Latest / SHeCOMMERCE / Ep 33: Dollar General & Milo's Tea - Rooted in Purpose, Scaling & Precision

Transcript

Ep 33: Dollar General & Milo's Tea - Rooted in Purpose, Scaling & Precision · SHeCOMMERCE

• 0:08
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome back to SheCommerce, where bold brands, fierce women, and one sisterhood collide to explore the people, partnerships, and innovation shaping the future of commerce.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_03: I'm Christina.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm Jackie.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: SheCommerce is where we bring together the women and the allies who are building brands, transforming retail, and shaping the future of commerce.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_01: Sorry, I know we're recording, but totally breaking up for me.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_03: Jackie, you're you're you are static y.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: Oh no.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: I'm and I'm on the good computer as well.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: Darn it.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_03: Uh let me see if I can uh You sure have the mic.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_03: You sure it's at the mic?
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: Let me take the mic out.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_03: Can you guys hear me?
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, now I can.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: Is this better?
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_03: Can you talk a little more?
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I will keep talking until you tell me that this is better or worse.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: It's better, but I still hear the static.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_03: Like there's slight static.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh okay, hang on a second.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: Let me see if I open a door, if that makes a difference.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_03: As long as she's not glitching, static we can fix after.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_03: Um but if it's like speeding her voice up and it won't work.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna talk and keep talking until you tell me whether it's still the same.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: That's not more different.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_03: I feel like that's better.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_03: Clear or not.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: Do I want to try my mic or let's leave the mic out of the equation?
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_03: Maybe leave the mic out of it since it's clear now.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, fine.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_03: All right, so you can just start from and I'm Jackie, where you were.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm Jackie.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: She commerce is where we bring together the women and the allies who are building brands, transforming retail, and shaping the future of commerce.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: Every episode we dive into the stories behind the strategies, because we believe the most powerful business conversations happen when we connect leadership, innovation, and the people are driving meaningful change.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: But before we jump into today's amazing conversation with two powerhouse women, can we just take a minute because today is uh it's kind of a special day for us.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_03: It is indeed.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_03: When we first dreamed up Free Commerce, it started as this itty-bitty passion project between two friends over some prosecco who simply believed our industry needed more authentic uh conversations, more real talk, less corporate BS, and a bigger spotlight on the amazing women and allies who are shaping the future of commerce.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_03: Honestly, we had no idea where it would go.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And today we're celebrating a huge milestone.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: Frankly, I can't believe it, because SheCommerce is eight months old, and we have officially surpassed 50,000 podcast downloads across all of our channels.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: All of our channels.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_03: We've now welcomed more than a thousand followers on LinkedIn, nearly 5,000 followers across our social channels, and new listeners are joining us every single week from across the globe.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_03: We're genuinely blown away by this.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: We're also really so incredibly humbled because while Christina and I may be the voices behind the microphones, this community belongs to all of you.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: Every person who listens on your commute shares an episode with a colleague, counts, comments on one of our LinkedIn posts, introduces us to an amazing guest, or simply just cheers us on.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: You're helping us build something that is so much bigger.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: So much bigger than a podcast.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_03: Exactly.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_03: It's becoming the community we hoped and dreamed it would be.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_03: A place where women and incredible allies who champion them can come together to share ideas, learn from one another, and obviously help shape the future of commerce, which is why we're here.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_03: So from the bottom of our hearts, thank you.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you for believing in this crazy idea.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you for supporting our Little Passion Project, and thank you for being part of the Growing She Commerce Sisterhood.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: And trust us, we're just getting started.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: We have some amazing guests, some incredibly exciting partnerships, a few surprises.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: Oh boy, do we have some surprises, and a lot more bold conversations.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: Bold, bold people, I tell you, bold.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: Uh conversations coming your way over the next few months.
• 5:22
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• 5:23
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• 5:25
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• 5:28
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• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: This community is growing because all of you and us genuinely want to build it together.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_03: And last thing, before we get into it, if you're enjoying SheCommerce, there are two incredibly simple ways you can help us continue to grow.
• 5:45
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• 5:56
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• 6:05
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• 6:12
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• 6:23
  SPEAKER_03: All right.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_03: So enough celebrating because today's conversation is exactly why we started She Commerce in the first place.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_03: We're joined by two incredible women who are helping shape the future of commerce through leadership, innovation, and one remarkable growth partnership.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_03: So let's get into it.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_00: Joining us today are two fabulous leaders.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: First, we're thrilled to welcome Mihira Rami, Vice President of Marketing at Milo's Tea Company.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: She has helped scale businesses from$30 million to more than half a billion billion dollars by combining disciplined brand building with thoughtful storytelling and omnichannel strategy.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome, Mihira.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you for having me.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_02: Excited to talk to you guys today.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_03: And joining her is Natalie Ong, head of operations for the Dollar General Media Network.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_03: Natalie has helped build one of the retail's fastest growing media networks, bringing together brands, shoppers, merchandising, and data to create measurable business growth.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_03: Her work is at the center of one of the most exciting transformations happening in commerce today, and we're thrilled to have her with us.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_03: Natalie, welcome to SheCommerce.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you guys so much for having me.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_01: Really excited to be here today.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_00: We're so excited to have you both.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: Let's just jump right in.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: So, Milo's and Dollar General have both had such incredible origin stories rooted in the South.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: How have those beginnings shaped how you approach growth today?
