Tariffs, Twitter tantrums and trade were hot topics among retail leaders who attended NRF 2019: Retail’s Big Show last week. NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay and retail influencer Stacey Widlitz shared their insights with host Matt Rubel on the first episode of “Retales From the Frontline,” a new podcast launched today by the Retail Influencer Network. The podcast series will feature intimate conversations with industry insiders to help executives navigate today’s retail environment.

The members of the Retail Influencer Network have decades of collective industry leadership experience and knowledge, and the podcast series will provide them a platform to share insights that cannot be found anywhere else. Future episodes will feature entrepreneurs who are building transformative new formats, executives who are bringing brand storytelling to life and how to engage millennial shoppers, among other topics.

“Our Retail Influencer Network’s podcast has a unique perspective that you can’t find anywhere else in the industry; it’s sort of like being invited as a special guest to an intimate CEO dinner,” said Stacy Berns, President of Berns Communications Group, which launched and manages the Retail Influencer Network. As a chairman, CEO, investor and board member of leading retailers and global brands, Matt Rubel, the host of “Retales From the Frontline,” can take the listener on an insider’s journey in a way that is directional and brings retail, business leaders and consumer brands to life.

The Retail Influencer Network is a select group of the most savvy business leaders and industry voices that retailers, brands and media rely on to keep up with the ever-changing retail industry, consumer behavior and the most effective commerce strategies. The group includes NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay, former Saks Fifth Avenue CEO Stephen Sadove, Coresight Research CEO and global retail analyst Deborah Weinswig, and Partner at InterWest Partners and early-stage technology investor Keval Desai. The network’s members are recognized as top business influencers, experts and gurus, and they are highly sought after to provide insight and commentary in the press and for speaking engagements at industry events and conferences. The network helps retailers and brands apply nontraditional strategies to traditional retail in order to successfully navigate a market where digital commerce, physical stores and experiential retail are rapidly converging.

“Retales From the Frontline” is available on iTunes, Google Play Music, Stitcher and through all other podcast providers.

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About the Retail Influencer Network

The Retail Influencer Network is a select group of seasoned and savvy business leaders, investment professionals, and analysts whose thought leadership is shaping the global retail industry. Functioning much like a speakers’ bureau and serving as a unified resource for retailers, brands and journalists looking for retail wisdom and insight, the network brings together some of the most influential and authentic voices in the business. Members of the network regularly share their expertise and insights at prestigious industry conferences and events and provide thought leadership via interviews, articles, podcasts and Q&A sessions.

About Berns Communications Group

Berns Communications Group (BCG) is a specialty public relations firm focused on the global retail, fashion, commerce and consumer goods businesses. With strong relationships with retail CEOs, key opinion leaders and national media, BCG is widely known for connecting the worlds of commerce and technology with retail and fashion. BCG curates large-scale global events, galas and conferences for its clients, and brings together executives and influencers to build brand value at industry conferences such as Shoptalk, World Retail Congress and Financo’s CEO Forum. The firm’s clients include both well-established industry leaders such as Alibaba, Global Brands Group and Li & Fung and young Silicon Valley innovators such as Loop Commerce and PredictSpring.