Retail's Red Carpet- Our Exclusive NRF Preview with Marcelo Munoz

In episode 13 of Retail Checks and Balances, Kevin Spencer welcomes Marcelo Muñoz to discuss the NRF (National Retail Federation) show, which is considered the retail industry's biggest event. With over 35,000 attendees from various countries, the show showcases the latest technology and innovation in the retail sector. They also touch on the misconceptions surrounding artificial intelligence

(AI) and its potential for revolutionizing the industry. 

Tune in for insights from this massive gathering, where the focus is on learning, networking, and gaining valuable knowledge to kickstart your year.

TIMESTAMPS

[00:01:03] National Retail Federation (NRF) - Retail's Big Show.

[00:11:37] Technology Demonstrations at Trade Shows.

[00:17:34] AI and its Impact.

[00:21:26] The Cloud and its Evolution.

In this episode, Kevin Spencer and Marcelo Muñoz discuss the retail’s big show, the National Retail Federation (NRF), which provides a platform for networking, learning about industry trends, and showcasing innovative products and services. This show emphasizes that their products are not standalone, but part of an overall solution. Hence, it highlights the importance of both the product itself and the team and integration capabilities behind it.

In addition, Kevin and Marcelo emphasize the interconnectedness of retail and hospitality, showcasing how these industries can complement each other and provide a more comprehensive experience for customers.

QUOTES

• "If you are an owner of a supermarket, if you're the owner of a bodega, if you're an owner of a chain of restaurants, this (NRF Show) is where you want to go to get an idea of what progress has been made over the last year or what newer technologies can help your business grow." - Marcelo Muñoz
• “The interaction you want to have with that end user is the most important part of that, is the follow up. So, you know, the booth visit is great. Conversations are awesome. But if you don't seal the deal when you come back after the show, you just wasted your time.” - Marcelo Muñoz
• “I think this perspective of NRF as well, as in any conferences that we go, I think the relationship or the networking that we do at those shows and those events that they put on in the evening. It's really to meet with people among our peers, as well as meet with those people that we haven't seen in a year or six months, just to reestablish that connection of doing business together.” - Kevin Spencer

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Kevin Spencer

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kspencer007/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinspencer007/

Marcelo Muñoz

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcelo-muñoz-38318842/

WEBSITE

Rod Plus Solutions: https://rodplussolutions.com/

Transcript

Welcome to Retail Checks and Balances, a podcast that takes you behind the scenes of the bustling world of commerce and culinary delights to help you grow your business and win. Join us as we explore the fascinating stories, trends, and challenges that shape the retail and hospitality industry, from cozy corner cafes to sprawling shopping malls and everything in between. And now, here's your host, Kevin Spencer. 

Okay, welcome again to Retail Checks and Balances. Marcelo, you're here once again. Thank you for your valuable input as always. We're testing out our new microphones. I have my memorabilia here as well. 

Innovating in merchandising and recording technology. 

So let's talk today about NRF. Tell the listeners about What we need to know, what we need to experience. 

Well, NRF in our industry is the show. It's the show. It's the retail's big show as they've properly dubbed it. You're talking about an event in Manhattan at the Javits Center. Easily 35,000 plus attendees. We've got 30 or so countries, you know, or more there. 33% of the attendance are from out of the United States alone. So definitely a huge event. This is where all of the manufacturers that we work with, manufacturers that are in our general circle, encompassing large, small business, not just hardware now. Over the last 10 years that I've been going to this show, you've seen that evolution of software development and innovation come in. So really, it's two massive floors of incredible exhibitions and Samplings and demos of the new technology kind of sets the tone for that year, this event in New York. 

Actually, it's three floors. There's a basement. 

Oh, the basement. 

When you're new, you go to the basement. 

That's where initially the funds go, which last year I remember that they did amplify to the far end of the room, which normally they never did before. 

To be honest, there's also a fourth floor. I think it was last year or the year before. 

Yeah, they have like certain shows, some small stuff. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Little expositions. I think there was like robotics or something there. 

Yeah, right. That's what I was looking for. Yeah. And this, I think the difference here is that this is tailored more for end-users, right? End-users and retail. Absolutely. Specific to retail. I think there's another show that's focused on hospitality. I think it's called NRA or something. 

NRA. Yes, that's NRA. And that's shortly thereafter the show. 

I think it's in Chicago. 

