May 7, 2025 8 min read archive

Your retail money plan

Build confidence in your numbers—even in a tough market

Buy it now—before it doubles in price or you can’t get it at all. That’s the rallying cry from retailers amid increased tariffs and scarce inventory. This week, we dig into how brands are responding, how to turn negative reviews into a growth tool, why Skims’ cofounder says success comes with trade-offs and how Gen X women are still shaping retail trends. Plus, a conversation with Megan Hale, a psychotherapist-turned-finance expert, on how to get clear on your money—even when the market isn’t. Let’s get started.

Walmart’s new superstore. Big-box retailer features localized offerings.

Target slims self-checkout. The self-serve option is now limited to 10 items or less.

Alix Earle, Pantene tie-up. The influencer gets an “unexpired” collection after viral TikTok.

Lyst’s Q1 2025 Index. Loewe is #1 among hottest brands.

McDonald’s, economic indicator. Earnings slid amid tariff, inflation worries.

[ SPOTLIGHT ]

Smarter money moves for retail brands right now

As economic uncertainty continues to rattle retailers and consumers alike, financial consultant and former psychotherapist Megan Hale is on a mission to bring clarity and calm to the chaos. The founder of DreamMoney, a fintech platform designed specifically for small business owners, Hale blends financial strategy with mindset work to help entrepreneurs make smart, sustainable decisions. In this conversation, she shares how DreamMoney evolved from a set of spreadsheets into a powerful SaaS tool—and how founders can stay grounded while navigating uncertain times. –Marcy Medina

Describe DreamMoney and why you created it.

DreamMoney started as three spreadsheets I created for myself to help me get a grasp on my revenue plan as a small business owner. It was so transformational for me, my revenue and building financial confidence, that I started teaching it to other small business owners. As I helped more people, I knew it’d make a great SaaS (software as a service) someday, but it took almost eight years for me to pursue the build.

We also launched our Minimum Lovable platform in March for helping small business owners get a grasp on their numbers, clarify meaningful (and profitable) revenue goals, map out sustainable revenue plans, cast financial projections and expertly manage their cash flow. With the addition of financial psychology, drawn from my background as a psychotherapist, we’ve truly created a holistic, smart, intuitive platform that helps small business owners step into their most empowered relationship with money.

There is nothing I love more than supporting small business owners, women especially. I do that through our DreamMoney software, one-on-one consulting, and speaking and training.

With the economic uncertainty stressing retailers and consumers, what's your advice on how to navigate these challenging times?

We need to 1. know our numbers, 2. have a plan, and 3. be diligent about our mindset so we can stay grounded and make informed, strategic decisions.

This is a time to deeply know your expenses and where you can cut costs. It’s an absolute must to have a good grasp on your cash flow projections, know your Minimum Viable Revenue that has to come in to keep things going (check out our free calculator here), and what key decisions you’ll make to shore up revenue in the event of a down season.

From a strategic lens, it may be a time to expand into new markets and bring new ideas to market that can support your customers in complementary ways, especially creative services that require little overhead.

From a financial psychology perspective, our work is to remind ourselves that there are always a lot of variables outside of our control. But we also have a lot of agency for making solid contingency plans, being willing to experiment and leaning strongly into community and relationships (never do business alone!).

What's one thing you are experimenting with in your business?

We’re going to be offering a three-day free trial with DreamMoney in June, where users will get hands-on guidance for mapping out their strategic revenue plan, leveraging our software. You can sign up for free here.

From there, we’re excited to release our monthly reporting feature for our users that will offer key financial insights into the health and wealth of your business, CEO reflection questions to support your strategy for the next month, and capture any wins so we can reflect those back to you at the end of the year.

Edited for brevity and clarity.

Above: Hale meets with a client. (Courtesy)

[ FRIEND OF THE SKUPE ]

Road2Retail: A must-listen for growing brands

Looking to grow your CPG brand the smart way? The Road 2 Retail podcast is built for emerging and challenger brands ready to scale. Hosts Bruce Montgomery and Tracey Priest bring over 30 years of experience in sales, marketing, financing and everything in between—giving founders real-world advice that actually moves the needle.