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_02: I love a good origin story, so I'll tell you a little bit about ours.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_02: Um, our origin story really comes down to just organic popularity of a delicious product that people couldn't get enough of, still can't.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_02: Um there really is a Milo.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, his name was Milo Carlton.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_02: He came home after serving World War II.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_02: The next week he married his sweetheart B, and together they opened a small uh burger restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_02: They served burgers, fries, pies, and of course, freshly screwed sweet tea, and customers just started coming in for the tea.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_02: And so that insight really reshaped our business into what it is today.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_02: Um, years later, by the 1980s, his family started uh bottling that same tea for grocery stores.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_02: And today we're sold in 62,000 retail locations in all 50 states.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_02: We own roughly half of the ready-to-drink uh tea category in America, and our flagship Famous Sweet Tea is a top selling, is the top-selling uh liquid tea in the country.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_02: And so, through all of that change and growth, what's really remained constant is uh Milo's founding philosophy, which is listen to our customers, use really high quality uh natural ingredients, and never sacrifice on taste.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_02: And so we've never used artificial preservatives, colors, or dyes, and we like to say um we were clean before cleaning school, and we still are today, and um growth really reflects that consistency.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_02: So, you know, 10 years ago we sold um 6.4 million cases annually, and just last year that was 61 million.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_02: So that's a you know 20 plus percent um Kager.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_02: And we we like to call ourselves an 80-year-old startup because even as a third generation uh family and women-owned company led by our CEO, Trisha Walwork, uh, we're still scaling like a startup.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_02: So um that origin story is uh a thread that's really important to us to be authentic and true to it.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that is that is an amazing origin story.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_00: Right, Natalie, beat that one.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, super cool.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_01: We we are also um in startup mode at a company that's almost 90 years old over here at Dollar General.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh so since uh Dollar General was founded almost 90 years ago, we have been very, very much focused on serving the customer by making shopping simple and affordable.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, a bit about our origin story.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_01: We were founded by J.L.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_01: Turner, an illiterate Tennessee farmer, and he and his family essentially saw that a bunch of department stores across Tennessee had big dollar day sales.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: And their rationale was that Dollar General could keep the shopping experience simple and affordable by opening a store that only has one price rate of a dollar.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um, since then, we've we've really evolved from being a dollar store to the largest and fastest growing retailer in the US.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: So we have 21,000 stores in the US today, and most Americans live within five miles or less from a Dollar General.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: So for many of our customers, Dollar General is the closest, the most convenient, sometimes the only place nearby for our customers to get their daily essentials.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so we've really taken a similar approach at Dollar General Media Network and how we're thinking about growth on the retail media network side.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: We're always thinking, how are we delivering value?
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: How are we making life easier for customers and our brands?
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: And when we look at what we're prioritizing, as we are also in startup mode growing the business, we're always asking ourselves, you know, how are we helping brands connect to the customer in relevant and meaningful ways?
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: And then how are we also ensuring that the customers are discovering products, discovering promotions in a way that's truly additive to their shopping experience as opposed to disruptive?
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_01: So that's a little bit about our origin story.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: I love a good origin story.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: Mehira, I do have a follow-up for you though.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: What values have remained non-negotiable as you've scaled?
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I think a lot of it comes down to that philosophy of really focusing on our customers, being true to who we are.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_02: Um as we broaden our consumer base, our availability, those things will be really important to us.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_02: I will also say that we have a really um unique, I know everyone says it's people first culture, but now that I'm on the inside and been here a year, it's absolutely true.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and a lot of that culture is focused on what we call the hat value, so hungry, agile, and together.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's really resonant with um some of our partners, especially Dollar General and the way we kind of partner to um to get after opportunities in a way that's mutually beneficial.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: And Natalie, thank you, Mihira.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: And Natalie, how do those values continue to show up with the customer experience of Dollar General today?
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think we're we're focused on being customer-centric.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: And so relevancy and product discovery, greater convenience for the customer along their customer journey continues to be tenfold for us here at Dollar General.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_01: And you can see that, right, in the way that we made a lot of investment and rolling out DG delivery for even greater convenience for our customers, and then how we're also thinking about our site and app experience.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we've built out a variety of formats and ways for our brands to share deals, share more of their brand story, depending on how a customer is engaging across their site and how they're planning their shopping journey.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_01: So being really rooted in the customer continues to be a huge emphasis for us here at the Media Network.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_01: All righty, thank you.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_03: Uh now a question for Mihira.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_03: Uh, you mentioned the just incredible growth that you've had at Milo's, expanding into more than 55,000 locations, approaching a billion, a billion dollars in retail sales.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_03: That's that's amazing.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_03: But looking back, what do you think has been the biggest inflection point in that journey?
