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What Boot Barn’s Chief Retail Officer Knows About Building Leaders

Mike Love, Chief Retail Officer Boot Barn headshot

SHOW NOTES

Great leaders don’t wait to be developed. And the best organisations don’t wait to develop them.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Mike Love, Chief Retail Officer at Boot Barn, to explore one of the most underinvested areas in retail leadership: deliberately building the next generation of leaders around you — and why getting this right is one of the most powerful drivers of retail operational efficiency and retail employee retention.

Mike’s path to Chief Retail Officer was anything but conventional. He spent close to four decades moving through buying, planning, and operations at Federated, May Company, Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Claire’s before taking on stores at Boot Barn nine years ago. That breadth of experience shapes everything about how he thinks about retail staff training and leadership development today.

In this conversation, Mike introduces Love’s Law — his framework for why the skills that earn you a promotion are rarely the skills that will make you successful in the new role. He traces it from his earliest days as an assistant buyer all the way through to the district manager role, where the shift from running one store to influencing ten or twelve requires an entirely different kind of leadership.

He explains how Boot Barn has built one of the deepest internal pipelines in specialty retail — with nearly half of all district managers promoted from store manager roles, and every regional vice president over the past eight years an internal hire. He also shares the thinking behind Level Up, Boot Barn’s three-tier retail training program that creates a clear roadmap for frontline progression: from required basics to self-guided retail employee learning to real-world stretch assignments. It is one of the most practical examples of retail employee upskilling done at scale — built by a team of two.

But the most memorable moment in this conversation might be the simplest one. When Mike walks into a store, he is looking for two things: engagement and curiosity. Not the loudest voice in the room. The person who leans in, asks questions, and cares about more than their current role asks of them. Because that, he says, is what a future leader looks like — and it is the foundation of any serious approach to how to reduce retail employee turnover.

Mike also opens up about Boot Barn’s community investment philosophy — from the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas down to a five hundred dollar Lions Club check in Jasper, Texas — and why the impact per dollar is often greatest in the smallest towns.

If you lead a store, a district, or an organisation, this episode will change how you think about the people standing next to you.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (01:44) Why Boot Barn still brings all store managers together every year
  • (02:54) Mike’s career journey: from Federated Department Stores in 1985 to Chief Retail Officer
  • (05:02) Why retail is a self-taught industry — and why that’s a strength
  • (06:41) How Boot Barn scaled by 300 stores and built the operational infrastructure to match
  • (10:23) Love’s Law: why the skills that get you promoted won’t keep you there
  • (14:55) Why developing people is Mike’s greatest leadership priority — and the foundation of retail employee retention
  • (17:49) How Boot Barn builds its internal leadership pipeline — and why balance matters
  • (22:07) Community investment: from the National Finals Rodeo to a Lions Club check in Jasper, Texas
  • (26:44) Level Up: Boot Barn’s three-tier retail training program for frontline progression
  • (28:35) The questions Mike gets asked most on store visits — including can Boot Barn really reach 1,200 stores

GUEST BIO

Mike Love is Chief Retail Officer at Boot Barn, where he has overseen the growth of more than 300 store locations and built one of the deepest internal leadership pipelines in specialty retail. He has been with Boot Barn since 2014, taking on the stores role in 2018 and becoming CRO in 2022.

Over a career spanning nearly four decades, Mike has held senior roles across buying, planning, and operations at Federated Department Stores, May Department Stores, Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Claire’s.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

What 900 Travel Centers Teach You About Frontline Technology

SHOW NOTES

Great technology doesn’t announce itself. It just makes the job easier.

In a business that never closes, that’s not a nice-to-have. It’s the whole point.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with David Dawson, VP of Retail and Digital Technology at Pilot Company, to explore what it really takes to build technology that serves the frontline — and the leadership philosophy behind it.

With 900+ travel centers open around the clock, Pilot runs one of the most operationally complex retail environments in the country. David leads the teams responsible for the systems that keep it all running: point-of-sale, payment processing, task management, and digital tools that help cashiers, maintenance teams, and store managers deliver for guests every hour of every day.

