Welcome to a special NRF Big Show 2022 bonus episode of podcast, one of a series of exclusive interviews produced to support the show, the vendors and industry thought leaders heading into the new year. This episode: Melissa Wong, CEO & Co-Founder, Zipline.
Welcome to the The Voice of Retail , I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
Welcome to a special NRF Big Show 2022 bonus episode of podcast, one of a series of exclusive interviews produced to support the show, the vendors and industry thought leaders heading into the new year. This episode: Melissa Wong, CEO & Co-Founder, Zipline.
These bonus episodes all follow a similar format: first, we learn about my guest and the company they work for, and what they are talking about to retailers at the Big Show this year, second, based on their experience, knowledge and conversations with retail clients, two starts and one stop advice for retailers listening. And last, but not least, where you can go to learn more. Alright, let’s jump right in.
Thanks for tuning into this special episode of The Voice of Retail. If you haven’t already, be sure and click subscribe on your favourite podcast platform so new episodes will land automatically twice a week, and check out my other retail industry media properties; the Remarkable Retail podcast, the Conversations with CommerceNext podcast, and the Food Professor podcast. Last but not least, if you are into Barbeque, check out my all new YouTube barbecue show, Last Request Barbeque, with new episodes each and every week!
I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company & Maven Media, and if you’re looking for more content, or want to chat follow me on LinkedIn, or visit my website meleblanc.co! Have a safe week everyone!
Check out this great interview with David that goes deeper into NCR: https://the-voice-of-retail.simplecast.com/episodes/the-heartbeat-of-the-store
About Melissa
CEO and Co-founder of Zipline -- the leading operations platform for field teams that enables brands to deliver transformational store experiences through engaged employees, consistent execution and fast feedback.
Our mission is to transform how retail operates by making it easier for employees to get their job done. We are bringing the ease of use of consumer technology to the enterprise so that retail associates are more informed, field teams (finally) have effective and easy-to-use tools that automate and coordinate work, and HQ has an easier way to achieve consistent execution and rollouts in stores. We ensure retailers are able to deliver on their brand promise to customers in-store and deliver an amazing experience in any location.
Today, tens of thousands of stores and hundreds of thousands of users around the world trust, and love, Zipline to streamline their operations and improve their businesses. Customers include Gap Inc, Warby Parker, Sephora, LEGO, AEO Inc., O’Reilly, 7-eleven, Hy-Vee and more.
My decade of experience in retail is specifically focused on how to achieve consistent execution in stores. My work focused on how to best enable organizations to move faster through engaged & inspired field teams, communicate best practices for HQ and field operations, and develop technologies and processes in response to business goals, field feedback and industry pressure.
I am a Silver Stevie Women in Business award winner, a Tech Trailblazer finalist, and a RIS Retail Industry Mover and Shaker. Under my leadership, Zipline has achieved a Net Promoter Score of 72, was included in the Inc. 5000's list of fastest-growing private companies, and received an honorable mention in Fast Company for World-Changing Ideas. CBInsights ranked Zipline as one of the 100 most promising B2B retail tech companies in the world and Zipline is Great Place to Work-Certified.
About Michael
Michael is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. He has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions with C-level executives and participated on thought leadership panels worldwide. Michael was recently added to ReThink Retail’s prestigious Top 100 Global Retail Influencers list for 2021.
Michael is also the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts, including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus the Remarkable Retail with author Steve Dennis, Global E-Commerce Tech Talks and The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois. Most recently, Michael launched Conversations with CommerceNext, a podcast focussed on retail eCommerce, digital marketing and retail careers - all available on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music and all major podcast platforms. Michael is also the producer and host of the “Last Request Barbeque” channel on YouTube where he cooks meals to die for and influencer riches.
Photo credit: National Retail Federation.
Michael LeBlanc 00:04
Welcome to The Voice of Retail. I'm your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
Welcome to a special NRF Big Show 2022 bonus episode podcast. One of a series of exclusive interviews produced to support the show, the vendors and the industry thought leaders heading into the new year. These bonus episodes all follow a similar format, first we learned about my guest and the company they work for, and what they are talking about to retailers at the Big Show this year. Second, based on their experience, knowledge and conversations with retail clients, two starts and one stop advice for retailers listening. And last, but not least, where you can go to learn more. All right, let's jump right in.
Melissa, welcome to The Voice of Retail podcast. How are you doing this afternoon?
Melissa Wong 00:46
I'm great, how about yourself?
Michael LeBlanc 00:47
I'm very well, where am I finding you today? I think you guys are based out in San Francisco, is that where I'm finding you today?
Melissa Wong 00:54
That's correct. San Francisco is about 70 degrees sunny and nice. So, I can't complain.
