Recent Episodes

In honor of May being National Pet Foster Care Month, this week’s guest is Gwenn Vallone, CEO of Pug Nation Rescue of Los Angeles, a non-profit dedicated to the rescue, care and placement of abandoned, neglected, unwanted and abused pugs. Gwenn grew up loving dogs and wanting to help those in need. Years ago she would sign up to go out to shelters to do anything she could to help. She ended up coming across pugs and fell in love with their gregarious, snorting personalities right away. She en...

This week’s episode is part of our Life After Z Gallerie series. Michelle worked closely with both Fabian & Melissa during her time at Z Gallerie. Fabian was born and raised in LA, is a self-taught creative leader and a bona fide retail nerd. With more than 25 years of multi-unit management experience in the retail home furnishings industry, he still feels as if he is in the beginning stages of his career. Currently, he is a Gift Merchandiser & Buyer for A.C. Vroman's Inc., one of the oldest ...

When Missy lost everything in the 2008 recession, she almost lost all hope. She was broke, had 3 kids, and had just moved again. One day, her youngest was running through the kitchen and playfully yanked on the dish towel she had just hung up to dry on the oven, and it of course fell to the floor, which meant more laundry. She thought to herself "If I can't control anything else in my life, I'm going to control this F*&%ing towel!" Remembering that Grandma used to make a hand towel that had a...

This week’s guest is Allison Carter. Allison is a Seattle mom of two and believes that every occasion, big or small, deserves to be celebrated. As the founder and CEO of Allison Carter Celebrates, she helps make busy moms’ lives easier and a hell of a lot more fun, especially when it comes to celebrating special occasions and holidays. Her monthly subscription box, Memories in Moments: Unwrapped, brings the celebration straight to your door with holiday-themed crafts and activities planned, prep...

This week's guest is CEO & founder of Swanky D's, Nadiyah Gulley. Established in 2016, Swanky D’s is a company dedicated to mentoring and coaching businesses on how to creatively succeed in a competitive industry through visual merchandising. Her foundation is humbly built upon vintage clothing and fashion styling but has since transitioned to visual consulting for small businesses, brands, and boutiques. Michelle & Nadiyah discuss how she provides quality merchandising services to small busi...

This week’s guest is Nathan Waldon, Founder of Everything for Nathan & Co. After a bazillion plus years of product development for the big guys, nothing ever scratched his retail itch like opening his own eponymous shops. He doesn’t really know how to describe the satisfaction he gets, but he can tell you it's true and beyond satisfying. His advice to young entrepreneurs is to do it, but do it smartly. In April they celebrate 16 years of sweetness - OR is that sweet sixteen? We were so thrilled ...

This week’s guest is Kurt Beeken, Owner & President of Retail Dimensions (RDi). Kurt is a veteran of the retail and technology industry having worked in retail technology since 1985. He has written and implemented inventory management/POS systems for retailers as well as participated on retailer’s behalf to help them select the best system for their needs. Michelle & Kurt discuss how the combination of brick & mortar + e-commerce experience allows Kurt & the RDi team to bring a unique perspec...

This week’s guest is Jeannine Braden / Creative Director & Co-Founder / Le Superbe California. From long time Los Angeles fashion insider Jeannine Braden, stylist, consultant and former owner of the much-loved Santa Monica boutique, Fred Segal Flair, comes LE SUPERBE (or The Beautiful) “From the Southern California Side of Else-Wear." Michelle & Jeannine jump right in to discuss everything from celebrity styling, the lost art of the customer relationship, lessons learned from many years in th...

We have all dealt with what we perceive as a failure. Failure can be useful. We can learn from it, gain new insights, and do better next time. The right kind of failures give us new information & teach us something that gets us closer to our goals. On this week’s episode, Michelle opens up, with her trademark honesty, on what lessons she has taken away from her “failures” and how that has helped her grow both professionally and personally.

We have all dealt with what we perceive as a failure. Failure can be useful. We can learn from it, gain new insights, and do better next time. The right kind of failures give us new information & teach us something that gets us closer to our goals. On this week’s episode, Michelle opens up, with her trademark honesty, on what lessons she has taken away from her “failures” and how that has helped her grow both professionally and personally.

We LOVE a #hustler and this week’s guest Brea Menees, owner of Chaxel certainly falls under that header! Brea is a 31-year-old California native, married for 4 years with 2 frenchie babies and has a Fashion Degree from Sacramento State. Michelle & Brea sit down in person and discuss how Brea went from graduating with a fashion degree, to working in tech to ultimately building her own online boutique! She truly is an inspiration on making that leap by jumping in feet first and figuring it out alo...

Stella grew up in Ohio and studied Economics and Japanese at Princeton University. Stella made a career change at 30 from investment banking to fashion. She moved from San Francisco to New York where she worked her way up at iconic American brands Liz Claiborne, Limited Brands, Henri Bendel and Ralph Lauren. Stella always fantasized about moving to California. She vividly remembers the debut of Beverly Hills 90210 and wanting to have a life of pool parties. After 7 years in both San Francisco...