David explains why 24-7 operations demand a different kind of technology thinking — one where reliability, simplicity, and usability aren’t features but requirements. He shares how digitizing paper-based routines has mobilized Pilot’s workforce, freeing managers from back-office tasks and putting them back on the floor with guests. And he talks about how AI is changing the way frontline teams access information, solve problems in the moment, and improve productivity without adding headcount.

But the episode isn’t just about technology. It’s about what happens when you understand the humans on the other side of it.

David and Ron discuss what it means that a Pilot cashier may be one of only one or two human interactions a long-haul truck driver has in a whole day — and what that asks of the people behind the counter and the leaders who support them. They explore why field experience is irreplaceable, why the best tech leaders spend time on the floor, and what David’s IT Road Trip program has revealed about the gap between building tools in a corporate office and using them in a travel center at 3am.

His mantra: simplify, simplify, simplify. Not because the work is simple — but because complexity is a failure of leadership.

If you lead teams, build tools, or make decisions that affect people on the frontline, this conversation will change how you think about all three.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (02:13) What Pilot is, how it operates, and why it matters to American commerce
  • (04:22) Why a Pilot cashier may be one of only one or two human interactions a truck driver has all day
  • (05:41) What it means to lead 26,000 frontline team members in a 24-7 environment
  • (07:27) The pride, passion, and ownership mentality of Pilot’s frontline teams
  • (09:04) Why David’s technology team exists: to serve the systems that serve the stores
  • (11:26) The IT Road Trip program: loading tech teams into vans and driving to stores
  • (13:30) The unique technology challenge of running a 24-7 operation
  • (15:53) How YOOBIC task management has automated routines and mobilised Pilot’s workforce
  • (17:39) How AI is helping frontline teams access information and solve problems in real time
  • (19:52) Simplify, simplify, simplify: David’s mantra from NRF and why it has to be repeated
  • (22:02) The balancing act between efficiency and human connection for truck drivers
  • (23:35) Why Pilot’s field leaders almost always come from the frontline
  • (25:18) David’s message to Pilot’s frontline teams: appreciation, feedback, and keeping the loop open

GUEST BIO

David Dawson is Vice President of Retail and Digital Technology at Pilot, but his career started where many frontline workers begin—on the helpdesk, supporting stores that never close. For almost 25 years, David has worked his way through technology roles focused on one core belief: if people are expected to show up for customers 24/7/365, the tools they rely on have to show up for them too.

Throughout his career, David has built and led technology that supports store managers, cashiers, maintenance teams, and other frontline team members—from point‑of‑sale and payment systems to task management, communication platforms, and digital tools that serve guests. He understands firsthand that unreliable or poorly designed technology doesn’t just slow a business down—it makes a hard job harder.

Today, David leads the teams responsible for enabling frontline execution across Pilot’s 800+ travel centers, with a focus on reliability, simplicity, and real‑world usability. His goal is to make sure technology works for the people in stores, not the other way around—so teams can focus on what matters most: serving guests and keeping operations running smoothly, every hour of every day.

David holds an MBA from the University of Tennessee’s Haslam College of Business and a BA in Business Administration from Maryville College.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

Calm Under Pressure: The Leadership Skill Retail Needs Most

SHOW NOTES

Pressure is constant in retail.
What separates great leaders is how they respond to it.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Lesley Hawkins, former Head of Retail at adidas Canada and leadership advisor.


With more than 30 years in the sporting goods industry, Lesley has built her career across wholesale, brand leadership, and retail. She stepped into leading retail for adidas Canada during the height of the pandemic, responsible for 1,200 associates across 32 stores at a time when teams were exhausted, disconnected, and under intense pressure.


What she quickly realized was that the challenge wasn’t just operational. It was cultural.


Store teams had become voiceless after years of top-down decision-making, and trust between frontline and head office had eroded. Instead of driving harder for results, Lesley focused on rebuilding connection.


She launched a listening tour across every store, asking three simple but powerful questions to every team member. Those conversations uncovered immediate fixes, long-term strategic priorities, and a clear path to re-engaging teams and restoring accountability.


