Ace & Tate on LinkedIn: Meet our Optical Team At Ace & Tate, our team is the heart of what we do.… (2024)

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Last Wednesday I had the honour to present at the Belgian JYSK Store Manager Day.By now I’m used to giving updates or giving presentations to a group of people. I feel comfortable doing this normally, since I make sure to prepare such things properly. So that there’s no need to feel anxious. But this time I was more nervous than usual. Why? Because the presentation was about 15 minutes long and was in French 🥵My French knowledge is quite OK I would say. But highlighting the most important changes or processes of a Sales & Marketing business plan for next financial year to all Frenchspeaking storemanagers is a whole another level. And not something I had any experience with. At all. When the question came of doing the presentation, I immediately agreed on doing this. Not because I felt comfortable doing it.But because I wanted to challenge myself. I saw it as an opportunity to step out of my comfort zone. And to learn from it. A few years ago, I’m sure I would have been more hesitant.But now I’m like. Let’s do this. Perhaps this behaviour is an example how much I’ve grown? I was quite nervous, even practised during breaks and I was not 100% if it would go well. But when I had to start, I experienced a form of calmness. My mindset was: Let’s do your best and not worry too much. Which isn’t an easy thing for me, being a perfectionist. But I’ve learnt that having doubts don’t help at all. It doesn’t improve the quality of the presentation. So it’s better to relax and relate. So what if it doesn’t go well? It won’t be the end of the world. I can always switch to English if I really struggle. It won’t be a shame, at least you tried. Did it go perfectly? Not always in my opinion.Could it have been worse? 1000% But I was quite happy how everything went and how I even handled some of the unexpected questions. I hope the store managers appreciated the effort as much as I’ve enjoyed their passion, drive and positive enthusiasm throughout the day! Merci de votre écoute, de votre patience et de vos questions légitimes 😉#JYSK #GOJYSK #storemanagerday #storemanager #colleagues #oneteam #retail #marketing #businessplan #presentation #français

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Life is all about memories and experiences, right? In some time of reflection, I have compiled some of the best memories and experiences during my time at Express to share with you. When I first started at Express, I was brought on (thank you Vaughan Staros) to lead a customer experience program that was centered around Express' Brand Purpose. 'We Create Confidence. We Inspire Self-Expression'. With that, the experience was all about bringing our Styling Community together, and our associates, were the second largest component to that community (second to our customers). While leading this program, it allowed me the opportunity to meet and engage with amazing leaders throughout the country. I was able to build and lead immersion into the program, host change management sessions, lead store calibration visits, analyze the program performance, and most importantly, measure customer loyalty and associate feedback. I loved every second of that role, and I was able to immerse myself deeper into the brand, learn best practices, and take on new opportunities, such as leading Marketing Brand Events, hosting Associate Incentive Trips, and launch Customer Experience tools to drive consistency. While I was at Express, I also co-led the Professional Women and Allies Community Group and had the honor of moderating a panel for International Women's Day. As I mentioned in a previous post, that conversation was grounded in mentorship and it left me feeling inspired to be working with such an amazing community. And thank you, to my fellow leads Heidi Tharp Jennie Goff and steward Megha Patel!I was promoted last August (while on Maternity Leave!) to Senior Manager, Store Experience. My role grew into leading half of the Store Operations team focused on Field Communications, Learning and Development, Stores Strategy, Incentives, Recognition, Customer Experience and Initiatives. As a team, we led the Stores' Strategy, made significant improvements to the associate experience (through communication and immersion), and drove a store-centric culture through providing a feedback loop and store visit program. This Spring, I project managed our Field Leader Meeting where we brought our ELT, Regional Directors (Lee Vuolo Tracy Sundermeier Michelle Robinette, SPHR) and District Managers together to talk strategy for 2024. We delivered a virtual experience that left the audience engaged, clear, and ready to reboot the new year. And lastly, I would be remissed if I didn't acknowledge the amazing team I last worked with. Sherri Tamasovich Kimberly Graff Jennie Goff Betsy Spence Ariel Balske JESSICA BAKER Jeremy Saeger Becka Sanders Ruth Subedi I will miss learning and working with you!Thank you to each and every one of you who made my time at Express so memorable. It's these types of experiences that make you love what you do, and eager to take on more. If you have a memory or experience that I was a part of at Express, feel free to drop it below!

