Ashye Marcus

Bright Future for Bricks & Mortar Stores. Great piece covering Advise by John Walshe @ Retail Media Group, and highlighting: ·      Vast Majority of Grocery Sales still happen in Brick & Mortar Stores (80% plus) ·      CPG/ FMCG manufacturers are drowning in data and leaving enormous volumes and value on the shop floor, on the shelf, in the storeroom, with the competition, wasted… take your pick! ·      When manufacturers don’t engage with data they already have access to, they can’t automate processes, increase margins, increase efficiencies, reduce costs & retail talent. ·      Almost forgot… Manufacturers have to embrace AI, where it makes sense, like everyone else… 😊 See full article here: https://lnkd.in/erNY7bnH #cpganalytics #drowningindata #ecrireland #catmanglobal

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Walmart continues to show what retail adaptability looks like at scale. Their latest AI tools for associates don’t just make operations more efficient—they simplify, guide, and free up time for what matters most: the customer. By combining generative AI with AR and RFID, they’re showing how real-time intelligence can enhance decision-making from the shelf to the backroom. It’s a move that echoes the principles of The Agile Code—adaptability, experimentation, and team empowerment. 💡 What’s your “escape fire”? How are you redeploying time saved through technology? #TheAgileCode #RetailInnovation #AIinRetail #Walmart #AgilityInAction https://lnkd.in/eGQwTKsd

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6 Comments

Big milestone for Fulfil this week. Amazon and Whole Foods Market unveiled a new micro-fulfillment concept store in Pennsylvania that blends premium groceries with everyday goods — all powered by Fulfil’s advanced robotics platform. Inside the store, Fulfil’s autonomous ShopBots retrieve items across all temperature zones, enabling customers to order via QR codes and pick up groceries in minutes. This is a huge step forward in showing how physical AI and intelligent automation can reshape retail operations — bringing real scalability, precision, and efficiency to the last 100 feet of fulfillment. Excited to see Fulfil continue to define the future of how people shop. https://bit.ly/49cRXdt Congratulations Mir Aamir and Fulfil team!

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Harvey Ma at Sam's Club recently made a great point: the future of retail media depends on the ability to measure how people actually shop, from discovery to purchase. And that raises a bigger question: Are we building systems that make full-funnel visibility possible, or are we trying to stitch it together from a fragmented RMN ecosystem? A lot of the market is still pulling signals from siloed platforms and calling it full-funnel. But it’s inherently limited because the underlying data was never unified to begin with. The next phase of retail media will be defined by better infrastructure. It won’t be flashy, but it will be foundational. Mark Williamson and Costco Retail Media understand this and have a modular infrastructure supporting their advertiser initiatives. When media, purchase data and measurement are connected at the source, full-funnel visibility becomes native. You’re not inferring impact across channels. You’re observing how campaigns influence real purchases across the entire customer journey. That shift moves retail media beyond its roots as a lower-funnel performance channel and into something much more fundamental: a system that can connect and measure the full path to purchase. You don’t get to Harvey’s vision of full-funnel RMNs by stitching together silos. Work with the companies embracing data integration and interoperability!!

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Consumer VC has a great episode this week... Mike Gelb sat down with Akash Raju to get into how consumer brands should think about protecting margin as they grow their retail distribution. Don't miss the discussion: 1️⃣ The power imbalance between brands and retailers 2️⃣ How AI is reshaping finance operations 3️⃣ What every brand should know before expanding into wholesale https://lnkd.in/eTg5SdzG

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Well said Khaja Hussain. The U.S. market is intensely competitive due to its large, high-spending consumer base, mature licensing ecosystem, and strong demand driven by tourism and pop culture. Major brands and IP owners dominate, while fast-moving trends and retail saturation push retailers to constantly innovate. But the success in this market requires strong brand partnerships, operational agility, and a deep understanding of consumer behavior.

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Exciting to see Walmart deepening its commitment to India! A $10B annual sourcing target by 2027 is a strong signal of Walmart’s long-term vision to empower local businesses and strengthen global supply chains. At Optiwise.ai, we’re passionate about enabling brands to thrive in this ecosystem — and moves like this create even greater opportunities for Indian manufacturers and sellers to scale globally. #Walmart #India #GlobalTrade #MarketplaceGrowth

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3 Comments