Lesley explains why calm, intentional leadership is critical in high-pressure environments, and how leaders can create clarity, trust, and momentum without adding more noise.


She also introduces her philosophy on the power of raising your hand — and how small acts of initiative can create a ripple effect across teams, culture, and performance.


Ron and Lesley explore how leadership has evolved post-pandemic, why change is now the normal course of business, and what it takes to build resilient, empowered teams in today’s retail environment.
If you’re leading stores, districts, or retail organizations and navigating constant pressure and change, this episode offers practical, actionable leadership insight you can apply immediately.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (02:10) Why pressure is constant and how leaders set the tone
  • (04:30) Taking over retail during the pandemic and leading through uncertainty
  • (07:15) Why store teams became disengaged and how to rebuild trust
  • (09:40) The three questions that unlock honest frontline feedback
  • (13:20) Turning quick wins into long-term strategy
  • (16:05) Why listening is a leadership advantage, not a soft skill
  • (18:45) The power of raising your hand and taking initiative
  • (21:10) How small actions create cultural change across teams
  • (23:50) Why change is no longer a moment — it’s the business
  • (26:30) Building resilient and adaptable retail teams
  • (29:15) Creating environments where people feel safe to speak up
  • (31:40) The role of self-awareness in effective leadership
  • (34:05) Why great leaders look inward before assigning blame
  • (36:20) Leading with calm to drive performance and engagement

GUEST BIO

Lesley Hawkins is a keynote speaker, business strategist, and podcast host with three decades of leadership experience in the global sporting goods industry. As former Head of Retail for adidas Canada, she led 1,200 frontline employees through the chaos of the post-pandemic world. Her people-first leadership helped rebuild trust, boost morale, and reignite business momentum. Lesley brings warmth, empathy, and wit to the real challenges retail leaders face. She’s passionate about building inclusive, high-trust cultures where frontline teams feel heard, valued, and empowered. Her approachable style and contagious optimism reflect a simple truth: when people thrive, business thrives.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

Leadership Isn’t a Role. It’s a Weekly Discipline.

SHOW NOTES

Leadership doesn’t sit in a title. It shows up in the rhythm of what you do every week.

Most retail organizations are not struggling because of a lack of talent. They are struggling because of inconsistency, operational noise, and a lack of structure that allows leaders to perform at their best.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Shalonda Dean, Founder of Leadership Disrupted Consulting and former retail leader at Prada, Balenciaga, Apple, Tory Burch, and Intermix.

With 25 years in retail, Shalonda has led a $400M portfolio, opened more than 120 stores, and developed over 100 leaders into bigger roles. But what stayed with her most was not the results. It was watching high-potential leaders burn out in environments that lacked clarity, consistency, and support.

Shalonda shares why the industry’s biggest challenge is not performance, but the chaos that surrounds it. She explains how leaders can remove that noise, create consistent operating rhythms, and build cultures where both people and results can thrive.

She introduces her people-to-performance accelerator™, a 12-week framework designed to decode performance gaps, implement consistent leadership practices, and build scalable systems that strengthen culture and retention across every store.

Ron and Shalonda also reflect on their time working together at Intermix, sharing real examples of how listening to frontline teams, aligning leadership, and simplifying communication can unlock performance at scale.

If you’re leading stores, districts, or retail organizations and looking to improve retention, consistency, and results without burning out your teams, this episode offers a clear and actionable roadmap.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (02:20) Why leadership legacy is defined by the leaders you develop
  • (04:10) What servant leadership really looks like in retail
  • (06:00) How listening to store teams drives better business decisions
  • (08:56) Leading across different markets and adapting to local needs
  • (12:15) Why discomfort is essential for growth in leadership
  • (14:24) How to build relationships with high-profile and luxury clients
  • (16:18) Coaching through curiosity instead of giving answers
  • (18:21) Why Shalonda launched Leadership Disrupted
  • (20:27) The gap between top-performing leaders and the rest of the field
  • (22:02) The people-to-performance accelerator™ framework explained
  • (25:40) Why consistency is the key to scaling performance
  • (26:30) How to reduce operational noise and free up leaders
  • (28:50) The real cause of burnout in retail teams
  • (30:25) Leading through disruption and focusing on what you can control
  • (32:44) Why executive presence in stores matters more than ever
  • (35:01) Leadership as a weekly discipline, not a role

GUEST BIO

Most retail leaders are asked to choose: hit your numbers or invest in your people. Shalonda Dean spent 25 years proving that’s a false choice.

