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If you are seeking new ways to increase your ROI on marketing with your commerce platform, or you may be an entrepreneur who wants to grow your team and be more efficient with your online business.
Talk Commerce with Brent W. Peterson draws stories from merchants, marketers, and entrepreneurs who share their experiences in the trenches to help you learn what works and what may not in your business.
Keep up with the current news on commerce platforms, marketing trends, and what is new in the entrepreneurial world. Episodes drop every Tuesday with the occasional bonus episodes.
You can check out our daily blog post and signup for our newsletter here https://talk-commerce.com
Brent Peterson (00:03.598)
Welcome to this episode of Talk Commerce. Today I have Kristen Schoenstein and Elizabeth Robillard from eTale. Kristen and Elizabeth, why don't you go ahead, introduce yourselves, Kristen starts. Tell us your day-to-day role and maybe one of your passions in life.
Kristin Schoenstein (00:22.402)
Sure, so I am the portfolio director for ETAL. I work on ETAL Palm Springs with Liz. We co-produced the show together and I also produce ETAL Boston, which is in August. And what was your second question? I'm already forgetting, oh, my passion, oh my gosh. I don't know, I'm into lots of things. I love to read, I like to ski. That's definitely a passion. I have three kids, so they're my passion.
Brent Peterson (00:37.622)
A passion, passion in life.
Brent Peterson (00:51.686)
That's great. And Liz, yeah, they'll keep you really busy.
Kristin Schoenstein (00:52.046)
keeping busy with that, that's for sure.
Elizabeth Robillard (00:57.731)
So, Kristin and I co-produced ETale together. I also work on a couple of financial services events at our company WBR. Basically, what we do is just a lot of research, a lot of talking to people. We do a ton of networking and...
It's pretty fun. We kind of get to find different things that are making people tick and kind of what keeps people up at night. And that's what ends up being the driver for most of our programs. So it's great. We get to talk to a lot of different people, kind of a new different thing every day in our day to day. No one day is the same. So that's pretty exciting on our end. Passions for me. I'm a big family person. I'm super close to my parents. Very, very passionate about my family.
I knew passion of mine. I recently took up drumming. So I've been taking drumming lessons. I feel like that's been super fun. So new passion of mine.
Brent Peterson (01:52.718)
That's awesome. Yeah, my son-in-law is a drummer. So I can go to that beat for a little bit anyways. So let's talk a little bit about ETL. I think ETL is such a fantastically produced event. How do you keep it relevant today? There's a lot of big events, there's a lot of industry specific events and ETL is always sort of on the cusp and out there with what's relevant.
Kristin Schoenstein (01:53.24)
I'm sorry.
Kristin Schoenstein (01:59.406)
Thanks for watching!
Elizabeth Robillard (02:00.247)
I'm sorry.
Brent Peterson (02:22.17)
Tell us a little bit about how you keep that up to date.
Kristin Schoenstein (02:26.302)
Sure. I mean, going back to what Liz said, I think it's that research. So we spend a lot of time talking to the industry. We do it for every show for many months. So I think that's how we kind of keep our finger on the pulse. We also have an advisory board. So we're constantly kind of asking them, like Liz said, what keeps you up at night? You know, what are you challenged with? What would be helpful to hear? And then we're just constantly iterating on that so that the content stays fresh. So.
Every year is a new program and something new that we've created just based on what we're hearing in the industry So yeah, a lot of research and just a lot of Talking and sometimes people just vent to us and but it's good because then we get to know okay This is like coming up a lot like this is something we really need to like hone in on for this year So it's the research. I think that's what sets us apart, but it's 25 years on this brand So also just the community that we've developed I think
keeps it just really a strong, just a strong community coming together year after year. And I think they're looking for that. And they just, I forgot what you were saying in a meeting last week, something about, it's like clockwork to them. Like you go to e-tail and people just, it's like they know it and they know that it's gonna be the place where they can meet the people that they wanna meet and see what they need to see. So I think that's part of it. It's just that established brand.
