Ep 43: Sparkling Sips, Lydia Thacher - Access & Convenience, Delivered

This is not Spill the Tea. This is accountability.In this special SHeCOMMERCE episode, Cristina and Jacqui step away from the usual banter to discuss the disturbing allegations surrounding the “Cornell 7” and the broader questions the case raises about consent, institutional responsibility, leadership, and what happens when systems designed to protect people appear to fail.As the investigation continues, Cristina and Jacqui unpack why this story has resonated so deeply with women, why due process and taking allegations seriously can and must coexist, and why organizations cannot hide behind policies, procedures, or technical compliance when trust and safety are at stake.They also examine the burden placed on women from an early age to protect themselves, from watching their drinks to sharing their locations, and ask a harder question: Why is so much of the conversation about teaching women how not to become victims instead of teaching men not to become perpetrators, enablers, or silent bystanders?In this episode:• The allegations and developments surrounding the Cornell case• Why institutional process is not the same thing as institutional accountability• The difference between compliance and leadership• Consent, intoxication, and the dangerous assumptions that still persist• Why women are responding so strongly to the story• The role men must play in preventing sexual violence and challenging harmful behavior• Why “believe women” and due process are not mutually exclusive• What leaders should ask when their systems fail the people they are supposed to protectWhen something goes wrong inside your organization, are you trying to understand what happened, or are you trying to understand your exposure?Because culture is not what an organization says when everything is going well.Culture is what it does when doing the right thing becomes uncomfortable.This episode discusses allegations of sexual assault and may be difficult for some listeners. Please take care while listening.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

SCALE ISN’T A STRATEGY. IT’S AN OPERATING SYSTEM. 🔥Everybody loves talking about growth.The revenue. The shiny new products. The AI. The partnerships. The big freaking number on the slide.But here’s the question nobody puts on the keynote stage:What happens underneath the business when all that growth actually shows up?This week on SHeCOMMERCE, we’re going behind the strategy deck with Lauren Bolles, Chief Operating Officer of Tesco Media, to talk about the unsexy, absolutely essential machinery that turns ambition into execution.And Lauren knows a thing or two about building the machine.Her career has been anything but a neat little corporate ladder: Cartier → performance marketing → Bain → Walmart Connect → Tesco Media. At Walmart Connect, she spent five years helping build the strategy and operating infrastructure behind one of retail media’s biggest growth stories. Then she did what any sensible person would do next: changed companies, changed countries, moved her family across the Atlantic and stepped into a newly created COO role at Tesco Media.Incremental, apparently, is not Lauren’s thing.🎯 THE BIG CONVERSATIONLauren gives us the operator’s view of growth: what breaks when companies scale, why heroic leadership eventually becomes a liability, which metrics actually tell you whether a business is healthy, and why a playbook that crushed it in America may absolutely NOT be the playbook you need in another market.Her definition of BizOps might be the best we’ve heard:“Strategy and operations sit in the gap between the ambition and the reality.”That gap? That’s where businesses either learn how to scale… or start creating chaos with really impressive revenue numbers.💥 KEY LEARNINGSScaling is an organizational challenge, not just a revenue opportunity.What works when five people can jump on a call and solve every problem does not work when you’re operating across hundreds—or thousands—of people. Leaders have to evolve at the speed of the business.Heroics don’t scale. Clarity does.Early-stage businesses often thrive on brilliant people rolling up their sleeves and doing whatever it takes. Eventually, leadership has to shift from doing to creating clear accountability, decision rights, operating models and outcomes—and then giving people room to deliver.Stop confusing more KPIs with better insight.Revenue matters. Profit matters. Product metrics matter. But Lauren argues there’s an overlooked layer between selling something and delivering it: Can your organization actually deliver what it sold—and how hard is it to do?You can’t copy-and-paste a playbook across markets.Moving from the U.S. to the U.K. reinforced a critical lesson: take the principles and pattern recognition with you, not necessarily the answers. Customer behavior, retailer engagement and market dynamics change. Curiosity travels better than certainty.AI’s biggest wins may be decidedly unsexy.Forget the conference-panel answer. Lauren sees real opportunity in AI improving everyday work—sales coaching, synthesizing data into insights, getting ideas out of leaders’ heads and helping people operate at a higher level. But there’s a catch: AI may change where we spend our time more than simply giving all that time back.And your career does NOT need to make sense on paper.Lauren’s path is proof that curiosity, pattern recognition and the willingness to step into something uncomfortable can build a far more interesting career than following somebody else’s ladder.🎤 MIC-DROP MOMENTS“Sometimes the biggest opportunities for AI to come into the business are not sexy.”Translation: stop chasing AI theater and start finding where it creates actual value.“Listen to the voice in your head, but don’t always believe it.”That one is going straight on the SHeCOMMERCE wall.And when we asked Lauren to finish the sentence “Retail media in five years will…”?Her answer:“Be media.”