She led frontline teams and multi-unit operations for Prada, Balenciaga, Intermix, Apple, and Tory Burch. She built a $400M portfolio and delivered the #1 performing region globally. She promoted more than 100 leaders into bigger roles and launched over 120 stores. But what stuck with her wasn’t the accolades. It was watching talented leaders burn out and leave because no one invested in them the way they invested in the business.

She founded Leadership Disrupted Consulting to fix that. Through the People-to-Performance Accelerator™, she helps multi-unit operators and people leaders build the structure and clarity that let their teams perform without the chaos.

In this conversation, Shalonda shares what actually works to retain your best leaders, stabilize store performance, and scale without breaking your culture.

Her message: results and people aren’t a tradeoff. Do both.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

The Four Pillars of High-Performing Retail Stores

Operations doesn’t support the business. It drives it.

Most retail teams are aligned on goals but disconnected in execution. Sales teams focus on revenue. Operations teams focus on tasks. And in between, productivity, profit, and customer experience are lost.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Monika Espinoza, Founder & Principal Operator of Better Way Operations and former retail leader at Louis Vuitton Americas.

With more than 25 years in retail, Monika has built her career in operations — working side by side with store teams to understand how the business actually runs. Her perspective is clear: operations teams are not task-executors. They are profit drivers. And most organizations are underutilizing a significant portion of their store talent because of how they communicate, train, and position these roles.

Monika explains why high-performing stores are built on alignment, not silos, and why the biggest opportunity in retail today sits within operations. She introduces her STEP framework — Strategy, Team, Efficiency, and Performance — and shares how leaders can use it to close gaps, improve execution, and drive measurable results without increasing headcount.

Ron and Monika discuss how retail has evolved into a more complex, multi-channel environment, why operations has become more critical than ever, and how small operational decisions — from product placement to process design — can directly impact revenue and client experience.

If you’re leading stores, districts, or retail organizations and looking to improve performance, productivity, and team alignment, this episode offers a practical and actionable perspective from someone who has built it from the inside out.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

(03:20) Why retail teams operate in silos — and how it impacts performance
(05:04) How operations drives both revenue and profitability
(06:10) The untapped 20–30% of store teams and how to unlock it
(08:21) Why the role of operations needs to shift from task to client impact
(13:51) How retail builds entrepreneurial thinking at every level
(15:15) The disconnect between front-of-house and back-of-house teams
(16:29) How small operational changes can improve productivity and sales
(18:57) The STEP framework: Strategy, Team, Efficiency, Performance
(27:22) Why strategy often breaks before it reaches stores
(30:41) Why frontline teams should be involved in decision-making
(35:39) Where leaders should start to improve store performance

GUEST BIO

Monika Espinoza serves as Principal Operator at Better Way Operations, driven by a core belief: behind every successful retail brand is an operational heartbeat that deserves to be elevated. That heartbeat is the in-store operations teams who serve associates and clients to drive business forward, and Monika’s passion is unlocking their extraordinary potential.

With +25 years in retail leadership and most recently at Louis Vuitton Americas, Monika has built her career on recognizing that front-line teams possess insights and capabilities that can catapult an organization’s performance. She doesn’t lead from a desk; she’s on the floor, side-by-side with store teams, listening, learning, and translating their real-world experiences into operational excellence.

Her approach transforms how organizations view operations headcount.  Monika elevates operations talent by showing teams they’re not just task-executors but profit drivers whose daily decisions directly impact profitability.  

