CVS Chief Merchant Musab Balbale on Why the Front Store Is Its Future | Live from Shoptalk 2025
03/26/25 • 12 min
🎧 Inside CVS’s Retail Reinvention | Musab Balbale Live from Shoptalk 2025
Musab Balbale, SVP and Chief Merchandising Officer of CVS Health, sits down with Omni Talk, live from the Avalara podcast studio at Shoptalk 2025, to explore CVS’s bold new retail strategy. With 75% of store traffic coming from the front store, CVS is leaning into AI, hyperlocal formats, and the power of everyday essentials to become a community-first destination for immediate needs.
đź“Ť Timestamps:
(0:08) Welcome from Shoptalk 2025 – and puppies?!
(0:36) What Musab oversees at CVS: digital, categories, and front-store merchandising
(1:53) 75% of CVS traffic comes from front-store—surprising stat breakdown
(3:06) CVS as a local community store, not just a pharmacy
(3:35) Musab’s career journey: Walmart, Jet.com, Vitamin Shoppe
(4:00) Comparing the transformation journeys of Walmart and CVS
(4:52) CVS’s small format and standalone pharmacy strategy explained
(5:56) Designing stores for micro trade areas using AI and ML
(7:25) 900 billion value-SKU combos: how tech powers CVS’s tailored assortments
(8:42) The consumer’s evolving expectations and how CVS fits into their routine
(9:33) What categories are leading growth—food, general merchandise, and seasonal
(10:59) “Immediate gratification” as the overlooked retail trip type
(11:44) The human connection still matters in retail
(12:27) The one trend Musab is watching closely: the true power of AI
#shoptalk #cvs #retailinnovation
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
🎧 Inside CVS’s Retail Reinvention | Musab Balbale Live from Shoptalk 2025
Musab Balbale, SVP and Chief Merchandising Officer of CVS Health, sits down with Omni Talk, live from the Avalara podcast studio at Shoptalk 2025, to explore CVS’s bold new retail strategy. With 75% of store traffic coming from the front store, CVS is leaning into AI, hyperlocal formats, and the power of everyday essentials to become a community-first destination for immediate needs.
đź“Ť Timestamps:
(0:08) Welcome from Shoptalk 2025 – and puppies?!
(0:36) What Musab oversees at CVS: digital, categories, and front-store merchandising
(1:53) 75% of CVS traffic comes from front-store—surprising stat breakdown
(3:06) CVS as a local community store, not just a pharmacy
(3:35) Musab’s career journey: Walmart, Jet.com, Vitamin Shoppe
(4:00) Comparing the transformation journeys of Walmart and CVS
(4:52) CVS’s small format and standalone pharmacy strategy explained
(5:56) Designing stores for micro trade areas using AI and ML
(7:25) 900 billion value-SKU combos: how tech powers CVS’s tailored assortments
(8:42) The consumer’s evolving expectations and how CVS fits into their routine
(9:33) What categories are leading growth—food, general merchandise, and seasonal
(10:59) “Immediate gratification” as the overlooked retail trip type
(11:44) The human connection still matters in retail
(12:27) The one trend Musab is watching closely: the true power of AI
#shoptalk #cvs #retailinnovation
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
Previous Episode
How Shein’s On-Demand Model is Reshaping Fashion | Live from Shoptalk 2025
Shoptalk 2025 Exclusive: Shein's Strategy Head Peter Pernot-Day on the Future of Fashion
Chris and Anne sit down with Shein’s Head of Strategy & Corporate Affairs, Peter Pernot-Day, live from the Avalara podcast studio at Shoptalk 2025, to explore how Shein's radically different approach to production and customer experience sets it apart. The discussion covers everything from small-batch on-demand design to retail data engineering and personalization—plus how Shein is thinking about tariffs, technology, and customer loyalty in 2025 and beyond.
đź“Ť Timestamps:
(0:05) Live from Shoptalk 2025 at the Avalara booth
(0:22) Peter’s background & Shein 101
(1:12) What “on-demand fashion” really means
(2:48) Technology that drives Shein’s efficiency
(3:59) Shein’s response to the affordability crisis
(5:00) Advice for other retailers: embrace data engineering
(6:15) Personalization & the "experience gap" in e-commerce
(7:42) Photo search and recommender system innovations
(8:37) The role of customer feedback in design
(9:34) Tariffs, De Minimis, and regulatory planning
(10:56) Peter’s favorite thing about Shoptalk: Serendipity
#shoptalk #shein #retailtech
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
Next Episode
How Uncommon Goods Has Survived—and Thrived—for 26 Years | CEO Dave Bolotsky at Shoptalk 2025
Chris and Anne sit down with Uncommon Goods founder and CEO Dave Bolotsky, live from the Avalara podcast studio, to talk about the company’s origin story, why curation still matters, and how they’re adapting to the latest retail trends. From light manufacturing in Brooklyn to in-house product design and a $25 loyalty program, Dave shares what it takes to thrive in today’s ecommerce world—plus his thoughts on AI, customer experience, and the future of gifting.
đź“Ť Timestamps:
(0:05) Intro from Shoptalk 2025 at Avalara Booth #1554
(0:26) Dave’s background from Wall Street to ecommerce
(1:33) What makes Uncommon Goods “uncommon”
(2:50) How they choose and create exclusive products
(4:56) In-house design and Brooklyn-based light manufacturing
(5:45) The evolution of the maker economy and competitive pressure
(6:56) Popular new product: QR code horoscope mugs
(8:00) Dave’s learning approach to Shoptalk
(9:03) How Uncommon Goods is exploring retail media
(9:45) Testing pop-up stores and the ROI challenge
(10:59) Loyalty: “Uncommon Perks” vs. Prime
(12:01) Using AI in customer service, copywriting, and code
(13:20) Vision for AI in product development
(14:34) Closing thoughts + what’s next for Uncommon Goods
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
Omni Talk Retail - CVS Chief Merchant Musab Balbale on Why the Front Store Is Its Future | Live from Shoptalk 2025
Transcript
Hello, everyone. This is Omnitalk Retail. I'm Chris Walton. And I'm Man Mazinga. And we are finishing up our day one coverage from Shop Talk. All downhill from here, guys. Yes. Not like you have anything coming up after this. No. Yes. Yes. The work is never finished, Dan. But, yes, we are here once again live from the avalara booth. Booth 14. No, 1554. Wow. I got Shop Talk dyslexia coming my way. But standing between us, Anne, is a man who should need no introduction
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