Elizabeth Robillard (03:51.495)
And the brand is just so much bigger than the two of us. We've got such a giant team and it's changed over the years and it just does have this kind of enduring existence in the industry. And it's always super fun to hear from past speakers who had built a lot of their career based on e-tail, met new people, did great networking. It's always super fun for us to then learn what the event has meant to other people as well.
Kristin Schoenstein (03:56.162)
Right.
Kristin Schoenstein (04:17.015)
Mm-hmm.
Brent Peterson (04:17.306)
I know that I know that you both can't remember or you remember maybe in 25 years ago when it first started but was there a was there a reason about e tail I understand it's about e commerce retailing right but was that sort of a buzzword that you kind of jumped on to back then and then now it's really become just a household name and especially in the industry.
Elizabeth Robillard (04:42.343)
Yeah, I would say, yeah, I mean, we can't speak a ton to the outset of the event, but I do know it's funny. We just had, we kind of had this big group meeting last week where we brought everyone together kind of talking about the history of the event, talking about the branding, what it kind of means. And I remember one of our
Kristin Schoenstein (04:42.807)
Yeah.
Elizabeth Robillard (05:01.375)
Spex people, Spex is an internal term, one of our sponsorship sales managers, had mentioned that at the very outset of the event when she was given the event to sell on, to bring sponsorship on, she was like, oh god, what is this? This isn't gonna last. Nobody cares about shopping online. That's just a flash in the pan. And of course, you know, she...
Kristin Schoenstein (05:18.082)
What is this?
Elizabeth Robillard (05:27.539)
It's her favorite event to this day. It's changed, it's grown, but you know, at the time, I don't think anybody knew what its potential could be. Was it just kind of a fad? Was it a trend?
we're still kind of seeing with stores. People are still shopping in stores, but obviously there's a ton happening online. It continues to build every year. So yeah, back then it was just sort of a, it was just kind of a guess. It was an educated guess based on research, but definitely a bit of guesswork there that no one was sure it was gonna have the impact. In fact.
Kristin Schoenstein (05:46.926)
Mm-hmm.
Kristin Schoenstein (05:58.034)
Yes. And the name for the show, I think was literally just, which is what we do for events sometimes, we're like, okay, it's about e-commerce and retail. It's e-tail. I don't even think that was a term in the industry at the time, but we do that for shows. We have an event called ProcureCon. So I think that was a term that we made up for the show and it's just been enduring. And we were talking about that last week, that it still makes sense. It still resonates, but at the time, I think it was like...
Retail and e-commerce, retail. So funny to kind of go through that.
Brent Peterson (06:31.746)
And that you, I think that your parent company is WBR research. So is the core business around making sure that you're getting the right relevant thing to the audience during these events?
Elizabeth Robillard (06:44.707)
Yep, absolutely.
Kristin Schoenstein (06:44.966)
Yep, we cover all types of industries, but I think the bottom line is just, yeah, making sure that we're bringing the content, but then also the community, you know, bringing together buyers and sellers and just kind of creating that community for each show that we do.
Brent Peterson (07:00.459)
How do you two split up the duties? Liz, like, how do you make sure you're doing the right thing? You're not overlapping Kristen.
Elizabeth Robillard (07:07.931)
That's a great question. It's kind of a controlled chaos, I would say, I think. Her and I just make it work. We're a good team. She does a lot of the research, and then I kind of come in and help with bringing speakers on board. And honestly, we have definitely overlapped inviting people. And we're just like, well, you've got two invites. Aren't you so happy that you've heard of her most twice? We want you that badly. So it's especially worth it. Yes, absolutely.
Kristin Schoenstein (07:26.048)
You
Kristin Schoenstein (07:29.983)
You're so special. And we have an amazing production assistant who keeps us in line. But yeah, we share documents so we know like what each other is doing and it's insane amounts of communication like just kind of non-stop. You know, that's how we Yes, my work my work wife.
Elizabeth Robillard (07:38.63)
Yes.
Elizabeth Robillard (07:47.695)
wife for sure.