🎤⬇️But perhaps the biggest takeaway came at the end:“At the end of a job or of our career… it’s the people that matter the most.”The decks disappear. The spreadsheets get replaced. The organizations change.The people who tell you thank you for mentoring me, believing in me, opening a door for me?That’s the legacy.☕ SPILL THE TEAOh, we had RANGE this week.We unpack an eMarketer forecast pointing to AI-driven commerce becoming a dramatically bigger piece of U.S. e-commerce—and ask the question brands should probably be obsessing over now:When AI becomes another interface between the shopper and the shelf, who owns discovery, the customer relationship…and the money?We somehow turn a viral HYROX gastrointestinal incident into a lesson on operational excellence—because apparently “performance does not replace process” applies even when the process in question involves bodily functions. 💩We also raise our tea to Dolly Parton and reflect on a woman who showed generations that power never required becoming less feminine, less funny or less unmistakably yourself.And there’s one very special people move: our own Cristina stepping into the Chief Commercial Officer seat at Righteous Felon. A challenger brand. Hyper-growth. C-suite.Or, as Jacqui puts it:“Hold my jerky, baby.”Yes. That happened.👀 THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF…You’re scaling a business and wondering why everything suddenly feels harder.You’re leading a team that has outgrown the way it used to operate.You work in retail media, commerce, strategy or transformation and want to know what’s happening behind the growth numbers.You’re trying to separate actual AI value from AI theater.Or your career path looks more like a bowl of spaghetti than a ladder—and you need the reminder that the straight line was never the only route to the top.This one is about building businesses that can handle their own ambition—and careers big enough to keep challenging the women building them.🎧 Come for retail media. Stay for the leadership lessons, career pivots, AI reality check, Dolly, jerky…and yes, poop.Because it’s not just business. It’s personal.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

🥂 This Sparkling Sips comes with bubbles, bite…and a few serious mic drops.We’re pouring one with Lydia Thacher, Vice President of Digital Commerce at Dollar General, for a conversation that goes way beyond “eCommerce strategy.”Because digital commerce isn’t about chasing the shiniest tech.It’s about solving real problems for real customers.Lydia takes us inside the thinking behind Dollar General’s evolving digital commerce experience—and why convenience, accessibility and understanding the customer you actually serve matter more than copying somebody else’s playbook.💥 MIC DROP MOMENTS:🎤 Digital isn’t just another channel. It’s another way to remove friction and serve the customer.🎤 Innovation doesn’t only happen in big cities. Bringing digital convenience to rural communities can help close a very real access gap.🎤 Your physical footprint can become a digital advantage. Stores, proximity and convenience hit differently when you connect them intentionally.🎤 And maybe the biggest one: Stop building commerce for the customer you imagine. Build it for the customer standing right in front of you.We talk digital transformation without the buzzword bingo. Customer obsession without the corporate fluff. And what happens when a massive brick-and-mortar footprint meets an increasingly digital shopper.It’s smart. It’s practical. And yes—we brought the bubbles. 🥂The COMMERCE in SHeCOMMERCE is showing up BIG in this one.🎧 Grab your sparkling sip and hit play.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

Camera Ready, Career Ready: Jane Hanson on Finding Your Voice and Owning the RoomAI can give you the words. It cannot outsource your credibility.And in a world of AI-generated everything, that may be your biggest competitive advantage.This week, Cristina and Jacqui sit down with Jane Hanson—nine-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, longtime NBC New York anchor and host, and now executive communications coach—to talk about what it really takes to command a room, survive the unexpected, and make people actually listen when you speak.And yes, this particular SHeCOMMERCE friendship started exactly as all great professional relationships do: at Cannes, bonding over a questionable “Bates Motel,” a commandeered shuttle, and pink toilet paper. 😂But Jane’s career was forged in considerably higher-pressure situations.She spent decades in live television, interviewing presidents, executives, celebrities and newsmakers—and shares what it was like to be the first person on air at NBC on 9/11, with almost no confirmed information and no script to hide behind. Her lesson? When everything goes sideways, clarity, judgment and adaptability matter more than polished talking points.That lesson feels even more urgent today.Jane gets real about why confidence isn’t something you’re born with—it’s something you build. Why accomplished women routinely undervalue themselves. Why becoming “Formal Jane” the second you walk onstage actually works against you. And why vulnerability, authenticity and listening can be far more powerful than trying to look perfectly buttoned-up.We also dig into the communication double standards women still navigate: be confident, but not intimidating. Assertive, but not aggressive. Warm, but authoritative. Speak up—but apparently not too much.Jane’s answer? Stop contorting yourself into someone else’s definition of leadership.Because communication isn’t a “soft skill.” In an AI-driven business world, Jane argues it’s a hard skill—and an increasingly essential one.She shares practical advice you can use immediately: know exactly what you want your audience to remember; use “bridging” to acknowledge a question, transition and return to your message; prepare for the questions you don’t expect; write down your core competencies when confidence wobbles; and remember that a job interview is a two-way street—you’re choosing them, too.