“Mission: possible” was the pervading message on day one of the Shoptalk Fall industry event in Chicago.

Running from October 16-18, the conference has attracted big names in retail, including Jennifer Hyman, co-founder and CEO of Rent the Runway, Kyle Leahy, CEO of Glossier, Daniel Martinez, global retail director of Farm Rio, and Kiera Gannan, SVP and global GM of Ralph Lauren Brands. 

During their panels, these leading executives covered a wide range of topics, from the benefits of leaning into new marketing strategies to the precautions to take while executing global expansion plans. 

But one theme every retailer seemed to touch on was the potential for growth for those that are moving forward with in-depth research on their consumer market and giving their business room to experiment to see what works and learn from what doesn’t. 

It was a rather welcome change of tone from the more cautious outlook that has been dominating retail conversations in recent months. 

Creating and maintaining growth in a legacy brand

Speaking of giving a brand room to grow, the conference kicked off with panel discussions featuring Jennifer Hyman, co-founder and CEO of Rent the Runway, and Kyle Leahy, the CEO of Glossier. 

During Hyman’s session, the fashion industry entrepreneur chatted about the brand’s 15th anniversary and her renewed approach to leadership.

Despite having run the business for over 15 years, Hyman remarked that she has been moving through 2024 with the mindset of a CEO building a business in its first year of growth. 

The shift, she explained, largely stemmed from how the fashion and retail industry has changed exponentially from the days when renting clothes raised an eyebrow. Today, the rent-a-wardrobe business plan has become not only normalized but increasingly competitive. 

To keep up with the modern consumer’s interests, Hyman stated that Rent the Runway is launching a more price-accessible subscription plan, diversifying the brand’s arsenal of designer clothing items and doubling down on IRL consumer engagement opportunities.

As Hyman noted, “The fashion industry itself is still only embracing change on the margins…But that’s no longer going to cut it.”

Another company experiencing major shifts right now is Glossier, which recently marked its 10-year anniversary and is revving itself up for another 90 years ahead.

While the brand started out by targeting the Millennial consumer demographic, Leahy stated that Glossier has been prioritizing the interests of its growing Gen Z and Alpha audience base with a smart combination of pop-ups and in-store events, thoughtful social media interactions and virality and the enduring popularity of its hero product, Glossier You. A product that Leahy believes will one day reach the iconic status of a bottle of Chanel No 5.

The beauty brand leader commented, “We’re on year 10 of building a 100-year brand…What gives brands that level of enduring power is that they are built on values that resonate across generations, that resonate across time, and have that deep emotional appeal.”

Expanding into new global markets

Nearing the end of day one, Daniel Martinez, the global retail director of Brazilian apparel brand Farm Rio, Kiera Gannan, the SVP and global general manager of Ralph Lauren Brands, Kristin Hamilton, the head of e-commerce and DTC for entertainment streaming platform Crunchyroll, and Valerie de Charette, a partner of Tomorrow Retail Consulting, discussed the unique challenges that come with expanding into global markets. 

One common piece of advice the panelists shared was the significance of having local ears and eyes on the ground when a brand is trying to establish a presence in a new market. 

Hamilton compared it to an American company entering the French market and trying to convey a message using a mediocre translation device. The French consumer will find this approach ineffective, if not offensive, and will be turned off by the brand. This could be avoided by having French teammates assist with the process of entering a foreign market. 

Whether it is working with a local marketing and research team or collaborating with an established brand in the country – such as Farm Rio’s collaboration with Sezane – Martinez, Hamilton and Gannan all agreed on the importance of working with locals to understand the nuanced preferences of a new retail territory. 

Gannan and Martinez cautioned that while many exciting and unique opportunities or brand strategies may present themselves when expanding internationally, brands need to say no for the right reasons and remain focused on their goals. For instance, ensuring the alignment of product assortment with the nuanced needs and interests of the audience.

Gannan explained that the “brand is more important than the region.”

“If your brand doesn’t succeed in that region, that’s ok. I think if you start diluting your brand [to fit into a region], you’re just a private label resource for whatever you’re creating,” Gannan concluded.