This week’s guest is Catherine (Cat) Hildner, creator, designer and heart & soul behind Kitty Meow® Boutique (@kittymeowboutique). Michelle & Cat will be discussing, among other things, the beauty of 'F' Bombs, Cat’s blogs, video content, her KMB educational programs, her upcoming Ultimate Product Party conference and how she finds that work/life balance we all seek to achieve. Cat is truly a powerhouse and we are so grateful she took time out of her busy schedule not only as a business owner bu...

After 3 weeks of doing setups & buying at both the Las Vegas Winter Market & LA Mart Winter Market, Michelle has had time to decompress and reflect on the do’s and don'ts of how to act in someone’s showroom or someone’s retail space. From set up display tips (Architecture first!) to basic showroom cart etiquette, Michelle unpacks it all in this highly informative episode.

A family who travels together, stays together. The Litt family has traveled the world for fifty years, antiquing in over 35 countries! As direct importers, they went on too many buying trips to count. With weekly shipments coming into their retail store, "Mitchell Litt Home" always had something new for customers and designers to discover. The couple worked together 7 days a week, passionately growing their successful namesake business. Fortunately, their eldest son had the privilege (at the tim...

Web Studios West has been building websites, e-commerce solutions, social media platforms, and custom software for over two decades. This week's guest is Shiloh Pettyjohn is Co-Founder and Senior Vice President of Sales for Web Studios West. Over time Shiloh has become an expert in the field of online retail, website operations, e-commerce hosting, and internet security. He has built and aided thousands of businesses of all shapes and sizes over this time to have smooth running and successful on...

On this week’s episode, Michelle, on-site in Las Vegas for multiple client show set-ups, will be sharing her tips & tricks on the most effective way to attend a gift show. From day 1 strategies, to packing the right snacks, to getting off the re-ordering hamster wheel, this episode is chock full of tips that Michelle has learned from her many years as a buyer! Grab a note pad (tip #3!) and be ready to write down some helpful tips for your next gift show. LA Mart Winter Gift + Show began 1/16/22 ...

This week’s guest is Jenny Livits, the founder of Pink Lagoon, a boutique located in Solana Beach, California, and Wardrobe Design and Styling by Jenny Livits, a holistic personal styling business that helps teach women that styling is a journey of self-exploration and learning to radiate beauty and confidence from the inside out. Michelle & Jenny discuss how the Pink Lagoon stylist program works, the principle behind the program and how by creating a solid foundation of basic pieces – from a gr...

Stylish Visionary : Ambitious Multi-tasker : Retail Junkie Margo Kopman lives, eats, and breathes all things retail. With over 15 years of retail consulting experience as the President of Project Retail, she is extremely passionate about inspiring clients with her vision and authenticity when tackling the complex business of the independent retailer. She believes that you can achieve the highest levels of success if you work hard, believe in your dreams, and stay focused on results. She grew ...

This week’s episode is near and dear to Michelle’s heart. She had the pleasure of interviewing her friend and former co-worker Damon Von Schweikert of Von Schweikert Audio. As former co-workers, which they touch on in the episode, Michelle saw firsthand Damon’s incredible skill set in successfully treating employees while at the same time running a brand at the highest level. Currently, Damon is the Chief Executive Officer for Von Schweikert Audio, a multigenerational, High-End Audio loudspeaker...

This week's episode is a Michelle Solocast where she will take the listeners on a deep dive into her design philosophy and review her Top 10 Display Tips! Michelle was asked earlier this year to write an article for Gift Shop Magazine on design & merchandising. This episode is a broader stroke on that article and the tips Michelle learned while working for both Fred Segal and Anthropologie. We have linked the article for your reference. Sit back & enjoy!

S+J is a Lifestyle Boutique featuring Men's, Women's, Kids, Pets, Vinyl, Home + Gifts in our 3 story shop, (4 including their open-air rooftop where they host fashion shows, trunk shows, pop-ups + always a DJ + dance party)! Jamie spent the first 15 years of her career in Retail at Target Corporation. She started there in Merchandising in Girls Toys, then was promoted to a Buyer position in School Supplies and Home Office. She then moved into the Marketing Team, first in a Licensing role and ...

We are thrilled to have the president of The Retail Smart Guys, Dan Jablons, as a guest this week. The Retail Smart Guys is the premiere consulting company. Dan Jablons worked in retail while attending the Ohio State University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Production. He has worked with retailers such as Walmart, Target, JC Penney, American Apparel, Betsey Johnson, Donna Karan, Jimmy Choo, Charles David, Diesel, Oakley, Tumi, Hollywood Bowl, and many others....

This week’s episode was a tricky one to write show notes for as I am part of the episode. Michelle and I (Elisa) have been friends for over 40 years and although our professional lives couldn’t be more different, we are truly sisters and have seen each other through many of life’s milestones that include births, deaths, divorce & marriages. Knowing each one of our strengths has definitely allowed this partnership to be successful, which led us to this episode. We thought it would be fun to inter...