What Wowed Us at NRF 2026 (with Helzberg and Zipline)

2026-01-14

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From holograms and go-karts to voice tech and virtual reality, Day 2 at NRF 2026 offered no shortage of surprises—and even more insight into what truly matters in retail innovation. In this episode of Talk Retail to Me, we bring together three perspectives—a consultant (Dan Wittner from The Parker Avery Group), a retailer (Ryan Holm from Helzberg), and a solution provider (Dustin Sundy from Zipline)—to share what truly stood out on the show floor. We talk about why “don’t lead with AI” became the smartest message at...

From holograms and go-karts to voice tech and virtual reality, Day 2 at NRF 2026 offered no shortage of surprises—and even more insight into what truly matters in retail innovation.

In this episode of Talk Retail to Me, we bring together three perspectives—a consultant (Dan Wittner from The Parker Avery Group), a retailer (Ryan Holm from Helzberg), and a solution provider (Dustin Sundy from Zipline)—to share what truly stood out on the show floor.

We talk about why “don’t lead with AI” became the smartest message at NRF, how retailers are using voice and transcription as a new demand signal, and which innovations felt more like “must-have” than “nice-to-have.”

You’ll hear highlights including:

Why problem-first storytelling beats AI-first marketing

The coolest activations on the floor (yes, including holograms and go-karts)

How voice, transcription, and feedback loops are changing store operations

Virtual and augmented reality experiences that delivered value

Giveaways, food trucks, and the fun side of NRF

If you want a fast, honest recap of what mattered most at NRF 2026 (and what you can safely ignore), this episode has you covered.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lANEaSsDJGE
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4zcXy3zsovfbBZnM3QeZ1K?si=mEKq9uUxRwyB62EyuXsSFw
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-wowed-us-at-nrf-2026-with-helzberg-and-zipline/id1517831626?i=1000745139756
Listen on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/51d97767-74ba-487d-8c6b-5442e1855d2d/episodes/87f581cd-daee-48f7-b01e-5c3175233bd6/talk-retail-to-me-nrf-2026-key-shifts-that-will-decide-the-agentic-future
Listen on Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/talk-retail-to-me/what-wowed-us-at-nrf-2026-with-helzberg-and-zipline/PE:1321417884?part=ug-desktop&corr=196351888147364396
Listen or watch all Parker Avery "Talk Retail to Me" podcast episodes: https://parkeravery.com/retail-podcast/

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