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_03: Um, oh, that's a good question.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_02: And I haven't been around for the whole journey, and I'm sure um some seasoned vets could could tell stories, but I would say one of um one of the major inflection points has been uh retailer distribution on a on a national scale.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_02: Um and when I think about, you know, when we first started selling in grocery, the family leveraged the dairy DSD network, um, really kind of putting the tea in what was then milk jugs, uh, putting it on DSD trucks and getting it to store.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, that was to fit dairy crate, right?
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_02: And now that jug is becoming one of the ways that consumers recognize us at shelf.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but with these expanded retail partnerships, we've really been able to expand our reach, which is helping us take a brand that is a favorite among many in a uh certain part of the US, right?
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and export that uh across the country.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_02: Um and as we think about uh just the growing popularity of um the South and pop culture, uh the importance of, like I said, our natural ingredients, a clean label, um, and being able to leverage uh omnichannel and omni-commerce, you know, like uh the delivery um networks and retail partners uh platforms, we're really able to broaden our access based on that.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so it sounds like a bit of a balance between the storytelling as well as that commercial rigor accelerating at the same time.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_02: Our story is really unique, and I think there's a lot more of it we could tell, but the commercial kind of fundamentals and partnerships are a big part of um how we got here and how we plan to continue to grow.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_00: So, listening to both of you so far, what has resonated and what has been repeated is both of you have such a strong focus in terms of your ethos, and that ethos is customer first, it's customer-centric.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_00: It is at the heart of everything you do.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: So, given that you're such a natural fit, your partnership is so organically natural.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, how have media and merchandising worked together to unlock growth for you?
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I can I can start and and Natalie, feel free to pile on.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I think this has been a perfect example of what we call omni-channel, right?
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of times with retail media networks and in the CPG industry, when we say omnichannel, we really mean online.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_02: But I think we've really been able to um use the success we've had with some of our online programming to help get proof points and build up cases from a merchandising perspective to expand the assortment, to test out um new to Dollar General products that will fit with their um consumer base and and shopper base.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_02: And that partnership is kind of like a flagwheel that that keeps on turning.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and even as uh you know as as our partner like looks to expand their platforms and things like that, we um absolutely see a way for us to continue to reach across that path to purchase, right?
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_02: Um and make sure that we're really participating not just in the team, but all of the moments across the store and the routine to to make sure that we're showing up uh where customers look for us.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: I totally agree.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the partnership between Dollar General and Milo's has been so natural with both of us, you know, having these strong Southern roots, commitment to accessibility and value.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I saw that we we were founded in 1939 in Kentucky, and you guys in 1946 in Alabama.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_01: So we're both these, you know, starting out as family businesses in the South, emerging after the Great Depression, really focus on, you know, keeping things simple, keeping things sweet, like no shortcuts.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that really shows up in how we partner together across our two businesses.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we have an existing shared customer base, and we have, we, you know, through our partnership, we realized we had an ability to expand that customer database at Dollar General.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_01: So partnering to ensure that our media strategy was there to support Milo's and their joint business objectives.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_01: So through our campaigns, you know, we were able to introduce Milo's to Dollar General shoppers during key seasonal moments and help drive discovery amongst these customers who may not have been exposed to the brand before.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_01: And we looked at moments that you know that mattered both to Milo's customers as well as to the DG shopper, right?
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_01: So, like we looked at summer grilling, Easter, tailgating, holiday, these great 10-pole moments for us to partner together.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_01: And leveraging the retail media network capabilities to bring awareness of Milo's products available at DG, we were able to reach these high-intent shoppers with promotions, with coupons, with the availability that could drive trial as well as repeat purchase.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_01: And really what we found was that you know the customer demand was there.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_01: The customer demand was exceedingly clear with the measurement and the metrics that we were able to provide.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_01: So that really reinforced the opportunity for broader distribution, deeper collaboration between our two brands and part um and companies.
• 20:11
  unknown: I love that.
• 20:15
  unknown: Yeah.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: It's such a meeting of minds.
• 20:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's such a it's it's such a compatible compatibility and it's and it's so customer focused.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's the it's an old-fashioned rule, but it's test of time.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_00: Always put your customer first.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_03: I love that.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_03: And always uh well, you kind of just touched on this, Natalie.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_03: So maybe from Mihira, your perspective, how did that early success of your Dollar General Media Network campaigns help to validate the customer demand and ultimately influence that expanded distribution within Dollar General?
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I I think, and look, like we're relatively new to um marketing activation in a sustained way, right?
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_02: So um the partnership's been in place for some time, but I think we've been able to kind of invest and use the learnings together.
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_02: So um I'll give you an example.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_02: In 2025, um, we ran some uh programming on a new item, um, and we saw like the highest incremental return we'd seen, and that really gave the buyer confidence on adding something new to the set, right?
