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It's January 15, 2025.

I'm one of your hosts, Anne Bazinga.

And I'm Chris Walton and we are.

Here live from NR New York City once again to discuss all the top headlines from the past week making waves in the world of omnichannel retailing.

Chris, I'm giving this podcast every last ounce of energy that I have.

I can hear it in your voice, Dan.

You can probably hear it in mine too.

I mean, I'm.

I'm hoarse.

I'm Hanging in there, man.

I joked in the Retail Daily minute this morning, I used the quote from Escape from New York with Snake Plissken, and I was like, this is exactly how I feel.

I want to escape from New York.

I want to get home, take a bath, get my bed, you know, the whole nine yards.

I love how you paused after Escape from New York by whoever Lipkin or whatever you just said.

Like, I knew what the quote you were talking about.

So, yeah, I was like.

And continue.

You're gonna have to explain that one for me as you always have to.

Par for the course.

And I've actually not even seen that movie, believe it or not.

But anyway, that's.

That's another story.

And we've got a lot of NRF stuff to get to, and we got a flight to catch in a couple hours.

We don't have ideal video conditions here.

We're both in our.

In our hotel room at the Four Points.

Sheridan.

Right?

And it's a Sheridan.

Is that what you're saying?

But I mean, can we shout out to these people?

They are amazing.

I mean, I kind of don't want to share it with anybody because it is the hidden gem of hotels, I think, when you're going to nrf.

But they are such a great team.

I'm sure they're definitely not listening, so I don't know why I took the time to do that.

But.

But our fans are.

And they will take up and snack up, snatch up the hotels.

In fact, I want to give a shout out because I.

I ran into a fan in the elevator and I have no idea what his name is.

I just know he was at booth 3, 4, 5, 6.

I can't remember the company's name, but he's like, you're Chris from Omnitok.

And I was like, I had just gotten my shirt on.

I just gotten down to get coffee.

Didn't have a badge or anything.

Yeah, yeah.

All I can remember is his booth number because it was 3456.

So shout out to him.

Hope he's still listening.

I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to stop by because we were just so busy at the show.

But.

But yeah.

And should we.

Should we get going?

Yes.

Thank you to everybody who stopped by to.

@ nrf.

We just can't tell you enough how much we appreciate everybody coming up and saying hello and sharing your.

Your own Omnitok experience.

So we love it so much.

But, yeah, let's get to the show.

All right.

And, well, believe it or not, we're sitting here in New York and it's time to start talking about our next big conference in New York City.

Before we get to today's headlines because coming up this June 24th and 26th, when hopefully it'll be much warmer here because it was freaking cold here in New York, you can come join anime at the Commerce Next Growth show.

You can discover actionable insights from industry leaders and take your e commerce and retail strategy to the next level.

With 2,700 plus industry leaders and 75 plus action packed sessions, skilled retailers and brands qualify for a free ticket.

That's free folks.

Or you can use code omnitalk O M N I T a l k.

That's omnitalk all one word for 10% off and secure your spot today.

So today's headlines are of course brought to you by Commerce Next.

And in today's Fast5, we've got news on Amazon's $11 billion investment in AI in the Great state of Georgia.

Best Buy launching a new revamped marketplace with miracle Amazon again, this time for letting online retailers use its ad tools meta allowing listings from ebay on its marketplace.

And Blue Yonder's Tim Robinson stops by for five insightful minutes on how retailers should think about handling returns in 2025.

But we begin today with what feels like what feels like to me and I'm curious what you think More bad news out of Macy's.

Oh, we might have a discussion on this one.

Let's go to headline number one.

All right, Chris.

Macy's last Thursday revealed that the revealed the first 66 locations that it plans to close as part of its plans announced nearly a year ago to shutter about 150 stores according to Retail D.

The 66 locations span 22 states and many are mall anchor locations.

Several are also standalone furniture stores that in some cases will shift operations to nearby full line stores.

Department store is closing four of its 24 small format stores, a shift from the acceleration of small farm openings announced in 2023.

Six out of the nine of the retailers freestanding off price backstage locations will also close.

Chris, are you surprised at all by details surrounding Macy's store closure news?

I think I might know the answer to this.

Yeah, I, I think I am, I am somewhat surprised.

I'm not, I'm not, I'm like, I'm not like on the shocked level.

Like if 1 through 10 with 10 was shocked, I'm probably like a 5 here.

Like I'm, I'm surprised that this is what they're saying because Particularly that it looks like it's in a, it's an about face on their small format stores, you know, and like it's 100%, it's about face.

And, and I think, I think that about face is important to call out for two reasons.

