many expect that the US Will invest heavily to kind of fill that void as it plays out and, and ideally reassure free transit for trade.

Right.

So stay tuned on that.

And to that end, if you want more expert perspective on all things tariff and trade related, join me tomorrow, February 4th at about 1:15pm Eastern Time as I interview John Gold with the National Retail Federation, who is quite the expert on matters.

Corinne, you and I both have spoken with John before.

He knows what he's talking about, right?

Absolutely, absolutely.

And the fact is that policies and the impact are changing so rapidly right now.

I think it's just really important that we absorb and hear what some of the experts are looking at and the considerations.

I have to tell you that when it comes to the Panama Canal, I wasn't personally aware of how it was managed in the past.

I thought it was managed by the Panama government, quite honestly.

And so that was an eye opener for me.

And to see again how quickly conversations are changing and we're looking at alternatives, I think John will have a really interesting point of view for us.

Yeah, no doubt.

So folks, you can join us for that live interview on any Supply Chain now social channel about 1:15pm Eastern Time, Tuesday, February 4th.

And folks, if you listen to the replay of the Buz, you can find that interview on any social channel, especially YouTube.

Okay.

Speaking of outstanding, outstanding leaders, Corinne, we've got a very special special event coming up.

We've launched a new series here at Supply Chain now called the Bridge Connecting Leaders and Inspiring Change.

And right out of the gate we have a big time episode.

We're going to be featuring Noha Samara with Gartner who's been sharing her intriguing perspective on the rise of the decision shapers.

Now, Corinne, you've seen Noha in action.

What can our attendees expect?

Noha really brings a unique perspective to the conversation.

She has been a supply chain practitioner.

She's got really strong supply side expertise and has been now an analyst with Gartner for a number of years.

So I think that it will be very informative.

It's an opportunity to understand some heavy lifting that has to happen and how technology and trends are going to help us take a little control back and be decision shapers as you said, versus just reacting to what's unfolding in the marketplace.

Yeah.

Well said Corinne.

Thanks for your help.

And Jake Barr, the John Wayne, the global supply chain for helping to facilitate things.

And Corinne, you'll get a kick out of this.

I saw Jake over the weekend share it on social and he said that me and Scott are just going to try to stay out of no ha way as she shares her perspective with our audience.

I think that's a good way of putting it.

But February 21, 10am Eastern time folks, join us.

And we had tried to make it easy.

Tricia dropped a link to the event right here in the chat.

All right, Kren, are you ready to introduce our incredible guest here today?

I am.

I'm looking forward to all the new insights he's going to share with us.

Me and you both.

So our guest folks, he has spent Most of his 30 year career in supply chain leadership.

Before his current role with Best Buy, he's held a variety of leadership roles with Target, Cummins Corporate Express, Delivery Systems, Baxter Healthcare.

Right.

He spent eight years in a healthcare unit in the US army way back in the day.

Now in his current role, our guest oversees the strategy and day to day operations of Best Buys global supply chain that supports some 1,000 stores and of course the company's online customers.

So let's join me in welcoming in Mark Irvin, executive vice president and chief supply Chain officer with Best Buy.

Hey.

Hey Mark, how you doing today?

Scott, how are you doing?

So glad to be here.

We are glad to have you.

Corinne.

We've been looking forward to this one for a while, huh?

We have, absolutely.

I'm really impressed with what Mark's going to talk to us about today.

I can tell you I was in the green room salivating.

The topics you guys were covering were amazing.

Mark, we appreciate the high praise.

Speaking of making folks hungry, this is the fun warm up question Mark and Corinne, I want to start with here today.

Right.

So Mark, if I've got this right and there's a lot more to your history than what I can fit in.

You know, a two minute question.

But you call the Twin Cities, right, Minneapolis, St.

Paul home today, but your family hails from Nashville and you've got other Midwestern stops kind of in that journey.

But speaking of the Twin Cities or Nashville, what is one of your long list?

Go to restaurants that you'd recommend to our listeners and viewers out there.

Scott, I'm telling you, if you have never been to Pittsburgh Blue, okay, they serve the absolute best steak on the planet, okay?