🎤 MIC-DROP MOMENTS⚡ “Confidence can absolutely be trained.”⚡ “You’re there for a reason… Own it. Believe in it. Believe in yourself.”⚡ “All of life is just a conversation.”⚡ Communication isn’t a soft skill anymore. It’s a hard skill.⚡ And our SHeCOMMERCE takeaway: AI can generate the presentation. You still have to stand up there and make someone care.☕ BUT FIRST… WE SPILL THE TEAWe celebrate women making moves, including Anne Hallock’s new role as Senior Director of Ad Marketing at Roku and SHeCOMMERCE alum Lauren Griewski’s latest leadership move at Chase Media Solutions.Then we go beyond the basket with Coca-Cola’s “The World Will Wait” campaign, which is essentially staging an intervention for our collective screen addiction and reminding consumers to put down the devices and share an actual meal.And EY puts $100 million behind the human skills that matter in a tech-led world—judgment, critical thinking, adaptability, leadership, collaboration and innovation.Which raises the question at the heart of this entire episode:As machines get better at communicating, do humans need to get better at being human?Our answer after this conversation with Jane?Hell yes.🎧 Listen if you’ve ever walked into a boardroom, interview, presentation, Zoom call—or just a meeting where someone stole the idea you said five minutes earlier—and wished you knew how to own your voice a little more.Because being visible isn’t the same as being heard.And having something valuable to say is only half the battle.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

What if the future of retail media isn’t about getting people to click more — but making their attention worth something?In this Sparkling Sips episode, Cristina and Jacqui sit down with Ariel Bishop, Co-Founder of Downtime, to talk retail media, AI, loyalty, in-store engagement, and what happens when brands actually reward consumers for their attention.Downtime is building a rewarded media model designed to help retailers, publishers, brands, and agencies turn customer attention into measurable growth and new revenue. Through interactive engagement, rewards, zero-party data, retail media strategy, and measurement, the company is rethinking the traditional ad model: instead of simply buying impressions, brands can give shoppers something meaningful in return for engaging.Ariel also shares the personal story behind the business. Her career has moved through traditional ad sales, measurement, analytics, publishing, technology, and now entrepreneurship. She opens up about trusting herself enough to make the founder leap, navigating male-dominated rooms, building a company while raising twins, and discovering an unexpected — and powerful — sisterhood of women founders, investors, leaders, and advocates along the way.Key Takeaways:• Attention has value. Retail media shouldn’t just sell impressions; rewarding shoppers for genuine engagement can create stronger connections for brands, retailers, and consumers.• Loyalty needs a new reason to matter. As AI and LLMs make it easier for shoppers to ask what to buy and where to buy it, retailers have to work harder to give consumers a reason to come back.• Digital can drive physical behavior. Rewards, coupons, and loyalty incentives can connect media exposure to real-world store visits and product trial.• AI should accelerate the work — not replace the thinking. Ariel’s approach is to use AI to move faster through segmentation, execution, and platform workflows while keeping human judgment and authentic creative at the center.• Trust yourself before you feel completely ready. Ariel’s founder story is a reminder that experience compounds — and sometimes the biggest career move comes when you finally decide you’ve earned the right to bet on yourself.• Sisterhood is a business advantage. One of Ariel’s biggest surprises in entrepreneurship has been finding women who actively want other women to win, learn, grow, and lead.Smart commerce strategy, founder real talk, and a powerful reminder that the future of business still comes down to people.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

Loving Your Pause: Menopause, Medicine & Making Yourself HeardWhat happens when you know something is wrong with your body…but no one can—or will—tell you why?This week, we’re firmly on the SHe side of SHeCOMMERCE with a conversation women should be having long before menopause actually arrives.Our guest Erin Lovingfoss spent more than 20 years building her career in the beverage industry. After a hysterectomy in 2019, she began experiencing symptoms she had never dealt with before: insomnia, anxiety, mood changes, heart palpitations, brain fog, loss of confidence, and an overwhelming feeling that she simply wasn’t herself.She sought answers. She was offered antidepressants. She was told it was menopause and essentially something she would have to live with.Then she found a nurse practitioner who did something surprisingly simple:She listened.That experience ultimately led Erin to become a certified menopause coach and launch Loving Your Pause, where she now helps other women understand what may be happening in their bodies, advocate for themselves, and build their own toolbox for this stage of life.And this conversation goes well beyond hot flashes.We talk about the symptoms nobody warned us about, Erin’s personal experience with HRT, sexual wellness, sleep, strength training, pelvic-floor health, medical self-advocacy, and why perimenopause can hit women at exactly the same time they are juggling peak career years, children, aging parents, and everything else life throws at them.We also take menopause into the workplace.Erin shares why women don’t necessarily have to disclose menopause to ask for support, what reasonable accommodations can look like, and why employers risk losing incredible experienced talent when women feel they have to quietly “power through.”Because bringing your whole self to work also means supporting the parts of being a woman that may make people uncomfortable.