First, we visited these stores in Texas, I think one of which is closing now, if I'm not mistaken from reading the article.

And we were not impressed.

In fact, I think my joke at the end of that video tour was if it walks like a Macy's and quacks like a Macy's, it's still a Macy's because.

And I still for the life of me can't understand why the world needs a scaled down Macy's.

I've just never bought into that idea.

So, so, so that's why I'm kind of not surprised by this.

Sure, sure.

Then two, and this is the more important point here, it tells me that they don't have a new path to growth upon which they can rely with any great certainty right now.

And that is, that is fricking scary.

I think everything they've been telling the media and the analyst community could soon blow up in their face.

And while Macy's.

Here's the other point.

While Macy's is reporting supposedly good news about their bold new chapter strategy in their 50 stores.

Like, I'm always skeptical when I hear about 50 store tests because the entire executive team is right around those.

The entire store operations team is right around those.

They're getting the resources to be successful.

Yeah.

So yeah, they're going to work in the short term.

But at some time, at some point, those types of pilots revert back to the mean.

And so.

Right.

That's why I'm just like, wow, I don't see you've got a lot here going on, Tony Spring.

And so I'm, I'm very skeptical again about your growth trajectory and whether department stores are still going to exist.

Yeah.

It's like having 50 flagship stores.

Right.

I mean, it is.

That's, that's the thing.

If you know retail like we do, like, yes, these are going to be successful because by crook or by Nook or whatever the hell the expression is, Tony Spring gonna make sure that's not right.

I know, but by hooker, by crook, that's what.

Yeah, right.

Tony Spring is gonna make sure that these things work because his reputation depends on it.

Right.

So, so, so, yeah.

So, I mean, I don't know, but.

Yeah, it diverts media attention.

It diverts media attention.

I mean, no, I guess My whole point is that I actually think this is the most sensible thing that they can do.

I mean I think that what Tony Spring is doing is trimming the fat here.

Like this is just Macy's is making sensible moves about, you know, you got to, you got to start shutting some of these down because they're having a huge impact on the bottom line.

And you know our sources that we've talked to at Macy's, you know, like, like it was mentioned in the article, like a lot of these mal the only ma.

Like the only store that's still in a dead or dying mall and no one's going to come there.

There's no other reasons to get them there.

So it just doesn't make sense.

It's a bad experience because like I think you said in a conversation we were having here, like there's nobody that wants to work there.

Like it's just, it's, it's a bad experience.

It's souring your experience with the brand immediately.

So I think there and it makes sense.

And you know, honestly Chris, I kind of give them kudos for shutting down these small format stores because I think a lot of other retailers would have.

KE stuck their guns.

I think they would have tried to push it.

And you're 100% right.

Like small format Macy's, I don't hate the idea but it can't just be Macy's shoved into a smaller box.

And I, that was a big problem for me was that there's a glut of inventory.

Like it just the, you know, the sales experiences weren't consistent.

Like it just, it didn't make sense.

So I think I'm actually, I'm kind of impressed.

I'm going to give me a, give Tony Spring a little bit of a boost here and say like this is a very Amazon move of them.

Like this isn't working.

We're cutting it out.

Even though we invested a bunch of money, we told everybody we were going to.

This was our strategy.

Like we can't make money off the backstage stores.

The small format Macy's isn't working.

Like they're, they're going to have to try to course correct and make those tough decisions right now if they want to survive as a brand.

So yeah, not surprised, I guess.

Yeah, you're right, you're right.

It's kind of, it's probably a smart move but it's not a move that makes me feel any better about the trajectory.

That's, that's, that's 100 agree.

Yeah, like there's, there's got to be more going.

I, I still like, I think that there, you know, I really think that Macy's just needs to sit down, take a hard look at what, what the future of Macy's needs to be and then start acting on it and even, even start consolidating I think some of the larger Macy's footprints to, to, to really figure out what makes the most economical sense, what the new customer wants.

It's interesting too because he came out yesterday and said, he said, I think on stage at nrf even he said like we believe in having three brands.

He doesn't want to spin them off.

You know, he wants it when, when.

And I actually think we've talked about before, but I think Bloomies as a smaller strategy makes a ton of sense.

But.

Yeah, but the other point I make too, and before we move on is we interviewed Joe Call, their head of assets protection and great guy, learned a ton.

So brilliant, great interview.

To hear his perspective, particularly on putting products behind glass was really interesting to listen to.

But the thing I got listening to him, I was just like, man, department stores are just so hard and so outdated.

You've got multiple entrances, you've got a guard, you've got split levels at most of these stores.

Like it's just, it's just the, it's just kind of the dinosaur in a lot of ways.

But anyway, all right, headline number two.