And what they do is they immerse it with horseradish sauce and bake it in.

So if you don't want to stop there now, you're going to stop immediately following this episode.

You're making me hungry here.

Seriously, man.

You know, Pittsburgh Blue, I guess they've got a must have an endorsement deal with you, Mark, because that little extra bit about how they make their steaks, man, it's like inside baseball.

Corinne, that's been tough to top.

I know you've been to Nashville.

I know you've been to Twin Cities.

What's been one of the restaurants you've enjoyed at one of your stops there?

Well, when I thought of the Minneapolis and Twin Cities area, one of my first thoughts was of Manny's, which is a steakhouse downtown.

But I think after that description Mark just gave us, I'm going to have to hit Pittsburgh Blue next time I'm in town.

Oh, you got to.

Pittsburgh Blue is going to have a lot of supply chain now.

Global community members stopping in and checking out that horseradish infused steak.

So, Mark, thank you for putting it on our radar.

And I would just add one more.

I think I've got a picture here.

So this is me and my friend Dan.

Dan, Andy, we've collaborated with for quite some time now.

Little note about Dan while he's with us, Bank.

Now, back in the day, he spent a number of years with a leading logistics for an NFL team, Mark and Corinne.

And he and I got together not too long ago and we visited Hell's Kitchen in downtown Minneapolis.

Am I saying that right, Mark?

Is that how you are?

Yes, you are.

So, folks, add that to the list as well.

We had a wonderful time and good camaraderie over delicious, delicious food.

Oh, and their breakfast in the morning, Scott, is amazing.

It's just flat out amazing.

I'm with you.

I am with you.

I was not on that stage because they did not invite me to dance or to sing.

We'll make that clear.

It was just a photo opportunity.

I don't want to ruin all, all the meals going on there by my dancing or singing.

Okay, Mark and Corinne, we got a lot to get into here today.

And Mark, we didn't do your professional journey justice with a couple bullet points.

You know, you had an incredible 30 year career, but if you would just to level set a bit, tell us a little more about yourself and your role at Best Buy.

Yeah, I've been at Best Buy now for about 11 years.

It's been an incredible journey.

I started out in supply chain.

I've been in supply chain for most of the time.

I did a short stint in human resources as a talent management and talent acquisition as well too.

The role now is all end to end supply chain.

And if you think about end to end, it's how we source it, how we store it, and then the innovative offerings we can make for our customers to get product in the way that they want.

You know, recently we deployed an offering that we said, how do you schedule a delivery to your house to ensure you get it in the window of time you want it?

And that's with small product and that's with large product as well too.

So, Corinne, going back to the first part of Mark's journey, I love his experience not just in supply chain, but on the talent side, man, imagine how you can build a world class supply chain organization when you actually spend the time in kind of the HR suite.

Your thoughts?

Oh, Karen, what we heard there from.

Mark, I think that's really interesting.

It certainly adds another layer, Mark, to your background because you probably appreciate some of the unique challenges and skills and opportunities for talent that is contributing in those really critical supply chain roles.

So I like that.

It's not like managing other parts of the business, but once they know your business well, they become so valuable to you in a number of other ways.

I think a lot of people don't understand at times, Corinda, that if you're a supply chain leader, you're leading a large operation, that it's really all about people.

It's all about how you engage people, how you support people in career development, how you place people.

And so I think that is, you know, the correlation between that and human resources.

It's spot on.

Excellent points there.

As we like to say, this golden age of technology.

It really is amazing what supply chains and everyone else is doing with technology.

But the people still move our industry forward and how we can position them to make better, faster, more confident decisions.

That's one of the biggest things it's all about.

And Mark, I really appreciate you and Corinne both speaking along those lines here.

Now, Mark, I want to talk sustainability.

First off, by the way, my favorite Best Buy here in the Atlanta area, one's in Perimeter and one's in Pleasant Hill.

That's really easy to get to.

So I don't know if that's still part of the footprint.

But I found, especially before I when I was still in the video game playing mode, I was spending way too much time in those two stores.

Mark, that makes sense.

You're trying to say you don't play video games anymore.

