Retail Today with Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor
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Description
Retail is a battleground. Retailers no longer have the luxury of customers walking in without researching their buy first. People are checking Amazon and other online retailers well before stepping in your store and even while standing in your aisles. How do you increase sales, reduce employee churn, and become a retail destination?
Retail Today with Bob Phibbs is a two-minute daily digest guiding retailers on the latest tips, techniques, and tools for closing more sales effectively and effortlessly no matter your brand, location, or product line. No matter your industry, background, location, or outlook on retail’s future, Retail Today has the insight and clarity you need to gain more ground with your business.
For longer form interviews, checkout Bob‘s podcast Tell Me Something Good About Retail.
Meet Bob Phibbs, Your Host of Retail Today:
Who is the champion of retailers? Before 1994, there wasn’t a champion because retail was already starting to lose ground to online competitors. That’s when Bob Phibbs stepped into the fight to give brick-and-mortar retailers a fighting chance. The Retail Doctor launched in 1994 and for the past 25+ years, you’ve seen his work. Bob Phibbs is an internationally recognized business strategist, customer service expert, sales coach, marketing mentor, author of three books, and motivational business speaker.
Sure, that’s impressive, but what makes Bob Phibbs the world’s leading expert on brick-and-mortar retailers? His client list. Bernina, Brother, Caesars Palace, Hunter Douglas, Lego, Omega, Yamaha - those are just a handful of the thousands of household brands who trust Bob Phibbs.
Bob Phibbs was named one of the top retail influencers for the past five years, including LinkedIn’s Top Voice about retail. Yes, success doesn’t come without more than a few bright lights. Bob has made appearances on ABC, Fox, MSNBC, and PBS, among other networks. Bob and his work have also been featured in articles by Entrepreneur, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He also provided business makeovers to The Los Angeles Times.
Bob knows what it takes to rock in retail because he’s spent 30 years in the trenches of retail ups and downs. He’s been a corporate officer, franchisor, and entrepreneur who fought his way to the top. Bob’s direct influence generated the highest increase in sales from South Coast Plaza, which was the highest-grossing mall in the USA at that time.
Here’s a rundown of Bob’s expertise and the results he generates for clients:
+ 30 years experience creating and implementing exceptional retail shopping experiences
+ Proven sales increase from 20-50% within months
+ Exceptionally strong record of creating winning teams
+ Launched new brands
+ A seasoned, skilled leader of executive, product development, and traditional marketing teams
+ Online virtual sales trainer for thousands of brick and mortar stores
+ A leading expert in franchise development, franchisee support, and new business development
+ Known for accelerating success in visual merchandising, sales strategies, and business makeovers
See why over 50 top retailers and influencers recommend Bob Phibbs the Retail Doctor on LinkedIn.
Start a Conversation:
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob Phibbs by visiting retaildoc.com or emailing [email protected].
Retail Today with Bob Phibbs is a two-minute daily digest guiding retailers on the latest tips, techniques, and tools for closing more sales effectively and effortlessly no matter your brand, location, or product line. No matter your industry, background, location, or outlook on retail’s future, Retail Today has the insight and clarity you need to gain more ground with your business.
For longer form interviews, checkout Bob‘s podcast Tell Me Something Good About Retail.
Meet Bob Phibbs, Your Host of Retail Today:
Who is the champion of retailers? Before 1994, there wasn’t a champion because retail was already starting to lose ground to online competitors. That’s when Bob Phibbs stepped into the fight to give brick-and-mortar retailers a fighting chance. The Retail Doctor launched in 1994 and for the past 25+ years, you’ve seen his work. Bob Phibbs is an internationally recognized business strategist, customer service expert, sales coach, marketing mentor, author of three books, and motivational business speaker.
Sure, that’s impressive, but what makes Bob Phibbs the world’s leading expert on brick-and-mortar retailers? His client list. Bernina, Brother, Caesars Palace, Hunter Douglas, Lego, Omega, Yamaha - those are just a handful of the thousands of household brands who trust Bob Phibbs.