A standout episode: Brooks Powell, founder of alcohol recovery supplements brand Cheers, shares how he brought his idea to life, got regulatory approval and scaled fast with a hands-on approach. Listen here.

Retailers’ newest sale event: pre-tariff discounts

Just when you thought we were between sale seasons, a new one has emerged: the pre-tariff promotion. Born out of necessity for smaller retailers and opportunity for others, the “buy now, or pay later” messaging has bombarded consumers in all channels. Some have taken a cheeky tone, others a somber one, but the urgency is universal, as import taxes have already made their impact on retailers’ orders, likely resulting in higher prices passed on to customers.

Why this matters: Half of U.S. consumers are looking for a deal on summer purchases, according to a KPMG survey. “There’s an expectation that certain products are going to be expensive, so having a promotion today is very valuable,” says the accounting firm’s consumer and retail lead. It’s the adapt-or-die mindset, or FOMO, leading retailers to jump on the sale bandwagon. (NBC News)

Remember Gen X? Women over 50 still matter to QVC, TikTok

Two years ago, QVC launched its “Age of Possibility” platform to celebrate Gen X women shoppers, creating the Quintessential 50 (Q50), a group of ambassadors including Donna Kelce, Stacy London and Kathie Lee Gifford. To mark its second year, the original live selling network is partnering with TikTok, the platform most popular with Gen Z. The eight-hour livestream, hosted on QVC’s TikTok channel May 14, won’t just be selling clothes. Several Q50 ambassadors, around 100 creators and panel conversations make up the programming, along with exclusive product drops QVC became known for.

Why this matters: Trend watchers have been highlighting women over 50 since last year. This influential cohort has the income to move the needle at retail and is still relevant in pop culture (just look at Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez). QVC may be their original live selling network (and it's aiming for relevance again), but don’t leave them out of the conversation on social media platforms like TikTok. (Marketing Dive)

Saks Fifth Avenue gives Amazon a try

How to make negative reviews work for you

Home goods sector could undergo a tariff-induced reno

SMB toymakers could disappear amid tariffs

U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer in chaos after cyberattack

THE THINK TANK

Skims cofounder and Kardashian collaborator on grit, success

Emma Grede may not be a household name outside of the fashion industry, but the companies she cofounded, Good American with Khloé Kardashian and Skims with Kim Kardashian, are globally recognized brands valued at billions of dollars. How did a girl from East London with “zero qualifications” become a business powerhouse? In a far-reaching interview on “Diary of a CEO,” she discusses how to hire exceptional people and attract top talent, building a brand strategy in 2025 and what work-life balance really looks like.

“I was very fixated on working in fashion, and I also knew that I didn’t have talent as a designer... What I am is a great enabler to talent. I can sit next to a talent and understand their vision and figure out a way to turn that vision into a reality... So really understanding what is your plan and how you can double down and get into the things that you are uniquely good at, and that you uniquely have skills for, is important." –Emma Grede

Why this matters: From breaking race and gender barriers to holding her own with some of the most famous women in the world, Grede doesn’t rest on her laurels. Nor is she gatekeeping the secrets to her success. Instead, she’s launching her own podcast, “Aspire,” to dive deeper. Watch the episode here.

SEO, meet GEO. How to tailor your content for AI

After spending time and marketing dollars to rank in search results, retailers now have to figure out how to appear in AI-generated answers, or generative engine optimization (GEO). If you have no idea how to do that, search engine marketing company Semrush posted a handy infographic on LinkedIn to help. It breaks down how to structure your content for AI and humans, build topical authority on the internet, up your tech game, optimize for multimodal search, collaborate for authority and consistency, and monitor and measure AI responses.

Why this matters: AI has quickly become a part of day-to-day operations for retailers and daily life consumers, so making sure your e-commerce site and marketing content show up in AI-generated search results is critical. And don’t forget that search engine optimization is still important. (LinkedIn)