We both know that's not true.

You're so right.

If my son Ben was here, he'd call me out.

But Ben is our video game champion in this household right now.

We'll have him around maybe later.

To keep me honest, I want to segue here.

Mark and Corinne, let's talk sustainability.

Right.

We're seeing some really interesting shifts, really across industry.

So, Mark, I want to ask you this first question.

How have you seen demand for real sustainability outcomes evolve?

Your thoughts there, Mark?

Yeah, a couple of things in that space.

And I'm going to push the apple cart a little bit on what you mean by sustainability.

Sustainability.

A lot of times as you think about sustainability, people don't always go people, product and systems people.

Is how do we ensure that our workforce is sustained and they can work the long careers they want to work?

And so that's number one in core to Best Buy in who we are.

Number two is in that place of product.

How do we ensure that we use the intelligence that we have at Best Buy to source the right product that gives our customers an offering around, you know, energy star efficient products?

And then number three is in the space of process, what can we do as a company to ensure that we prevent things from ending up in landfills?

And so Best Buy, near and dear to the core of our operations and who we are as a company.

You see us show up very strong in all three areas.

I can name a couple, but we'll get to that in the conversation.

Mark, I really appreciate that.

And Corrine, I especially love the first and last making it about people again.

I think we're going to find that's a big common thread with Mark Irvin and I love that.

And then last thing, how can we avoid so much more from hitting our landfills?

Right.

And I think when I think about sustainability and real sustainability, if we can move the needle on that alone, gosh, we'll be making some real progress.

But Corinne, what'd you hear there from Mark?

Yeah.

First of all, Mark, I love that you started with people because in your industry, especially service people, those that are delivering and having that contact with your customers is so important.

But that applies to your suppliers as well, right?

They're part of your ecosystem.

That becomes really important in distinguishing Best Buy in the marketplace.

So I love that you started with that product.

I think we all have some ideas about product in the industry, love to hear what's working for Best Buy.

But then that service area or the actually taking old product and looking at either reuse, repair or how we actually get rid of that product in an earth friendly way is really important.

Kren, well said.

That re economy you're referring to, I don't know what latest market estimate is, but trillions of dollars at this point.

Probably trillions of dollars.

Mark, speaking of which, your sustainability goals at Best Buy, could you share some of those?

Yeah, I'll give you a couple of things.

I want to give you a couple of the goals.

I want to give you a bit of the impact that we're making to the environment as well too.

So you know, number one, first and foremost, we said we would save our customers $5 billion in their energy cost and expenses.

What does that mean?

That means we would source products that were energy efficient with energy star ratings.

And we said we'd do that by 2030.

And we're definitely doing that across our stores and across our systems in a way that our customers can trust that we're building the right assortment of products, both appliances and E commerce as well too.

In that second area that we went into, and I think it's a part of the broadcast, we've said that our facilities by 2025 and oh, by the way, we're there.

This is the year we've got 69% of our facilities that are true waste certified, meaning that they divert over 90% of their waste away from landfills and actually put it in a place where it can be reused and reassessed to minimize waste.

And so 69% of our facilities are already there.

The rest are all on track to be there by the end of this year.

Those are two big efforts we make at Best Buy.

But then the third thing I want to talk about a bit is just the ecosystem of our company and how we're wired.

And I think you mentioned it, Scott, you go to visit a Best Buy store, we actually pick up your old appliances.

We ensure those old appliances don't just go straight to landfills.

We work with partners to harvest the parts and reuse as much as we possibly can.

We also have e waste collection programs.

And I was thinking about this the other day.

I was in my garage and I found, and I'm sure all of us are the same way.

I found all these old electronics that I had out in the garage.

I just really wasn't thinking about what to do with them.

And then, oh, by the way, I thought about it.

Wait a minute.

Best Buy will take that stuff.

And now when we take it, we'll ensure it doesn't get into the landfills.

And if it's still reusable, we'll actually export those things into our secondary markets.

We now have, across the country, Best Buy outlets.

This is part of that circular program you're talking about this circular economy where we can repair, replace, resale.

I think those are just so incredibly powerful.