Another great city to visit during the winter here in the United States. Yeah, absolutely. NRF is geared towards that end user. You know, it's in the name, right? Retail Federation, retail stores. Obviously, that encompasses hospitality these days. But yes, if you are an owner of a supermarket, if you're the owner of a bodega, if you're an owner of a chain of restaurants, this is where you want to go to get those, you know, get an idea of what progress has been made over the last year. or what newer technologies can help your business grow. Obviously, what you're looking for is the latest and greatest, and this is the show to find it. 

I think you've seen a synchronization or a synergy between retail and hospitality in the sense that from one example, you have a restaurant that sells memorabilia. So that's retail, right? They sell like cups, they sell like, you know, let's take Hooters for example, they sell calendars, they sell cups, they sell t-shirts, they sell anything that's specific to the brand of Hooters. And then in some supermarkets, you see they have a small restaurant and you can buy a meal or a sandwich and then you can sit and enjoy that meal. So I think there's synergy there between it becoming one, you know? 

Yeah. They can only be one, right? The best user experience possible. And usually that goes hand in hand. You know, if you're at a supermarket and there's a big long line of people on a Sunday, you know, before football game, you just want to have your breakfast there and a little mini cafe inside the restaurant, inside the supermarket. Boom. There you go. It's a win-win situation for the supermarket because they're making money off you eating their food and then getting your groceries on your way out the door. So absolutely. That's a great example. 

What's been your experience? I know in your past life you were with a vendor. What's your experience in terms of, I would say, interacting with end users and understanding what they want from that show? 

Well, we obviously, from a vendor standpoint, want the end user to use the product. But understand that it's just not the product alone, right? team behind that product that's going to support that customer from pre-sales, development, sale, and then post-sale. We want them to know that it integrates with such and such product. And a lot of that, I think, is shared by all the vendors that are out there. That integration that ability to not just be a standalone product. So from the star perspective, which was my previous life, that printer or the scanner or the cashier is part of an overall solution that works with the software that can be put here, that could be put there. And obviously, how do we connect them with, you know, pricing? Because that's the second question that they ask is, oh, this is a great product. What does it do? How much does it cost? How much can I, how much do I have to pay? Where can I buy it? So that's when you kind of, you know, from a vendor perspective, you have either people from the distribution or reseller standpoint, they're at the booth manning it, or, you know, collect the leads. Like, you know, you're doing all the shows out there, you scan a badge, collect the lead, and you follow up when you come back. The interaction you want to have with that end user is the most important part of that is the follow up. So, you know, the booth visit is great. Conversations are awesome. But if you don't seal the deal when you come back after the show, you just wasted your time. 

And I think that's an issue that I've seen in the past that, you know, that you get so many leads that what's the recommended time period that you would like to follow up with a customer? 

I would say, you know, hours after your plane arrives and you're back at work the next day, you start following up. No time to let that stay, you know, out, you know, out of the oven. You got to keep cooking it and you got to make sure that something comes from it. You know, you mentioned a lot of leads and a lot of leads is part of the course, right? You have to filter those leads. Some leads you end up, you know, running into the case of, oh, you know, I thought it was this, I thought it was that, or, you know, it really wasn't your product. I mean, you got to filter through a lot of stuff, but, you know, the more leads you have, the more opportunity you have to find that one or two or three or four golden eggs. 

Yeah. You got to realize, um, as well, the people who are just sticking around for fucking panels. 

Yeah, especially on the last day, in the last couple of hours. 

They don't really want to buy your product, they just want a fucking pen. Yeah, they want Chavskis and that's what their goal is. Chavskis, right. I was trying to remember the word. 

It's that word that just spawned out of, you know, conversation one day with marketing, you know, it's just, and you got to look up the word, it's a Yiddish word, it's there, it exists. Chavskis is another word for the take-homes or the, what is it? Swag. Swag. 

From a competitive perspective, how do you think you are seen as a vendor from end users? I mean, there's some huge boots that go all out and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars. probably close to half a million, right? I mean, I'm not familiar with how much people spend on the show, but you see some huge boots, but you know, there's been a lot of change on that. But, you know, there are smaller companies. How do they compete with the big guys? Is there a filter over because it's too much for the big guys to handle or they qualify those leads based on who you are? 

