In this episode of the Gloria Chou PR Podcast, I sit down with Cathy Wagner—retail industry veteran, founder of RETAILMavens, and host of The Richer Retailer Podcast. With nearly 30 years of experience in independent retail, Cathy has seen it all: running her own brick-and-mortar stores, navigating bankruptcy, and building back stronger to now help small retail businesses scale to 7-figure revenue.
If you’re an independent retailer or product-based business owner struggling to adapt to inflation, tariffs, AI in retail, and shifting consumer behavior, this episode is your wake-up call—and your roadmap to survive and thrive in today’s economy.
Why Retailers Fail (and What the 7-Figure Ones Do Differently)
According to Cathy, retail isn’t dead—but staying stagnant is. The top-performing retail businesses embrace change, silence self-doubt, and make data-driven decisions, not emotional ones. She unpacks the four traits that successful retail founders share:
- Kill the ANTs (automatic negative thoughts)
- Reframe fear as excitement
- Focus on what you can control
- Know and use your numbers for better retail sales growth
Real Tactics You Can Use Right Now to Grow Retail Sales
Forget the hype. Cathy breaks down real, proven strategies that help retail store owners boost profits:
- Adjust your retail pricing strategy to reflect actual cost increases
- Use email marketing for retail (minimum 2x/week) as your most profitable channel
- Curate tighter product assortments to reduce overwhelm and increase conversions
- Host low-cost retail events focused on connection and community
- Build brand trust by leading with your core business values
AI for Non-Techie Retailers: A Simple Hack That Works
No need to master tech. Cathy shares how small retail business owners can use ChatGPT to gain customer insights from top-performing content. Just copy and paste your best emails or product pages into AI and ask:
- Who is my best customer?
- Who is NOT my customer?
- What messaging drives purchase behavior?
This simple AI habit has delivered surprising clarity and results for Cathy’s clients—and it can for you too.
Why Neutrality Is No Longer a Strategy in Retail Branding
You don’t need to be political—but you do need to be personal. Cathy makes a compelling case for ditching generic, faceless branding and embracing authenticity. Whether you’re selling confidence, comfort, or community, your brand story and values should shine through every retail marketing email, event, and conversation.
Final Takeaway
You don’t need to show up everywhere or master every tech tool. What independent retail business owners do need:
✅ A clear brand stance
✅ Consistent and authentic communication
✅ A community-first mindset
✅ Courage to evolve with market changes
Whether you’re struggling to compete or trying to grow a small retail business in a noisy digital world, this episode reminds you: you’re not alone—and the best is still ahead.
If you want to land your first feature for free without any connections, I want to invite you to watch my PR Secrets Masterclass, where I reveal the exact methods thousands of bootstrapping small businesses use to hack their own PR and go from unknown to being a credible and sought-after industry expert. Register now at www.gloriachoupr.com/masterclass.
- Watch the #1 PR Secrets Masterclass to get you featured for free in 30 days
- Join the Small Biz PR Facebook Group to get the best PR Tips
- Download the 10
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Brothers Ortiz
The Brothers Ortiz is the story of two brothers–both successful, but in very different ways. Gabe Ortiz becomes a third-highest ranking officer in all of Texas while his younger brother Larry climbs the ranks in Puro Tango Blast, a notorious Texas Prison gang. Gabe doesn’t know all the details of his brother’s nefarious dealings, and he’s made a point not to ask, to protect their relationship. But when Larry is murdered during a home invasion in a rented beach house, Gabe has no choice but to look into what happened that night. To solve Larry’s murder, Gabe, and the whole Ortiz family, must ask each other tough questions.