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Here's our latest blog - showcasing inspiring examples of inclusive customer service...

NewStore, Inc. know a thing or two (or three) about retail experiences. In fact, someone once said: "If NewStore doesn't know something about retail, it's not worth knowing."(I said that).So when they put on a Store Tour to show off real examples of exceptional shopping experiences, the best brands in retail pay attention. And sign up to join.You should do the same! The link is below 😃

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Feature Friday - A weekly series where I highlight exciting projects happening around the world.I’ll be doing some shopping this Black Friday at Sephora.Did you know that Dominique Mandonnaud founded Shop 8 (now Sephora) in 1967, to provide space for consumers to try out the products before actually making the purchase. At this time in France, trying the product before buying it was unheard of!I think it’s so cool to look at the history of this massively successful chain and recognize some of the hard work that must have gone into the early days of this project:- Being a visionary for offering something original- Bringing others onboard- Preparing the store and branding- Launch day activities- Hiring and training employees

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An amazing initiative by our long-term client, Ulta Beauty! Through The Joy Project, the company is prioritizing training its associates to address customers’ negative self-talk directly in stores. The goal is to change the shopper experience and support store associates in helping customers experience happiness. “Beauty is powerful and should be used as a force for good, and that’s exactly what we aim to do with The Joy Project,” said Michelle Crossan-Matos, Chief Marketing Officer at Ulta Beauty, via CEW. CEW reports that the eight-part training program focuses on the strategies and tools associates need to learn to limit negative self-talk—and ultimately help customers do the same. The methodology that associates are taught helps them to: ✔Identify their inner critic✔Interrupt the pattern✔Inspire positivity in themselves and others This is an incredible movement by Ulta Beauty to empower its store associates to inspire joy in their customers every day—and ultimately create a ripple effect beyond the walls of the stores. How else can companies find ways to go above and beyond to improve the lives of their customers? #LearnMOHR #RetailTrends #Retail

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Macy's announced a new transformation programme as they look to strengthen the brand, focus on luxury and streamline their operating model.The transformation is called A "Bold New Chapter" suggests perhaps that there will be some more drastic changes and difficult decisions on route as they look to jump-start the business. As part of these plans, they are looking to close 150 "unproductive" locations over the next 3 years whilst opening 45 new stores. This is the latest in a stream of similar initiatives as the department store looks to reinvigorate the business model and customer proposition. The term "unproductive" was interesting to me and suggests it's different to the classic "unprofitable" metric often used.Source: https://lnkd.in/evWJDNDs

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🚨🚨🚨Breaking News:Luxury retail in the United States continues to consolidate.International brands have more power than ever before.While the acquisition of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman by the parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue is sure to streamline operations, one must wonder how much more hom*ogeneous the stores and their offerings will become.Ultimately, the need for personalization and individualization will become more important than ever.This is a key benefit to working with private consultants who are skilled in the practice of image-making.

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Sometimes it’s something as simple as attending your works annual party that is organised by your brilliant store team, that makes you realise that what you do is absolutely worth all the blood, sweat and tears.A very comical awards ceremony at the @marksandspencer White City store party culminated in the spotlight turning on the store manger (me) to present a video message from the team to award me with a ‘lifetime achievement’ award.Some humbling and very touching messages were recorded which was all very unexpected and completely unnecessary, but gave me a realisation that how you engage, behave and interact with the people you work with has a lasting impact.Being courteous, having manners, leading with transparency is something I have learnt to do by understanding that ultimately, people work for people. Heirachy is necessary but is only truly affective when applied in the right way. This should never stop you from connecting with the people that ultimately make the machine work and deliver the results. Get to know your team, regardless of how many of them there are, know their names, roll your sleeves up, work shoulder to shoulder and be appreciative of what they do for you. Tonight has taught me that leadership of people is a constant, but a constant privilege. And if your teams give you the nod of appreciation, which they did tonight, it makes it all worthwhile.#whitecitymarksandspencer#centrallondon #centrallondonacademy

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