I mean, it's that's a really tough question because I know that's why I asked. Back to the beginning of the basement dwellers, right? Exactly. I guess, you know, you kind of feel bad for them in that sense, because they made the effort there. Obviously, their budget is not, you know, I always think of. you know, the Salesforce Rainforest booth, because it's essentially, it's been the Rainforest booth for the better part of three years, you know, before pandemic even. So, and then there's the Zebras. It's a huge, you know, those are half a million dollar minimum, right? So, I mean, that's plus the manpower bringing everybody there. or you have in the basement dwellers, a 10 by 10, you know, with a couple of banners and that's it. I think, and me, I think memory serves, I've seen some of those guys come out. It's been their unique product offering. So maybe it's some niche software or niche piece of hardware, maybe not so much on the POS side, maybe in the security standpoint, you know, loss prevention that they've kind of grown. from year to year, but in our immediate area, satellites, you know, when you're talking about printers, scanners, all these other, you know, terminals, stuff that you see, it's the C word, it's the commodity product that it's really tough, tough nut to break. 

Yeah, I think one of the things that should be initiated from that show is the beginning of a relationship. And you kind of spoke about it hours after the plane touched down. And I think that's important. I mean, some people will be busy, but some people will appreciate that you're reaching out to them, making them feel important, which they are at the end of the day, because they are the ones that are going to buy your product. But do you think in terms of The demonstration of the technology at this big show, do you think that it's 100% there in terms of active when you go to that show, you're going to see 100% demonstration of the software, the hardware device to the sense that you leave there with an appreciation to buy? Yes. 

I do absolutely in the sense that if you're at a booth, and sometimes it's a booth that you plan to go to, sometimes it's a booth that piqued your interest when you walked by an hour ago. Whoever's manning that booth, if they do their job right, and they really say, look, this is the exclamation point, or this is what makes us different from everybody else, and you have a need for it, absolutely. It's a home run. I've been part of demos where I've seen that aha look on customer's face. So it's a lot of fun and very fulfilling when you actually get that reaction from somebody there. So I'm looking forward to getting some of my own reactions this time being on the other side. 

Well, that's important. At least now you get to experience what it's like to be on both sides of the coin, right? Yeah. And I think the perspective, this perspective of NRF as well, as in any conferences that we go, I think the relationship or the networking that we do at those shows and those events that they put on in the evening. It's really to meet with people among our peers, as well as meet with those people that we haven't seen in a year or six months, just to reestablish that connection of doing business together. And I think it's an important one. I would like to hear your aspect on that. 

Absolutely. I mean, we have such a small radius in this industry that it's a lot of familiar faces, just, you know, poker, casino, you know, card shuffle from one company to the other. But yes, you know, with our fellow bars, our fellow manufacturers, talking about some of the successes they had with, you know, different customers and applying that knowledge to the next deal that comes your way is huge. I think we have a very healthy industry. And as far as that networking portion of it goes, you know, you have vendors that aren't staying in their lanes anymore and kind of branching out doing other stuff that they weren't doing before. Same with the VARs, you know, we're not just selling hardware anymore. We have to sell the complete solution. And the more that we support each other as a community, I think, regardless of competition, there's plenty of pizza out there to split up in the pie and just have successful business all around. 

I think one of the good things about this show is it's the first one more or less of the year, and it's in D.C.D. They call it New York, and you're a New Yorker, right? That's right. The Java Center, it's where you need to be for conferences. Yeah. So, you know, let's talk a little about how that is showcased in New York from you know, the whole atmosphere of being in New York for that show, you know, how the organizers kind of put that together into one big cookie. 

Yeah, I think the mentality is that it's that New York state of mind where you're there, your single focus is to go to the show, learn as much as possible, partake in activities around Manhattan. You know, Javits is a brisk walk from Times Square. And I say brisk because it is cold and walking fast, but it's very doable. And it's the mindset. I mean, for me, I'm from New York, grew up in Long Island. I've been more now to the city in these last 10 plus years going there for NRF than I did when I grew up in New York. There's no need to go to the city when you're growing up in Long Island, but it's that Again, New York state of mind, focus, you're learning, you're there to take as much back with you as possible. Because as you said, this is the beginning of the year and this is where your vision starts of what you can do. Because a lot of this technology that's presented is not going to be available when you come back from New York. A lot of this stuff is either in final prototype stage, or just about to be manufactured, or just revealed behind secret curtains in a conference room. I've been part of those too. So this is setting the stage for not Q1, not Q2, most of the time Q3, Q4. So you're in the VR stuff and beyond. So it really launches not just 2024. In this case, it'll be also 2025. you know, trends and action moving forward. 

