It’s Not the Luck of the Irish: Primark Does Retail Right with Kevin Tulip

This week we welcome Kevin Tulip, Primark's US President, as our guest to discuss what makes the Ireland-based purveyor of affordable fashion, home, and beauty products so remarkable and why they've chosen a slow and steady approach to global expansion.

We also learn about the brand's Dublin origins, how the concept has evolved, and their decision to grow to 60 locations in the US by 2026 and 530 stores worldwide. We also learn why they've historically and rather controversially avoided a big push into e-commerce and how they view the critical role of physical stores in growth strategy. 

But first we dissect the week in retail news with a return to the Wobbly Unicorn Corner (and Steve's warnings of a retail disruptor apocalypse) by reviewing poor earnings news from Allbirds, Stitch Fix, and ThredUp. In far happier news, Dick's Sporting Goods and Ulta show us the money, adding to their string of strong results. In our quick hits section we review an unusual view into JC Penney's (poor) earnings, Gap's disappointing holiday season and leadership revolving door, and question whether Amazon Go might be going, going, gone. We wrap up wondering whether Bunning's (the Australia-based home improvement retailer) move into the pet category suggests a novel evolution of the format.

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Past episodes mentioned:

BONUS EPISODE: Suzanne Long, Chief Sustainability and Transformation Officer, Albertsons, Previews Her World Retail Congress Keynote

Dot Com Bomb: The Sequel? with Special Guest Daniel McCarthy

About Kevin

Kevin Tulip is the US President of Primark, leading US operations. He previously led Primark’s Benelux business and joined the US team in October 2021. He has been with Primark since the beginning of his career when he started working at a retail store in 2002.

About Us

Steve Dennis is an advisor, keynote speaker and author on strategic growth and business innovation. You can learn more about Steve on his       website.    The expanded and revised edition of his bestselling book  Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption is now available at  Amazon or just about anywhere else books are sold. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a      Forbes senior contributor and on       Twitter and       LinkedIn. You can also check out his speaker "sizzle" reel      here.

Michael LeBlanc  is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice.   He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career.  Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast,       The Voice of Retail, plus  Global eCommerce Leaders podcast, and The Food Professor  with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois.    You can learn more about Michael   here  or on     LinkedIn. 

Be sure and check out Michael's latest venture for fun and influencer riches - Last Request Barbecue,  his YouTube BBQ cooking channel!

About Us

Steve Dennis is a strategic advisor and keynote speaker focused on growth and innovation, who has also been named one of the world's top retail influencers. He is the bestselling authro of two books: Leaders Leap: Transforming Your Company at the Speed of Disruption and Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a Forbes senior retail contributor and on social media.

Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur.  He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. 

Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google.  He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.

Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fourth year in a row, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer.  If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.

Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.