She weaves pragmatic strategies that honor the intelligence and expertise of front-line professionals, creating training and development that empowers rather than cycles. For Monika, operational excellence starts with recognizing that the people closest to clients hold the keys to pragmatic growth and seamless client experiences.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

How to Build a Culture People Don’t Want to Leave

SHOW NOTES

People don’t stay because of perks. They stay because of culture.

Revenue growth, store expansion, IPOs, and global scale don’t happen by accident. They happen when leaders build environments people want to be part of.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Paul Griffin, Founder & CEO of Griffin Strategic Partners and former Global President of Good American and President & CEO of SMCP North America (Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot).

Paul began his career on the shop floor in London and went on to open 350+ stores globally, scale accessible luxury brands across North America, and drive billions in revenue growth. His perspective is clear: culture is not a soft idea. It is the foundation of sustainable performance.

Paul explains why leaders must fiercely protect culture, why misaligned behaviors must be addressed in the moment, and why empowered teams outperform directed ones. He shares how retail has become more sophisticated and faster, but why the fundamentals remain unchanged. People power results. Teams take care of customers. Leaders take care of teams.

Ron and Paul discuss what it really takes to scale high-touch retail without losing standards, how to create belonging that drives retention, and why choosing who you work for matters as much as choosing the brand itself.

If you’re leading stores, districts, or global brands and thinking about retention, culture, and sustainable growth, this episode offers a grounded, practical view from someone who has built it at scale.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (02:00) Why starting on the shop floor shapes better executive leaders
  • (06:07) How retail growth worked before ecommerce and social media
  • (10:17) What has changed in retail — and what hasn’t
  • (12:36) How to build culture intentionally across 100+ stores
  • (15:23) Why leaders must call out culture when it’s working — and when it’s not
  • (16:19) The direct link between belonging and retention
  • (18:08) Why results follow people, not the other way around
  • (22:11) The balancing act of accessible luxury: speed plus high-touch service
  • (24:35) Why choosing the right leader matters as much as choosing the right brand
  • (30:27) How to empower teams without managing by committee
  • (31:55) Why empowered teams don’t wait for direction — they take ownership

GUEST BIO

Paul Griffin is an international brand leader and strategic operator with a proven record of shaping and scaling influential names in accessible luxury. Over two decades, he has driven more than $3B in revenue growth, opened 350+ stores globally, and built profitable, high-equity brands with strong enterprise value.

Most recently, as Global President of Good American, Paul redefined the brand’s model for scale—strengthening DTC performance, launching a new retail concept, and expanding wholesale partnerships with Macy’s and ASOS.

Previously, as President & CEO of SMCP North America (Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot, Fursac), he led the brand’s evolution from early market entry to leadership in accessible luxury with 250+ boutiques and key partnerships with Saks, Bloomingdale’s, and Nordstrom. He collaborated with KKR to deliver double-digit CAGR and a successful IPO on Euronext Paris.

Earlier, Paul launched Ted Baker North America, establishing a profitable platform across the U.S. and Canada and elevating the brand into a global force in premium contemporary fashion.

Originally from London and now based in Miami, Paul advises high-growth fashion, luxury, and consumer brands on strategy, expansion, and value creation worldwide.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

30-Day Blueprint for Running Great Stores

SHOW NOTES

Retail doesn’t struggle because leaders lack effort. It struggles when fundamentals get buried under noise.

Tariffs. AI. Labor shortages. Digital disruption.
Retail has always faced headwinds. What hasn’t changed is what great stores require to win: disciplined leadership, clear expectations, consistent behaviors, and operational urgency.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Rachel Williamson, Chief Strategic Retail Advisor at Running Great Stores Retail Consulting, to unpack her 30-day blueprint for running great stores.

Drawing on decades of experience leading high-performing field teams and transforming underperforming divisions, Rachel explains why store leaders remain the most important role in retail. She argues that while leaders can’t control macro disruption, they can control how their four walls run every single day.

