The Year of Investing in Customer Convenience with Chris Walton, Co-CEO of Omni Talk

On today’s episode, we talk with Chris Walton, Co-CEO of Omni Talk and a Top 100 Retail Influencer. Chris Walton co-founded Omni Talk in 2017 and has quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail. Omni Talk has been read by nearly 4 million on Forbes, with podcasts and videos that consistently rank as one of the most listened to retail outlets within the industry. Chris Walton is an accomplished Senior Executive and one of the leading omnichannel experts in the world, with nearly 20 years of success within the retail and retail technology industries.

In this episode, Chris talks about the evolution of customer convenience in retail, his take on technological trends, and what he calls the “Show Me the Money” Year. 

Guest Bio:
 

Chris Walton is a leading expert and influencer in omnichannel retailing. An accomplished Senior Executive, with nearly 20 years of success within the retail and retail technology industries, Chris has high-level executive experience across nearly every discipline within retail. Currently he is the Co-CEO and Founder of Omni Talk, one of the fastest growing blogs in retail. He is a regular keynote speaker, a senior contributor for Forbes, and he also sits on the Advisory Boards for Sezzle, Delivery Solutions, and Xenia Retail. 

Prior to starting Omni Talk, Chris worked for Target, where he was the Vice President of the retailer’s Store of the Future project and also the Vice President of Merchandising for Home Furnishings on Target.com. 

Chris began his career at Gap, Inc. and holds a BA in Economics and History from Stanford University, and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

—

Guest Quote

“The convenience dynamics have changed in the minds of the consumer, and it's a universal truth to me that we, and particularly the younger generations, want to consume everything on their schedule and on demand to the best of their abilities.

And so that means that retailers are gonna continue to have to adapt to this. And we're really only in the first inning of that adaptation. It's gonna be really interesting to see how it plays out from here and what comes next. I would still be investing in anything that helps answer that question of how do I make myself more convenient for my consumer.

I'd make that top of mind.” - Chris Walton 

Time Stamps

**(02:07) - The birth of Omni-Talk 

**(07:39) - A Chris-eye view of the current retail landscape

**(16:41) - The importance of the physical space

**(26:37) - What’s working in innovation?

**(35:28) - What is Chris excited about?

**(43:01) - Final thoughts with Sid 

Sponsor:

ServiceChannel brings you peace of mind through peak facilities performance.

Rest easy knowing your locations are:

• Offering the best possible guest experience
• Living up to brand standards
• Operating with minimal downtime

ServiceChannel partners with more than 500 leading brands globally to provide visibility across operations, the flexibility to grow and adapt to consumer expectations, and accelerated performance from their asset fleet and service providers. Get to know us at Servicechannel.com

—

Links 

• Connect with Chris Walton on LinkedIn
• Connect with Sid Shetty on Linkedin
• Check out the ServiceChannel Website