EP264: Tobias Tanner on Why Retail Is Becoming Hospitality Again
Tobias Tanner, founder of Le Magasin, joins Jens Heitland of Human Innovation to describe how physical retail is returning through community, curation, and hospitality rather than convenience alone.
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Retail Is Becoming Hospitality
Retail spent the last decade optimizing for online reach. Acquisition costs climbed, algorithms changed the rules every quarter, and brands poured resources into channels that grew more expensive and less predictable each year. During a recent conversation on Human Innovation, Tobias Tanner, founder of the co-retail platform Le Magasin, described what happens once that strategy runs its course. People are tired of screens. Loneliness has become measurable at a population level, and it shows up in unexpected places, run clubs filling entire calendars, membership spaces multiplying across cities, listening rooms and tasting events replacing the passive scroll. The pull toward being physically present with other people has returned faster than a lot of retail strategy accounted for. Brands built entire teams around digital acquisition funnels, and now those same teams are asking how to be present in a room again, without the years of lease commitments that used to come with a physical footprint.
Tobias built his career inside that gap. He started in music, running a jazz label between New York and Geneva, then moved into consulting international lifestyle brands entering the German market. Every client relationship surfaced the same friction. A brand wanted physical presence without the years-long lease and the capital risk that historically came with it. Le Magasin answers that friction directly. Brands get turnkey physical retail inside high-traffic locations, full visibility into their own sales data, and a curated environment built around discovery rather than transaction. Alongside the retail floor sits a second platform, the Dry Bar, built around the sharp decline in alcohol consumption among younger drinkers. Non-alcoholic spirits, wines, and beers need education before they need a shelf, and the Dry Bar gives people a place to taste, ask questions, and build the kind of familiarity that turns a first visit into a habit.
What emerges from this model sits closer to hospitality than retail in the traditional sense. Regulars get recognized by name after a handful of visits. Staff greet people before they reach the counter. That familiarity, small as it sounds, is what keeps a customer choosing one space over another when a hundred other options exist within walking distance. Tobias pointed to Printemps in New York as an example, a department store that treats its floor like a stage rather than a shelf system, with music and spontaneous moments built into the day. Scale changes the mechanics, but the underlying pattern holds across a small design shop in Berlin and a flagship on Wall Street. Presence, curiosity, and a sense of being known outperform convenience once convenience becomes the baseline everyone offers. Community formed this way tends to hold. People who feel recognized keep returning, and they bring others with them, which is a slower path to growth than a paid campaign but a far more durable one.
Le Magasin is now working through a pre-seed round while planning expansion into New York, supported by property partners looking for exactly the kind of experience Tobias curates. The company is also exploring how technology, including AI, can deepen the connection with regular customers rather than replace the person greeting them at the door. That balance, technology in service of familiarity instead of a substitute for it, is where I expect the next phase of retail to be decided. Physical space is being asked to justify itself in ways it never had to before, and the brands willing to build real community inside four walls are the ones finding room to grow.
Timecode:
00:00 EP.264_Podcast_Jens_Tobias Tanner
00:02 From Music to Retail
03:05 Founding Le Magasin
05:03 The Co-Retail Concept
07:01 Experiences & The Dry Bar
11:55 Personal Learnings
14:11 US vs. Europe
21:34 Community & Authenticity
25:01 Future of Retail
29:52 Connect with Tobias
Guest Links:
Website: https://lemagasin.store/
Transcript:
[00:00:00] Jens Heitland: Hello, Tobias. Great to meet you again in an online setting now in a podcast. Before we go into co-retail and the innovation that is going into the whole retail environment, I would love to talk about music because your career started in music. How did you get from music to running a co-retail company?
[00:00:23] Tobias: Yeah. So, happy to tell you about that. So good to see you again, Jens, and definitely great to be here. My career is not a linear career, so I've done a few different things thus far. I did study music, classical saxophone, and I studied jazz in New York. And while I was in New York with my studies, it was really an incredible time both to be studying and performing in New York City, and of course, that is the capital of jazz. So seeing the living legends basically every night or studying with them was just an incredible experience. Fast-forward, I started my career at Universal Records, working for Verve Music, so a legendary music house, so definitely an honor to be working there. Two years, two months later, I co-founded my own boutique jazz label at the intersection of jazz and sort of lifestyle music, and that's where things started to get interesting because I was living for family reasons between New York and Geneva, Switzerland.