Rachel breaks down why KPIs are simply numbers driven by observable behaviors, why “get conversion up” isn’t a strategy, and why urgency, defined as focus and purpose rather than panic, fuels operational excellence. She also challenges common hiring assumptions, making the case for hiring for attitude and training for skill, and explores how clarity and care directly impact customer experience and revenue.

Ron and Rachel discuss the real tension between stores and digital fulfillment, the importance of modeling standards on the floor, and why teaching teams to “see what you see” transforms performance at scale.

If you’re leading stores, districts, or frontline teams through growth, change, or complexity, this episode offers a practical roadmap for building stores that execute consistently and perform under pressure.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (03:01) Why disruption is constant in retail — and what leaders can actually control
  • (09:15) Why great stores start with disciplined self-leadership
  • (10:54) Why store managers are the most important leaders in the building — and the company
  • (18:42) The Gallup data on clarity and care — and how it impacts customer experience
  • (22:08) Why “get conversion up” isn’t a strategy — and how behaviors drive KPIs
  • (24:58) Why hiring for attitude beats hiring for experience
  • (28:54) The difference between coaching and directing — and why questions matter more than commands
  • (31:50) Why urgency fuels operational excellence — without creating burnout
  • (33:05) How teaching your team to see what you see raises standards across the store
  • (36:28) The tension between stores and digital orders — and what it reveals about incentives and ownership
  • (39:53) Why this 30-day blueprint works for aspiring leaders, store managers, and district leaders alike

BONUS CONTENT

GUEST BIO

Rachel Williamson is a strategic retail leader who has spent her career mastering the art of running great stores. Known for transforming underperforming projects, divisions, and teams into top performers, she has driven record-setting results and consistent revenue growth for multibillion-dollar companies. As founder of Running Great Stores Retail Consulting, Rachel partners with brands in the US and UK to design and implement strategies that create operational excellence and exceptional customer experiences. An in-demand speaker, coach, and podcast host, she is passionate about developing leaders and helping retailers unlock their full potential.

If you’re not already following Rachel Williamson’s Substack (https://runninggreatstores.substack.com/subscribe), now’s the time — she’s giving away five signed copies of her new book, 30 Days to Running Great Stores, and it’s full of actionable insights for retail leaders.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

The 3 Questions That Define Great Retail Leadership

SHOW NOTES

Leadership doesn’t break down because leaders lack ambition. It breaks down when trust, clarity, and care disappear at scale.

Retail is full of frameworks, playbooks, and well-intentioned initiatives. But sustained performance comes down to how leaders show up for their teams, how they navigate tension, and how clearly strategy translates to the end user on the floor.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Corinne Suarez, VP and Head of Retail at Marine Layer, to explore the leadership principles that have shaped her career across some of retail’s largest and fastest-growing brands.

Drawing on decades of experience leading field teams at Old Navy, American Eagle, and now Marine Layer, Corinne shares why great leadership starts with four non-negotiables: respect, care, fairness, and dignity. She introduces a simple but powerful leadership lens built around three questions every team member is asking, whether they say it out loud or not: Do you care about me? Can I trust you? Are you committed?

Ron and Corinne unpack what it really takes to lead at scale without losing humanity, how to translate strategy so it lands in a single store, and why investing in people consistently delivers better outcomes than process alone. They also explore the future of retail, where technology should eliminate friction, not add to it, and where physical stores remain essential for connection, emotion, and trust.

If you’re leading teams through growth, change, or complexity, this episode offers perspective on how leadership actually works on the frontline.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (01:23) How Corinne fell in love with retail, and why her career has always stayed close to the frontline
  • (03:24) Why legacy, not title, is the measure of great leadership
  • (06:31) The four leadership pillars that guide Corinne’s decisions: respect, care, fairness, and dignity
  • (08:07) How to pause conflict before it damages trust, and why stopping is sometimes the strongest move
  • (09:12) The three questions every leader must answer for their teams, and why one “no” signals work to be done
  • (11:17) How Corinne uses these questions to diagnose leadership gaps and coach at scale
  • (13:18) What changes when you lead hundreds of stores versus dozens, and how to keep the end user in focus(15:07) Why scaling leadership is about systems, discipline, and simplicity, not control
  • (16:00) The difference between leading a large fleet and a high-touch, growing brand like Marine Layer
  • (18:29) How people, technology, and physical space must work together to create real retail impact
  • (19:06) Why technology should eliminate friction for teams, not create more work
  • (22:29) What owning Drybar franchises taught Corinne about human-centered experiences
  • (26:56) Why the future of retail depends on purpose-driven teams and leaders who listen
  • (30:44) Why leading people, not tasks, creates a virtuous cycle of performance
  • (31:57) Corinne’s advice for young leaders on openness, mobility, and building a career that lasts

