
Tip & Strategies For Brick-And-Mortar Operators To Thrive In Today’s New Environment
Latest Episode

Using Technology to Bridge the Gap between In-Store and Online Retail with Showfields CEO Tal Zvi Nathanel
In this episode of the Retail Experience Show, Tal Zvi Nathanel, CEO and co-founder of Showfields, joins Bobby to discuss the vital role of experiential retail in today's landscape. Tal shares his perspectives on the importance of creating memorable experiences that...
Using Technology to Bridge the Gap between In-Store and Online Retail with Showfields CEO Tal Zvi Nathanel
In this episode of the Retail Experience Show, Tal Zvi Nathanel, CEO and co-founder of Showfields, joins Bobby to discuss the vital role of experiential retail in today's landscape. Tal shares his perspectives on the importance of creating memorable experiences that engage...

Is brick and mortar dead or is it just coming alive? Join industry veteran, Bobby Marhamat, as he investigates the future of brick and mortar, why it’s gotten a bad name and what it takes to create a customer experience that increases ROI and keeps people coming back for more. Join him as he interviews the experts and learn what it takes to make or break the in-location experience.
On today’s episode of the Brick and Mortar Reborn podcast, Bobby speaks with David Leonardo, CEO of Chill-N Nitrogen Ice Cream, a shop serving up fresh, made-to-order ice cream. They discuss Chill-N’s unique way of creating ice cream, and how they’ve automated steps to increase throughput to meet customer demand. They also discuss what makes a successful franchisee, how not to fall into the trap of believing a first profitable store means more profitable stores, how franchisees can instill great customer service in their employees, and how great teams create success.
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Topics discussed:
- The evolution of David’s career that spans 20 years in franchising, from Burger King and Wendy’s to his inspiration to start Chill-N, now grown to eleven stores with five more on the way.
- The challenges to scaling, and how Chill-N has used automation to reduce throughput and increase cup production to meet customer demand.
- What the future looks like for Chill-N, including more stores, more operators who understand customer service, and more leverage with vendors.
- What franchisees get wrong about early success, and why it takes opening a portfolio of stores to understand each one’s unique needs.
- How to know when you’ve found a formula for success, and why it’s based on the team you have around you.
- Methods through which Chill-N ensures consistent experiences across locations, including using a Franchise Business Manager as a point person, weekly calls, and empowering managers to “make it right” for customers.
- Trends seen across locations, including seasonality and the rise in delivery demand, which makes up 20-25% of business today.
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Past Episodes

EP 94: Nadina Guglielmetti
In today’s podcast, Bobby is joined by Nadina Guglielmetti, Vice President, General Manager, Marketing at The Vitamin Shoppe, a popular specialty vitamin and supplement retailer. Nadina shares how her team at the Vitamin Shoppe makes use of a process that...

PODCAST 93: Jenna Flateman Posner
Jenna Flateman Posner is the Chief Digital Officer for SNIPES, one of the fastest growing sneaker and streetwear retail platforms in Europe and the US. Jenna is a seasoned retail industry professional having worked as a retail technologist and digital...

PODCAST 92: Tal Zvi Nathanel
Tal Zvi Nathanel is the CEO & Co-Founder of SHOWFIELD, a multi-brand department store environment built for today’s customers and tomorrow’s brands. With a background in technology and event experiences, and inspired by the power of physical stores to...

PODCAST 91: Barruch Ben-Zekry
Barruch Ben-Zekry is the Founder and CEO of Out&Back, a managed marketplace for outdoor gear leveling up the peer-to-peer resale experience. He joins the show to talk about why re-commerce has so much potential in the outdoors market, how building...

PODCAST 90: Craig Patterson
Craig Patterson is the Editor-in-Chief of the leading Canadian retail industry news magazine, Retail Insider. He joins the show to discuss how retail has changed in the last few years, why online shopping still has value in a post-covid world, and his take on the future of retail.Â

PODCAST 89: Marshall Kay
Marshall Kay is the founder of RFID Sherpas and a retail entrepreneurial consultant. In this episode, we dive into the technology of RFID technology, and how it can help retail brands in their stores. RFID creates smart lables that will help stores collect...

PODCAST 88: Ron Thurston
Ron Thurston is the host of the Retail in America Podcast. He spent many years working on the front lines of retail, and then he wrote his book, Retail Pride, to celebrate his career journey. On his book tour, he also meets front line retail workers around...

PODCAST 87: April Sabral
April Sabral is the founder and CEO of retailu, an online, on-demand leadership development platform for retail professionals. She is also the author of The Positive Effect, where she details her journey working in retail. In the episode today, we talk about...

PODCAST 85: Mina Fader
Mina Fader is the Managing Director of Wharton’s Baker Retailing Center at the University of Pennsylvania. In this episode, Mina discusses the present and future state of retail. She breaks down the fate of the brick and mortar space in the digital,...