But it's not just a program we do at Best Buy.

It's a bit of who we are.

Clearly, Corinne, we're seeing tons of passion, but not just passion, results and outcomes, which is what we were asking about earlier.

And there's two things I want to call out from Mark's response there.

Did you hear him?

He started with trust ensuring.

How can customers trust Best Buy, trust organizations to not just do the right thing, but get results?

Right?

And then secondly, 69% of all their facilities have become that true zero waste certified.

Right.

And they're going to have all of them.

If I heard you right, Mark, all facilities will be true zero waste certified by the end of the year.

Is that right?

Mark, you're spot on.

Absolutely.

And of course, Corinne, one of the big important things there is the amount of materials that get diverted from our landfills.

That is a big, very, really important.

Corinne, your thoughts?

What we heard there from Mark.

Yeah.

So I love, Mark, that you started with the cost.

You've been able to save your customers with this $5 billion number, which is a really big number in offering products that are Energy star related because you're making it easy for them.

You're making it easy for them to do the right thing.

But then the fact that you pick up and refurbish or take advantage of old product where we can take parts out of them is really important.

I was in my neighborhood this week and I saw somebody's old dishwasher at the side of the road, and it just made me really frustrated because it's headed for a landfill.

And I'm sure that a good part portion of that can be recycled in a number of different ways.

So, so great to hear that that's a big part of the Best Buy initiative as well.

But congratulations on where you are on your true zero waste certification.

That is really impressive.

I know I read in November that you were already at 69% or so of operations.

So you may be hedging a little bit here.

You're probably further along than we suspect at this point in time, but that is tremendous, tremendous progress.

Well, you know, that's led by our employees, how engaged they are in this system.

You know, if you build something into a culture of a company, it starts to show up every in everything you do.

And I just want to give you guys a couple statistics.

I'm going to read these offers.

I think they're important.

You know, that trade in program I talked about has prevented over 2 million products and devices out of landfills.

Think about that.

And that means that people were able to not only turn their products in, but then they also got some more like credits to actually buy new things as well, too.

So that's pretty doggone powerful.

It's an incentive to help them to do it.

The second area I wanted to highlight is in the E waste recycling area.

Since 2009, Best Buy has collected over 2.7 billion pounds of electronics and appliances to prevent just what Corinne said, keeping those items out of landfills.

Those are some massive, massive numbers, Mark.

Corinne, but what I liked about it, because he talked about the credits on those 2 million products they have taken back and prevented from going to landfills.

There's credits for customers.

So it adds to the customer experience to keep those.

Would you say Karina's a dishwasher on the side of the road?

I think you said, yeah, but that incentive.

Yeah, right.

That's kind of where we are.

Right?

Consumers play such an active role in enabling organizations in our industry to make bigger gains.

But everyone's not like me where I avoid any return.

In fact, if I have extra nuts and bolts from having to assemble something, it goes in my trusty coffee can.

I keep my garage.

And Mark and Corinne, I don't know if you're like me, but when you've got something you've been holding on to and all of a sudden there's a use for it, that's like winning the lottery.

It really is.

But Corinne, the customer experience and that impact based on these big gains that Mark and the Best Buy team are realizing, that's really important.

Corinne.

Right?

Oh, yeah, very important.

And I love the incentives, the incentives to do the right thing.

And the fact that Mark, you and the team at Best Buy are making it easy for us as consumers.

That is really valuable and so important, I think.

And so many of us as consumers want to do the right thing, but sometimes we're lazy.

So the fact that you make it easy for us, really nice.

I'm with you.

A convenience factor.

Good stuff, Mark and Corinne, I've got just another question or two for you.

Mark, I want to say hello to Abel out there on YouTube.

T Squared's talking about reverse logistics.

Anyone?

Hey, landfill diversion and asset recapture is never a bad idea.

That's right.

And we've got a great case study right here.

And MOHIB is talking about the change.

It's getting faster and faster.

That's right, Professor Moheeb, man.

Undeniable.

All right.

