It was an otherwise typical Monday. For most of us.

For Orlando “Butch” Jagoda, one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, it was an exceptional day. The VP of IT at Helzberg Diamonds got a hole in one at RetailConnections Business Executive Summit in Miami on Feb. 27, 2012. The feat was witnessed by golf companions Ryan Lester of Intel, Ravi Bagal of Verizon and Jim Munoz of Kronos.

The whole team at RetailConnections sends congratulations to you, Butch. And thanks to Epson for hosting a wonderful day on the Soffer Course at Turnberry Isle Hotel & Resort. Hope to see you all here again next year, Feb. 24-26, 2013.

Soon after this shot was taken, Orlando "Butch" Jagoda, far right, would get his Ace. Witnessing the feat, from left, was Ryan Lester of Intel, Ravi Bagal of Verizon and Jim Munoz of Kronos.

“We need more chairs!”

Those four words are inevitably bellowed whenever Bernie Brennan and Lori Schafer convene senior retail executives for a group discussion on retail strategy. The room is packed to capacity.

A standing-room-only crowd is expected again next month, when these social media/mobility seers team up Feb. 26, for “Mobile-ize! Mobile Priorities for 2012,” a workshop offered at the Fifth Annual RetailConnections Business Executive Summit in Miami.

Bernie Brennan

Brennan and Schafer, co-authors of “Branded! How Retailers Engage Consumers with Social Media and Mobility,” are astute observers of social and mobile strategies deployed by the industry’s most successful retail companies. Their encyclopedic knowledge of what’s working today (and what’s not) will serve as the launchpad for an unscripted, lively group discussion among senior retail executives from across all verticals.

“Based on anticipated turnout for this workshop, we are trying something a little different this year,” said Marc Millstein, president and founder of RetailConnections. The Brennan/Schafer workshop will be featured twice during the Summit, to accommodate all attendees who want to participate. “We don’t want to shut anybody out of this popular session due to space limitations,” he added.

Lori Schafer

The RetailConnections Summit workshops are offered on the opening day of the Summit, Feb. 26-28, 2012, and serve as an effective jumpstart to a series of keynotes, panel discussions and networking activities.

For more information about the Summit workshops and full agenda, and to register, visit our site.

The Summit gets under way at the Turnberry Isle Hotel & Resort in Aventura, Fla. (Miami). Rooms are nearly sold out, so call me if you haven’t booked your room yet.

See you there!

Denise

If you are headed to the glass palace that is NYC’s Jacob Javits Convention Center next month for NRF’s Big Show, be ready. That’s 150,000 square feet of Expo space. That’s lots of ideas from more than 500 solution providers.

Top of mind for everyone is “opportunity” — where to find it, how to exploit it. Sorting though which opportunities are a good fit for your organization and which ones are wise to leave for others to explore is no easy task. There are two areas that bubble up to the surface for most everyone: Mobile and Global.

Growth opportunities in Brazil, China and other countries are attractive as retailers acknowledge limitations on their home soil. Retailers such as the Children’s Place have created new executive positions devoted to global expansion. And Gap expects to triple its stores in China next year, even as it reduces its footprint in the United States.

NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay says retailers have a tremendous opportunity to open new stores in the global marketplace.

Global growth goes well beyond the complex machinations of opening physical stores overseas, however. Meeting ever-increasing consumer demand obliges companies to be more responsive than ever with a nimble supply chain. That means follow-the-sun product development and sourcing. Product lifecycle management (PLM) technology has proven to be a key tool in this area and Dassault Systèmes’ PLM expert Debby Welker can shed light on this fascinating area of opportunity at the show (booth #1337).

NRF’s Shay notes that mobile is another huge opportunity as most of us cannot imagine life before our portable devices. Consumers are using smartphones and tablets for comparison shopping more than ever. Sears even encourages it with free Wi-Fi. And mobile purchases are no longer just for small-ticket items. Three to Four Ferraris are sold via eBay’s mobile application each month. The shopper psyche is changing and retailers that can be agile and respond swiftly stand to gain the most from this opportunity for growth.