According to Reuters, Amazon said last week that it's cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services plans to invest about $11 billion to expand its infrastructure in Georgia to support cloud computing and AI technologies.

Quote the investments in Butts and Douglas counties are expected to create hundreds of jobs and enhance Georgia's position as a hub for cutting edge digital innovation.

End quote.

And yes, I'm still getting over Butts County.

How should the rest of retail.

How has that gone?

Unknown.

I've never did you about Butts County.

I didn't know.

I mean this county, this is the.

This is the overtired like three year old sense of humor right now coming out in me.

Where Butts County?

Who knew?

Okay, you were asking me a very professional, important question.

Let's try, let's get back to keep this, this podcast classy.

And how should the rest of retail be reacting to Amazon's $11 billion AI investment in the Peach State?

I think everybody should be paying very close attention to this.

Nvidia, their CEO was speaking at CES earlier, whatever week we're in right now.

And then we had Azita Martin on Stage with John Furner here at nrf, just talking about even more.

Like, we know Nvidia is huge.

We know that they're the key to all of the continuous AI development that's going to be happening.

But, Chris, what they were showing on stage at nrf, rough, it's just like, it's even beyond, I think, what we can even comprehend.

So I think the fact that Amazon's investing $11 billion in continuing to bolster their AI capabilities, especially, you know, everybody's got to get their piece.

And right now is the time that you got to be doing it, because you know it.

It's going to be impossible to catch up to people like Nvidia.

But if you're not doing anything to think about this, like, you got to figure out how you're going to set yourself up for the structure or the foundation to have successful pieces in place to really succeed with AI, because there's.

There's just no way that you cannot use this.

There's no way that if you are a technology company, you cannot be making these types of investments right now.

Especially the agentic AI stuff.

Chris, like, for those in our audience.

Yeah, explain what agentic AI, this was a.

Relative to interpret agentic AI.

Yeah.

So like I was telling you, like when.

When we, you know who we were.

Oh, Keith.

Keith Mercier from Target or from Microsoft.

Microsoft.

On our podcast leading up to nrf, he was talking about agentic AI.

And I think that for a lot of people, that was like the first, kind of, the first place that we were hearing about it.

I immediately assumed agentic AI, like an agent, a call center agent, a bot that you're interacting with on the website.

Oh, God, no.

This was like Azita and John were on stage, they were showing like a complete transformation of a DC where agentic AI just basically means, in my understanding, it's just these are the jobs that AI is doing a thousand times better than people, and they are just going to catapult every single industry.

And so that's where this $11 billion investment in Georgia, you're just like, yeah, this is the kind of money that we're going to have to be throwing at this.

This is kind of infrastructure we're going to have to be building for this to be successful.

It's.

It's beyond what I think we can even comprehend right now.

Yeah.

Or said another way, all those inventory planning and allocation jobs that are the starting grounds, Right.

Most retailers, those are going to become, you know, AI agents in the long run is basically what is How I would read into that.

Yes, what you just said.

So, I mean, and I don't have much to add here.

I mean, I just thought of a way to put this in perspective for our audience.

11 billion, 11 in $11 billion investment is more than twice the market cap of Macy's which we just talked about.

Macy's market cap is $4 billion.

So $11 billion is more than twice the value of Macy's right now.

Yeah, that's the scale of the resources that we're talking about here with which Amazon has to win and forge its trail in the next generation of AI based commerce.

That's crazy when you think about it.

And so other retailers are not going to stand a chance.

So I'm a little more like, like doomsday tinfoil hat here and going back.

To understandable machine we used to use.

Like three or four years ago because it's gonna be impossible to keep up with them.

I'm not even sure Walmart can keep up with this, you know, at the end of the day.

So the only path I see here is that Amazon either gets bigger and bigger and puts more retailers out of business, Right?

Yeah.

Or gobbles them up too, maybe acquires them, you know, who knows?

Or the government gets involved and breaks up aws because yeah, the, the combination of those two is just making Amazon so powerful in this landscape that there's no way it's going to be a fair playing field, you know, with, with them being able to, you know, have that in their back pocket to dominate the space.

Yeah, that's a great point.

And not just Amazon.

I mean, you look at all of these companies like Nvidia even like, I think there's going to be legislation changes that have to happen because people like Nvidia, people like Amazon that have these deep pockets are investing so much money and being able to do like no one's going to be able to, to catch up with them.

It's just, it's impossible.

Well, let's go on to headline number three, Chris.

Best Buy plans to launch a new third party marketplace in the US in mid-2025, according to Modern Retail.

CEO Corey Berry told investors about the new marketplace on an earnings call in November, saying it would give its customers access to a larger assortment and new categories.