Brent Peterson (07:50.238)
I think people forget because I put on some events, certainly nothing as big as this, but people forget about how much goes behind the scenes, like how much planning and work has to be done to get to that day. And then it's then it's that day. Maybe Kristen, tell us a little bit about, the amount of stress you have to go through to get to that day. And then maybe the relief after, if there is any relief or do you just jump right into the next event?
Kristin Schoenstein (08:09.934)
Thanks for watching!
Kristin Schoenstein (08:14.383)
Yeah. Oh, of course.
Um, well, I'm already producing the next event. So there's definitely overlap, which can be stressful. Um, this is our crunch time right now, cause we're prepping everyone for the show. It's all our panel prep calls and fireside chat prep. So it's, um, really busy. And then we get to the show and it's definitely, um, super long days. And I think once we clear that first main day morning and Liz and I get on stage and we finish our opening remarks, then I sort of let out that sigh of like, okay, we're here, we're doing it. Um, but.
It is, yeah, it's definitely high stress. And, but when we get outside, we do know how to have fun. We have a big team on site. We have a lot of help. So like it is controlled chaos. We're like very, we work really well as a team. There's 30, 35 of us coming for the show in Palm Springs and everyone kind of knows their role. And yeah, I don't know if Liz has anything to add, but we've been now doing it for a long time. So I think.
We know what to expect when we get there.
Brent Peterson (09:21.138)
Do you balance out the panels, the content, the speakers along with that marketplace aspect that's part of there? Do you see that there's a reason why people go? Some people just go for the networking and the marketplace and some people really want to go for the thought leadership.
Kristin Schoenstein (09:39.27)
Yeah, we definitely try to create a program that kind of offers both. Our networking breaks are always kind of in the expo and giving people time to, you know, walk the floor and see all the vendors and, but then just a lot of content in between, a lot of different tracks that people can choose from. So we definitely find that they do both and there's time, there's time for both. But I would say we lean, we lean a little heavy on the content. We think that's important, but I think...
Elizabeth Robillard (10:08.327)
Almost too much, but...
Kristin Schoenstein (10:10.534)
Yeah, we cram it all in. That's for sure. That's for sure. We're not short on content.
Brent Peterson (10:15.774)
Um, one thing that I'll, I'll give you credit for, um, I, and I've been to a lot of the big industry events. Uh, you don't seem to push a lot of high. High, um, high availability speakers or speakers that are very popular against each other. So like sometimes in a big conference I've experienced that I want to go sit with this speaker and this speaker, but then you have to, like, if you're in Vegas, you got to walk a mile or if you're in Boston, you have to go across.
giant convention center and it may take you 10 minutes to get there and you have 10 minutes and you walk in and it's full, it's sold out. How do you balance that out and how do you know who's going to be a really popular speaker compared to not that anybody's going to be there without anybody in the room, but there are going to be, there's a balance, right, for speakers that have big attendance and low attendance.
Elizabeth Robillard (11:05.196)
sure. I mean, I think...
In the mornings, we usually, the morning is sort of where our main general session is, our main stages. I would say that content is usually the content that will appeal the most to everybody. So whether it be future focused, whether it be, you know, hot trend, we've got a lot of AI stuff on the main stage, a lot of stuff about sustainability, anything that's sort of having a moment, we definitely like to put on that main stage. And then in the afternoon in our tracks where things are a little bit more broken up and, you know, there's a couple of things going on at different
Kristin Schoenstein (11:10.622)
Main stage.
Elizabeth Robillard (11:37.209)
times. That's where we kind of allow ourselves to be a little bit more niche. We know that people are gonna pick out certain, you know, if someone really wants to hear about performance marketing, they'll go to our performance marketing track. Then we'll kind of have the content in there that really works for, you know, those specific things. So the afternoons are a little bit more niche kind of by design just so it's easier for people to kind of go to the stuff that really applies to what they do.
