Recent Episodes

Steven Henke is the Chief of Brand Marketing at DAP Health.DAP Health is an advocacy-based community health center in Palm Springs, CA, serving over 88,000 patients. It provides comprehensive medical and mental healthcare, STI testing and treatment, dentistry, pharmacy, and lab services. A wide array of wraparound services enables patients to experience optimal health—these include social services, support groups, alternative therapies, and other wellness offerings.DAP opened one of California...

Sara Vaskov has been in the San Luis Obispo retail scene for over two decades. She began working at Hands Gallery 22 years ago and became the owner in 2016, leading the shop through years of growth and evolution. Beyond running a thriving small business, Sara is deeply involved in community advocacy. As a board member of the Downtown SLO Association, she played a key role in lowering parking costs through her work on the Parking and Access Committee.Sara has also been an active participant in ...

Misty Stachel is the founder and owner of 85 Local, a carefully curated boutique that blends locally made goods with unique, high-quality finds from beyond Arizona. With a passion for retail and community, Misty has created a shopping destination where customers can discover one-of-a-kind gifts, stylish apparel, and must-have home accessories—all while supporting small businesses.At 85 Local, Misty focuses on thoughtful curation and an elevated shopping experience, helping customers find the p...

Emma Lewis is the owner of Rare Form and The Twentieth, both based in Chicago. Emma works to digitally restore and reinterpret 100-year-old designs to create unique greeting cards, stationery, and more. Through her work, her goal is to empower and affirm others with a brand that combines vintage images with unapologetic contemporary feminist language and over-the-top messages of affirmation. The Twentieth is a stationery, gift, and design brand that brings historical maximalism together with...

Susan and Michelle join forces again for another episode of Shelf Talk! Here, they kick things off with a recap of Susan’s recent trip to New Orleans and all the fun shops she explored while there. Next, they share some of their favorite displays found on Instagram and discuss their stand-out design elements and features.Susan and Michelle also discuss how you can recreate these displays in your own store, plans for booking upcoming shows, Mother’s Day display details, and more.Ask Miche...

Gloria Chou is an award-winning PR strategist and host of the top-rated Small Business PR Podcast. Known for her untraditional yet proven approach to PR which makes visibility and access to media accessible for anyone, Gloria helps BIPOC and female founders get featured organically in top-tier media without needing PR connections or a large following. experience through her signature CPR Pitching Method.Gloria’s strategies have earned small businesses in nearly every industry niche over a bill...

Marrin Costello is an American businesswoman, designer, and brand architect. Her career as a creative began at age seven, after receiving a bead kit for Christmas. Selling her creations at local San Francisco Bay Area craft fairs and local boutique retailers while in grammar school, Costello's love for both business and fashion was realized at a very young age.Less than a decade later, a childhood hobby has transformed into a global luxury lifestyle brand — with jewelry at its core. While stud...

Caroline Weaver is an obsessive shopper, former specialty shop owner, and creator of The Locavore Guide. During her years as a shopkeeper, she yearned for a resource to help others understand what it actually means to "shop small" and to share information about why it’s better for everyone.In a world of algorithms and convenience, most of us have lost touch with the ways in which shopping acts as a gateway for community building. Caroline spent a year walking hundreds of miles through every bo...

Andrew Fegler is the brains and beauty behind That’s So Andrew, the sassy gift brand for the girls, gays, and theys. He’s been sailing the entrepreneurial seas for over a decade and has gone from manufacturing to having a brick & mortar to creating an exclusive wholesale brand. Now, he’s full-circling back to open the doors of a pop-up gift shop!In this conversation, Andrew brings us up to speed on an eventful, busy season and his plans to turn his holiday pop-up shop into a year-round venture...

Welcome to Shelf Talk: a brand new, add-on segment inside the Retail Whore Podcast!In this new once-a-month segment, Michelle and co-host Susan Esayian dive into all things merchandising and design. Both Michelle and Susan have strong backgrounds as buyers and merchandisers in retail and wholesale gifts. On Shelf Talk, you’ll have the chance to submit your burning merchandising questions and get answers straight from the experts!A native of the Pacific Northwest, Susan Esayian has been worki...

Dan Jablons heads up Retail Smart Guys, a premier consulting company for independent retail. Dan studied at the Ohio State University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Production. Throughout his career, he’s worked with big-name retailers like Walmart, Target, JC Penney, American Apparel, Betsey Johnson, Donna Karan, Jimmy Choo, and many others.Dan also worked for a clothing manufacturer where he piloted vendor-managed inventory programs, a leading point-of-sale...

Mary Bligh and Jessica Giancotti are lifelong friends and passionate designers with over 20 years of combined experience. Together, they founded Lily & Marigold Home + Design on a shared belief: women can thrive in their careers, embrace motherhood, and create beautiful, functional spaces that truly feel like home.Mary and Jessica believe a beautiful home should be accessible to everyone. Their first brick-and-mortar store is located in Eastdale Village in Poughkeepsie, NY, where they offer a ...