A word to the wise trolling the NRF show floor: It’s always been a challenge to navigate aisles between booths because people seldom watch where they’re walking — and with so many more of us gazing down at our smartphone, texting, it gets a little more treacherous. Be safe out there!

Applause at religious services is usually reserved for milestones: introduction of a just-married couple, recognition of a 50^th anniversary, veterans returning from active duty.

Here’s what John Cusick said Sunday that drew resounding applause from the 800-strong SRO crowd shoehorned into Old St. Pat’s Church in Chicago: “I will change the face of Retail America.”

How is this priest going to accomplish that? And more importantly, why did the assembly erupt with such powerful approval of this one-man mission?

John Cusick won't leave the checkstand without 2 grins.

Cusick is a self-described “salesman” and his strategy is simple: He will not collect his purchases and step away from a checkstand until he has achieved direct eye contact with the cashier and elicited a smile. This is not always easy to do. It can take many tactics and silly faces before he charms a sullen, hourly wage-earner into cracking a smile. But Cusick does it; he pulled a grin out of reluctant Jose at Dunkin Donuts this weekend and he’ll get one out of you, if you are behind the checkout counter. He’s as persistent as a pitbull with a Cheshire cat grin.

And he doesn’t blame the store employees, who shoulder demanding work schedules for minimal compensation. He blames corporate America for not properly training and treating its customer-facing employees. It is possible to focus on one person at a time, he said, and American Retail could do it with a little effort.

The crowd seemed to agree with Cusick that the face of retail needs a makeover because we’ve all been subjected to poor service, inattentive service, ill-informed service and downright hostile treatment. And retail workers have been on the receiving end of bad behavior, too. It doesn’t have to be that way. While praising retailers is risky business (because it invites vitriol from customers who feel they were “wronged” at some point) I’m going out on a ledge to suggest two companies making a real effort. They may not hit it out of the park every time, but at least they are trying:

• Dominick’s. It’s the same at all four of the Chicago grocery stores I patronize: employees on the store floor — whether updating shelf pricing or arranging oranges in the produce section — don’t let you pass without direct eye contact and a friendly greeting. From behind the pharmacy counter Saturday, a pharmacist noticed me searching for an item and offered to help. One cashier likes to show photos of his beloved Labrador pup. They interrupt their tasks in order to recognize you, without cutting into productivity. That’s not discretionary. That comes from the top.

• Abt Electronics in Glenview, Ill. In-store, employees appear genuinely happy and work collaboratively with each other to assist shoppers across different departments. Home delivery people are employed by Abt (not contracted) and my dishwasher delivery guy, Kevin, noticed my sink faucet was outta whack and fixed it without batting an eye. He was polite, knowledgeable and eager to share that his employer treats him well and that keeps him happy on the job.

It can be done: retail can be more civil if we all do our part. A smile costs nothing, goes both ways and it can dramatically change the outlook for someone with a cloud overhead.

Dominick’s and Abt aren’t the only retailers looking to improve the customer experience. We’ve got a boatload of retail execs who will share their strategies to make shopping more pleasant in-store and online. Come hear them at RetailConnections Business Executive Summit, Feb. 26-28, 2012, in Miami.

Soaring military aircraft above. Breathtaking West Coast shoreline hither. High-level networking among retail’s brightest minds. It’s a powerful formula and we’re doing it all again Sept. 23-25, 2012, at Hotel Del Coronado near San Diego.

If you are in for next year’s RetailConections Fall Business Executive Summit, then mark those dates on your calendar. In pen. We’re putting together another powerhouse educational program and networking activities you won’t want to miss. As always, we get our guidance from retailers.

We ask: “What topics do we need to tackle? What do you care about right now?” The age-old “What Keeps You Up at Night” question never fails to yield the most pressing business topics that merit exploration.

If you’ve attended our Summits, you already know we convene a highly diverse group of retail executives in all verticals from department store to food, drug to specialty, big box to pure play. And, these retail leaders hail from all corners of the executive suite: VPs and CXOs from marketing, merchandising, bus dev, e-commerce, mobile, CRM, supply chain, IT, finance, store operations and more.