It will also give sellers and advertisers a new avenue on which to increase their reach and build their brands.

She said the new platform is a partnership with Miracle, a software company that also powers third party marketplaces for Macy's, Nordstrom and Kroger, which you've definitely heard me say before.

Because Miracle is also a sponsor of this podcast.

Yes.

Full disclosure.

Yes.

And that complement this traditional e commerce sites with a larger selection from third party sellers.

The move follows a previous attempt from 20, from 2011 to 2016, when Best Buy launched a marketplace to compete with Amazon but shut it down, it only brought in 1% of Best Buy's revenue and created confusion among buyers who thought they could return the inventory to Best Buy stores.

A Best Buy spokesperson told E commerce bites in 2016.

Chris, this is also our A and M put you on the spot question.

Wow, I'm on a roll with these questions.

Yes.

All right, let's do it.

Yeah.

Chris.

Marketplaces continue to thrive and multiply.

Call them the new retail media network.

To that end, we'll.

Marketplaces like Best Buy stand on their own long term.

Or will this proliferation of independent retailer marketplaces end up significantly consolidating?

Interesting.

Interesting.

I don't know.

I don't know if I agree that they're the new retail media of 2025.

I think, I think they're a little bit different here.

And, and to answer that question, I don't really see any, I don't really see any consolidation.

I think, you know, some marketplace efforts will be more successful than others and some will get the traffic, therefore, and others won't.

But at the end of the day, running them has gotten so much more efficient because of the platforms that are out there that I think it makes it easier for people to try to do this and see to what degree a marketplace works for them.

But yeah, I don't see consolidation of marketplace efforts happening.

Which is why, honestly, if I come back to the headline, I am decidedly pro on this move because, you know, the, the thing I'd call it, it's not 2016 anymore.

You know, it's not, it's 2025.

And you know, just to call it out, you know.

Yeah, and, and retail and Best Buy have both changed a lot in the last 10 years.

Like, I think this 10 years has seen the most change in retail that I can ever remember.

Yes.

And so a number of things I call out that are different than, you know, back in 2016.

One, platforms like Miracle just make it easier.

Like I said already, like, they make it easier.

And you know, there's a lot of platforms you can do this with.

But, but you know, they're using Miracle, they're our sponsor and it just makes it easier to do second, the Omnichannel sophistication with rich retailers are operating is far greater than it ever was.

So the idea of returns being the hamstringing factor here isn't as large of a concern as it probably was before.

I think people have started to figure out how to do things around that.

Different business models, different technology solutions have come up around solving that problem and it will continue to get better and better.

And then here's the last point I'd add too, or no, second to last point.

Actually, I've got another point after this.

Third, I think subscriptions are a bigger part of the game here.

Yeah, so, and loyalty.

And we learned from Christian Revo yesterday at the Reva Group that loyalty is a key piece of my fourth point, which is going to be retail media.

So teased.

But Best Buy has a pretty robust loyalty program with lots of great benefits.

So I could see customers going on their site, on their site wanting to purchase other items from Best Buy given their loyalty and the fringe benefits that come with being a member.

And fourth, of course, the retail media landscape is way different.

We've talked about this a lot on our show.

But retail media, the marketplaces extend the reach of retail media.

And Best Buy is one of those retailers that has a national retail media reach.

So for all those reasons, those four reasons, I think, I think this is a great move by Best Buy.

Salute Corey Berry and hope we can get them on the show to talk about it more.

Yeah, I agree.

I mean, you kind of hit on all the points, Chris, that I, I, I agree with.

I think, you know, it's a search game.

If you, if you can show up to more people, you have more access.

And like you said, you know, Best Buy has a great loyalty program.

They also, I think have things like that they can tie in down the road.

That makes sense, like Geek Squad support for those items.

I do also think that the returns issue can be solved.

I mean, you take a look at what Walmart's doing with their, Walmart, you know, with Walmart plus and what they' with their marketplace, like they've got it figured out.

The solution is out there.

Best Buy is an intelligent retailer.

They can definitely figure that out.

And that's a great value to Best Buy's customers.

The other thing too, that I'm also curious to see if Best Buy starts to bring into this.

You know, they built that platform where you can go on bestbuy.com and you can click the button and do a live demo with a blue shirt right then and there.

I mean, if they can expand that capability to offer that to their marketplace vendors too, where, like, hey, you want to use our technology in order to, like, have a conversation with this person about the patio set that they're about to buy from Best Buy like this, this is a great opportunity.

And I think you're 100 right in that this isn't a one and done thing.

Best Buy is coming back to this with new strategic measures in place to make sure that this is successful.