And you know, the biggest thing we, you know, there's one thing I think continues to be a moving goalpost, RFID. 

Yeah, it's gonna be the greatest thing ever for the last almost 17 years that I've been in the industry. I think we're at a crossing point, though, now that costs for the labels itself have come down significantly. You have big retailers like Walmart that have already made mandates about it from a receiving perspective and pallets. So it's definitely has much more traction on a logistical side than end consumer type, which has been the hype forever. So we'll see. I think you know, probably is going to lead into what you're going to go into next. But I'll steal your thunder here with the next buzzword, AI. 

You read my fucking mind. 

I mean, we're how many I mean, we should we shouldn't because we'll get drunk. We should make a drinking game of how many times we're going to hear AI in the show on the floor because it's everywhere. It's rampant. I was just at a webinar for Zebra and they kind of avoided the terminology to go in favor of something else. But you know what they're talking about. So, you know, it's very interesting to see how this is going to roll out. You have the memes on the internet where you have Sarah Connor 2020 and then 2024. So it's there. Let's see to what capacity and what Because it's real. I mean, this is not like RFID. This is much more tangible, I believe, because it's software and it's kind of like a Pandora's box that we've definitely peeked open into. 

And one of the things is, and this is just my opinion, people may not agree with me. I don't give a fuck. To be completely frank, tell us how you really feel. No, but I was telling somebody this the other day, because they were painting this picture as if AI is so great from a computer perspective. And I'm saying, you know, at the end of the day, we take human beings out of the element too much. From an AI perspective, when you go and let's say chat GPT, It's a human being that collected all that data together and put it in some sort of database. So when you ask a question, it's going to pull from that database. It's not to say that, oh, the computer is just thinking that shit on his own. And he said, are you sure about that? I said, Where do you think it gets the information from? Somebody had to do research and put all this. I mean, it's something that's been going on for years, but it's not really artificial as we would like to think it is. It is artificially intelligent from the state that it's built on technology, but it's not really the computer. Like as you say, Sarah, you're feeding it the information. 

You're feeding it information based on parameters that it's already in its own brain. And yeah, it's learning how to react to the stuff that you're feeding it manually. Exactly. Some ways to perform. Now, the day that it gets up from the chair and walks away on its own, then we just start, you know, believing the Sarah. Exactly. Then we can start believing. What is it? Skynet? Skynet. 

There you go. I was trying to remember that. But getting back to, you know, I think AI is huge. I mean, I'm not saying it's not huge. It is a huge component of what we need to do going forward. I mean, you know, there was business intelligence before. Now it is artificial intelligence. Right. And it's basically how both combine now, right? Because it is business intelligence from that perspective. And I'm hoping, we are sure to see a bunch of that in NRF. Some people pretending that they have AI and they don't. 

Yeah. It'll be, yeah. It's like the AI of the IOT of the Omnichannel. 

No, it's a relevant danger that's there because, you know, I was in a conference the other day and they say, oh, we're going to have AI. So I said, OK, what does that mean? And the guy gets stumbled. He stumbled and he said, oh, we're not ready to release that yet. So I said, why the fuck did you bring it up? Because are you just saying AI because everybody else is saying AI? Or do you really, really have a thought process in terms of what AI is? 

We don't even have to go that far back in time. I mean, less than 10 years ago, people were like, the cloud. And like, it was, what is it? And there were people, professionals in our industry that believe that even when electricity went down, the cloud disappeared. So it's like, you don't really understand what you're selling at some point. 

But in the beginning, when people brought up the cloud, nobody believed that Hotmail was the fucking cloud. Having an email on Hotmail was the cloud. Who hasn't had a Hotmail account, right? 

My wife still does. That's her go-to email. I still have my Yahoo one. Why? You know, you don't give up the old, you know? 

The other thing, that was the cloud because the email did not exist on your computer. It was in some server on the cloud. And it still exists today. Some people still have Hotmail accounts that converted to Apple. Outlook.com. Right. 

So, um, you know, My dad still has his MSN email address. 

Exactly. You're right. I can't remember. I saw somebody with a AOL account the other day, and I couldn't believe that those servers still exist. Does a search engine still exist? 

