The continuing goal of "The Innovation Conversation" is to explore some facet of the fast-changing, technology-driven retail landscape and how it affects businesses and consumers. It is, we think, fertile territory ... and one that Tom Furphy - a former Amazon executive who led the team that developed Amazon Fresh, and currently CEO and Managing Director of Consumer Equity Partners (CEP), a venture capital and venture development firm in Seattle, WA, that works with many top retailers and manufacturers - is uniquely positioned to address.
Today, Tom and KC start off by discussing what some perceive as a shift in priorities at Amazon, away from customer obsession and toward cost reduction, operational issues and right-sizing. The question is a) whether such a shift actually is taking place, and b) whether Amazon can continue to innovate in such an environment. From there, they discuss Amazon's approach to physical retail, the future of checkout-free shopping, and then move on to the bottom line - what other retailers can learn from Amazon's responses to its current travails.
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