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_02: And so as a result, we have been able to um secure listings on additional products.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_02: So we're you know now in our flavored lemonades at Dollar General as well.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and not only do we get the listing, we kind of have a playbook now, right, to run together to get that ability, that discoverability, and make sure we're getting the trial to get the terms to continue that virtuous cycle.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so that's just one example, I think, of how our on our end of Our um, you know, sales or account ownership and our uh shopper marketing are like hand in hand, and then our account and the merch merchandising team, our uh omni team and um the DGMN team are are very close.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_02: It kind of feels like a seamless um ecosystem.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_03: Well, what I keep hearing is this uh focus on value and that value exchange being there for both of you.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_03: And it sounds like you're you've been very deliberate about that growth from you know where you're testing, how you're measuring, and then validating before you scale and expand, which is very smart.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, we definitely have a um approach and a mentality across our business of testing and then kind of building from there and scaling out proof points around whether that's geographic or yeah, finding the proof points, exactly, or or item-based.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and I think you know, with Dollar General, that's just kind of showing up in us diversifying as as they expand um in this priority area of diversifying our tactics and our investment um like portfolio with them as well.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_00: Amazing.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_00: That makes so much sense.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: So I guess Natalie, from it from a Dollar General Media Network perspective, what was the opportunity that you saw with a brand like Milo's?
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, beyond some of those shared values that our companies have, we saw a brand with such a compelling growth story, such strong consumer loyalty, and products that really fit naturally into both everyday as well as tempole seasonal moments that our customers care about.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, whether that be family meals, whether that be gathering together over the summer, whether that be those tailgating occasions.
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_01: And with Dollar General really being America's neighborhood store, you know, our massive retail footprint, with our reach, with our customer base across rural, small town America, suburban America, we we just realized that there was this huge opportunity for us to introduce Milo's to more Dollar General customers while making sure existing customers knew that it was easily within reach, less than five miles away.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: So we we know that on the GMN side, we're really focused on our first-party data capabilities to make sure that we are being precise with our targeting across our dollar general customers based on what we know about them, and then being able to provide measurable results, partners like Mihira, as well as to our merchant teams.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_01: And so there was just this great opportunity for us to leverage our first-party data targeting, you know, reaching buyers who we knew were already excited about Milo's products, as well as maybe those who had laps and ones that you know could be interested in that category.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then also making sure that to Mihira's point earlier, that we were providing those results, right?
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_01: What do those incremental results look like?
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_01: Are we driving those incremental sales?
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_01: Are we also increasing, you know, new to brand buyers for the team?
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_01: And that was um where we we really found a great way to continue to lean in and and to the point earlier, you know, getting those proof points and then thinking about how do we make it scale, how do we make it repeatable.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_01: That makes so much sense.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_03: I love so many things about this story.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_03: The partnership is so strong, but I also love that these results didn't just drive campaign performance, that they seem to have created a really powerful signal of that customer demand that then strengthened the partnership.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_03: And that led to unlocking broader distribution.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_03: So we've we've obviously talked a lot about that partnership and the growth strategy and the power of connecting media and merchandising, but behind every great growth story are the people that are leading it, such as the two of you.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_03: And that's such an important part of what we explore here at GCommerce.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_03: So let's expand and spend a few minutes talking about your leadership journeys.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_00: And here's one for you, Natalie.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: How is DGMN helping bridge the gap between marketing and merchandising using data and insights to inform not just media strategy but real decisions like distribution and shelf expansion?
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, retail media networks shouldn't exist in a silo, right?
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_01: That's why we have retail in our names.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: We have these great insights, we have data that can really drive business performance and an ability to tie these insights back to specific different customer segments, like how we know their purchase behavior, how they know they interact with Dollar General as a whole.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_01: So at DGMN, we provide brands with the ability to reach Dollar General customers across that purchasing funnel.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_01: But just as importantly, we provide the measurement and the accountability to understand what's driving results.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: And when you can see how media influences sales, customer acquisition, shopping behavior, these insights become valuable beyond just the marketing team.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_01: So they really help identify with brands like Milo's, right, where is the customer demand growing, or where is their opportunity across the category, across the brand, across specific SKUs for us to invest further that can help these brands unlock their shared growth objectives with Dollar General.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_01: And so our partnership has really been a great example of that.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_01: You know, retail media helped drive discovery and trial, but it also generated insights, right, to validate customer interest through real actual sales results.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: So I think that's a really big part on how we are, we are not just existing in a silo, we are just not, we're not just a marketing investment.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um we're tied to the broader objectives of what we're trying to do with growing the brand together.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_02: And I would say, like as a relatively smaller um company, right, versus some of the big players that we might compete with, um, that approach really lets us have kind of like an outsized relationship and an outsized impact because we're able to um partner with a customer where there not only is like shopper overlap, but also that strategic fit and that kind of mindset of connecting the dots to broader business outcomes rather than just kind of treating it like marketing over here in business market.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and to your point, it kind of levels the playing field of it.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it lets it it allows us to have like a bigger impact, um, I think than uh otherwise we'd be able to.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_02: And it kind of gives us um a way to reach a specific consumer that otherwise is challenging to reach.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_02: Like some of those uh rural communities and smaller towns that frankly like fall through the gaps of DMAs, right?