Brent Peterson (12:01.858)
If we look back to 2022, did you have to do a lot of scrambling because chat GPT came out in November? And then all of a sudden, this is the thing that happened within, you know, a month and then everybody had to have it did. Did I don't I don't remember what the agenda was like for 2023 but was there some reshuffling of some of the topics that had to happen.
Elizabeth Robillard (12:27.439)
I mean, reshuffling, but we definitely added a couple of chat GPT quips to our opening remarks on the fly. We tried to make it as much a part of what we were talking about. We had a couple of AI sessions here and there that ended up, you know, people kind of ended up bringing it up naturally and doing some experiments with it. But yeah, we had to make a couple of couple of adjustments because we had, I mean,
Kristin Schoenstein (12:34.263)
Yes.
Kristin Schoenstein (12:38.231)
Yes.
Kristin Schoenstein (12:48.014)
tweaks.
Elizabeth Robillard (12:50.672)
I think we were planning our opening remarks maybe three weeks at a time and both of us were like, we don't even know how to describe what this is.
Kristin Schoenstein (12:54.062)
Mm-hmm.
Kristin Schoenstein (12:58.502)
Yeah, it definitely felt a little last minute, but it worked out. It was like we kind of made it funny in our opening remarks.
Brent Peterson (12:59.583)
What did Christian?
Brent Peterson (13:06.542)
And did you use ChatGPD to come up with those opening remarks for ChatGPD? Yeah. Okay. Good.
Kristin Schoenstein (13:09.302)
That was the joke that we did. That we... We didn't.
Elizabeth Robillard (13:13.275)
We didn't, but that was the joke.
Brent Peterson (13:16.718)
Yeah, I think sometimes it's fun to see that actual interaction, especially when it first started or first came out, you could somebody come up there live and they do a interaction with chat GPT with the audience. So going into 2024 now, what do you see is the trends that are going to be happening coming up? What is the hot buzz in the industry right now for e-tail?
Kristin Schoenstein (13:28.619)
Mm-hmm.
Elizabeth Robillard (13:40.615)
Kristin, you wanna start?
Kristin Schoenstein (13:42.242)
Well, AI, of course, that's definitely all over the program. And just different use cases, we have a couple of different sessions that definitely hit on that. I actually had a prep call yesterday for one of our keynote panels. And even though the main idea wasn't AI, it was like, well, we got to talk about AI because it's happening. And so it's definitely gonna be sprinkled throughout the whole program. And we're just seeing more retailers really.
find applications for it that are working for them, investing in, you know, we talked even on this call yesterday about what people are investing in to help them with it and just how it's allowing greater efficiency and around all kind of all aspects, you know, from supply chain to content creation is just everywhere. So definitely a big one for 2024. Liz touched on sustainability.
a big one. We have a panel on sustainability. We have another one that's more focused on e-commerce and resale, which we're seeing everywhere. So that's another one. What else, Liz?
Elizabeth Robillard (14:50.955)
Big focus on social commerce. I mean, we've got a lot of influencer panels. We've got, you know, we're definitely focused on TikTok and TikTok shop, live shopping is coming up a lot as well. So really just harnessing your social channels and kind of understanding how you can make them work for you. Definitely something we're talking about as well. And then Kristin, I know for Boston, you're sort of focused on that idea of the growth and the new.
Kristin Schoenstein (14:52.726)
social commerce.
Kristin Schoenstein (15:00.586)
Yep. Live shopping.
Elizabeth Robillard (15:19.099)
the new channels, I feel like that's super interesting.
Kristin Schoenstein (15:19.266)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, I mean, I think what we're seeing, and this is not super new, but it's definitely a trend towards like sustainable growth and really thinking about, okay, well, for the long term, like, how are we going to really survive and thrive in this environment? We saw a lot of direct to consumer companies kind of blow up because they grew so fast and they didn't really, you know, there was a lot of kind of factors in play. But I think that idea of.
sustainable growth and coming up with new avenues for growth and thinking about what that means for each company. It's obviously different for every company, but whether it's expanding globally, whether it's, you know, going into bricks more heavily and coming up with more physical retail options, whether it's really changing investment, investing in retail media, like whatever those avenues are, I think that's just top of mind is like, okay, what's like our long-term plan here?
