The CPGGUYS cover the recently concluded Shoptalk spring 2025 from Las Vegas. What a show! Besides our opening networking reception, we had a chance to meet up with many brands, retailers and of course all our sponsors.

This episode is collectively sponsored by Epsilon, Dunnhumby, Osmos,

Apply to join the Cornell retail media program https://ecornell.cornell.edu/certificates/marketing/retail-media-strategy/

Find Sri Rajagopalan on Linkedin at : https://www.linkedin.com/in/sri-rajagopalan-09a0062/

Find Peter VS Bond on Linkedin at : https://www.linkedin.com/in/pvsbond/

Find CPGGUYS on Linkedin at : https://www.linkedin.com/company/56451211

Find CPGGUYS online at : https://www.cpgguys.com/

Here's what we discussed :

1. Different tracks for learning

2. Key mainstage presentations

3. Detailed analysis of the omnichannel track and breakouts

4. Networking opportunities

Daniel is joined by guest co-host David Sloff in a conversation with FMCG Retail Expert and former Coca-Cola CCO Europe Jacques Van Cauwenberge in this conversation. With him, we explore the current challenging scenario between FMCG Brands and Supermarkets in Europe, and also what's the route to a more strategic, positive and, ultimately, profitable and growth-oriented relationship.

This Episode is brought to you by Softserve Business Systems. Start a conversation about fact-based digital transformation today by visiting https://softservebs.com/

Topics covered:

• The change in shopping behavior, surge of different formats and other trends that have shaped the current challenging scenario between Retailers and Brands
• The impact on Retailers and reactions to protect their P&Ls
• Conflicts between brands and retailers: why they happen and the negative consequences for everyone
• A value creation agenda to go back to sustainable growth

In this episode, our US Partners the CPG Guys are joined by Cristian Arcangeli, Vice President of Omnichannel and Customer Experience at illycaffè, an Italian family business, founded in Trieste in 1933 and committed to offering the greatest coffee to the world.

Find Cristian on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carcangeli/
Find illycaffè on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/illycaffe/
Find Illycaffè online at: https://www.illy.com/en-us

Apply to join the Cornell retail media program https://ecornell.cornell.edu/certificates/marketing/retail-media-strategy/

Cristian answers these questions:

1. Can you share pivotal experiences in your journey from working with fashion brands like Gucci and Diesel to your current role at illycaffè?
2. How does illycaffè ensure a seamless omnichannel experience for its customers?
3. How has illycaffè’s digital business evolved under your leadership? What have been your key objectives in this area?
4. How does illycaffè differentiate its digital customer experience from competitors in the market? What have been successful components of this strategy?
5. Can you discuss any recent digital innovations at illycaffè that have significantly impacted customer experience?
6. How are you leveraging customer data to inform your digital strategies? You have a large presence on Amazon & you have a thriving DTC business. How are you utilizing the generated transaction data?
7. In what ways does illycaffè collect and implement customer feedback to improve its digital platforms?
8. What emerging digital trends do you believe will shape the future of customer experience in the CPG industry?

The FMCG Guys will be back with an all-new episode on May 7th. In the meantime, here's a sneek peak into our next events. Happy Easter!

Jose Salas is Reebok’s Finance Director for Latin America (South & Central) and the Caribbean. He joins the show to share his broad experience across multiple functions in Consumer Goods, his recurring return to Finance, and why he sees the Finance function as a driver of growth and innovation—far from the tactical role it’s often perceived to be.

Tune in to hear about:

• His career path in Finance and cross-functional moves
• Why Finance sometimes gets a bad rap
• How Finance can be a powerful partner for growth and innovation
• Collaborating effectively with other functions
• The impact of the data revolution on Finance

More

Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fmcgguys/
Audio Mixing by Rodrigo Chávez
Voice Acting by Jason Martorell Parsekian

Consumer Goods Brands going Direct-to-Consumer has been a hot — and sometimes controversial — topic in the industry. It’s a great way to capture first-party data, but is it always a money-losing game? Can DTC actually work at scale and drive real value?

To explore what successful models look like, Marco Brucato, Head of eCommerce D2C EMEA Growth at large-appliance leader Beko, joins Daniel and guest co-host Rob Nowell from Medium Marketing (also strategic partners in events like Candid Commerce).

Tune in to hear about:

• How Marco has built and scaled DTC in multiple Consumer Goods categories
• The differences between DTC in Appliances vs. Food
• Making DTC incremental — not a threat to retail partners
• The current state of the Digital Shelf
• Competitive advantages from owning first-party data
• Scaling an eCommerce organization from the inside
• Real-world AI use cases

More

Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fmcgguys/
Audio Mixing by Rodrigo Chávez
Voice Acting by Jason Martorell Parsekian

Our sister podcast in the US, The CPG Guys, welcome the senior editor of the Path to Purchase Institute, Cyndi Loza, to discuss the latest retail media networks benchmarking report produced by them and the results. Some outcomes will surprise you, some are a confirmation and some retail media networks have missed the opportunity completely.

Apply to join the Cornell retail media program https://ecornell.cornell.edu/certificates/marketing/retail-media-strategy/

Find Cyndi Loza on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyndiloza/

Find Path to Purchase Institute on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-path-to-purchase-institute/

Find Path to Purchase Institute online : https://p2pi.com/

Find the P2PI Retail Media Networks Ratings & Insights Report here: https://p2pi.com/2025-p2p-trend-report-transunion

Here's what we discussed :

1.) Which retail media networks outperform and are seen as best in class?

2.) Which RMN's have the best measurement frameworks?

3.) Who is the easiest to work with?

4.) Which RMN is integrated with merchants?

and so much more....

Volker Zöller is the President Consumer Goods EMEA at Consumer Hygiene leader Essity. After being one of the first guests of the podcast back in 2020, he re-joins us to go over the most pressing issues in the industry: culture change, digitalization, diversity and inclusion and much more.

Tune in to learn about:

• How their Munich office has been seleced as the best in Germany due to its adaptation to new ways of working
• Digital transformation both internally and externally
• Why Essity is commited to diversity in these times
• How European companies can remain competitive
• Industry body work and influencing Brussels policy

More

Re-listen to Volker's prior appearence on the show: https://www.fmcgguys.com/episode-3-volker-zoller-driving-culture-change/

Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fmcgguys/
Audio Mixing by Rodrigo Chávez
Voice Acting by Jason Martorell Parsekian