Bookshelf Gems: Unraveling Retail Wisdom with Renowned Authors

Welcome to Retail Rockstars' 20th edition!

In this edition, we're diving into the world of retail through the lens of distinguished authors. Join us for 'Bookshelf Spotlight,' where we unveil the wisdom, strategies, and tales that have shaped the industry.

• Steve Dennis, author of “Remarkable Retail”
• Sandy Skees, author or “Purposeful Brands”
• David Mannheim, author of "The Person in Personalisation"
• Jeanne Bliss, author of “CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER 2.O”

Please enjoy!

Steve Dennis, author of “Remarkable Retail”

Not many people understand retail like Steve Dennis , so giving him a shoutout as a Retail Rockstar is simply OBVIOUS!

Steve is a strategic advisor and keynote speaker on retail innovation. As a senior executive at 2 Fortune 500 retailers and as a consultant, Steve has worked with dozens of brands to reignite and accelerate their growth. He is a Forbes senior contributor, and has been named a top global retail influencer by multiple organizations. He is the host of the Remarkable Retail Podcast and has contributed commentary to Bloomberg Businessweek , the BBC , CNBC , CNN , the Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal , among many others.

In addition to all that, he is the author of Remarkable Retail : How to Win and Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption. In this book, Steve’s able to describe precisely the disruption which started in the last decade and its acceleration since the pandemic.

To help retailers on this transformation journey, Dennis presents 8 essential strategies for visionary retail leaders who are prepared to reimagine their way of doing business. He describes how in a world of nearly infinite choice, where the lines between digital and physical are increasingly blurred, even being very good is no longer good enough. To win and keep customers today, retailers must be nothing short of remarkable.

Packed with illuminating case studies from some of modern retail’s biggest success stories—and leveraging Dennis’s more than thirty years as a senior executive and strategic consultant to dozens of brands—Remarkable Retail is a top read for retail executives.

Steve Dennis reminds us of Elvis Costello, the English singer-songwriter known for his eclectic musical style that blends elements of rock, punk, new wave and various other genres. They both might be characterized as defiant, intelligent, versatile, authentic, and an enduring figure in their respective industries.

Sandy Skees, author or “Purposeful Brands”

Sandy Skees believes there is power in leveraging purpose as a platform to help companies, their employees, customers, and investors create a regenerative and equitable world. 

For over 30 years, she has worked with global brands, start-ups, and scale-up companies to align their purpose, sustainability and environment, social, governance (ESG), and diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) with compelling communications. 

She has over 25 years of management consulting and strategic communications experience gained working with clients including Visa , Abercrombie & Fitch Co. , Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. , CVS Health and Samsung Electronics . 

She is the author of "Purposeful Brands"- Written for branding, marketing and communications professionals in both new and established brands of all sizes, Purposeful Brands presents a clear and practical blueprint for defining and communicating a brand's purpose. 

Praise for Sandy’s book:

Business today has changed forever and every leader must urgently rise to the challenge of answering how we build a regenerative and equitable world. Sandy Skees leverages her deep expertise to deliver a doers guide for tomorrow's world that cuts through the complexity and makes it possible for your business to thrive and better our future.

Sandy reminds us of the musical artist KD Lang, the Canadian singer-songwriter, known for her pop and country music and winner of 4 Grammy awards. Both Sandy Skees and KD Lang are known for their challenging traditional norms, pushing boundaries and a sense of graceful confidence in their public appearances. 

David Mannheim, author of "The Person in Personalisation"

David Mannheim has worked in the digital marketing industry for more than 15 years. As a powerful voice in the optimisation and personalisation space, he has worked alongside several of the UK’s biggest retailers. 

David's mission to make personalization more personal is crucial in this age of mass data and AI. The Person in Personalisation is a book that inspires action from promoting critical thinking with humor, and reminds the reader of using first principles to drive decisions.

Praise for David’s work:

David is not just 'any' conversion specialist. He brings with him a wealth of experience in conversion optimization that is coupled with a remarkable expertise in user experience design. This enables him to provide insights that go above and beyond.

David reminds us of Bono, the lead vocalist of Irish rock band U2, who is know for his charismatic and influential personality, ability to engage and inspire, and his belief in the power of individuals to create positive change.

Jeanne Bliss, author of “CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER 2.O”

@Jeanne Bliss is one of the chief architects of the customer experience movement. She is known globally for transforming business to earn customer-driven growth. A 5-time Chief Customer Officer and coach to over 20,000 leaders, Jeanne has an unparalleled ability to guide with relevance and impact.

She has driven the improvement of customer experiences across 5 major US corporations, moving the customer to the strategic agenda, and redirecting priorities to create transformational changes and customer-driven business growth. 

Her third book, “Chief Customer Officer 2.0” is a highly sought resource for customer experience professionals everywhere. Jeanne Bliss gives readers a proven framework that has launched and advanced the customer experience transformation in both B2C and B2B companies around the world.

Including dozens of case studies of how CCOs around the world embed the 5 top competencies, it helps marketing teams understand the framework to build a customer-driven growth engine.

Jeanne reminds us of the American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow. Crow is often described as down-to-earth and approachable, and known for her versatile musical style that spans rock, pop, country, and folk. Her public persona is characterized by a sense of authenticity and commitment to positive change.

That's it for this week!

🚩 Want to get an intro to more Retail Rockstars next Wednesday

🚩 Send us your Retail Rockstar suggestions, we’d love to hear them! Get in touch via ianthony@loyal.guru or DM us at Loyal Guru.

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