So I, I salute the move as well.

I think it's a great, great, great revisiting of the marketplace and definitely picking the right partner in Miracle.

We've, we've worked with them quite a bit and I think they, they've seen a lot of the retailers they're working with are seeing a lot of success from that.

So good job.

All right, well, well, great segue here too.

And because it just so happens that we have Tim on to talk about returns, let's bring Tim onto the show.

Joining us now for five insightful minutes is Blue Yonder's corporate vice president, Tim Robinson.

Tim is here to take us through Blue Yonder's most recent consumer returns survey.

Tim, first question may be obvious, but I want to get your take on it.

Why should retailers be reimagining returns?

Hi, Chris here.

Thank you.

So, I mean, there are probably three key areas.

I think the first thing is it's easy to forget that returns are inventory.

You know, up to 15% of items that are fulfilled across the US come back as returns, and 95% of those items could be resold or full price.

This is inventory, you know, so they should be treating them like inventory with the same level of urgency and priority.

I think the second thing is the customer experience angle now that E commerce, online shopping is such a big part of the retail experience.

You know, looking at the deed, understanding the details around returns, what consumers want, you know, have the sort of experiences they want.

But also thinking about your profitability and sustainability is very important in that regard as well.

And I think, like lots of facets of E commerce as it's evolved over the years, you know, the Buy Net, buy it now, one click experience, or, you know, new payment methodologies that have grown, help grow E Commerce.

I think returns can be a differentiator.

I think, you know, unique returns experiences, the technology you deploy, the experience that provides consumers, can set you apart from the rest.

Well, Tim, I can imagine a few reasons, having been a retailer myself, but what are you hearing from retailers are making returns so complex these days?

Yeah, I mean, that is the killer question.

For us, it ultimately comes down to the fact that returns are by their nature multi channel.

They come at you from all different directions.

You remember when you were in retail, some of those returns come from digital returns platforms where you have some insight and information.

Others, a customer has just ripped a label off of a parcel and filled out a form and sent it back to you.

Some returns go back to the store and store colleagues may or may not capture reasons as to why that return is coming back.

It's truly, truly multi channel.

One of our customers in Europe describes returns as their worst supplier.

So 15% of all my SKUs come from this supplier.

I don't have any visibility about when they're coming.

I don't know what's coming and I don't know what condition it's in.

And I think that kind of, that phrase really kind of describes why it's so complex.

So Tim, I'm curious, from the chair top which you sit, how are you seeing the best retailers address returns and how does that ultimately benefit their end consumer, their end customer?

So I mean, I would say over the last 10 years, lots of time, money and effort has gone into digitizing like the consumer front end.

So, and there's been some great businesses are born out of this desire to digitize the consumer experience.

And that feels like in many, many cases, particularly in more mature E commerce markets, you know that the job is done at that end of the experience.

Now it's all about what to do with that information.

You're now getting more and more information about returns than you ever were before.

Who's returning?

Where are they returning?

Why are they returning?

What are they returning?

The best retailers in this space take that information and tailor both the choices and the options they give consumers.

Do you get a refund?

Do you get a full refund?

Might get the partial refund.

Where can you take it in order to drop it off?

And they're also using that data to make the best supply chain decisions.

How quickly can I get this back into inventory and sell it for price?

You know, how can I avoid this item going to landfill and ultimately having the value ripped out of it?

Because the system required me to.

So I think it's going to be about, it's now about differentiation and use of data and tailoring both under the hood logistics solutions and supply chain solutions to suit but also those downstream customer experiences.

Well, Tim, you brought something up just now that I think is really important to highlight.

In the Blue Yonder survey that you did, 55% of consumers that were Pulled said they were somewhat concerned about the environmental impact when doing a return and only 27% though would continue a returns process if they knew that their item would go to a landfill.

How do you expect circularity and recommerce to kind of affect how we as consumers look at returns?

I mean, I hope all the signs, the macro signs are that this whole return space will ultimately evolve into a sales channel.

That is the signs we're seeing.

The speed at which consumers are adopting C2C pre loved recommerce experiences in different parts of the world is really encouraging in that regard.

It kind of highlights that there is no kind of old world, old school, stuffy stuffiness around buying something that was ultimately pre loved.

I think one of the key things that the industry is going to need to provide consumers with in the not too distant future is absolute visibility of where your return is going.

I think the idea that these items go back into a black hole and you don't see it is something which society is going to rally against as time goes on.

But it's like Chris's question earlier on about differentiation.

I think the brand that gets there quickest provides visibility and transparency about the second life of that item.

I think could differentiate and could win.

They could get ahead of the game really, really quickly.