Michael LeBlanc 00:59
Nice. Well, it is basically sunny here we got that on you. But it is bit chilly here today, it’s a bit chilly with lots of snow, I am here in Toronto.
So, once again, thanks for joining me it's great to hear your voice. And you, it's the second time his Zipline has been on the podcast. So, I'm really excited to chat with you see what's, what's happening. There's so much going on, particularly so much going on in your space –
Melissa Wong 01:24
Totally.
Michael LeBlanc 01:24
About, you know, this frontline communication and coms and improving all that great stuff. So, I'm keen to kind of dig in, why don't we start the beginning. Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do at Zipline.
Melissa Wong 01:35
Great. So, I am Melissa, and I'm the CEO and Co-Founder of Zipline. And I'm a little bit of an uncommon co-founder in the sense that I actually started in retail, and worked in retail for over a decade. I know a lot of us, you know worked sometimes in retail from high school, college, etc. But my experience in retail is actually what prompted me to leave retail and start this company.
Michael LeBlanc 02:05
Was retail for you, retail sometimes been described as the accidental career, was it accidental for you? Is it something like many, just kind of get you into the market? Or did you have a and find a bit more of a passion for you?
Melissa Wong 02:17
You know, it's funny because I actually, earlier in my career, I actually focused on B2B PR, that was kind of boring. And so, I intentionally went more into retail because there's something about the way that a retail brand is able to bring a customer's aspirations and like the person that they want to be to life. And I think the best way of explaining it is like when you go into Lululemon, or when you go into Pottery Barn, I believe it's not just about buying that product, but you're trying to become that person. And in a way that brand helps you be the person that you want to become.
Michael LeBlanc 02:58
It's such an interesting discussion. Sorry I cut you off there was, it, it's interesting because it's, you know, retailers need to more and more it feels like make a very important choice around this spectrum of efficiency and experience. And whatever that means, like someone settling in the middle is probably just not going to be, not going to be good enough anymore. What do you think?
Melissa Wong 03:17
Yeah, no, I agree. And I think especially after the past couple of years of COVID. Unfortunately, I think retailers will have to do both, right. I think you're going to have to be efficient, and how you use physical locations to get product to customers hands, right. And, in less time. And also, you're going to have to use that store as a place of experience connection and knowledge.
You know, when you look at the retail landscape of a lot of different retail companies trying different things, essentially everyone's trying to deliver finally, the seamless customer journey and omni channel experience, but approaching it in a lot of different ways. But ultimately, it's around customer engagement, right.
Michael LeBlanc 04:04
Yeah.
Melissa Wong 04:04
Stickiness is winning customers, hearts, minds and ultimately wallet, which means also meeting them where they're at.
Michael LeBlanc 04:11
Alright, well tell me about your company. What does it do? What makes you different? And tell me all about Zipline?
Melissa Wong 04:16
Yeah. So, my company, Zipline, essentially was founded because like I said earlier in my career in retail, it was actually really hard to get stores to do the same.
So, I worked at or, you know, top you know, fortune 50 retailer. And as we're moving merchandise, as we're doing different product assortments, as we were making, you know, decisions around health and safety and customer service standards, it actually was really hard to get stores to do these things in a timely way.
And I'd walk into stores I you know, worked in headquarters I worked in communications and operations, walked into stores ask people hey, you know, we had this late breaking news super important to the business, we're doing this pullback, how come you didn't do the thing? And stores would always say, too much information in too many different places, I didn't know the priority, it's a little bit chaotic, someone else is responsible for that, I didn't know that it mattered, didn't know what good looked like.
And, you know, through discussions, you know, I would, you know, focus actually exclusively on this for 10 years. So, in the discussions, you know, it often surfaced that it's not that the stores didn't want to do the thing, right. It's not like associates want to do a bad job, or are acting from like an ill intent. It's because we, as a company, were not giving them, setting them up for success, right. We weren't helping them under, you know, make it easy for work. We weren't automating there were just so many manual things that were happening there, lots of stickies in back rooms, lots of calendars, -
Michael LeBlanc 05:57
Yeah.
Melissa Wong 05:57
Lots of PDF, lots of hyperlinks like, crazy amounts of information. Plus, we didn't have ways to really engage teams behind what the brand was doing. Why it mattered. Why a new brand re-launch of a specific sneaker was, you know, market moving, and revolutionary, and why people should be proud to work for a company that was making such great strides in innovation. And so, you know, after 10 years of specifically focusing on like, how can we get stores to execute better? How can we get them to feel engaged behind the brand and be enrolled in what we're doing? I left because I couldn't find a good solution, and created Zipline based off of the premise that there needs to be a better platform and solution that really enables field teams to do their jobs easier.