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_02: Um type of broader target.
• 28:52
  SPEAKER_03: Exactly.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_00: Both of you have this incredible mindset and this incredible um, I mean, you're 80 and 90 years old, respectively, and yet you're so day one.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_03: And you're I mean, both look fabulous for your age.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_01: Right to you guys.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: Amazing.
• 29:12
  SPEAKER_01: As opposed to popping the prosecco, we should have brought some Milo's teas for us to celebrate um the amazing.
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_03: We should, some of you, yes.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I wish I looked that good at 90, you know what I'm saying?
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_00: Same, same girl.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: I'd like to now ask you about um about your own growth in terms of both of you have helped to scale organizations during periods of tremendous growth.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_00: So, looking back on your careers, how would you say that your leadership evolved and and how has being a woman especially shaped the leader you've become?
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_00: You know, was there a mentor or a sponsor who helped change your trajectory?
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I'm gonna start that question with with uh you, Mihira.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean I've been fortunate to have a lot of um positive female leaders in my uh life, my career.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_02: Um also was raised by like the OG working mom, so um might be in my DNA a little bit.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_02: But I would say um, you know, it takes time to come into your own, your own um way of leading.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and for me, it's really grounded in just curiosity and empathy for other people.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_02: So listening and trying to bring a mindset of um meeting people where they are.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, and and there's a little bit also in these kind of scaling environments of um being self-aware and like realizing when you need to scale yourself up or surround yourself with the right resources to um achieve you know whatever it is that you're you're looking to achieve.
• 30:53
  SPEAKER_00: I really love that statement um where you need to give yourself time to come into your own.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_00: I think that is so incredibly important, where you're learning how to be you as a leader as opposed to following in the footsteps and being a carbon copy of someone else.
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_00: I really like that.
• 31:13
  SPEAKER_03: That's material or what you think leadership should look like, you know, the classic example of it, versus, you know, kind of uh working on your own style and what feels right and authentic to you.
• 31:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I think, you know, I think my experience has been um trying things on is how you figure it out, right?
• 31:34
  SPEAKER_02: And being okay, being like, that didn't work for me, that doesn't feel like me.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_02: The more you do that, the more you know what your filter is.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, um, and you and you can tell how authentically.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and Natalie, how has that worked for you at um within your career?
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_00: Not only at DGMN, but within your career.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I've also been really fortunate to have several mentors and several, you know, women um who have who have really coached me along the way.
• 32:03
  SPEAKER_01: I actually started out my career on the trading floor on Wall Street, and uh I was, you know, at one point like the only woman on my team.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember when I started out my career, I had a coworker who told me, you know, if I was interviewing a man and a woman candidate and they were of equal caliber, I would just hire the man because they would fit better into our culture.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_01: And that stuck with me, you know, as a as a 21-year-old for a long time.
• 32:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's really shaped how I think about leadership.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, when I when I first became a leader, I perhaps like many leaders was very focused on like technical and execution days, right?
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_01: Grounded in rigor, grounded in routines, what's the right kind of goal setting, cadences, how do we think about our KPIs, which I think is an incredibly, incredibly important part of leadership.
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but as I've grown as a leader and, you know, thinking back about my experience being, you know, like the only woman on a team, I'm always thinking about, you know, how do we ensure that we have the right kind of culture that prioritizes diverse perspectives, that prioritizes people raising their hands and asking a question that might be different from what everyone else is thinking?
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_01: And how do we really encourage a cross-pollination of ideas?
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_01: I've actually found that some of my smartest teammates have had very radically different experiences that allows them to think outside of the box and not be afraid to raise their hand and say something that others might think are stupid.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_01: So I think I'm really anchoring on, you know, how do I make sure that I have I establish that culture from day one, that I empower people to feel, you know, uh that they have that they that they feel empowered to contribute, that they feel empowered to speak up, um, and that they also realize that as a leader, I really care, you know, much more about effort over outcomes.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_01: I think that if you're asking the right questions, if you're if you're partnering cross-functionally, if you're thinking through the strategy and the project does not go where you thought it might, that's still far more valuable than if you didn't put any effort in and you just got lucky and and you have a great win on your hands.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_01: So um that's really shaped how I've how I've grown as a leader.
• 34:11
  SPEAKER_01: I love that.
• 34:12
  SPEAKER_01: And how would you intentionally pay it forward today?
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I I try and do the same things that some of my women, you know, female leaders and female mentors have really instilled in me.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_01: You know, they they have told me from from day one, right?
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_01: Like, you need to make sure that you are raising your hand, that you're more visible, that you are willing to advocate for yourself.
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I've had I've had leaders who have also thrown me into situations that were definitely terrifying and that was it, you know, I don't know if I was truly ready for, but they were there to support me through it.
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_01: And so when I have my team, I try and do the same thing.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I try to advocate for them, but also coach them on how to advocate for themselves and then also give them challenges that you know maybe they're 80% there, but we all know it's going to be a great experience um all around.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_00: I like that.