If you’ve not joined us before, you should know we cultivate a very intimate and trusted atmosphere. Retail executives share their lessons in keynote presentations and small group settings. Lots of one-on-one time.

We’re developing the agenda right now so if you have ideas on must-cover content, let us know. If you are a retail VP or CXO and want to reserve your seat Sept. 23-25, 2012, just let me know. Registration is not yet open but I’ll make sure you are the first to know when it opens up.

A view from Hotel Del Coronado

I have a favorite quote (several, actually) but am having trouble tracing the source of this one: “Virtue untested is no virtue at all.”

I thought it was Elvis Costello…but now I am hearing it may be Milton. And I don’t even think they knew each other. Point is … it’s a powerful statement. If you never have had a disappointing interaction with a retailer or restaurant or service provider, they’ve never had the opportunity to show they’ve got what it takes to make things right.

Enter Candlelite – the best purveyor of thin crust pizza in Chicago. I gave them a try at the encouragement of Billy Lowman at Lighthouse Tavern and was not disappointed. The pizza was scrumptious and thin crust pizza is a delicate piece of art. It can lose a lot in transit. Gruppo Di Amici has wonderful thin crust but they won’t deliver because they know the magic will get lost from oven to delivery car to your front door. Candlelite pizza held up from Western Avenue through all the pot holes to my place on Touhy. Thankfully, there was no gunplay that night. Perfect balance of toppings and crunchy crust. There was a slight hiccup with the order, however. I emailed the pizza place with my complaint fully expecting…nothing. Or, at least nothing for weeks. Surprise. The manager responded personally to right the wrong with a gift certificate. I am sure Patrick Fowler had many crises demanding his time upon arriving at work, but he responded to me immediately. Professionally, warmly, graciously and — specifically. I offered documentation of the misdeed. Not necessary. He would make it right based on faith.

The 17" pizza I ordered measured just 13" in diameter (but it was still yummy)

I intend to reward that gallant move with jubilant recommendations far and wide to all friends who love their thin crust.

Chipotle deserves accolades, too. When a patron tweeted his dismay upon learning that pinto beans served contain bacon — but this fact was not stated on the menu — the response from Chipotle CEO Steve Ellis was swift and the action immediate: menus changed to reflect the presence of bacon —across the country. That’s huge.

It’s not easy, this social media stuff. But. Sometimes. Just sometimes, companies step up and do….the right thing. Hats off to all those paying attention and giving their people the resources to…do right.

Anyone on this planet the past three years gets it: things are more fragile than appear at passing glance; change is perpetual; misperceptions multiply thanks to the two previous conditions. And everyone is on edge, second-guessing even closest allies.

Chicago got belted by 75 mph winds suddenly on Monday. Power outages darkened (and overheated) the homes and businesses of more than 700,000 ComEd customers. Many are still without power today. At right is a tree I pass every day, a casualty of this storm. It always looked sturdy to me. I think it’s a Maple. Good bark. Plentiful leaves, unblemished. The exterior layers of its trunk are pale. New young wood. Seemingly. Upon closer examination, however, (photo below) you can see its interior was consumed by insects or grubs. This tree was just one storm away from being taken out. It was going to happen. If not this week. Then next.

How many of us in retail feel this same way: Keeping up appearances but fragile, hoping no one will take notice. One crisis away from “the big one” that takes you out. If you are in top management, you have the unfortunate bird’s eye view of the real vulnerabilities, the scary “what ifs” you pray won’t come to pass. No one knows what will transpire between now and Aug. 3, when this nation faces default and may be unable to pay its bills.

Several of your peers have come through some storms and are ready to share their war stories. Want to hear them? And share your own tales? Join us at the RetailConnections Business Executive Summit, Oct. 11-13, 2011, Hotel del Coronado, near San Diego and you will hear…

• a prominent luxe retail COO detail the ordeal, and subsequent FBI investigation, stemming from a DDoS (distributed denial of service) attack to their web site. Denial of service equates denial of business.

• a national menswear retail EVP outline how his company was transformed by the crash of 2008 and how they’re responding today to remain competitive. Downsize? Staff up…staff down?

