Driving Digital Retail at Scale: Loblaw’s EVP & CDO Lauren Steinberg on Customer Experience Transformation

Sep 16, 2025

In this engaging discussion, Lauren Steinberg, Loblaw's Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer, shares her insights on digital transformation in the retail sector. She reveals how Loblaw integrates convenience and affordability into its customer strategy, while utilizing AI and analytics for personalized shopping experiences. Lauren also discusses the significance of their accountable retail media approach, emphasizing trust and measurement in an omnichannel world. Her leadership tips focus on curiosity and resilience, valuable lessons for any industry innovator.

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ANECDOTE

RH's Bold Reinvention Case Study

RH reinvented itself by creating monumental RH galleries instead of incremental store tweaks.
Steve Dennis contrasted that bold reinvention with the slow decline of other legacy retailers.

INSIGHT

Customer Pressure Shapes Strategy

Canadians are squeezed for time, money, and attention, forcing retailers to prioritize convenience, affordability, and relevance.
Loblaw designs digital and operational features to reduce friction and give customers flexible shopping options.

ADVICE

Prioritize Observational Research

Listen to customers and observe their actions to find simple, high-impact improvements in experience.
Use daily customer sessions and analytics to validate changes before scaling them.

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This week the Remarkable Retail podcast delivers a dynamic mix of breaking retail news and an in-depth interview with a top retail innovators, Lauren Steinberg, Loblaw Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at Loblaw, Canada's biggest retailer.

Steve Dennis and Michael LeBlanc kick off a wide-ranging news segment, analyzing how tariffs, inflation, and global economic uncertainty are reshaping retail. They explore the upcoming Federal Reserve decision, the rise in food and apparel costs, energy pressures tied to AI-driven data centers, and how these forces are squeezing consumers’ discretionary spending. The hosts also discuss RH's Paris flagship opening as a bold case study in reinvention, contrasting the brand formerly known as Restoration Hardware's bold ambition with the incremental strategies that have failed legacy brands. Finally, they highlight Sam’s Club’s new digital-first presentation layer—showing how even complex retailers can aim higher, move faster, and deliver remarkable customer experiences.

Guest Lauren Steinberg--who recently assumed the expanded role of Chief Digital Officer at Loblaw after a decade leading digital, loyalty, and retail media--offers a behind-the-scenes look at how Loblaw is serving nearly every Canadian through its grocery, pharmacy, financial services, and apparel businesses, anchored by iconic brands like President’s Choice, and Joe Fresh.

Laurnen explains how Loblaw’s digital strategy is centered on convenience, affordability, and relevance, with AI playing a critical role in personalization, supply chain efficiency, and the evolution toward agentic AI. Lauren also details the company’s fast-growing retail media network, designed to connect brands with customers in ways that are accountable, measurable, and integrated across both digital and physical retail.

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About Us

Steve Dennis is a strategic advisor and keynote speaker focused on growth and innovation, who has also been named one of the world's top retail influencers. He is the bestselling author of two books: Leaders Leap: Transforming Your Company at the Speed of Disruption and Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a Forbes senior retail contributor and on social media.

Michael LeBlanc is a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions hosted senior retail executive on-stage in 1:1 interviews worldwide. Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including The Remarkable Retail Podcast, The Voice of Retail The Food Professor, The FEED powered by Loblaw and the Global eCommerce Leaders podcast. He has been recognized by the NRF as a global Top Retail Voice for 2025 and 2025 and continues to be a ReThink Retail Top Retail Expert for the fifth year in a row.