Bob Phibbs was named one of the top retail influencers for the past five years, including LinkedIn’s Top Voice about retail. Yes, success doesn’t come without more than a few bright lights. Bob has made appearances on ABC, Fox, MSNBC, and PBS, among other networks. Bob and his work have also been featured in articles by Entrepreneur, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He also provided business makeovers to The Los Angeles Times.
Bob knows what it takes to rock in retail because he’s spent 30 years in the trenches of retail ups and downs. He’s been a corporate officer, franchisor, and entrepreneur who fought his way to the top. Bob’s direct influence generated the highest increase in sales from South Coast Plaza, which was the highest-grossing mall in the USA at that time.
Here’s a rundown of Bob’s expertise and the results he generates for clients:
+ 30 years experience creating and implementing exceptional retail shopping experiences
+ Proven sales increase from 20-50% within months
+ Exceptionally strong record of creating winning teams
+ Launched new brands
+ A seasoned, skilled leader of executive, product development, and traditional marketing teams
+ Online virtual sales trainer for thousands of brick and mortar stores
+ A leading expert in franchise development, franchisee support, and new business development
+ Known for accelerating success in visual merchandising, sales strategies, and business makeovers
See why over 50 top retailers and influencers recommend Bob Phibbs the Retail Doctor on LinkedIn.
Start a Conversation:
If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob Phibbs by visiting retaildoc.com or emailing [email protected].
288 Episodes
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Here's a personal story about spotting a juvenile bald eagle and using it as a metaphor for "anticipation" in retail: how curiosity, expectation, and eagerness can revive staff performance and increase conversions.
Look in the mirror if your retail sales aren't up to speed, retrain and reset expectations, and foster an infectious anticipation that turns browsers into buyers and builds momentum heading into Q4.
Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doc, hosts a live session covering essential retail tips: the right customer greeting, effective window merchandising, and how to use AI to improve hiring and listings.
Short, practical takeaways include using a simple greeting, keeping windows clear so shoppers can see inside, and using AI to grade and rewrite job postings to attract better candidates.
This episode gives quick, practical retail tips for selling to male holiday shoppers — especially last-minute buyers on Christmas Eve. Learn how to prepare your store, engage without overwhelming, offer visible high-impact gift options, and make returns and decisions easy so men can buy confidently.
It covers what to show (big, bright, or cool), what to avoid (asking budget or following too closely), and simple tactics like playful signage, checking in without hovering, and suggesting wrapped alternatives instead of gift cards to boost holiday sales.
And yes, this is an AI generated version of my recent blog. Would love to hear your thoughts. [email protected]
WBBM Noon Business Hour interviews Bob Phibbs, CEO of The Retail Doctor, about how Black Friday has transformed — from month-long online deals and softer store traffic to younger shoppers treating it as a social event. He explains why in-store experiences and human connections still drive most sales and what retailers must do to win holiday shoppers.
The conversation also touches on tighter budgets, shifting promotions, and why retail stories often mask steady annual sales gains despite noisy headlines about declining foot traffic.
Podcast Description:
Some of us aren't looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. Not the travel or the cooking. It's sitting across from people we love who now say things that used to live on the fringe like they're obvious facts.
In this episode, I talk about how we got here. The stories we inherited that taught us "us versus them." How pop culture used to warn us about ignorance instead of celebrating it. And what happened when the guardrails broke.
Most importantly, I share what to say when Uncle John starts talking. You don't have to call him a liar. You don't have to start a fight. But you can break the spell with one simple phrase.
I also talk about my father, a social justice minister who stood up for truth but wrote off family members who didn't think his way. He died without much of that support. I learned from him to stand up, but I also learned the cost of writing people off entirely.
This connects to retail because retail is the great normalizer. It teaches patience, curiosity, and connection. You cannot succeed in retail if you think other people are the enemy.
One phrase can remind your table that nuance exists, that facts matter, and that humanity is still the majority. Listen in for how to stay in the conversation even when it's hard.
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