🎤 Mic Drop Moments“Consistency over perfection.”Your body may change from day to day. The goal isn’t doing everything perfectly—it’s learning to listen, adjust, and keep moving forward.“This is biology. This is not a problem.”Menopause isn’t something women should be embarrassed to discuss, hide at work, or suffer through silently.“We are not just put on this earth to bear children. We are allowed to talk about what comes after that.”Enough said.And when we asked Erin to finish the sentence “My body is not betraying me. It is…” her answer stopped us in our tracks:“Asking for a new way to thrive.”Yep. Put that one on a T-shirt.💥 Key TakeawaysKnow your symptoms—and prioritize them. Erin recommends writing down everything you’re experiencing, then identifying the three to five symptoms affecting your life most. A short doctor’s appointment becomes much more productive when you arrive prepared.If you feel dismissed, get another opinion. Second opinions—and third opinions—are allowed. Erin’s experience changed when she sought out a practitioner with menopause-specific education who actually listened and asked follow-up questions.Every body is different. There is no universal menopause experience and no single magic solution. Erin describes treatment and wellbeing as an evolving toolbox that may include medical care, nutrition, movement, strength training, sleep, social connection, journaling, and other supports.Sleep matters. A lot. For Erin, insomnia became one of the biggest signals that something deeper was happening—and poor sleep affected everything from energy and concentration to exercise and work performance.Strength over shrinking. Erin encourages women to think less about punishing cardio and calorie restriction and more about fueling their bodies, maintaining muscle, supporting bone health, and staying strong for the decades ahead.Sexual wellness is wellness. Pain, changes in desire, and other sexual-health concerns should not simply be dismissed as an inevitable consequence of aging. And if saying it out loud feels uncomfortable? Erin’s advice is beautifully practical: write it down and hand the note to your doctor.Menopause belongs in the workplace conversation. Flexibility, temperature control, remote work after a sleepless night, and greater awareness from managers are not about lowering expectations—they can help talented women continue performing at their best.And perhaps the biggest message of the episode?You are not alone—and this stage does not have to be the beginning of becoming less.As Erin puts it, this can be the moment you decide:How do I want to live the next 40 or 50 years of my life?☕ Spill the Tea: Drones, AI & the Women Behind the HeadlinesBefore diving into menopause, we head straight into the future of commerce.First up: DoorDash Air.DoorDash has received FAA Part 135 certification for its in-house drone delivery program, opening the door to a fulfillment ecosystem that could include Dashers, autonomous vehicles, robots, and drones.Our commerce takeaway?This isn’t really about drones. It’s about the network.The future question may no longer be “How fast can we deliver?” but rather “What is the smartest fulfillment method for this particular order?”And when cold medicine, the missing dinner ingredient, coffee—or that forgotten birthday candle—can potentially arrive from the sky?As Jacqui put it:“Impulse buying is literally arriving from the sky.”Then we turn to Anthropic, the company behind Claude, and speculation surrounding what could eventually become a massive public-market valuation.But the number wasn’t the part of the story we cared about most.We cared about another question:Where are the women?Inspired by Jennifer Stojkovic’s spotlight on the women helping build Anthropic, we look beyond the standard founder/CEO/valuation headlines to the women shaping product, ethics, communications, technology, strategy, and culture.Because companies aren’t built by one person.And we need to stop waiting until women become CEOs before deciding their leadership stories are worth telling.Influence does not only live at the top of the org chart.Tea. Spilled. ☕About Erin LovingfossErin Lovingfoss is a longtime beverage-industry professional, certified menopause coach, fitness advocate, and founder of Loving Your Pause.What began as a personal search for answers became a mission to help other women feel informed, supported, and less alone through perimenopause and menopause. Her work combines education, movement, wellness, community, and practical self-advocacy—while Erin continues to build her corporate career alongside her growing business.Her word for this chapter?Unstoppable.And her current hype song?“Just a Girl.”Naturally. 🔥Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

Don’t Upgrade Your Technology. Upgrade Yourself.AI is moving fast. Consumer behavior is shifting. Business models are being rewritten in real time.But Kirsten Stendevad believes the biggest upgrade leaders need to make right now isn’t technological.It’s human.In this deeply personal and thought-provoking episode of SHeCOMMERCE, Cristina and Jacqui sit down with Kirsten Stendevad, Founder of the Illumina International Future Leadership Academy, author, speaker and leadership advisor, to explore what it really means to become a future-fit leader.Kirsten challenges the idea that we can solve tomorrow’s problems using yesterday’s thinking. Her argument? Our internal “source code” — the beliefs, fears and assumptions shaping how we lead — matters just as much as the technology we adopt. If leaders don’t evolve their thinking, even the best tools in the world won’t create meaningful transformation. The conversation becomes