[00:01:26] Tobias: And for jazz, Europe is a very important market. And we started to focus on selling music in non-traditional venues, such as working with hotels, design shops, museums, et cetera. So we created an international distribution network, did a lot of digital partnerships, everything from Microsoft-- I'm sorry, not Amazon, but Microsoft.
[00:01:50] Tobias: So one of their operating systems, I think it was Vista, was embedded with thirteen tracks as a global license. Two of those tracks were from our artists. A lot of things with Apple iTunes music, et cetera, et cetera. AOL Music. I'm dating myself. So we did a lot of digital and sort of hybrid focusing on physical as lifestyle.
[00:02:10] Tobias: Fast-forward, it's hard to compete with free because that's what the industry was quickly becoming. No one was buying music anymore, and I needed a change. In '09, I moved to Berlin to start a creative consultancy helping lifestyle design brands enter the German market. We also had what was called the Valise Society.
[00:02:30] Tobias: And those early days in Berlin, a lot of the great things were hidden, so we created these cultural moments, say, for our membership, 'cause we were a membership club, to go around and spend time and have dinner with some of the most interesting spaces, ateliers of artists or gallerists, et cetera, et cetera.
[00:02:50] Tobias: So that sort of insight grew to a travel resource and concierge desk that took care of a lot of high-net-worth families when they came to Berlin, et cetera. So those are the groundworks or the background that brings me to where I am today with Le Magasin.
[00:03:06] Jens Heitland: Yeah. Exciting. How did Le Magasin start in the beginning? What was the idea that drove you to say, "Let's do this"?
[00:03:16] Tobias: Yeah, exactly. So under our creative consultancy, we were working with a lot of lifestyle design brands entering the German market. So helping with everything from trend tours, trend analysis, doing pop-up shops or showcases. Our largest clients were the export division of Finland, worked with export Sweden, et cetera, et cetera.
[00:03:36] Tobias: But we kept seeing the same needs because the German market, as we know, is a diversified market. You know, it's not a one-stop shop like a London or a Tokyo or a Paris, New York, et cetera. And of course, the money classically is down south, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, but Berlin is where the cool factor is. So a lot of our clients needed to understand that. And it's not enough, at least for the clients that we were working with, just to start an Amazon shop and say that you have a foothold in the market. You really need to spend time with these customers and understand face to face, and hear their stories and how they relate to your brand. So step by step, we were seeing a trend coming from the States of collaborative retail. Met with some of the companies that were starting this, just from an inspiration tour, trend tour in New York. And we, under the consultancy, wanted to start that. So in '19, we did a couple iterations, a spring/summer and then a Christmas iteration working with a great property developer and a local design company, such that we could do a couple pop-ups, and those really laid the foundation. At the end of that year, we realized we could go forward, and then we started to build from there. We had the unfortunate time of COVID directly after that, but who knew that happened? But we did survive, and I can tell a little bit more about that period, but that's the bedrock of sort of the early learnings under our creative consultancy, that there was a need for brands to be in physical.
[00:05:08] Jens Heitland: Yeah.
[00:05:09] Jens Heitland: Explain to the listeners what Le Magazine is and what you do and how you do things differently than others
[00:05:17] Tobias: Yeah, that's a great question. What we have evolved to today is that we're solving a very clear pain point that a lot of direct-to-consumer lifestyle brands have. And that is that the cost of acquisition online is getting much more expensive. Therefore, the reach online is also getting a bit more complicated or maybe harder for brands to do. So therefore, as natural progression, especially post-pandemic, the world is returning back to physical. There is a hunger for that. So we make it a lot easier for the brands to consider physical retail again from their marketing spend. We make it much easier, quicker, much more affordable to have access to physical retail and high-profile, high-traffic destinations. And on the back end through our tech, allow them full control of their sales. So basically, the model is B2B2C, allowing the brands to benefit from our services of turnkey physical retail, but then reach consumers. And for the consumers that come through our door as our curation is really about experiences, it's about discovering brands that maybe you've only ever seen online or maybe never even seen in the market across the lifestyle and design categories that we focus on. So there is that excitement and retail therapy. Combining that with a couple other extra points that I'm excited about, I can talk a little bit more about that as well, but that's the foundation of what Le Magasin has evolved to today.