Liz Ferreira’s mom Beth started floral and gift shop Sweetbay out of her home when her two children were small. Over the years, her business has taken her to several brick-and-mortar shops, retail cooperatives and studio design. Her creative vision is the backbone of Sweetbay, as her merchandising inspires clients and shoppers across the Massachusetts north shore.Liz joined forces with her mom after the birth of her second child. Not only was she raised in the school of Sweetbay, she brings ma...

Ronald Carter likes to think of creative styling as an art form: a masterpiece, carefully crafted by imagination and passion. He fell into his career by accident as a struggling actor in need of a side hustle. Ronald was living in Seattle at the time and recalls asking a friend if she knew of anyone who was hiring, and she kindly suggested checking out Eddie Bauer. From there, his retail career took off.At Eddie Bauer, Ronald started as a greeter, and in the three years that followed, he worke...

Many of you were interested in hearing about how the CMA job came to be, my planning process, and how everything turned out. This week, I’m recapping it all here on the podcast! Starting from the beginning, I talk about how Emily Hoffman (VP of Sales for CMA) reached out to me for some rework projects, then get into the challenges we faced, all the unique design elements, and how it ultimately came together.If you want to check out some of the maps we used, make sure to watch this episode on Y...

Larisa Olson grew up in Chicago, the daughter of an entrepreneur who purchased a failing framing and furniture business and revitalized it. After many crazy adventures, Larisa studied set and costume design in the UCLA master’s program. Over the years, she also spent much time immersed in her father's framing showroom as the showroom coordinator (she had to organize a very chaotic business!)Years later, after more adventures, including some time in real estate, her father encouraged her to p...

Jason Soejoto is the National Account Manager for Specialty and Independent Business at Duke Cannon Supply Company. Duke Cannon is a one-stop shop for premium men’s grooming goods, and the brand occupies a really unique space within the gifts industry. Hailing from a simpler time, Duke Cannon values things like hard work, family, community, and... bacon!Prior to joining Duke Cannon, Jason was a bit of a jack of all trades, but he’s always remained in the retail and customer service world. He...

Sam Chapman started his career as a hairdresser, working for some of the biggest names in the UK. Eventually, he decided it was time to work for himself and opened his own salon. He got a crash course in running a business and learned how to stand out in front of the right customers and encourage them to come back.At one point, Sam’s business was failing to the point where he was on the brink of losing his home. It was in that moment that he decided to invest in a mentor. His mentor helped him...

I can’t believe we’ve already said goodbye to 2024!I like to do solo shows this time of year because it gives me a chance to take a look back at all that happened and also to talk about what I’m looking forward to as we move ahead. If you’ve been following along, this past year was full of challenges, from saying goodbye to our puggle to moving all the way to Oregon. Thankfully, things are slowing down, and it’s the perfect time to share last year’s crazy highs and lows and what I’m working ...

Hailing from North Dakota, where her nearest shopping opportunity was over 300 miles away, Ashley Alderson longed for a place online to find and shop the boutiques she loved all over the country, together in one place. "There must be a place for shoppers like me who love boutiques to find them all—and a place where boutique owners themselves can connect to find resources & grow," Ashley thought.Ashley’s background in business, marketing, and economic development fueled the desire to simply mak...

Annie Glenn (AKA Urban Girl Annie) started her company, LG Retail Enterprises, back in 1994 and she’s been doing retail ever since. Although she majored in literature in college, Annie’s known she wanted to own her own business from the age of 10.With no prior background in retail, she credits her business success to having great instincts and a lack of fear. Today, she’s a proud entrepreneur and a mom to two amazing boys, Jack and Cooper. Her hope is that her stores, including Urban Girl Acce...

Retail icon Iris Fuller opened her store, Fillamento, back in April 1981 and led the Fillmore District neighborhood renaissance in the San Francisco area. In its heyday, Fillamento was three floors at Fillmore and Sacramento and was filled to the brim with furniture, glassware, linens, bath items and eclectic gifts from the whimsical to the practical. After 20 glorious years of business, Fillamento closed permanently in 2001.Here, Iris talks about the early days of Fillamento and how taking ...

Mary Liz Curtin is passionate about independent retail. Her knowledge of all aspects of the gift, craft and home industries gives her a unique point of view, encompassing the needs of retailers, vendors and sales representatives. She is also a heck of a retail shopper and loves to crawl malls, discover downtowns and walk through the Web to find ideas and inspirations for her presentations.With over 35 years of hands-on experience in the gift and home industries, Mary Liz is an internationally ...

Root Adorned is the brainchild/dream project of Erin Hasler. Erin's love for beautiful treasures began most likely at birth (maybe in the womb?) and has grown ever since. A self-described magpie, easily distracted by anything that sparkles; Erin continues to fill her own home with rugs, plants, pottery anddogs. Her philosophy being that you can never have enough of any of the above.Born and raised in Bend, Oregon, Erin is honored to bring her unique perspective to the community that she so de...