That's a really, really interesting point that I've never thought about giving visibility to what happens when you return an item and that being a point of differentiation for a retailer.

So, Tim, we always love to end with predictions and you just kind of made one there.

But I'm curious, do you have any other predictions in terms of how you seeing how you see returns evolving over the next say five to ten years?

Yeah, I've got one which I've clung on to for a while which is starting to starting to play out, which is generally in most cases, retailers apply a one size fits all approach to returns policies.

You know, it's 30 days return policy for everything.

It's 30 days returns policy for every consumer regardless of whether you're a consistent spender, a loyal customer.

It just is a blanket policy and it's 30 days and full refund whether it's a $10t shirt or a $2,000 handbag.

The thing that I think the biggest move is going to be around using data.

You understand every sku.

You understand its price, you understand its value, you understand every customer, you understand their value, you understand their behavior.

The idea that we can't use that data to offer tailored returns, policies and rules and experiences to consumers is nuts, really.

And that's where I think it will go.

I think we're having some fascinating conversations with retailers, particularly in the US at the minute, about using that data to tailor the rules, the returns rules, the policies for you, the consumer, based on what you're buying.

Wow.

Great stuff.

Tim, thanks for joining us.

All right, headline number four.

Amazon aims to expand its advertising business by letting retailers use its ad tools in their stores.

According to cnbc, Amazon is letting other retailers use its homegrown advertising tools to run sponsored ads across their own websites.

The new offering, called Amazon Retail Ad Services, allows companies to show, quote, contextually relevant ads in the right place at the right time, end quote, in search results, product pages and other areas of their site.

Amazon said with Amazon Retail Ad service, users will be able to customize the design, placement and number of ads shown across their sites, as well as use Amazon's ad measurement and reporting tools.

The service operates on systems that are separate from its own retail business and retailers manage their data, no surprise, via AWS accounts.

And what do you think of Amazon's new retail ad service?

I think this is a smart pivot for Amazon.

I actually really like this and the reason is because we had Robert.

Joe, will you help me pronounce his last name?

Joe?

I want to say Joe Jose is the basketball player that I cannot.

Basketball player, yes.

Who's my eternal enemy.

Also, side note, my brother texted me last night and said that I, I said Jackson Smith.

I said Najiba and it's.

I did not pronounce it right.

He's like Ann, you've got to get your sports people's names right.

You said what Jackson Smith and Najiba in the Seattle Seahawks video we did at Lee and Field.

I did not pronounce his name right.

Thank you for fact checking me a month later.

And Jokic is the next one that I'm going to get fact checked on.

I am certain.

But anyway, back back to the Schwarz Group.

So we were talking to Robert yesterday and I thought it was so, so eye opening for me how he explained retail media networks.

I think he's still one of my favorite interviews.

But the thing that he said is to be successful at retail media, you cannot just take your like advertising or media buyers from your retail environment and then make them in charge now of your retail media network, which I think a lot of retailers were doing early on.

You have to operate as a retailer and a media company.

You are essentially replacing, you know, inline media that these media buyers used to to buy and not all companies are designed to do this or agile enough gets back to what you're talking about.

Macy's like, they're just not agile enough to do both of these things.

So I think Amazon is providing a solution here that allows retailers like that to get into some of this advertising revenue.

No, it is not ideal because, yes, you're still working with Amazon and they're getting some of this information, even if they say it's a separate business unit.

But I think that this is still a good place for people to start to see the value that they can get from advertising like this Amazon, this Amazon ads capability and then figure out like, can we build this on our own?

Do we need to find a partner?

Do we need to join another network in order to be successful?

Because there is revenue, a lot of revenue to be made here if you can do this in the right way.

But what do you think about this, Chris?

Yeah, I mean, your point, your point about retail media is really interesting because going back to the, you know, I think about what A M said, like drawing the comparison to marketplaces, I feel like the analogy I would use is marketplaces is more akin to a retailer like, like, you know, say you're a crossfitter and you want to become a marathoner.

Like, you know, it's, it's, it's, it's not a bridge to, it's not, it's not that different of a muscle use.

But like the, the idea of standing up a retail media business in a lot of ways for retailers is like, you know, being a marathoner and wanting to become a gymnast.

Right.

It's just.

Right, it's just a whole nother thing that you've got to learn how to do.

And so, yeah, I don't have much to add on this story.

I mean the thing to me is just going back to what we said in the second headline, the, the, the flywheel just keeps on spinning.

Yeah, I mean this is, this is, this is a, a page from the playbook we've seen a thousand times with Amazon selling its tax.

So, you know, which in turn generates more cloud usage.