[00:06:39] Jens Heitland: Yeah, and I think it's a brilliant concept. I mean, I have seen the Berlin version and as well the Stockholm version, at least in drawings and pictures. So, I think it's a super interesting concept that it's not that widely used yet in a lot of cities and in a lot of spaces.
[00:06:59] Jens Heitland: So I think it's still super unique and innovative and it helps brands and consumers to interact in a completely different way.
[00:07:07] Jens Heitland: Let's talk about the importance of experiences as part of that. So physical space and an experience that is not a store where you go in and, at least from my perspective, let's say you want to shop shoes, you go to a shoe store.
[00:07:27] Jens Heitland: That it's different.
[00:07:30] Tobias: Yeah, definitely. I think we're here for, I like to say that term retail therapy. Let's face it, it's interesting what we are noticing post-pandemic. We do have online fatigue. We are at a point in time where humanity has a loneliness epidemic. People are hungry to be out and physical, and we're seeing that from the run clubs everywhere.
[00:07:57] Tobias: We just did a trend tour in New York, and there's memberships up the wazoo left and right. Membership everything is popping up. And of course, there's spaces from listening rooms, et cetera, et cetera. So that aspect of physical is back in a big way that maybe we haven't seen in quite some time, and that makes total sense.
[00:08:20] Tobias: So I think in retail, what is exciting for us is that for the type of consumer that comes through our door, it's really about giving them that experience of being able to discover, get more education, and of course to purchase brands. But having that experience that really gets them excited at the end of the day. And with that trend of coming into physical, I think that's the unique opportunity that what we're developing offers. And there is an innovation within that in a specific sector which I'm happy to talk about, that is sort of the hallmark experience of that co-retail process that we're developing.
[00:08:59] Tobias: So that's what I'm seeing right now, and that's what is exciting me that physical is making a comeback.
[00:09:05] Jens Heitland: Yeah. Let's maybe go one level deeper and explain how it looks like. So if we think about it, it's a room inside a retail venue, or it's a shop that is on the street. Maybe give that example where you can explain why is it different and how do you curate the experience for the people that are coming in and for the brands with that as well?
[00:09:32] Tobias: Yeah, that's a great question. It really is all about curation at the end of the day. We have a philosophy as we curate our spaces and our teams. First and foremost, we're focusing on lifestyle and design brands as our hallmark. So everything from, of course, fashion, interiors, cosmetics, the beauty sector, the F&B sector, accessories, et cetera, et cetera. With that, we have a second platform that we call the Dry Bar, and this was born out of a natural progression of what we've been seeing in the spirits industry. The stat is that Millennial and Gen Z's are drinking far less alcohol. The industry is in peril. Let's maybe think of it back in the day in the cigarette stages when that industry was forced to change. That's kind of happening right now, but with it, as Millennials and Gen Z's are leading the charge, it's not just them. It's basically every drinking age we're seeing drinking less alcohol. There is a growth of non-alcoholic spirits, wines, beers, proxies, teas, and everything in between, and this is really exciting, and we have created a platform that we call the Dry Bar that allows people to come in. A menu. There's an experience. You're trying all of these brands. Again, more of a curated experience, but we're solving the pain point that that industry has is that you've gotta get liquid on the lips at the end of the
[00:10:58] Jens Heitland: Ja
[00:10:58] Tobias: If you're not a household name, people have to try you, so or try your product.
[00:11:02] Tobias: So where do they get to try these? Not necessarily a bottle on the shelf is gonna sell itself. There's a certain education that needs to come. A lot of non-alcoholic wines, there's a whole different set of education that you need and way of thinking about them than you would a traditional wine. So this platform allows for the education, for the tasting, and for that experience that we can surround community around. So to answer your question, with those two platforms, for us, community is essential. We have been focusing on creating a community where we've been surrounding different events, engagements, opportunities to meet the brands or meet the brand founders, et cetera, et cetera.
[00:11:42] Tobias: So that's always in the hallmark of our experiences. And of course, we have rented our spaces out working with a lot of large corporates, both for partnership and location rentals. So we've had some nice celebrity events in our spaces, et cetera, et cetera. So that conviviality and community are really at the heart and soul of the co-retail experience for Le Magasin.