Probably. I don't know. Netscape I saw was somewhere out there. I just typed in Netscape and it showed up. I forget who owns it now, but that brought back memories of the beginnings. 

And that was on, what was that? 

Netscape Navigator. 

Yeah. I was trying to remember what PC came with that by default instead of Microsoft. Compact. Yeah, you're right. Another blast from the past. 

We keep going back in time here. Back to NRF in 2024. 

No, but it's good to know what was in the past to see what's in the future, right? They always say that. My dad always used to say that, to be honest with you. But let's get back to 2024. 

So, yeah, so I had mentioned earlier that NRF is going to have, you know, something on food tech. So there's 50 plus food tech booths this year at NRF, which should be very interesting for anybody in hospitality. It looks like they're going to have a whole demo room set up specifically for that. So probably some food to go along with it. So if you don't want to make the lines downstairs, you might want to go have a demo in the food and expo tech. 

Those lines are really ridiculous. 

Oh, God. And the food's horrible. But, yeah, it should be interesting to see. 

You can walk outside and get an $8 hot dog, right? Yeah. 

And free while you're at it. $10, sorry. Yeah. There's food trucks there. Hopefully they'll be there again this year. There's going to be some keynote speakers that are there. I saw Drew Barrymore. Oh, she is? Yeah, Drew Barrymore is going to be there. Magic Johnson, he'll be there, which is interesting. I saw also Martha Stewart and the president and CEO of Walmart. I can't remember his name right now, but he's going to be there, amongst a dozen others. So there'll be plenty of activities for those that are not going to be just walking the floor. you can go listen to and speak. I remember I saw a few years ago Condoleezza Rice when she was there. It was great, great keynote speaker by her. But yeah, there's a lot of activities to do, not just walking the floor. There's a lot of exhibitions, lots of mini shows, and that fourth floor that we talked about, a lot of keynotes. So there's great activities all around. And then actually the extracurriculars, which we'll be partaking in. It's great for the networking portion of it as well. So yeah, it's gonna be, it should be interesting. I went for a 2023 show and it felt like pre-pandemic, right? Everything was full throttle, full pace, full lines, full activities, lots of traffic. So this year should be par for the course, if not more. 

Perfect. I think the Wolfpack wants to walk to Soho. So we'll check that out. The nightlife there. Um, specifically a piano, piano bar or something. 

Oh, there's a piano bar there? 

That's what my friend told me. 

Oh, I love pianos. It's so much fun. 

Well, we'll be there. Nice. Anything else before we wrap up? 

Well, it's, uh, happy new year. 

Yeah, it's 2024. Happy New Year to all. 

Is it the first podcast of 2024? No, right? 

It's the first recorded podcast. 

Okay, there we go. So live in 2024, we are here for the NRF. This is the pre-slash-post. 

Yeah, we're going to have a post-podcast for sure, just to let the listeners know what we experienced and what we would recommend if you're visiting that show because it's a huge show. There's no way you can walk that show and get information in one day. I think the show floor is open for two days, three days? 

Three. 

Three? Yeah. So it's a huge show. As you said, 35,000 people visit that show. You walk out of the show and you go anywhere near it, you're going to see people with NRF badges. 

Yeah. Within the immediate splash area, you will see some of the restaurants that are more famous. You know, Carmine's comes to mind. Oh, yeah. You'll see, you know, definitely NRF tags everywhere. 

Yeah. Somebody took me to Carmine's and didn't tell me they were big plates. Sucking food for two or three days when you left there. 

Absolutely. Yeah, you could split that with your significant other, sure. 

So it's only when the food came, I said, this is huge. And the guy said, yeah, have you been here before? No, I wouldn't have ordered this, it was... Anyway. I couldn't, all these are great. So for sure, listeners, we're going to be back with a post NRF review. 

Maybe with piano work pictures. 

probably going to send you to a link on the website for you to see pictures of the, of the, the show or anything that we experienced. That's a good idea. Yeah. Well, thank you very much, Marcelo. This has been great as always and everybody else. Thank you for listening and see you soon. 

Thanks so much for tuning into this episode. We sure do appreciate it. If you haven't done so already, make sure you're subscribed to the show wherever you consume podcasts, so we'll get updates as new episodes become available. And if you feel so inclined, please leave us a review. Until next time, friends.