Sageberry Consulting

04/29/2019

www.facebook.com

I will be closing this page down in the next few weeks. Follow me at my new public figure page www.facebook.com/public/Steven-Dennis

04/05/2019

Back To The Future? Sears Tries Small Stores Again. And Again. And Again.

Back To The Future? Sears Tries Small Stores Again. And Again. And Again.

This week Sear announced a new off-the-mall format to showcase its once dominant home brands. Alas, it's a repeat of many things that were tried unsuccessfully in the past and it's clearly too little, too late.

04/04/2019

Note: I will be transitioning my business presence on Facebook to a public figure page shortly. Stay tuned!

04/02/2019

Steve Dennis – RetailWire

Excited to announce I have joined RetailWire's Braintrust!

Steve Dennis is a strategic advisor, keynote speaker, organizational catalyst and writer on retail innovation and the future of shopping. He was recently named a top 10 global retail influencer by two leading organizations.

04/01/2019

Steve Dennis

Please check out my annual April Fools' day post at www.stevenpdennis.com

Remarkable Retail In The Age of Amazon

03/31/2019

Wayfair Joins The 'Online-only' March Into Physical Stores

My new Forbes post.

The e-commerce home furnishings giant finally announced the opening of their first store, joining the march of once online-only brands into brick & mortar. It's unlikely to be their last. But physical stores by themselves won't address challenging issues in Wayfair's underlying business model.

03/29/2019

Plug and Play Tech Center

Looking forward to being in the San Jose area early next week to check out the new batch of retail innovators.

We connect the largest corporations to the world's best startups through industry-focused accelerator programs in Silicon Valley and beyond.

03/29/2019

Go Big Or Go Home: Restoration Hardware's Radical Approach Delivers Remarkable Results

My latest at Forbes

Not long ago Restoration Hardware looking like it was a dead brand walking. In recent years it has not only avoided the retail graveyard it is turned into one of the more remarkable and profitable specialty retailers by going big when others were trying to shrink to prosperity.

03/22/2019

Bom, Bom, Bom, Another Store Bites The Dust

My latest Forbes post

Mass store closings and wholesale liquidations are hardly news these days. While the big contraction in retail seems to support the broader retail apocalypse narrative, the reality is that almost all the trouble is concentrated in retailers stuck in the boring middle.

03/20/2019

The minimum viable audience

This

The smallest group that could possibly sustain you in your work… If you could pick the members of this audience, who would you choose? Their dreams, their worldviews, their energy, all up to …

03/18/2019

Ulta And Sephora Keep Defying The 'Retail Apocalypse'

My brand new Forbes post

Despite the retail apocalypse narrative many brick & mortar dominant retailers are not only surviving they are thriving. So what explains the widening gap between retail's winner and losers?

03/15/2019

Store Conference | Retail Council of Canada

Big news! Excited to be heading back to Toronto to do the Day 2 opening keynote at Store2019. Hope to see you there and then!

STORE is Retail Council of Canada’s two-day conference held on May 29th & 30th in Toronto. With an agenda and networking opportunities targeted to the unique needs of the dynamic retail industry in Canada, STORE is THE must-attend event of the season.

03/08/2019

Four Truths And A Lie From This Year's ShopTalk

My brand new Forbes post

ShopTalk was once again proved to be the must-attend retail event of the year, while revealing a few key truths about where retail stands today, and at least one big misconception.

03/07/2019

Macy’s and JC Penney earnings offer evidence of the stall at the mall

Macy’s and JC Penney earnings offer evidence of the stall at the mall

On the basis of early results (and specious or unreliable indicators), many industry observers predicted this would be the best holiday…

03/02/2019

If you are headed to #ShopTalk19 be sure to say "hi." Also, if you get a chance, come by the panel on "Working with Startups to Transform the Business" that I'll be moderating Tuesday morning at 9:15am.

03/02/2019

Target CEO: $7 billion investment in stores and technology is paying off

Including comments from yours truly...

Two years in, Target's huge gamble to invest $7B in stores and technology is paying off. The question now is, can the momentum continue?

02/28/2019

Macy's, JC Penney And The Stall At The Mall

My brand new Forbes post

Macy's and JC Penney's fourth quarter earnings reports underscore that they remain stuck in the middle and keep resorting to closing stores and reducing expenses in response, when their primary challenge is to become more customer relevant and remarkable.

02/26/2019

Eight tips to thrive in the 'retail apocalypse' - retailbiz

Eight tips to thrive in the 'retail apocalypse' - retailbiz

Retailers must step-up and illuminate their points of difference to create a remarkable customer experience, a retail consultant told New Retail 19. ADVERTISEMENT

02/26/2019

Despite A Booming Stock Price Wayfair Is No Amazon.