Michael LeBlanc 06:52
Well, I know of what you speak. I, I a couple of examples. I was with a telecom company here in Canada and, and we were at a conference and we had a similar issue with the call center, help center. And someone very cleverly calculated that we were basically sending out the equivalent of To Kill a Mockingbird, each (crossover talk) every associate. And then they're like, you know, they hold the book up, is it any wonder, you know, and then they calculate, there's like some 3000, different permutations and combination of programs.
So, that and then on the other side, I, I helped run marketing for Pandora Jewelry, and, and (inaudible) so, I felt that, I felt I was in your position, I was head of marketing, and, and you know, just so many drops, drop, drop, drop, drop, drop all these drops, that all had a flow of execution. And they all kind of seemed equally important of course, they weren't. And how did you, you know, seamlessly communicate that?
And I guess the third part, I want to get your feedback, because you're, you're, you know now on the frontlines of a different context, you're talking to the leaders of the organizations, and even pre-COVID retailers, we're saying, listen, it's getting harder and harder to drive that incremental footstep into the store. So, what can we do, you know let's, let's turn our minds to making sure that who does come in the store, you know, walks out with as big a basket as, as we can manage and make sure that conversion rates go up? Is that, is that a key driver? Like what do you, what do you and how do you once you get set up with any of your clients? How do you measure success?
Melissa Wong 08:15
Yeah, so I think when I really look at, and this kind of touches at the full circle of those examples you brought in, I actually have, you know, when you mentioned being, you know, the head of marketing for Pandora, I have a lot of empathy, right. You're trying to move your business and move the needle, you're sending things into stores, you're not sure if they're getting done. The industry average, just so that you have peace of mind now is actually 29%.
Michael LeBlanc 08:39
Okay, I was better than that, okay, I was, (crossover talk) -
Melissa Wong 08:42
People feel a little bit better when they hear that that industry average. But what I found in looking at solutions is you know, task helped people keep track of the things but it was very based off of hours and labor and was very stiff. And it wasn't really didn't show people It wasn't inspirational, right. It is like reading Moby Dick or Kill a Mockingbird, right? I think you know, a piece that's missing too is an engagement aspect, right. So, when you talk about (crossover talk), -
Michael LeBlanc 09:14
Not just instructions, but actually,-
Melissa Wong 09:15
Not just instructions.
Michael LeBlanc 09:16
Yeah, and how does your tool engage, like what does it do? Take me. take me, pop open the hood a little bit and tell me what engages these associates.
Melissa Wong 09:24
So, I mean, from you know, from a communication perspective, we're bringing the best of multimedia abilities into Zipline, right. So, it's not just about the written word like To Kill a Mockingbird, but it's about showing inline videos, being very image rich, it's very branded to look and feel like the brand. So, an associate feels part of this team. And then, it's also connecting people both from you know, in store to headquarters as well as people to other stores, right. So, it's creating that community and groundswell and is the foundation for coaching and what good looks like from a customer interaction perspective.
Michael LeBlanc 10:02
Right. Now, what brought us together today on the microphone is the NRF show, the Big Show in New York City. But what, what were you talking about this year that would say different? Or what, when you had those conversations, what was it, that about your product, or some kind of trend and you said this is, you really have to know this. If you are just stopping by the booth, you got to know this about our product, or this thing that we're seeing in the market?
Melissa Wong 10:26
Yeah, so I say, both what's in the market and how we support. So, one, I think agility is the new must have, right. Like, we're going to be making a lot of decisions in the next couple of years. And to be able to move fast, move your teams, do it agilely and accurately, and be able to read the results of that is going to be essential, right.
Michael LeBlanc 10:51
Real, real time, right real time.
And let's get to the second part, the fun part. So, this is two starts in one stop advice. So, with all your experience and, and both on the business side, and on the vendor side, and all the conversations you have for the listeners, two pieces of advice. Things they should start doing, and one thing they maybe you should stop doing, maybe it's not working as well, or it's not going to work anymore, what do you think?
Melissa Wong 11:15
So, start I would say, start making sure that, you know, based off of the agility comment that everyone's aligning teams behind common goals, and that the communication is really clear and segmented to each, I guess, role and responsibility of the organization. It will help people move faster, right. It'll help people understand their role and, and the impact they're having in the company success.
I think the second start, is brands really need to start engaging their store teams, right. The Great, you and I talked about it earlier on, but, the Great Resignation is real. Retail is a really hard and unforgiving job. A lot of times brands are doing so much in the headquarters space for the store teams, but there's a disconnect. So, really, enroll your teams behind what you're doing from a brand standpoint, and engage them in how the brand is making a difference.