So, Mark, you've kind of already answered this question with your testimony here today, but I want to ask you kind of formally for any of our audience members out there that watching us or listening to us, either the live version or the on demand version, and they want to make big consequential meaningful gains like y'all have to drive sustainability outcomes in their organization and their, for that matter, their greater ecosystem, what's one piece of advice you'd offer up, Mark?

Yeah, I'd say a couple things in this space.

One, I always believe that if it's a part of the culture, I don't separate sustainability.

I actually include it in the conversation around just lean thinking.

Lean thinking means, number one, you're going to go gimba.

You're going to go directly to your team members, engage them in deep conversations about what's the impact of what they do.

And so in doing so, we stood up folks that we would say we call them, we call them green teams, but most of us on this call would call them champions.

These are people that are committed to understanding in a more deeper way so they can educate across the buildings.

I think everyone on this call should recognize the impact and the power of champions exchange agents and their ability to influence across the facility and across your company and organization.

Ooh.

Mark, you have just given us plenty of motivation on this gorgeous Monday here in the Atlanta area, at least.

And I really appreciate what you shared there because, Corinne, it's not a big secret.

The people in our organizations, the incredibly talented superheroes in many ways that make supply chain happen.

That's the secret sauce, right?

If we can go and engage them and empower them and really find out how we can best kind of activate what they want to do and the impact they want to make in this world, man, the outcomes we unlock there.

But Corinne, what'd you hear there from Mark's last response?

Well, I heard that this is now woven into everything that Mark's thinking about.

This is not just a program that's off to the side.

This is part of the culture and part of everything that's considered as Best Buy looks at its assortment of goods, the customers and consumers it wants to satisfy and bring new and exciting products.

So to.

And the bottom line is in electronics, consumer electronics products are changing so fast.

They want to make that easy for the consumer as well.

Right.

You don't want to feel guilty about, you know, gee, I've only had this new TV for three years, but I really want one of These new fancy TVs that make me feel like I'm right there by the sidelines.

So I think that that is, again, just a really important part of the initiative that that Mark has shared with us is that it's not secondary or it's not off to the side.

It is woven into everything they're doing and how they're empowering their team members.

Well said, Corinne.

And Mark, I think she's got it dialed in as part of the culture, part of how you do business across organization, huh?

Yeah.

You started the conversation right, Scott, when you talked about, like, what's the future supply chain.

Supply chain's future is all about the elimination of waste.

The elimination of waste at every phase of the supply chain.

That's what we're pushing on.

That is sustainability.

And if you do it right, you not only bring down your cost, you increase your reliability and your efficiency.

Yeah, well said.

There's always, always opportunity.

And Mark, really appreciate you being here today.

Really do wish we had a couple more hours with you.

We'll have to reconnect with you later this year maybe.

But Professor Raheeb is, I think, advertising for you, Mark.

He's talking about how Best Buy can put a 1-800-number to pick up the end of life large equipment such as the dishwasher off the curbside.

That is terrific, Mark.

If folks want to learn more about anything you've shared here, they want to check out some of the really cool new products, including those ginormous TVs.

TV technology sure has evolved fast, huh?

They wanted to follow up with anything.

Where would you point them to?

Yeah, I'd say, number one, you shop best buy.com for sure.

Number two is you can go to the Best Buy corporate website and we list out a ton of things about what we're doing and the impact of we're doing.

And again, we're always open to additional recommendations.

The second area that I would put out there is again, I'm on LinkedIn and so I would love to have conversations about one things you're doing.

You got a couple professors on this call.

I'd love to get their insights.

I'd love to be a part of their programs and understand.

So I think that'd be super powerful.

Outstanding, Mark.

We'll all be better off again from powerful dialogue.

Right.

That's how we can work together to make change happen no matter, no matter what sector, no matter what initiative.

But Mark, really appreciate you being here today.

Hope we can have you back.

Want to say a big thanks to Mark Irvin, executive vice president and chief supply chain officer with Best Buy.

Have a great week, Mark.

Thanks for having me.

I appreciate you both.

Take care.

Thank you.

Oh, Corrine, if we just had four more hours with Mark, I think we could solve most of the world's kills, huh?

Absolutely.

I love his passion around this.

That just came through loud and clear.