Um, and since competition is so, so heavy right now, it's kind of the, how are we, how are we going to grow? Um, but in a way that's, you know, a little more long-term.
Brent Peterson (16:25.798)
Sure. So are there speakers then that are standing out or are there some big names that you have coming that people are really going to want to line up for?
Elizabeth Robillard (16:36.699)
Yeah, absolutely. Kristen, you can go ahead if you want.
Kristin Schoenstein (16:42.635)
I'm like, I don't even know who to touch on first, because we have a few that we're definitely excited for. I mean, just the even the panel I was on yesterday, it was solo brands, the CDO solo brands. It was the VP of eCommerce from Vince Commuto, we had J. Crew, we had Harry's and they're all on one panel. And I was like, wow, this is going to be such a great dynamic. And then, you know, we have Target speaking and PetSmart and
Two people from Sam's Club that are really talking about how they're shaping their strategy, their e-commerce strategy. I think that's going to be a great fireside. We have the CEO of Indochino. Just a great combination of the big box and what they're doing and then also the disruptors. Even the CEO of Tushy, I'm excited for him.
You know, they had exponential growth during the pandemic and they're just really coming up with some cheeky marketing strategies. So I think just having that mix of the disruptors plus the big box and big kind of legacy retailers coming together is going to be fun.
Brent Peterson (17:49.518)
Are you seeing everything kind of normalize again post pandemic? Is this going to be the year that or was last year the year that attendance was equal to pre pandemic?
Kristin Schoenstein (18:01.842)
I think last year was our best year ever. So we definitely are back. We're back. And we were talking last week about how this event was at the end of February, 2020. So that was sort of the last event that everyone went to before the pandemic and before the pandemic kind of shut everything down. And then when we came back, I feel like the community was just like relieved to be back together again, be at a live show again. It was like such a good feeling to have everyone come back.
But yeah, we're seeing great growth and great attendance. So it's a positive sign for sure.
Brent Peterson (18:41.01)
And Liz, for you, are you seeing specific ways that the show is shaping trends or the trends shaping the show going into the into this future?
Elizabeth Robillard (18:52.643)
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think people definitely come out of the show. I think our speakers, our attendees come out of the show thinking about some of these trends in a different way.
They hear the trends, they read about them, I think they're experiencing those challenges, those problems in their day-to-day life, and they come to the event and I think, are either inspired or reshape the way that they think about some of these trends and actually have the, now have the tools or at least some general idea of the tools that can make some of these things actually happen at their own.
I want to say institutions, but at their own company. So yeah, I think we definitely use trends to shape the show, but I also think that the trends are kind of reshaped for some of our attendees as well.
Kristin Schoenstein (19:36.386)
Mm-hmm.
Kristin Schoenstein (19:47.538)
Yeah, I think it's an accessibility thing. Like they might come and feel like, all right, this is something we're thinking about. And then they go to the show and they're like, oh, people are actually doing this. And now I have like concrete examples and ways that I can really implement this at my own organization so they can go back and really put some stuff to work that maybe that was just sort of a thought. But now they realize, okay, people are executing on this and like it's working for them. Let's go give it a shot.
Brent Peterson (20:12.174)
This question is partially for me, but also for all the attendees. How do you encourage people to go to all the events or to the speakers and go to the marketplace and network and get the business things that they need? Is there a balance that you encourage people to do to see some of the top speakers plus visit the marketplace plus make sure you're getting all your business networking things done?
Elizabeth Robillard (20:39.855)
Yeah, that's a good question as well. And just because the program is so packed and we always so desperately want everyone to see all the speakers as well, that we're a little biased, I would say, in terms of what we want people to get out of the show. But I do think we do have this balance. We come up with these, you know.
Kristin Schoenstein (20:41.095)
I'm sorry.
Kristin Schoenstein (20:53.384)
Yes.