profoundly personal when Kirsten shares the loss of her six-year-old son to complications following cancer treatment. In the darkest moment of her life, she remembers confronting a choice: allow grief to pull her down, or consciously look for a way forward. The phrase that changed her trajectory was simple: “Why go down when you can go up?” That experience became foundational to her philosophy of leadership: we cannot always control what happens, but there is power in the space between what happens to us and how we choose to respond.The conversation also turns to feminine leadership — and why Kirsten believes the capabilities historically dismissed as “soft” may become some of our greatest advantages in the AI era.She describes feminine leadership as extending beyond purely head-led thinking into intuition, connection, sensitivity, embodiment and purpose. Her challenge to women is particularly provocative: after decades of learning how to succeed inside traditionally masculine systems, perhaps the next evolution requires some unlearning and relearning. And her message isn’t about women replacing men. It’s about balance. Kirsten uses the image of humanity as a bird that has spent generations flying predominantly with one — masculine — wing. To rise higher, she argues, we need to extend both. Ultimately, Kirsten leaves us with a radically accessible definition of leadership:Leadership isn’t something printed on your business card.It’s something you take when you see an unmet need and decide to step forward.Because the future isn’t simply something we predict.It’s something we help create.☕ Spill the TeaBefore Kirsten joins the conversation, Cristina and Jacqui look at four stories showing just how quickly the definitions of commerce, technology and leadership are changing.First, they celebrate a serious SHeCOMMERCE Power Move: Disney Cruise Line naming Captain Maria Gotor its first-ever female ship captain. Gotor began her career as a lawyer in Spain before returning to school to study nautical engineering and maritime navigation — eventually taking command of the Disney Wish. It’s a powerful reminder that the career you started with doesn’t have to define the leader you become. Then it’s onto commerce, where TikTok Shop is coming for the whole funnel. Cristina and Jacqui unpack data showing TikTok Shop’s growing share of U.S. online spending and its push into Prime-style membership benefits. Their takeaway: TikTok is no longer simply a discovery or marketing platform. The lines between media, community, discovery and transaction are disappearing, meaning tomorrow’s competitor may look nothing like today’s. Next: Are companies adopting AI faster than their leaders are learning to lead with it? The pair dig into Microsoft research showing only 26% of surveyed AI users believe their leadership is clearly and consistently aligned around AI. If technology becomes increasingly accessible to everyone, the competitive advantage may shift toward judgment, curiosity, adaptability and knowing which questions to ask. And finally, the SHe: empathy may be becoming a leadership superpower — but are women paying the bill? Cristina and Jacqui discuss research into the workplace “empathy tax,” including findings that many women managers spend a significant portion of their working week on largely invisible caring and emotional-support tasks. If these deeply human skills are becoming more valuable, organizations need to figure out how to value them without simply assigning women even more unpaid emotional labor. Which leads perfectly into Kirsten’s central question:As technology becomes more powerful, could becoming more human actually be our greatest competitive advantage?Key TakeawaysUpgrade the human operating system. New technology layered onto old assumptions won’t create true transformation. Leaders need to examine the internal beliefs and “source code” shaping how they see possibilities and problems. Your old success formula can become your biggest risk. Kirsten warns leaders against assuming that the strategies that created yesterday’s success will survive tomorrow’s disruption. Reflection isn’t wasted time. Leaders who insist they’re “too busy” to stop, challenge assumptions and broaden their perspective risk continuing quickly in the wrong direction. Fear consumes bandwidth. When fear becomes part of our internal operating system, it can keep leaders looping through the same behaviors and outcomes. The power is in the decision. Kirsten’s deeply personal experience taught her that even when circumstances cannot be changed, we retain agency over how we respond. Feminine leadership is not weakness. Kirsten connects sensitivity with resilience and argues that intuition, connection, embodiment and purpose become increasingly valuable in an AI-powered world. Women may need to unlearn in order to relearn. Many women became highly skilled at operating inside systems designed around traditionally masculine norms. The next evolution may involve reconnecting with capabilities those systems encouraged them to suppress. Leadership isn’t a title. It begins when someone recognizes an unmet need, decides to take responsibility and steps forward. Humanity needs both wings. Kirsten’s vision isn’t feminine versus masculine leadership. It’s restoring balance so both can contribute to the future we create. Quotable Moments“Do not just upgrade technology. Upgrade your human operating system.” —  “Why go down when you can go up?”  “Fear occupies a lot of the bandwidth.”  “We have to unlearn and relearn.”  “Leadership is something you take. It’s not something you’re given.”  “With our leadership, we shape.”  “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”  “The more technologically advanced our world becomes, the more valuable our distinctly human capabilities may become.” SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