The flywheel gets going which just keeps making Amazon more and more powerful with every single user.

So, so if I was Amazon, I, I mean net net, I, I absolutely 100 be doing the same thing.

And that's all I say.

I mean it's no brainer.

Yeah, no, help out all the online retailers that need to place ads on their site because they want to place ads on their site and they want to do it effectively.

And they want to get money for it.

Yeah, Right, right, right.

Oh, all right.

Well, Chris, let's go to headline number five.

EBay shares soared last week after Meta allowed listings on Facebook's Marketplace in the US and Europe.

According to CNBC, shares of eBay jumped 9% on Wednesday as Meta said it will allow some listings to show up on Facebook Marketplace.

The rollout will begin with a test in Germany, France, and the U.S.

the partnership could provide a boost to ebay's marketplace business, which has struggled to compete with e commerce rebels like Amazon, Walmart, and Temu.

Chris, do you agree with the market's reaction to ebay selling through Facebook Marketplace?

Yeah, I do.

Yep.

100.

I do.

I don't have a lot to say on this one either.

I'm going to keep it quick and turn.

Turn the microphone over to you.

But I think it's.

I think this is a really smart move on both sides.

I think, you know, on.

On ebay side, it extends their reach very nicely.

And for Facebook Marketplace, too, I think it brings more trust and credibility to the platform.

And me, too.

And also you get additional items, too, which in a marketplace, having additional items and, you know, catches more people, catches more eyeballs.

So I think it's clearly a case of one plus one equals three in my mind.

I think this is really smart.

Yeah, I agree.

I think this opportunity really has legs, especially to, I guess, bring people back to ebay.

I don't know if that makes sense, but, like, I, as.

As consumers, like, or introduce, even, like.

I still don't really ever use ebay.

I've never really used it.

Exactly, though.

Exactly.

And again, this gets back to, like, the search game that we were talking about with Best Buys Marketplace.

Like, you know, it.

If I'm going on Facebook Marketplace, which is widely used now by so many people to find everything from furniture to collectibles, you name it.

You know, to be able to have ebay's items plugged in, like, that's.

This is already happening so much.

Like, I don't know how much time you spend at Facebook Marketplace, but I go there first for most.

As little as possible ad as possible.

Fair, fair.

I go there for most things, especially, you know, having just.

I know you do.

And so I.

I'm telling you, there's already people who are, you know, doing the palms.

Have you heard that that acronym, like palms posted on multiple sites.

So, like, you already posted on multiple sites.

So, like, you.

The person is posting it on Facebook Marketplace, but they're also posting it on Craigslist they're also posting it on ebay.

They're also posting like, this is already happening.

Think of all of the products you could have access to if you're just uploading all of your stuff now to ebay and it's just being shot out.

It's like podcasting.

Like, you put your.

You upload your one piece of media, and now you can put it out to all these channels where all these people can find you.

Like, it's brilliant.

It just makes so much sense.

Ebay's already got this whole system locked in and ready to go, and you already have easier accessibility to things like shipping and shipping labels, taking that work out of it for you.

So.

So I think the most important thing here is just, you know, making sure that that infrastructure is in place so that the customer experience is seamless, because people are going to, you know, be one and done with this if it's not working the right way the first time.

So that's the only thing that I think is the watch out here is.

Is that people get angry on those Facebook groups.

Right?

We were talking about that at dinner yesterday.

Yeah, those Facebook groups look out.

Especially those Facebook bomb groups.

They.

Yeah, they get a hold of something, they're gonna tear it apart.

Yeah.

Oh, my God.

I did make some notes for you, Chris, on other things that they're talking about.

Handyman recommendations.

There's a lot of things we can talk about.

Oh, God.

I don't.

I don't even want to know.

I don't even want to.

Maybe I do, but I don't.

I don't, but I do.

Yes.

That's the power of social media.

You don't want to know, but you really do.

Right.

Okay, Chris, let's go to the New York City themed lightning round.

Chris, question number one for you.

We had a lengthy debate in the cab about why horses have horseshoes, resulting in another lengthy discussion around how weird the words hoof, hoof, hoof, and hooves.

Chris and I had to look up how to pronounce these words.

And hooves are.

What other word have you always found sounds weird to you?

Oh, my God.

That's so funny that, yes, we did have a conversation about this in the cabin.

It was a long conversation.

I mean, we probably spent 15 minutes on this whole thing.

But I.

The.

The.

The word that I think sounds weird is onomatopoeia.

See what I did?

Oh, I love that word.

I do love.

See what I did there?

Because it's a word that sounds like it is.

Yes.

And yes.

What word Sounds weird.

Onomatopoeia.