• a national department store chain enlighten you with new ideas to captivate shoppers with a unique in-store experience

• a pair of retail CIOs spar about the best ways to optimize the multichannel experience.

• experts in mobile/social reveal what’s coming next.

There’s a bunch more. The Summit convenes retail VPs and CXOs from a wide range of verticals. Why? Many business challenges and opportunities are universal. Sometimes — when business issues are viewed through the lens of a retail vertical different than your own — Pow! Epiphanies happen. Hope you can join us! Go to our web site for more information. www.retailconnections.com Or call me. I’m generally not doing much, anyway. Just checking the trees.

~Denise 773.573.3939

After months of tension, doubt and awkward moments, The Hub and I finally let go of the denial, turned to each other timidly and uttered the sad truth: “This just isn’t working.”

True. The microwave popcorn we loved so much burned time after time. What could we be doing wrong, we ventured. Did we not orient the bag properly? Is the microwave not calibrated correctly? Could otherworldly life forms be at fault? Left without answers, we did what any couple would do: we forsake the microwave, bought popcorn kernels in the bag, a bottle o’ oil and popped pop corn the old fashioned way — on the stovetop. Pioneers, we are.

Madness, you say? Perhaps. But shoppers are doing the same thing every day. Disappoint them in the store and they’ll revert to what they know, what is comfy, the nostalgic experience they had the last time they “felt good” about a purchase. It may have been a 1970 Chevy, a bedroom set or even a fine hunk of Stilton cheese. Fact is, they remember the good stuff. And if you’re not giving it to them, someone else will.

What’s your store culture like? Would you be enticed to buy from your own shop based on the welcoming atmosphere and service you get once inside? Or, do you rely too much on the brand to sell itself and grab the shopper — hook, line and sinker?

Savvy retailers are enhancing the physical store environment today because they know that in a world that is increasingly reliant on digital, it’s that much more important to enhance the tactile — the real world.

Ignaz Gorischek gets this. As VP of store development at Neiman Marcus, he is the driving force behind the store experience. He gets that it extends beyond the store’s four walls and out into the community; he gets that the experience is captured by the wild imagination of children; he gets that sometimes the most inspirational ideas for an upscale retailer might just come from a refrigerated food display case of a grocery store.

It’s this sort of open-minded thinking that tickles the imagination. If you Google Ignaz and agree this is one guy who is having fun at his job —and you want to hear his ideas — then please join us at the RetailConnections Fall Business Executive Summit, Oct. 11-13, 2011, near San Diego. Ignaz will be there along with a gaggle of fresh-thinking retail leaders who are unafraid to say: Let’s try something new.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer called Tuesday “a big day.” That’s when he and Skype CEO Tony Bates detailed a plan for Microsoft to acquire the Internet phone company for $8.5 billion. In cash.

Under the deal, the biggest in Microsoft history, Bates would become president of the newly created Microsoft Skype division, reporting directly to Ballmer.

The question is: Will Microsoft be able to monetize Skype in ways Skype and others…couldn’t?

Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer, left, and Skype CEO Tony Bates, detail the $8.5 billion deal at a press conference Tuesday.

Ballmer thinks so. He said Microsoft would expand Skype’s reach by connecting Skype users with users of Outlook, its Lync enterprise unified communications, Xbox LIVE, and other products and services.

“Through this acquisition, we also think that there will be a number of other new ways to work proactively and positively on the partnerships that we put in place with mobile operators around our Windows Phone,” Ballmer said at Tuesday’s press conference (full transcript) Windows Phone is a new operating system for mobile phones that Tom Litchford, Microsoft Industry Director, kindly demo’d for me a couple months ago at our Business Executive Summit.

Skype, founded in 2003, uses voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) technology, allowing users to communicate by video and audio in real time. For one-to-one communications, it’s free and crazy-easy to set up.

“… the number of Skype users is rapidly accelerating, which really was exciting to me. There are 170 million connected Skype users, growth of 40 percent year over year. That number is growing by 600,000 new registrations every day.” — Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer

How often do you make use of Skype, ooVoo or other such services? I Skype with my 18-month-old goddaughter, Audrey, and use it to stay in touch with retail executives across the world. Thanks to Antony Comyns, head of e-commerce at Hawes & Curtis in the UK, for getting me onboard.

