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Big Ideas on the Future of Retail
Walmart’s “Wirkin” Class Problem
By Doug Stephens In December of 2024 amid the usual array of commodity items on Walmart.com, there was one conspicuous product listing that immediately caught the
We Were Promised An Experience Economy. So, Where Is It?
By Doug Stephens I can still recall reading Joseph Pine and James Gilmore’s seminal 1999 book The Experience Economy. Like so many of my colleagues in
Are body cameras the future of retail loss prevention?
Doug spoke recently with CTV’s Your Morning about the rise in usage among retailers, of body cameras, worn by staff to deter rising levels of theft.
The Future of Competitive Advantage
By Doug Stephens As you prepared for work today, did you do so with the belief that your company was working to save humanity? If you’re
AI is more creative than humans? Not so fast.
By Doug Stephens A recent study at the University of Arkansas pitted 151 human test subjects against Chat GPT-4 in a series of tests for creativity.
How to Win in Retail: Less Science, More Art
By Doug Stephens Over the last 20 years, technology has transformed retail. Mobile phones have become essential conduits for communication, entertainment and commerce. Technologies like augmented
The Key to Winning the AI Arms Race? Human Creativity.
By Doug Stephens Companies across the global retail sector are poised to become the beneficiaries of a historic windfall: an unprecedented boost to the bottom-line
The Metaverse Crash Is Exactly the Moment to Take the Metaverse Seriously
Many of the high-flying concepts and companies that led the charge into the metaverse and web3 have come crashing down to earth. Ironically, this makes it
The Future of Retail in the New Era of Risk
In the post-Covid era, the rethinking of risk offers profound competitive advantage, argues Retail Prophet founder Doug Stephens. If a single image has come to
Announcing: Retail Reborn Season 2
This article originally appeared on Business of Fashion. Follow the series to ensure you never miss an episode. BoF’s podcast series Retail Reborn returns for a