Yes.

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

Bad Bunny and Jimmy Fallon held a surprise concert in the New York City subway station this week.

Bunnies notwithstanding, what is the baddest animal in your mind?

Mice.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

I just feel like they're run into.

Some badass mice in your.

Diane, you just can't.

They're like.

Even my sister in law was like, we had a mouse kind of cute.

And I was like, no, that's what they want you to think.

They want you to think they're like sneaky bad animals and they will just find a way.

And they freak me out so much.

I hate them.

Them.

So that would be my.

The baddest animal.

What's your baddest animal?

Oh, geez.

I hadn't thought about it.

I think I.

I think I probably go with mice too.

I hate mice.

Like, mice.

Mice are.

Mice are just terrible, terrible, terrible creatures.

I don't like cats.

Either end.

I don't like.

Oh, God.

You're gonna.

You gotta be careful.

You can't get into domesticated animals.

Mice are like, you're.

That's okay, you're.

But I scratch me one time.

It was.

It was.

It was disastrous.

It was.

You get a fever.

So cats are bad animals.

They're badass animals too, Ann.

Yes, I did get a fever after the cat scratch.

I got a cat scratch disease.

There's a little disease called cat scratch disease, and I got it.

Jesus.

You definitely did.

You definitely did.

I did surprise it all.

I don't remember what it's called.

Somebody can look it up.

But yeah, Cat scratch disease.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay, Chris, if you had to stand in without warning as an extra with an ensemble dance number in a Broadway musical, would you rather do that?

Or 30 minutes of open mic stand up at a comedy club without warning?

They're just like, chris, go.

Oh my God.

I mean, you know, you know the answer.

30 minutes is a long time.

But I'm definitely choosing the stand up because.

Are you, you know.

Yeah.

I mean, as bad as my dad jokes are, they are nowhere near as bad as my dancing skills.

And so being like Broadway dance number, like, no, no, no one wants.

But you can hide.

Like, that's the thing.

Like, you can.

No, you can't.

You could, like kind of be in the background of the dance ensemble dance number and singing like, stand up.

You're just under the light, man.

Hey, that's okay.

I like to be in the light.

But as Shakira once said, and my hips don't Lie.

I'm not hiding.

I'm not hiding.

All right.

The famed Governor's Ball is coming up soon, and its lineup includes the likes of Tyler the Creator, Olivia Rodrigo, and I think it's pronounced Hosier.

I have no idea.

Yeah.

When was the last time you bawled out Cinderella style?

Have you ever ball.

Gone to a ball, Anne?

I guess so.

I, like, had to go to a gala.

Is that like a.

Yeah, yeah.

Gala will qualify as.

I guess that would be the closest thing, but no gala.

What kind of gala was it?

A regatta gala.

It was a fundraiser.

Friend's joke.

What's a regatta gala?

It's a friend's joke.

It's from friends.

I think they go to a regatta gala or something.

Remember that?

Oh, yes.

Oh, my God.

I thought you said it had a French joke.

And I was like, you've been hanging out with a lot of French people this week.

We have.

We spent a week in a French booth.

Yes, but I don't know that term.

Yes, yes, the regatta gala.

Okay, now I remember, but yes.

No, I think it was, like a fun.

I don't even remember what the fundraiser was for, but I had to dress up.

What did you wear?

Did you wear a flowing gown?

Did you know?

Was it like one of those where you wear a corset and the.

Oh, God.

Underneath you is really big?

No, if we're talking.

That's a gala.

That's.

Or that's a ball.

No, I haven't.

No, it was just like a.

A.

I don't know, like a.

Did you wear a tiara?

I did wear a tiara because one of the times.

Oh, my God.

Not.

Not as, like, an attendee, but we were like.

Some friends and I were volunteers.

So, like, we walk.

There was like, a little.

One of the jewelers had, like, a little headbandy dime, like an actual diamond thing that I got to, like, wear around, and then people bid on it and then.

Yeah.

Wow.

Wow.

You're a Tierra model and.

Was a Tierra model.

It was a tiara model.

At once.

One time in my life.

It was fleeting.

It'll never happen again.

But that's amazing.

Wow.

Who knew those things even existed?

All right, happy birthday today to Regina King, Ernie Reyes Jr.

And the man who played the super hottie tag to Jennifer Aniston's Rachel on Friends.

Eddie Cahill.

Do you remember Tag Ann?

No.

I need to watch Friends again.

I think I was like.

I watched it religiously when it was.

Out, but I'm guessing you would remember him.

I think oh, I'm gonna look him up after.

Don't worry.

All right.

Don't worry.

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Gotta get out of New York.

Yeah.

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