I'm a big passion addict.

Right.

I love to see passion in our leaders, but it's even better here because of the tangible outcomes and bottom line results which is in and of itself is great.

But to your point, how they bake that into how we do business at Best Buy.

What an outstanding way to start the week with Mark Irvin.

Big thanks to Mark and Rachel, the whole team over there.

All right, so Corinne, officially, out of all that he shared, there's so many great takeaways, I think.

But what's one of your favorite things that Mark shared?

Well, it's something that you say quite often, actually, Scott.

It's deeds, not words.

So actions speak louder than words.

And it is clear that Mark amongst many others at Best Buy are living this.

It's part of their culture now.

They are thinking about sustainability in full life cycle from the time they source to what they deliver to customers and even what they take away from customers.

As far as old product to be refurbished in a number of different ways, I think that that is really important, that it is not this just paper goal that's out there.

They've made tangible progress.

And so, you know, those actions and those results really speak loudly to me as a consumer.

I'm with you.

That's right.

Actions speak so much louder than words.

Right.

Especially real, meaningful action that's driven by passionate teams as Mark really emphasized throughout his interview.

A couple things here.

Let's see here.

LK is WA for those 100 inch TVs to come down, probably price wise.

I'm with you, Larry.

I'm wishing a bigger house.

Let's see here.

Professor Maheb says it's interesting to find out the top management of Best Buy practicing what we preach to kids in class and vice versa.

Excellent point there.

Amanda says, I didn't realize Best Buy had the electronics disposal program.

We definitely need to take advantage of that, Amanda.

Keep our skeletons in the closet.

Now she says, I've always felt bad about getting rid of, disposing of items that I felt like had some life in it, but just didn't know what to do, you know?

To that end, Corinne, I don't know if you've noticed this, but retailers are kind of across the board.

At least the ones we shop at regularly have really owned that take out the old while they install the new, right?

And I think that is such a welcome development, especially in the appliance space.

Have you seen the same thing, Corinne?

Oh, absolutely.

I mean, that is a question I would ask if I were purchasing appliances, but I think applying that to your consumer electronics as well or your smaller electronics as well, whether it's your printer or other devices in the home is really important.

Yeah, agreed.

One of the quick thing lean thinking, folks, don't get it wrong.

Some voices out there have really beat up on lean, especially through the pandemic and after the pandemic, Lean is a great way of thinking.

And I think one of the reasons why, as we've talked about this timelessly before, some organizations, some leaders will couch certain initiatives that are unpopular under leaning an organization out.

And it's all wrong, right?

Lean thinking, removing waste out of organizations and constantly finding new ways to drive improvement is a great thing, especially as Mark put it, going to the gimba, right?

Going to the production line and talking with the people that know the business and the production and the products best, right?

That's other secret sauce.

So lean into lean thinking.

No pun intended.

Okay?

You can find mark on LinkedIn there.

You can also learn here more about what Best Buy is doing.

So check that out, folks.

All right, we got more work to do.

Corinne, you ready?

Yeah, let's go.

More work to do.

So the automotive industry, right?

Automotive industry, a critical import to global economies everywhere.

Now, automakers continue to feel all sorts of pressures related to no shortage of challenges that isn't just, you know, common or isn't just relegated to the automotive industry, right?

Regulation, geopolitical energy, raw material, workforce costs up.

But one that's unique for automotive the automotive industry is the newer shifting sands when it comes to things like the EV factor.

Right.

So just how are these manufacturers finding efficiencies and ways to cut costs?

Well, did you know this?

The logistics component in the automotive industry accounts for about 8% of the vehicle's retail price, or file that fact away as you go in and try to negotiate for a new car.

But as reported here by Automotive Logistics, aptly named publication.

Huh.

Automotive OEMs are leveraging some of the usual suspects and their efforts to find efficiencies and cost savings.

Network optimization, supply chain restructuring, more aggressive negotiation on freight rates and logistics contracts and the like.

Automation, digitalization and AI workforce cuts, all that stuff.

Right.

We've all heard plenty of those examples.