If I had things my way, I’d do live video on every call, especially business calls. Sure, that would mean sacrificing the sloppy attire and wild hair I’ve grown fond of since working from home. But the up side would be worth it: When live video is transmitted, both parties are more likely to devote full attention to the discussion under way, rather than fiddling with Blackberrys, trolling YouTube or cat juggling. How often has your conversation deteriorated into utter nonsense because one party has drifted away? Enuf ranting.

What do you think about Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Skype? Will Microsoft try things and take risks that eBay didn’t, when eBay owned Skype (2005-2009). My former colleague, Andrew LaVallee, now at the Wall Street Journal, shares some insights here. Others suggest Skype could be incorporated into Facebook. We’d love to hear your thoughts!

By Jane Randel, SVP, Corporate Communications, Brand Services, Liz Claiborne

With the age of the PC declared officially over — smartphones outsold PCs for the first time in 4Q 2010 — American retailers are all asking the same question: When will the m-commerce tipping point arrive? The answer is, it’s happening now. But to emerge as true mobile commerce winners, smart marketers will still need to overcome numerous barriers to mass consumer adoption.

What exactly is m-commerce? To find out, we recently interviewed consumers at America’s top retail centers and malls, from New York’s SoHo and Fifth Avenue districts to The Grove and Santa Monica Place in Los Angeles. What we discovered is that consumers limit their definition of m-commerce to the actual act of making purchases via mobile phones. We also learned something unexpected. Consumers are surprisingly self-conscious about their phones’ capabilities and perceived limitations when it comes to m-commerce — specifically around purchasing. Two factors are driving this phenomenon.

First, some smartphone users have a bad case of device envy — you could call it the “if I had an iPhone” syndrome. Most often Blackberry owners, these shoppers simply do not believe their smartphone is up to snuff when it comes to surfing the mobile Web or using shopping-enabled apps.

Second, users of traditional mobile phones generally — and incorrectly — believe their phone is not m-com enabled. Even if they are aware of their device’s capabilities, they do not believe they can afford the necessary data plan.

With AT&T launching the first tiered data plans last year and T-Mobile introducing $10 per month data plans last month, this is one problem that will take care of itself, and another important reason the tipping point is now.

Despite consumers’ self-consciousness about their smartphones’ supposedly limited capabilities and their very literal view of m-commerce as purely purchase-driven, many are already incorporating these always-at-their-sides devices into their shopping routines — even if they don’t know it! They use their smartphones to scout out store locations, look up competitors’ prices and snap photos of potential purchases to share with friends and family.

Smartphone users are, of course, making certain purchases on their devices. They tend to be inexpensive, commoditized and time-sensitive items, such as movie tickets or exclusive, act-now deals. What works is what’s easy and immediate.

Right now, apps, more than anything else, are enabling these transactions. User-friendly, intuitive and efficient, with pre-populated credit card and shipping fields, apps let consumers buy seamlessly, rather than struggle with entering account numbers on an iPhone, something few want to do in the heat of the shopping moment. Amazon, eBay, Gilt Groupe, Fandango and Flixster are putting apps to work successfully today.

But apps have drawbacks. Who wants to download a separate one for every store where you might shop? This is where the mobile web can and should come into play.

Unfortunately, many mobile sites tend to fall short right now. They are often oversimplified and lack the full functionality of traditional e-commerce sites. Worse yet, they are not optimized for phone browsers — slow to load, with broken links and menus that don’t fit small screens.

So, where does this all leave us? Well, with smartphone users already making time-sensitive purchases, data-plan prices coming down and more sophisticated devices on the way, it’s clear the m-commerce tipping point is upon us. Smart marketers need to concentrate on making it easier for smartphone users to find what they want, where and when they want it. The key will be mixing and matching the best of the mobile web and apps, from easy-and-fast downloads to geolocation and store locator features to social media integration, multiple platform compatibility and more.

For those that can get it right, the mobile commerce possibilities are boundless — with transactions literally taking place any time, everywhere.

Jane Randel is Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications & Brand Services for Liz Claiborne Inc.