Elizabeth Robillard (21:01.543)
breaks where this is a specific time, there are no sessions happening, this is a great time to go into the marketplace, meet with the vendors, chat with who you want. I do think some strategy is involved before you come to the show. Going through the agenda, picking out the sessions that you think matter, checking out what sponsors you may want to meet, knowing what kind of technology you might be interested in hearing more about. There definitely is a little bit of a...
plan that needs to be made before going. But also if you bring colleagues or other people, we always encourage companies to bring a couple of people along with them. It's always great to kind of share the load in terms of, you can go meet with somebody. I'll go sit on this session. So that's something we always encourage as well.
Kristin Schoenstein (21:44.95)
Yep, divide and conquer. That's the best.
Brent Peterson (21:48.21)
Um, I know that you have a panel this year for the Z suite. Tell us a little bit about what the Gen Z focus group thing is all about.
Elizabeth Robillard (21:51.697)
Yes.
Elizabeth Robillard (21:57.143)
Yeah, absolutely.
Kristin Schoenstein (21:57.398)
Sure, so this is like a little bit of a later addition to the program that we're super excited about, but it's basically a group of Gen Z students that the Z suite, which is an organization that's kind of put together. It's a focus group really. So we have four of them coming and then the CMO of Milani Cosmetics and they're just kind of talking about what.
their day to day, you know, some of the things that they're doing digitally and as influencers and just sort of getting their take. And this is the first time we've had, well, in a couple years, at least, had actual customers. One of them is a sophomore in high school. So it's just cool to kind of see what that group is actually experiencing. And then we're going to do a Q&A portion as well with the audience. So I think it's going to be interactive. It's going to be eye-opening.
And then just kind of also having the CMO of Milani there to talk about, you know, what that relationship is like. So we're excited for that one.
Brent Peterson (23:01.05)
Do you think it's important at a leadership level, a C, C suite level to have a G or Z? Sorry. Is it important to have in the C suite to have start having z suite z gen z folks in that role to make sure that they're in touch with their audience?
Elizabeth Robillard (23:21.975)
That's an interesting question. I mean, definitely, if not at the C level, at least having within your organization, you know.
people of that age that you are either mentoring or spending a lot of time talking to, understanding what it is that motivates them. I know at WBR we have just a fantastic suite of both assistants and then new producers who we spend a lot of time talking to, especially for e-tail. We're always asking them, what are your favorite brands? Who do you guys, who do you buy from? Why do you buy from there? So I think if not directly having a person at that C level, really having that...
Kristin Schoenstein (23:55.272)
Yeah.
Elizabeth Robillard (24:03.547)
you know, communication open. I feel like that generation wants to be heard. I mean, every generation does, but I feel like it's definitely, you know, they've got thoughts and they wanna share them. So I think having that sort of open communication or some form of mentorship is important.
Brent Peterson (24:19.838)
Um, is this I know a lot of employers are interested, but is the panel kind of is it going to give people an idea about what it what it means to hire Gen Z now and what they're what how they see working differently from boomers and Gen X and all the other folks.
Elizabeth Robillard (24:42.171)
That can definitely be a direction that the panel can go down. I think, yeah, that's a great question. Good night.
Kristin Schoenstein (24:48.642)
probably skew more towards marketing. I bet it'll skew a little bit more towards marketing to them, and what is resonating with them. I think that's for our audience. I mean, they're both important, obviously, but I think it's gonna skew more in that direction.
Elizabeth Robillard (24:53.297)
Yeah.
Elizabeth Robillard (25:04.583)
But I think in a general question about what just motivates them generally, does work motivate you? What are the things that kind of keep you going or what are the things that you're thinking about? I think that will be a part of the discussion for sure.
Kristin Schoenstein (25:08.585)
Right.
Kristin Schoenstein (25:19.447)
Mm-hmm.
Brent Peterson (25:20.85)
This year is the 25th anniversary. What are you guys doing to celebrate? Are you having a big birthday party at the event?
Elizabeth Robillard (25:28.143)
Yes. Kristen, you wanna talk?