Michael LeBlanc 12:18
Do you think it is harder now? I mean, it, it used to be the case where store support head office, whatever you wanted, would, would be in the trenches in one way shape or another with the folks in the store. Unfortunately, thanks to COVID many of the folks in store support are working from home, but the store associates are still in the store. I've talked executives, we've talked about this cultural schism, that it makes it even harder now because well, yeah, you're, you're in your home office telling me to do all these things. Any, any thoughts on that? Are you seeing that? And any, any recommendations you have?
Melissa Wong 12:48
You know, I feel like that divide actually has, has existed for a really long time, right. It's always it's, it's a lot of been like us versus them, in terms of like the ivory tower and the field, right. But I think that COVID has accentuated that dynamic if it exists within a brand, right. I do have to say, I, I know a lot of retailers too, that were early on in COVID, like from a headquarters perspective out in stores, visiting, rallying, like engaging teams, I think it really has depended on the brand, but COVID has really shone a spotlight into areas of opportunities for everyone. So, -
Michael LeBlanc 13:29
So great, two great starts, what's your one stop?
Melissa Wong 13:34
You know, a little bit related to, I guess what we're talking about and having a pulse. But you know, companies can no longer not listen to employees right. Or not get a pulse from what employees are, are feeling from a cultural perspective, but also what they're hearing from customers on the ground, right. So, how do you create that fast feedback loop of insight to help the company be healthier overall, both from a top line perspective, but also from a great place to work perspective?
Michael LeBlanc 14:09
You know, that's an interesting idea, that kind of positive loop. So, your tool allows the associates and the store managers and the DM's, whom ever to kind of feedback, that nice loop. So, that whether it's course correction, or just insight, right. Here's what customers are thinking these days, right?
Melissa Wong 14:23
That's correct.
Michael LeBlanc 14:24
So, let's, let's talk about the last question for you. Not every tool is made for every retailer in terms of size, or scale, or scope. Who are you good for? So, is it do you count the number of stores and the number of associates? Where do you, where's a good fit for you in terms of the listeners and the size of their business?
Melissa Wong 14:42
Yeah, so I'd say we're the best fit for companies looking to optimize execution, right. Like the performance of stores and have more engaged store teams. It can range everywhere from our smallest customers around seven stores. Our largest is 10,000.
Michael LeBlanc15:03
That’s a big range.
Melissa Wong15:04
It's a really big range. But really when you look, we are the communication foundation for getting things done, right? So, I think you know, we're the best fit when people are looking for what's the yellow brick road? What's the path for, you know, what some of other brands have done to get to about 90% execution, what's that golden path?
Michael LeBlanc 15:30
All right, right on. Well, that's a good segue into my last, last question, which was, how do people get in touch? Where do they go to learn more? And, and tell, tell us about that.
Melissa Wong 15:40
Great. Well, anyone can always visit our website, it's getzipline.com. And you know, there you can, people can learn more about different platforms, read case studies, we're actually going to be having an NRF formal event soon. So, if you missed out on NRF because you couldn't fly or had other obligations, you could stop on by and we're going to be having some roundtables, better discussions, a store tour, so it's a good way to get in touch with us.
Michael LeBlanc 16:12
Well, that's fine. Are you a LinkedIn person? What about yourself? How do you get in touch with you if you want to connect and, and learn more?
Melissa Wong 16:18
LinkedIn for sure. So, it's Melissa Wong and then Zipline?
Michael LeBlanc 16:23
Well, Melissa, thanks so much for being my guest on, on The Voice of Retail it was great to connect. And certainly, it's just such an important part. Stores I think I've are having a renaissance and will have a renaissance of in priority and importance and you know, this integration Omni channel, none of which is easy, any easier for the associates to manage so many things. So, I think tools like yours are, are just vital to make it all work together. So, thanks for taking the time to join me on The Voice of Retail.
Melissa Wong 16:50
Thanks so much for having me. And also, thanks for being a voice in retail, right. It's very appreciated, especially during this time.
Michael LeBlanc 16:57
Thanks for tuning into this special episode of The Voice of Retail. If you haven't already, be sure and click to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so new episodes will land automatically, twice a week.
And check out my other retail industry media properties, the Remarkable Retail podcast, Conversations with CommerceNext podcast and The Food Professor podcast with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois.
Last but not least, if you're into barbecue, check out my all new, YouTube barbecue show the Last Request Barbecue with new episodes each and every week. I'm your host, Michael LeBlanc, President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company and Maven Media. And if you're looking for more content or want to chat, follow me on LinkedIn or visit my website at melablanc.co.
Have a safe week everyone
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
store, retail, brand, Zipline, people, teams, podcast, company, retailers, customers, engage, harder, communication, crossover, associates, mockingbird, bit, feel, perspective, NRF