But one approach that they cite here, Corinne, which I think is newer for the automotive industry, not brand new, but is newer and not as prevalent, keeping finished vehicle inventories low so companies can protect working capital and cash flow.

Some manufacturers are even looking to move from a pure build to stock model, very prevalent across mainstream automotive, to more of a build to order model.

Now, I think this is a very interesting development that we'll keep our eyes on.

And it reminds me, Corinne, when I read this and started kind of doing some fact finding, you remember during the pandemic when so many automotive dealerships, lots were empty?

Right.

Well, it seems like they found some silver linings in that cloud here.

But what'd you take away from this read and what's going on, Automotive?

Yeah, well, margin pressures really only give you two main options.

One is to raise price and the other is to lower costs.

And you can lower costs in a number of different ways through efficiency, through, you know, redesigning your network, through putting pressure on your trading partners.

So with that 8% call out on the logistics cost, I'm sure that the original equipment manufacturers, the OEMs, will be looking to put more pressure on those distribution partners as well.

But on your point, Scott, about ordering a car, right, or being made to order or built to order, depending upon what geography you're in on, the terminology that you may use, I think it's interesting, but you have to have a highly differentiated product to make that work.

So we first started seeing that happening with the Tesla products.

People were willing to wait for a Tesla electronic vehicle.

They did that with the truck, the cybertruck as well.

And you would see them willing to wait years.

Shocking to me in our instant gratification world that we live in.

So you've got to have a highly differentiated product that the consumer is willing to wait for.

But we're seeing this play out.

We saw it play out with the introduction or the reintroduction of the Bronco.

You're seeing it now with the reintroduction of the international scalp that's coming out.

These pre buys or pre orders for product again have a year or more lead time associated with them.

Now, there is no question we can manufacture very precisely, reduce inventory when we know what the customer is going to order versus simply forecasting what the customer is going to order.

Excellent points there.

And the Bronco, that's been an interesting Ford Bronco, the reinvigorated and rolled out Ford Bronco has been an interesting thing to hit the roads, particularly Corinne.

For me, I like the bigger one.

The bigger one.

That's more like what we saw back in the, you know, 70s and 80s with those Ford Bronco trucks.

Man, you can roll those things out in the woods and not encounter any obstacles back in the day, huh?

It's true.

It's true.

I'm surprised.

My husband is very excited about this international scout coming out.

I didn't even remember that brand from, you know, childhood days.

But he starts rambling on about, you know, international is doing mostly commercial now and this.

And I looked at him because normally I'm the one leading that conversation.

He was all over it.

So again, a product that you're passionate about or something that resonates with your buyer, your consumer, they will be willing to wait.

If it's a differentiated good, I'm with you.

All right, so I am adding that international scout to my things to look for along with Pittsburgh Blue, the steakhouse that Mark shared with us.

So we're going to check that out as well, along with my other.

I didn't have my handy dandy black notebook handy day.

So I've got about 27 sticky notes from our conversation you and I had with Mark.

A lot of good stuff there.

And folks, before we wrap here, hey, check out this read from Automotive Logistics.

Let us know your take on what we're seeing in automotive industry.

There's no shortage of things that are just intriguing that automotive manufacturers are having OEMs and their ecosystems are having to overcome.

It's a fascinating time.

And Tricia dropped the link there right there in the chat.

You know, in Mexico alone, kind of bring us full circle to see China enter the automotive space down there, especially with ev I think it's the BYD is a Chinese company and that acronym, Karen, stands for build your dream, if I've got that right, which I think is Pretty cool.

But it is a fascinating time.

So we'll see what goes on in this critical industry to economies everywhere.

That certainly brings our conversation full circle back to the tariffs in Mexico and Canada, et cetera.

But again, another reason why we should be leaning into some of our digital supply chain solutions to evaluate all of these scenarios and just help our businesses be prepared for what's coming next.

So true, Corinne.

So true.

And to the end, folks, be sure to follow and connect with Karen Bursa.

We want to stay in the know with expert advice on what goes on with especially in leading supply chains.

Right.

It'll help you stay on top of things and be more prepared and planned for what's to come.

I would just add one more thing, Corinne, kind of again, full circle here.