Kristin Schoenstein (25:29.303)
Yeah, I mean, we're having a big party the first night. This is like our 25th anniversary party, so that'll be fun. And just, yeah, throughout the show, just different things to kind of celebrate 25 years. We just added a panel that's kind of a looking back at 25 years with people who are members of our advisory board, people who've been at the show since day one. So we're super excited about that. Just kind of show some old.
Elizabeth Robillard (25:32.871)
Thanks for watching!
Kristin Schoenstein (25:56.31)
maybe some old brochures, some old photos, and just kind of reminisce a little bit, and then also like look towards the future. You know, that was the first 25 years. What do you see, you know, coming down the pike? So very excited for that panel. And I think, yeah, just lots of things throughout the show where we're gonna be highlighting that 25 year history.
Brent Peterson (26:16.434)
Okay, question for both of you. First, we'll do Liz. What would you give it, if somebody's asking you, why should I attend eTail? What's the advice you give them?
Elizabeth Robillard (26:29.667)
I think you will walk away from etale feeling inspired. I think that there will be a lot of fantastic speakers who will again kind of make you think differently about all of those trends, those buzzwords. And I think we've just got some really great content, not to mention, I mean, spending four days in Palm Springs, if you're coming from the East Coast, is always super awesome, especially for our team.
Kristin Schoenstein (26:55.275)
Yes.
Yes.
Elizabeth Robillard (26:58.095)
But yeah, I would say that the inspiration is the thing that I personally always walk away from the event feeling super inspired and I've been working with the speakers for, you know, for a longer period of time so that would that would be mine.
Kristin Schoenstein (27:10.846)
Yeah, and I think we have some sessions that aren't immediately content based, but are more around like your career path and leadership and mentorship and just kind of being a part of the community. We have Women in Retail, which is one of our very popular sessions. And that's one of the most inspiring sessions, I think, of the show. And we just bring together women who've been in the...
industry for many years, some who are just starting out, and it's just a great way to kind of talk through the challenges and how everyone's sort of coping and, you know, just working at their careers. So just things like that where you sort of walk away with inspiration, motivation, some new friends, some new connections. I think that's what makes ETL special.
Brent Peterson (28:01.642)
Inspiration and motivation. That's all I needed to hear. Kristen and Liz, I give everybody a chance to do a shameless plug as we close out the podcast. Kristen, what would you like to plug today?
Kristin Schoenstein (28:04.789)
Yep.
Kristin Schoenstein (28:13.786)
I mean, I'm plugging, I'm definitely plugging Palm Springs, but we run each year round, so, um, if you can't, for some reason, make it to our beautiful event in February with, uh, the gorgeous resort and weather, which I know I'm very excited for. We have more opportunities throughout the year. Um, so definitely, um, if you visit our website, you can kind of see everything that we offer in the U S and also outside of the U S. So, um, lots of opportunities to kind of keep the, um,
Keep it going year round and be a part of the community year round.
Brent Peterson (28:48.77)
And Liz, what would you like to plug today?
Elizabeth Robillard (28:51.675)
I mean, I will tack on the fact that it's not just e-tail events. We also have events that have come from e-tail. We run a Future of the Stores event. We run a digital food and beverage event. So if you are in any way related to the world of...
Kristin Schoenstein (28:58.943)
Yes.
Elizabeth Robillard (29:08.675)
retail or the world of brands, we've got an event for you. So definitely check out our website. We also have some amazing content that we put out. We put out a lot of blog content as well on the eTale website. So always a nice place to go and white papers and all that jazz, so definitely check that stuff out.
Kristin Schoenstein (29:15.659)
Mm-hmm.
Kristin Schoenstein (29:22.774)
White papers.
Brent Peterson (29:28.73)
That's awesome. Kristin Schoenstein and Liz Robillard, thank you so much for being here today. They are the co-producers of eTail and many other conferences.
Elizabeth Robillard (29:39.335)
Thank you, Brands.
Kristin Schoenstein (29:39.606)
Thanks, Brent. Appreciate it.