GUEST BIO

Corinne Suarez is a senior retail executive with more than two decades of experience leading large-scale store operations, growth, and transformation across North America. She currently serves as VP and Head of Retail at Marine Layer, where she focuses on building scalable retail strategies that strengthen both performance and culture.

Previously, Corinne held executive leadership roles at Old Navy, including VP of Stores for the Central Territory and Head of Stores for Canada, where she led multi-layered leadership teams, drove record-setting sales performance, and supported major omnichannel initiatives like BOPIS. Earlier in her career, she spent nearly a decade at American Eagle Outfitters, overseeing hundreds of stores and more than $1B in annual revenue, while playing a key role in the relaunch and expansion of Aerie.

Known for her people-first leadership style, Corinne has led through periods of rapid growth, operational disruption, and change, including large-scale expansion, organizational resets, and crisis response. She is also a franchise owner, consultant, and active mentor, with a long-standing commitment to developing leaders and creating environments where teams can perform at their best.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

The Six Cs of Execution: A Playbook for Field Leaders

SHOW NOTES

Strategy has never been the problem. Execution is where things fall apart.

Retail is full of smart ideas, bold plans, and well-intentioned strategies. But once those ideas leave the boardroom and hit the field, they often unravel in the handoffs, the overload, and the messy middle between intention and reality.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Kevin Ertell, CEO of Mistere Advisory and a veteran retail operator, to unpack why most strategies fail at execution, and what field leaders can do to change that.

Drawing on more than 30 years of experience across Tower Records, Borders, Sur La Table, and Nike, Kevin shares why execution is always a people challenge before it’s a process one. He introduces The Six Cs of Execution, a practical framework designed to help leaders slow down to speed up, bring clarity to complexity, and turn strategy into something teams can actually act on day to day.

From co-creation and clarity to communication and coaching, this conversation explores how leaders can create the conditions for execution to succeed, especially under constant pressure. Ron and Kevin dig into the realities of frontline leadership, from navigating cross-functional chaos to building trust, ownership, and momentum on the shop floor.

If you’ve ever rolled out a strategy that made sense on paper but didn’t stick in stores, this episode breaks down where things went wrong, and how to build execution that lasts.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (01:28) Why Kevin’s career started on the frontline, and how those early experiences shaped his view of execution
  • (05:22) Why most strategies fail, and why execution is the real competitive advantage
  • (06:24) What surprised Kevin after interviewing 60+ operators across industries about execution
  • (09:06) The Six Cs of Execution, and how they’re split between “setting the stage” and “showtime”
  • (10:42) Why slowing down upfront is the fastest way to move later
  • (12:26) What Hamilton can teach leaders about piloting, iteration, and getting strategy ready for the real world
  • (14:04) Why execution breaks down in the messy middle between HQ and the frontline
  • (15:14) How co-creation builds alignment, commitment, and ownership on the floor
  • (17:38) Why clarity around the “why” and the “what” matters more than controlling the “how”
  • (19:02) How field leaders can apply the Six Cs in a single day, not just during big transformations
  • (21:17) What “early, loud, and continuous” communication really looks like in stores
  • (31:21) A real-world example of getting execution wrong, and how rebuilding with frontline input changed everything
  • (35:21) One thing leaders can do tomorrow to improve execution without adding more work

BONUS CONTENT

GUEST BIO

Kevin Ertell is a veteran executive and trusted advisor with more than 30 years of experience leading transformations at brands like Nike, Tower Records, and Sur La Table. As founder and CEO of Mistere Advisory, he helps companies of all sizes bring clarity, alignment, and action to their strategies. Known for his straight talk, practical insight, and ability to cut through complexity, Kevin draws on deep experience across leadership, operations, and digital growth to help teams turn ideas into results. When he’s not helping companies get unstuck, he’s likely playing bass, cooking for family, or following Cleveland sports with stubborn optimism.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).