Shelley Zalis: Make Good Trouble. Build New Rooms. Fix the System.There are women who get invited into powerful rooms.Shelley Zalis builds new ones. Then she holds the door open.This episode of SHeCOMMERCE was a full-circle moment for us.Shelley Zalis — Founder and CEO of The Female Quotient, entrepreneur, movement maker, co-creator of #SeeHer and proudly self-appointed Chief Troublemaker — has spent decades challenging something many of us have been conditioned to accept:The rules.Who wrote them? Who do they work for? Who gets access? Who gets seen? And why are we still following rules that were never designed for the way women actually live, work and lead?Shelley’s philosophy cuts straight through the noise:Stop fixing the women. Fix the system.That became the thread running through our conversation — access, ambition, caregiving, AI, representation, leadership and the power of women moving together.🔥 SPILL THE TEA: WOMEN REFUSING TO ACCEPT THE RULES THEY WERE HANDEDFirst up: Paris Hilton — from survivor to system changer.Paris has spent years speaking publicly about the abuse she says she experienced as a teenager in residential youth treatment programs. She testified, went to lawmakers and Congress, and kept showing up. In December 2024, after years of advocacy from Paris, other survivors and lawmakers, the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act became federal law.Our takeaway?Influence isn’t about how many followers you have. It’s about using whatever platform you have to move something that wasn’t moving before.Voice → access → action.Then we talked about Chinese elite runner Li Mizhen, whose footage from the 2024 Hengshui Lake Marathon resurfaced after she unexpectedly got her period during the race.She kept running.What fascinated us was the reaction. Why are we still treating periods, pregnancy, menopause, motherhood, caregiving and the realities of the female body as things women are supposed to hide?Women aren’t succeeding despite being women.We are succeeding while being fully human.💥 CHIEF TROUBLEMAKER: PERMISSION TO BREAK THE RULESShelley took us back to a defining career moment: a performance review at 25.She was criticized for spending too much time with clients. Listening too much. Customizing too much. Pushing people outside their comfort zones.Her head told her to sign it.Her gut told her they were wrong.She refused — and was demoted.Looking back, the very behaviors she was criticized for became some of her greatest strengths.Eventually, she gave herself the title Chief Troublemaker.Not trouble for trouble’s sake.Good trouble.The kind that asks why. The kind that challenges “this is how we’ve always done it.” The kind that creates a new pattern when the old one no longer works.👊 THE POWER OF THE PACKOne of Shelley’s most powerful ideas feels deeply SHeCOMMERCE:A woman can be powerful alone. But collectively, women create impact.Years ago at CES, Shelley found herself in an overwhelmingly male environment. She invited five women to walk the show floor together and told them to invite others.Within 24 hours, 50 women showed up.That moment helped spark what became the Girls’ Lounge and ultimately The Female Quotient.Women gathered to talk openly about work-life balance, imposter syndrome, money, ambition and perfection.But they also did something else:They did business together.Shelley didn’t simply fight for a seat in the existing room.She moved the power into a new one.🚪 IT’S NOT AN AMBITION GAP. IT’S AN ACCESS GAP.This may have been one of the biggest mic drops of the episode.When headlines suggest women are becoming less ambitious, Shelley challenges the premise.Perhaps the problem isn’t ambition at all.Perhaps it’s access.Access to opportunity. Decision-makers. Sponsorship. Visibility. The rooms where careers are shaped.Talent can’t be recognized if the people making decisions never get the chance to see it.Shelley’s challenge to organizations is to stop admiring the pipeline problem and start examining the access points.Where do women disappear? At first promotion? After parental leave? During caregiving years? When networking happens somewhere they can’t be?And sometimes changing the system is practical.At Cannes, Shelley saw women struggling with the logistics of leaving their families for an important industry event.So The Female Quotient created childcare.Not another panel about working parents.Actual childcare.That is the difference between talking about inclusion and designing for it.🤖 AI IS AN INGREDIENT — AND WOMEN NEED TO HELP SHAPE THE RECIPEShelley is optimistic about AI, but she isn’t blindly evangelical about it.Her framing is simple:AI is an ingredient for growth and amplification. It is not the solution.AI learns from historical data — and historical data contains historical blind spots.That’s why women need more than access to AI tools.We need access to the people and rooms shaping them.Representation changes what gets noticed.❤️ IT’S NOT WORK OR LIFE. IT’S LIFE.And because this is SHeCOMMERCE, we got personal too.What fills Shelley’s cup?Literally: coffee with her beloved no-sugar vanilla Coffee-mate powder.Figuratively: her children and grandchildren.She shared the story of getting ready to walk onstage at Davos with Cisco’s CEO when her grandson called.She answered.Because family doesn’t stop existing when the meeting starts.Why have we decided that talking about children, caregiving or the people we love somehow makes us less professional?Shelley’s point: someone has to start the new pattern.When one leader behaves differently, everyone around them gets permission to imagine something different too.🎤 MIC DROP MOMENTS🔥 “We have to stop fixing the women. We have to fix the system.”🔥 “It’s not an ambition gap. It’s an access gap.”🔥 “Someone at some point has to create a new pattern.”🔥 “Possibility becomes probability much quicker when you go together.”🔥 “AI is an ingredient. It is not a solution.”🔥 “Make the invisible visible.”And perhaps the most unapologetically Shelley mic drop of all:🔥 “Shut that bitch up in your head and be you.” 