We can't look at what is being pronounced in campaign jargon or from the headlines.

We got to look at what the ultimate objective is and we'll see how all this plays out.

But I personally, my personal opinion is not that the White House wants to have 25% tariffs in place for years on these key allies of ours.

They want other things.

Right.

And I love to hear what was reported this morning in terms of dialogue going on and some good agreements that's good for all parties clearly being reached.

And now they've got more time to see what other common ground we can reach.

You know, I think that is a good thing to take place amongst friendly allies and governments and supply chain ecosystems.

Right, Corinne?

I mean, what's your take?

I think it's a good development and I think we're going to see a lot more movement that will strengthen this incredibly important and unique North American region.

That might be too optimistic.

What's your take, Corinne?

I think that it will strengthen the relationships between the countries overall.

It certainly is stimulating conversations and those conversations are happening at the highest level of all countries involved, not just both Canada and Mexico, but China is a part of this discussion as well when it comes to tariff changes.

And I think having those open communications about our goals in whole that it's not just about trade, it's about helping to enforce other policies that have been agreed to and really giving them some teeth, if you will, in the process and working together around the common good.

So I think it will result in some good things in the long run.

And I hope that conversations continue to develop and really drive some actionable results that are sustainable for all parties.

Yes, Corinne, you much more eloquently stated than I could get out, but I wholeheartedly agree with you, Alan.

Says, hey, up here they're Talking about a 25% tariff on supply chain now broadcast.

Oh, so funny.

But, you know, I mean this wholeheartedly, folks.

We love our Canadian friends and allies.

We love our Mexico friends and allies.

We're gonna work through this and find that common ground.

I'm just convicted with that thought because we've got some much bigger challenges that face the industry and face our governments and our collective people.

So with that said, Corinne, what a great episode.

It's great having you here on the buzz today.

What a great way to start a Monday, huh?

Absolutely.

Really enjoyed the conversation with Mark Irving from Best Buy.

And it's got me thinking about just a number of things personally we can do as a household, but also in the industry as a whole.

I think making sure that sustainability really in all aspects from the energy we save, our customers, our consumers.

In the case of Best Buy, right through how do we make it easy for them to make a decision to work with us, whether that's in recycling their old product and finding a new home or new capabilities for it or some other aspect?

I think that we can think in those terms of both acquiring a customer and satisfying a new need that they have.

But also how do we help them get out of, if you will, old product or old capabilities?

Love it.

We can't stick to how it's always been done.

And that applies on so many different levels of Life here in 2025 and more.

On a lighter note, hey folks, if y'all are any an international scout, big fans out there.

Send a picture of your car or the car you want to get.

I'd love to get informed.

I got to get on the international scout kick, Corinne.

And as, yeah, as Trish is putting out here.

Hey, folks, learn more about supply chain now.

You can find all of our programming and a whole bunch more right there via that link.

Appreciate that, Trisha.

As we wrap here today, I want to thank what a great guest, Mark Irvin with Best Buy.

Really enjoyed that.

Big thanks to Corinne Bursa.

Again, be sure to follow and connect with Corinne across social Amanda, thank you.

Making no tariff promises.

That's great.

Breakthroughs ahead, folks.

Breakthroughs ahead.

And big thanks to Amanda, Trisha behind the scenes.

Most importantly, folks, big thanks to our global audience for being here with us and sharing your thoughts and observations.

Let's keep that coming.

We really appreciate it and keep all the feedback coming as well.

Hope you enjoyed today's show.

Take one thing.

We heard great things from Mark and Corinne here today and from folks in the cheap seats right at chat.

Take one, put it into practice, share it with your team.

It's all about deeds, not words.

And with that said, on behalf of the entire Supply Chain now team Scott Luden, challenge you do good, give forward, be the change that's needed.

And we'll see you next time right back here at Supply Chain Now.

Thanks, everybody.

Thanks for being a part of our.

Supply Chain now community.

Check out all of our programming@supplychainnow.com and make sure you subscribe.

Subscribe to Supply Chain now anywhere you listen to podcasts and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.

See you next time on Supply Chain Now.