How to Inspire Employee Adoption Without Forcing It

SHOW NOTES

Retail has never struggled with ideas. What it struggles with is adoption.

Retail has never struggled with ideas. What it struggles with is adoption.

Rolling out new tools, systems, and ways of working is easy on paper. Getting frontline teams to believe in them, trust them, and actually use them is where most initiatives break down.

In this episode of FRONTLINE FRIDAYS, host Ron Thurston sits down with Missy Poole, executive leader, board member, and former senior operator at Apple, Ralph Lauren, Gap Inc., and West Elm, to unpack what real adoption looks like on the frontline, and why trust, not technology, is the deciding factor.

Drawing on decades spent leading in stores, not just designing strategy from HQ, Missy shares why leaders move too fast, where adoption efforts fail, and how the most successful rollouts are built collaboratively with frontline teams from day one. From peer-led adoption to slowing down under pressure, this conversation reframes change management as a leadership responsibility rooted in connection, listening, and belief.

If you’ve ever rolled out a new tool and wondered why it didn’t stick, this episode explains what went wrong, and how to do it differently next time.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • (07:23) Why great frontline leadership starts with being alongside your teams, not managing from a distance
  • (10:54) Missy’s go-to playbook for understanding what teams really need when entering a new environment
  • (12:40) How vulnerability and lived experience build trust faster than authority ever will
  • (14:07) Why technology adoption succeeds when leaders focus on impact, not features
  • (17:18) The mistake leaders make when they force technology into human relationships
  • (18:41) How data and proof points help teams believe in new tools without losing authenticity
  • (21:30) Why moving too fast is the fastest way to create resistance on the frontline
  • (22:30) How acknowledging mistakes can rebuild trust and accelerate adoption
  • (24:02) What authentic leadership looks like after decades in the field
  • (28:27) How Apple reshaped Missy’s approach to feedback, bias, and positive intent
  • (30:30) How to scale trust, feedback, and performance across large frontline teams
  • (36:18) Missy’s advice for leaders rolling out new tools in 2026: collaborate early, build the why together, and show up on day one

GUEST BIO

Missy Pool specializes in building dynamic teams focused on profitable sales growth and client connections. She has supported customer and employee engagement, merchandising, store operations, real estate, planning, and distribution in both luxury and mass categories.

Currently, she focuses on strategies that positively impact employee and customer experience through digital training and communication platforms. She has held corporate leadership roles at Apple, Ralph Lauren, and Gap Inc.

Missy connects people and businesses for mutually beneficial partnerships and supports new businesses in building brand identities and engaging customers. She is passionate about assisting female entrepreneurs in implementing technology systems and HR guidelines for efficiency, growth, and customer relationships. Growing up as a female leader in a professional environment, she has established deep roots in her community, impacting the arts and local businesses.

She serves on the Executive Committee of the Madison Ave BID board, the Board of FIT, co-chairs the City Harvest Gala, and mentors for mentoro.org. She also believes strongly in prioritizing health and inspiring others through her health journey. 

Missy enjoys traveling to emerging countries where she can immerse herself in the culture and learn about the people and places she visits for perspective and find ways to support.

ABOUT FRONTLINE FRIDAYS

Your store teams feel it: more pressure, more change, less time to get it right. FRONTLINE FRIDAYS helps you turn that pressure into impact.

Built for senior retail + hospitality field leaders, each episode features candid conversations with execs from iconic brands, sharing tactics you can use today.

HOSTED BY RON THURSTON. Ron is a global retail leadership expert and two-time bestselling author of RETAIL PRIDE (2020) and HUMAN PRIDE (2025).