🎤💥Because that voice telling you that you’re not ready, don’t have every qualification or should wait until you’re invited?It doesn’t get to write your next chapter.You do.⚡ OUR BIGGEST TAKEAWAYSStop treating women as the problem to solve. Confidence training won’t fix systems that restrict access.Access changes everything. Talent matters — but visibility, proximity and opportunity matter too.Collective action accelerates change. Power multiplies when women move together.Language matters. Before accepting labels like “ambition gap,” question the narrative they create about what women supposedly lack.Design for real lives. Childcare, caregiving, parental leave and flexibility aren’t side issues. They shape who gets to participate and progress.Women need to help shape AI, not simply use it. Lived experience needs to be represented in the systems being built.And finally:You do not need permission to rewrite a bad rule.Shelley Zalis has built companies, movements and communities. But what makes her work especially powerful is how many other people she has pulled into the room with her.That’s the power of the pack.That’s good trouble.And that’s exactly the kind of sisterhood we’re building at SHeCOMMERCE — one conversation, one connection and one newly opened door at a time.🎧 Tune in for a conversation about rewriting outdated rules, redefining ambition, creating real access, shaping AI, leading as your whole self and finding the power of the pack.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

What happens when SHeCOMMERCE goes Always Off Brand? Apparently… absolutely nothing is off limits. 🔥In this special crossover episode, Cristina Marinucci and Jacqui Dynowski join Scott, Haley and Summer from the Always Off Brand podcast for a conversation that starts with commerce, takes a detour through Cannes, AI and retail media, goes deep on women and power—and eventually gets delightfully, spectacularly off brand.In other words: exactly our kind of episode.We kick things off with the story behind SHeCOMMERCE—from a Cornell introduction and an instant Cristina-and-Jacqui friendship to a few glasses of Prosecco in London and the realization that maybe the conversations we were already having were the conversations more people needed to hear.Fast-forward to today, and that little idea has become a growing community of leaders and advocates willing to talk about all of it: business transformation, confidence, motherhood, being underestimated, leadership, sacrifice, careers, commerce and what success actually costs.Because the best business conversations rarely stay just about business.🎧 In this episode, we get into:🤖 AI is everywhere—but humans still matter. A lot.Coming out of Cannes, one thing was impossible to ignore: AI is officially the salted caramel of business. It's in everything. But amid all the technology, automation and agentic everything, people were craving something decidedly old-school: other people.We talk about where AI creates value, where human connection becomes the differentiator, and why brands need to understand when technology should enable a relationship—not replace it.🛒 Great commerce partnerships aren't transactions. They're relationships.We revisit the Dollar General + Milo's Tea conversation and what it showed about real joint value creation: test, learn, share, adapt and build together. Retail media works better when retailers, brands and partners aren't operating through a black box—but acting like one team with a shared consumer at the center.The technology matters. The data matters. But at the end of the day?People vibe best with people.💥 A seat at the table is NOT the same thing as power at the table.This one gets real.Women may be better represented in business than they once were—but are they equally influential?Who actually makes the decisions?Who controls the capital?Who gets sponsored, not just mentored?Whose name gets said when she isn't in the room?And who's sitting at the table…but still fighting to get a word in?Representation matters. Authority matters more.And if someone repeats your brilliant idea two minutes later?Jacqui has your new favorite response:“Thank you for elaborating on my point.” 😏You're welcome.👊 Sisterhood requires action, not slogans.We get candid about the complicated history of women supporting—or competing with—other women at work.Progress isn't simply having more women in the room. It's widening the path behind you.Make the introduction.Recommend her.Share the salary information.Put her on the succession slate.Say her name when she isn't in the room.Because another woman's rise does not require your fall.🪑 And then there are the boardrooms…If we want women to have real influence over companies, industries and capital, we have to talk about boards.One line from our previous conversation with the Women on Boards Project comes roaring back:There isn't a supply problem. There's a demand problem.Women with decades of operating, commercial and leadership experience don't need endless permission slips and “readiness” programs before they're deemed qualified to contribute. They need access to the opportunities they've already spent their careers preparing for.And yes—we call BS on that one too.Of course, it wouldn't be an Always Off Brand x SHeCOMMERCE crossover without things eventually going completely off the rails.There are debates about golf as a business-development strategy.Jacqui reveals why she has never gotten a driver's license.Cannes mopeds are discussed.And the crew ropes us into “What's That Keyword?”We will simply say this:What happens in the keyword game…probably should have stayed in the keyword game. 😂This episode is smart, messy, funny, personal and very, very real—because commerce isn't built by algorithms, org charts or buzzwords.It's built by people.And if we're going to build the future of commerce, let's make damn sure more women have not just a seat in the room—but the influence, authority and power to shape what happens next.🎧 Hit play and join the crossover we didn't know we needed.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.Because it's not just business. It's personal.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