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_00: That you spin, yeah.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's so important.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_00: Scare the bejeans out of you people.
• 35:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's the way you grow, right?
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_03: It would scare me.
• 35:15
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yes.
• 35:16
  SPEAKER_03: Uh how about you, Mihira?
• 35:18
  SPEAKER_03: What's the one leadership lesson that you learned early in your career that you still rely on today?
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_03: And if you have any advice that you would give to the next generation of women that are building brands?
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_02: Um, oh, that's a good question.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_02: You know, one lesson that's just always stuck to me, and I've probably learned it a couple of different ways, um, is it's okay to say when you don't know the answer.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I think early on, as I was in management consulting and then, you know, a junior marketer and a big um organization full of ways of doing things and really smart people, um, and felt this pressure to always know the answer.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and sometimes uh to kind of put that energy out into my team, right?
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and I've I've learned along the way, um, it's okay to say you don't know, I gotta think about that.
• 36:18
  SPEAKER_02: I can find out um and have a little bit of like humility and and uh make a little space for um being buffed and being wrong.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_03: It's important.
• 36:29
  SPEAKER_03: I think women probably feel that pressure a little more than men, potentially.
• 36:34
  SPEAKER_03: Um but it is a good reminder, and it does make you human, right?
• 36:37
  SPEAKER_03: And it makes you more approachable by just saying, actually, I don't know that, or I need to figure that out.
• 36:45
  SPEAKER_00: Completely.
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I mean, it took me a while to learn to say no because Mihira, exactly like you, when I was growing up at my I say growing up in Microsoft, I needed to know all the things.
• 36:57
  SPEAKER_00: All the things, and you can't.
• 36:59
  SPEAKER_00: You just can't.
• 37:01
  SPEAKER_00: And your clients will ask you questions about stuff about about technologies that you haven't even read yet because the portfolio is so vast.
• 37:09
  SPEAKER_00: I learned early that you just cannot know everything about everything, and saying no, the first no, I'm sorry, I don't know, was terrifying.
• 37:22
  SPEAKER_00: But getting, you know, getting comfortable with being with with with your getting comfortable with not knowing and being humble, that takes that takes time and that and and repetition.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I love that.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um so Natalie, you have helped DGMN from the ground up.
• 37:43
  SPEAKER_00: Looking ahead, what is it that excites you most?
• 37:48
  SPEAKER_00: Not only about the future of retail media, because Lord knows we hear about the future of retail media forecasts every other minute, but about the opportunities that it creates for the next generation of women leading commerce.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I I actually what you guys were speaking about, about saying you don't know, like really, really resonates with me.
• 38:11
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's one of the most terrifying but also exciting parts about being in commerce media and being a leader in commerce media.
• 38:19
  SPEAKER_01: You know, to your point where you can't know everything.
• 38:22
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like commerce media sits at the intersection of so many different areas that you can't be an expert of it all, right?
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_01: You need to know retail, you need to know merchandising, you need to know marketing, you need to know media, you need to know ad tech, you need to know about like customer data and loyalty.
• 38:37
  SPEAKER_01: Like nobody, nobody's an expert on all of those things.
• 38:40
  SPEAKER_01: Find me someone who can who can be an expert on all of those, and uh I will go ask them to be my mentor.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think about you know, the next generation of women leading commerce, I think about the opportunities for our industry.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_01: I actually think that sitting at the intersection of all of these different areas is is exciting for future leaders because there's no clear playbook of what you need to do when you're growing a retail media from scratch, right?
• 39:07
  SPEAKER_01: When we were launching Dollar General, we, Dollar General's Media Network, we knew we couldn't just take the playbook of another retailer and replicate it because we're so unique.
• 39:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so there's no clear playbook, there are no right answers, but there's so much space to innovate and to move quickly and to leverage technology in in a retailer.
• 39:27
  SPEAKER_01: So I I think for for the space, there's just so much continued opportunity, but for leaders as well, you know, you don't have to know it all.
• 39:36
  SPEAKER_01: But what you need to do is you need to be able to, you know, build the right team with complementary skill sets, right?
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_01: You need to know how to write, ask the right questions, you need to create those mental models in your head to drive decision making in an area that's shifting so quickly.
• 39:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I think that's a really exciting opportunity for many people to continue to refine their leadership skills and grow.
• 39:59
  SPEAKER_03: Super exciting.
• 40:01
  SPEAKER_03: And how about you, Mihara?
• 40:03
  SPEAKER_03: Um, if there's maybe a slightly different question to ask, if there was one thing about our industry to make it easier for women to grow into those leadership roles that are going to be so influential in the next couple of years to define what that future looks like, what would that change be in your mind?
• 40:34
  SPEAKER_02: You know, I I don't know if it's all that different in general, versus like what would help us, you know, set up the next generation of women to uh be able to lead more effectively.
• 40:47
  SPEAKER_02: Um I think it's some of what we've talked about, right?
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_02: Like that early exposure to opportunities and new ways of thinking, um, creating those environments of like experimentation and support to fail and fail forward.