My brand new post...

Wayfair's stock is up dramatically on the heels of booming sales growth. But most of this growth looks to be coming at too high a cost and many fundamental issues remain.

02/18/2019

Barneys And MedMen Hope 'High' Fashion Will Be A Big Hit

My brand new @Forbes post

In the past week Barneys New York and MedMen both announced apparel and accessory offerings inspired by the "cannabis lifestyle." While taking different approaches the two retailers may be on to an exciting new market opportunity.

02/11/2019

No. 305: The DTC List

The shameless self-promotion machine chugs on!

The direct-to-consumer landscape has many faces, professions, and levels of experience. The collective also has many opinions on how the industry is going to develop. 2PM compiled a list of many to…

02/08/2019

Sears Lives To Die Another Day

My new Forbes post.

Eddie Lampert has managed to pull another rabbit out of the hat, buying Sears out of bankruptcy. But the iconic retailer lacks any reason for being and this latest move looks to only delay the inevitable.

02/05/2019

Why Are Some Retailers Only Just Realizing They Have Way Too Many Stores?

My new @Forbes post: "Why Are Some Retailers Only Now Realizing They Have Way Too Many Stores?"

Mass store closings continue to rock the retail world. Some of it makes sense. In other cases, the impact of shifting consumer behavior and digital disruption have been known for years and the failure to act earlier suggests weaknesses in executive and board leadership.

02/05/2019

The Death of Clothing

The Death of Clothing

The underlying problem of weak demand is expected to dog the apparel industry for years, meaning more store closures and more bankruptcies lie ahead — with or without Amazon.

01/31/2019

The Stores Strike Back

My brand new Forbes post

The death of physical retail is not only exaggerated, but many "traditional" retailers are having a rebirth, recognizing that investing in their brick & mortar locations while harmonizing the overall experience can be the antidote to Amazon.

01/30/2019

2019 Inmar Analytics Forum - March 25-27, 2019 in Winston-Salem, NC

I'll be speaking on Remarkable Retail at the Inmar Analytics Forum. Early bird pricing ends 2/15

The Inmar Analytics Forum brings together business professionals, university faculty and government leaders in a uniquely collaborative learning environment to explore how data analytics improve business and patient outcomes and enhance constituent service.

01/29/2019

Retailers' Pointless Pursuit Of The Promiscuous Shopper

My brand new post @Forbes "Retailers' Pointless Pursuit Of The Promiscuous Shopper."

Promotional retailing is not new. But the relentless pursuit of promiscuous shoppers by traditional and digitally-native vertical brands is making much of retail increasingly unprofitable.

01/21/2019

NRF's Big Show: Addressing The Knowing-Doing Gap

My brand new Forbes post.

Each year the NRF Big Show contains dozens of useful sessions and opportunities to learn what's new in retail. Yet too much information is rehashed and not enough knowledge actually turns into action.

01/14/2019

Win or lose, Sears' chairman may still come out on top

Including comments from yours truly

NEW YORK (AP) — As Sears teeters on the brink of collapse, one man stands at the center of the fight for the future of the iconic retailer. Eddie Lampert plays several often-conflicting roles in what could be the final chapter for the company that began as a mail order watch business 132 years ago...

01/12/2019

Why retailers are fleeing Fifth Avenue

Including comments from yours truly.

Midtown Manhattan has been one of the most coveted spots in the world for fashion houses. Now, it's emptying out.

01/10/2019

Out On A Limb: My 14 Predictions For Retail In 2019

My brand new post @Forbes

For the second year in a row I offer up 14 retail industry predictions for what is worth paying extra attention to in 2019.

01/08/2019

eRetailer Summit: Strive For ‘Remarkable’ Retail Experience | HomeWorld Business

eRetailer Summit: Strive For ‘Remarkable’ Retail Experience | HomeWorld Business

HomeWorld Business | Posts With retailing’s middle ground becoming more vulnerable between price-driven and luxury sectors, the stakes are higher for retailers to become more “remarkable,” said Steven Dennis, founder and president of retail strategist SageBerry Consulting. Dennis, in his keyno...

01/03/2019

Blake Nordstrom: Gone Too Soon

My brand new post @Forbes

The passing of Blake Nordstrom, the co-president of the storied retail chain, at the age of 58 is a real tragedy. Yet his contributions to the industry will long be remembered.

01/03/2019

Nordstrom co-President Blake Nordstrom, who treated employees like family, is dead at 58

Including my commentary. #GoneTooSoon

Blake Nordstrom, who disclosed a lymphoma diagnosis in December, is remembered by employees, customers and others as a humble leader who treated employees as family. In an archive video, he talks about the evolution of the “Nordstrom Way.”