Reinventing Iconic Brands, Women’s Health & the Power of Getting Your Hands Dirty with Laura Thompson of Bayer CanadaHow do you reinvent an iconic brand without losing the trust that made it iconic in the first place?In this episode of SHeCOMMERCE, Cristina and Jacqui sit down with Laura Thompson, Country Division Head of Consumer Health at Bayer Canada, for a conversation that moves from data, brand building and consumer trust to women’s health, leadership and why sometimes the best leaders are still willing to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty.Laura reminds us that building brands today looks dramatically different than it did even two years ago. Consumers have more information, more choices, more influence—and increasingly, more control.The answer isn’t changing who your brand is.It’s reinventing how consumers experience it.🍵 Spill the TeaBefore Laura joins the conversation, Cristina and Jacqui spill this week’s tea on the shifts reshaping consumer health and commerce:• Bayer’s leadership evolution: Samantha Avivi’s appointment as Global Chief Marketing Officer for Bayer Consumer Health—and why the integration of marketing, commercial leadership, data and analytics matters.• The convergence of beauty, wellness and health: Former Glossier CEO Kyle Leahy’s move to WHOOP sparks a bigger conversation about consumers no longer thinking in neat category silos.• AI is changing how people shop: Shopify data pointing to the power of AI-referred shoppers leads to one big question for healthcare brands: when consumers stop searching and start asking, how do you earn the recommendation?💥 Inside the Conversation with LauraBuilding brands today is different.Data underlines nearly everything. Brands once controlled much of the information consumers received. Today, ratings, reviews, digital platforms and AI have shifted more of that control to the consumer.Reinvention doesn’t mean abandoning what made you iconic.For Bayer’s consumer health brands, Laura says science, efficacy and trust remain foundational. The opportunity is to rethink how those brands show up—from packaging and claims to channels, platforms and personalized messaging.Access is bigger than price.Laura shares Bayer’s Road to Billions mission and its focus on expanding access to consumer health. That means considering price points, pack sizes, channels, information and whether consumers can actually find and understand what they need.Science is the backbone.As consumers face an overwhelming amount of health information, Laura believes credible, science-backed information becomes even more important—not less.🔥 And Then We Talk About Women’s Health…This is where the episode gets personal.Laura shares eye-opening insights on perimenopause and menopause and the very real impact these life stages can have on women, their careers and the economy.Among the statistics discussed:• 1 in 2 women are embarrassed to ask for help.• A massive cohort of women is entering the perimenopause and menopause stage of life.• 1 in 10 may leave the workforce because of menopause symptoms.• 1 in 5 believe their symptoms could hold them back from progressing at work.And perhaps one of the most sobering reminders of the episode: women only began being meaningfully included in medical research in the 1980s.Meanwhile, women are often managing not only their own health but the health of children, partners, parents and entire households.That makes access to credible, easy-to-understand health information more than a marketing opportunity.It’s a responsibility.Laura challenges brands and retailers to think beyond selling products and instead understand the transitions and pivotal moments in women’s lives—and what women actually need during those moments.💪 Leadership, Hustle & Saying YesLaura’s leadership story starts somewhere refreshingly unglamorous: in sales.Building displays. Ordering product. Working store backrooms. Owning a territory. Seeing immediately what worked—and what didn’t.And she loved it.That early experience shaped the leader she is today: someone who loves the hustle, isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty, learns by watching great leaders and not-so-great ones, and has built a career by saying yes to opportunities other people sometimes didn’t want.🎙️ Quotable Moments“Building brands today is very different than it was even two years ago.”“It’s not like changing who we are, but it’s just reinventing how consumers experience us.”“Our science is the backbone of our organization.”“We owe easy access to information—to credible information.”“I love the hustle.”“Being able to hustle, get my hands dirty, roll up my sleeves—I’m still that way today.”This episode sits right at the intersection of the SHe and the COMMERCE in SHeCOMMERCE: how brands earn trust in a radically changing marketplace, how companies can better serve women throughout their lives, and how leaders stay grounded while navigating change.Because building better brands and building better workplaces aren’t separate conversations.It’s not just business. It’s personal.🎧 Tune in and join the conversation.Bold Brands. Fierce Women. One Sisterhood.SHeCOMMERCE: Website: https://shecommercepodcast.com/ LinkedIN:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/shecommercepodcast/ YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SHeCOMMERCEPodcastDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from SHeCOMMERCE Podcast or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SHeCOMMERCE Podcast. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent.SHeCOMMERCE Podcast expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.