• 41:02
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and then you know, having um space to step into some of those opportunities you're not ready for.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_02: Um that might not be the best answer, but uh I think it's it's not all that unique.
• 41:18
  SPEAKER_02: Um it's just a different kind of like evolution or a different uh context.
• 41:25
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, no, I I agree, and I think it's it's very uh complementary to what Natalie was talking about, just that this is a time like never before for you to be able to try new things, try on new hats, fail, and learn from that failure and grow with that as well, and just reframe that whole, you know, risk reward maybe equation a little bit in what that means for you and for leadership and for growth in general.
• 41:59
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, now we have quizzed you on leadership, career, merchandising, retail uh media networks, uh Milo's, Dollar General, history, the whole kit and caboodle.
• 42:13
  SPEAKER_00: So now we're gonna go into SheCommerce's lightning round.
• 42:18
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm gonna hand the mic over to Christina to start off with the first questions, Christina.
• 42:26
  SPEAKER_03: All right, so we'll start um with Natalie and then go to Mihira.
• 42:31
  SPEAKER_03: What are you currently drinking that fills your cup, whether that's literally or figuratively?
• 42:40
  SPEAKER_01: Since I lived in Japan as a child, I have been obsessed with matcha.
• 42:44
  SPEAKER_01: And I I find that, you know, in the afternoon when I am dragging and I need a lot of caffeine, but I am not quite ready to do a cold brew, that that definitely fills my cup.
• 42:56
  SPEAKER_01: Fabulous.
• 42:58
  SPEAKER_02: That was my answer, to be honest.
• 43:02
  SPEAKER_02: Was it?
• 43:06
  SPEAKER_02: We are very much in sick.
• 43:09
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, we kind of knew where you were gonna say, but I don't know.
• 43:13
  SPEAKER_02: Um I would say like my morning beverage before any caffeine is water with a scoop of creatine and a scoop of electrolytes.
• 43:21
  SPEAKER_02: Um good for the brain and brain health, hydration.
• 43:25
  SPEAKER_02: So very much um gets me started for the day.
• 43:33
  SPEAKER_03: Very healthy.
• 43:33
  SPEAKER_03: I'm on the matcha train though with you, Natalie.
• 43:36
  SPEAKER_00: So awesome.
• 43:40
  SPEAKER_00: All right, so I'm gonna start with you with this one, Mihira.
• 43:44
  SPEAKER_00: What is one leadership mantra that has always stuck with you?
• 43:53
  SPEAKER_02: I would say I'm here to serve you is is a mantra that's never uh.
• 44:02
  SPEAKER_00: Natalie, what about you?
• 44:04
  SPEAKER_01: Mine's perhaps a little cliche, but I think as women in the workplace, it's super important.
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_01: And it's, you know, don't be the person to tell yourself no.
• 44:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know, ask and let someone else do that.
• 44:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so I I try I tell it to myself, I tell it to my peers, I try, I tell that to my team.
• 44:20
  SPEAKER_01: But then obviously, then I'm the one that has to say no in very difficult circumstances.
• 44:26
  SPEAKER_03: Comes back to fighting a little bit, but that's okay.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_03: Um, all right, Natalie, what's one thing you wish people asked you more often?
• 44:34
  SPEAKER_03: Not about your job, but about you personally.
• 44:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think for me, I, you know, I I I I think I would appreciate if people asked what it was like being a third culture kid.
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_01: So um I was born in Singapore.
• 44:51
  SPEAKER_01: I moved around a lot.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_01: I was always the new kid at school.
• 44:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, and I think for folks who have moved around and you know been in those international schools, like I always wish people would ask what that experience was like, but um, you know, it's uh it's all right.
• 45:07
  SPEAKER_00: Well, the next time I'm in the States, we're we're getting together because third culture kid right here.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, okay.
• 45:15
  SPEAKER_01: I'll message you later.
• 45:17
  unknown: Absolutely.
• 45:19
  SPEAKER_03: How about you, Mihira?
• 45:23
  SPEAKER_02: Um mine would be did you remember to eat lunch?
• 45:27
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, the days go by and I am in very well intentioned about taking the breaks during the day in this remote work culture.
• 45:37
  SPEAKER_02: It is a blessing, but also one of the things that's hard for me.
• 45:41
  unknown: Yeah.
• 45:42
  SPEAKER_00: I I did not eat lunch today.
• 45:44
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, yeah.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_02: My next my next meeting might be a little bit tell.
• 45:49
  SPEAKER_00: Amazing.
• 45:50
  SPEAKER_00: All right, my and final uh round for the lightning.
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_00: Final question for the lightning round is what is your go-to hype song before a big presentation or important meeting?
• 46:02
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm gonna start with you, Mihira.
• 46:05
  SPEAKER_02: Um, girl on fire.
• 46:08
  SPEAKER_00: This girl is on fire.
• 46:12
  SPEAKER_00: That one?
• 46:13
  SPEAKER_00: Excellent.
• 46:14
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I like it.
• 46:15
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that is a great hype song.
• 46:17
  SPEAKER_00: What about you, Natalie?
• 46:19
  SPEAKER_01: I think this one might be a little bit embarrassing.
• 46:22
  SPEAKER_01: We're we're either of you at Shop Talk, maybe say 2023.
• 46:27
  SPEAKER_00: No, no, I wasn't there.
• 46:29
  SPEAKER_01: So the Ludacris did the concert.
• 46:32
  SPEAKER_01: And let's just say, as someone who did not grow up in America, I was like, why is everyone getting so excited?
• 46:38
  SPEAKER_01: And I attended the concert, and I was like, I listened to Ludacris for for maybe months after.
• 46:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so mine would be get back.
• 46:47
  SPEAKER_00: Amazing, amazing.
• 46:49
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 46:52
  SPEAKER_00: Two very different sounds.
• 46:54
  SPEAKER_00: Max one's yours.
• 46:57
  SPEAKER_00: Mine.
• 46:59
  SPEAKER_00: Mine changes all the time.
• 47:02
  SPEAKER_00: So if I wanna, if I'm really hyped up about something and I want to calm down before I go on stage or before I'm presenting, please don't mock.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_00: No, actually, you can mock me, it's fine.
• 47:14
  SPEAKER_00: It's Sweet Home Alabama, always.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, I have zero connections to Alabama, just FYI, zero.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_00: But I even played Sweet Home Alabama as the song.
• 47:26
  SPEAKER_00: My brother is a guitarist.
• 47:29
  SPEAKER_00: He played that as my song walking up the aisle, because I mean, you can't get more hype song for presentation than your wedding, right?
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_01: That was unexpected.
• 47:42
  SPEAKER_00: He was like, okay, you're not from Alabama, you've not even been to Alabama.
• 47:46
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, but I love the song.
• 47:48
  SPEAKER_00: And you love me because I'm your favorite sister.
• 47:52
  SPEAKER_00: He goes, You're not really.
• 47:53
  SPEAKER_00: But okay.
• 47:55
  SPEAKER_02: I get that.
• 47:55
  SPEAKER_02: It's a song with a feeling attached to it.
• 47:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, totally.
• 48:00
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I just love that.
• 48:01
  SPEAKER_00: I love that.
• 48:02
  SPEAKER_00: Alrighty.
• 48:03
  SPEAKER_00: Now, um, before we wrap up, uh, one of the things that we always do is we love ending every episode with something that's kind of become our our our um war cry, if you will.
• 48:17
  SPEAKER_00: At ChiCommerce, we believe that success is even more meaningful when we bring people along with us.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_00: And with every episode, we're building a growing community of women leaders and allies committed to opening doors, sharing knowledge, supporting and amplifying one another, and creating more opportunities for the next generation.
• 48:39
  SPEAKER_00: So we would love to ask each of you, Mihira and Natalie, will you join us in taking the She Commerce pledge to continue to pay it forward, amplifying women's voices, championing allies, and helping to shape a stronger, more inclusive future for commerce?
• 49:01
  SPEAKER_04: Heck yes.
• 49:03
  SPEAKER_04: Yes, I'm yes.
• 49:05
  SPEAKER_00: That is wonderful.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for being part of our global, our global community.
• 49:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, Christina seems to have dropped out because of uh her Wi-Fi issues.
• 49:15
  SPEAKER_00: She was getting a bit it wasn't just me, right?
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_00: She was getting a bit robot at the end.
• 49:19
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 49:20
  SPEAKER_00: Um so uh what I will do is end with saying that today's conversation reminds us that modern growth isn't just about scale, it's about staying true to your purpose, which both your brands are so very strong with doing.
• 49:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's about building meaningful partnerships and you embody that investing in innovation.
• 49:43
  SPEAKER_00: You're still young at 90 years old, right?
• 49:49
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and most importantly, you invest in people.
• 49:51
  SPEAKER_00: Mihira and Natalie, thank you both so very much for your leadership journeys, for sharing that with us, your partnership story, which is beautiful, and your vision for the future of commerce.
• 50:03
  SPEAKER_00: And we really appreciate you taking the time to join us.
• 50:07
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 50:08
  SPEAKER_00: I really want to Milo's tea.
• 50:10
  SPEAKER_00: I know.
• 50:11
  SPEAKER_02: Where do you live?
• 50:12
  SPEAKER_00: I live in London in the UK.
• 50:15
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my god.
• 50:16
  SPEAKER_02: I know when you come to the States next, you know, we'll make sure you can get some.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_00: Perfect.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_02: I love only at a dollar general, but wherever you're I absolutely love a good old-fashioned sweet tea.
• 50:29
  SPEAKER_03: Today's conversation reminds us that modern growth isn't just about scale, it's about staying true to your purpose and building meaningful partnerships, investing in innovation, and most importantly, investing in people.
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_03: Mihira and Natalie, thank you both for sharing your leadership journeys, your partnership story, and your vision for the future of commerce.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_03: And we thank everyone listening for joining us for another episode of SheCommerce.
• 50:58
  SPEAKER_03: Until next time.