[00:12:05] Jens Heitland: Yeah. And if we,
[00:12:08] Jens Heitland: If we look at you personally starting this from scratch to where you are today and with what's going to come, what were the personal learnings as part of that journey?
[00:12:21] Tobias: Yeah, I think the personal learnings stand out to me, at least at this stage, is one, you're doing something completely new that is not easy to do. I think in my career, this would be the third company that I have founded. Every step of the way I've learned so much more, and I'm super excited for what is to come.
[00:12:44] Tobias: I really do believe that the future of Le Magasin is very bright from an international perspective. It's not an easy thing being an entrepreneur, you know. So every day it's blood, sweat, and tears, and sometimes I ask myself, "What the hell am I doing? Get a nice consultancy job, have beautiful vacations, have a nice little summer home somewhere," et cetera, et cetera. But I have to remind myself this mission that I am on. And when I see our clients, especially as we're going from strength to strength with our next level growth strategy and more investors that are coming on board with us. When I see our clients walk away happy and talk about how they will be using our services in the future and coming along with the journey, happy partners that we work with, I see that from step by step we are building something very strong that has potential really to be at enterprise level.
[00:13:45] Tobias: So that's a growth goal for us, is really to get to that enterprise stage where we're operating in many nations and locations. So for me, I think one of the biggest learnings is really being able to push forward and of course learn from every step of the way. I think that's one thing that we've always focused on, is learning every step of the way and refining and improving for next level growth.
[00:14:08] Tobias: Listening very carefully to our clients, what they're saying, our customers coming to the door. So I think that's one of the most key things for me is just that tenacity to grow, being open to learn and to evolve. Of course, there's a lot more, but that's the first thing that comes to mind.
[00:14:24] Jens Heitland: Yeah. If,
[00:14:24] Jens Heitland: If you look at the differences between US and Europe, if we call Europe... I mean, you live in Berlin, which is the heart of Europe a little bit. What is the difference from an entrepreneurial perspective and as well in retail between those two?
[00:14:42] Tobias: Yeah. What I've been seeing thus far of my time, I mean, I've lived in Berlin now over a decade. It was never planned that I'd be here this long. But I think one of the main differences is in the States, there is more agility and accepting to new ideas. Of course, there's a lot more possibilities in terms of just the movement, et cetera.
[00:15:07] Tobias: Here, it's a little bit more reserved, a little bit more conservative. It may not be as fast-moving, but I have found that we have a community of people here, and I'm gonna say not just Berlin, but as now with our Dry Bar, we have a go-to-market strategy of working with different property developers from department stores, malls, which we've already worked with in the past, to property developers from the high street. There is a really interesting sort of close-knit relevancy of supporting new, fresh ideas, and I say that to say I'm not just seeing that here in Berlin, but as we are scaling now in the DACH region, so Germany, Austria, Switzerland, we're seeing that across the region. So I just think it's a different state of tempo, but in terms of community support, we do have that here with our collection of brands, corporates, and of course, customers.
[00:16:01] Tobias: Financing, we are set up as a Delaware corp with a German subsidiary, and that's by design as we are planned to scale. Our lead investors are in New York City, so there's New York on the roadmap, and of course, US expansion. So each market of course is different and has its pros and cons. But I think strategically for us, it's gonna be important from a growth perspective to have presence in both of them.
[00:16:26] Jens Heitland: Yeah.
[00:16:27] Tobias: that answer the
[00:16:27] Jens Heitland: Yeah, if we look at the consumer level...
[00:16:31] Tobias: Mhm.
[00:16:32] Jens Heitland: Is there a difference between-- especially if we just zoom into New York and Berlin on an experience perspective for consumers and a need for it or a wish for it?
[00:16:45] Tobias: Yeah, that's interesting. You know, I think as we are curating the type of brands that we represent, we speak to a certain lifestyle. And it's not necessarily even about age. I mean, we've had people come into our doors from early 20s, even younger, up to about 65, let's say. And what we've noticed is there's a commonality of looking for quality, looking for brands that tell great stories, an individuality aspect of their style.
[00:17:16] Tobias: So I think we speak more to a lifestyle-type person that is internationally-minded, maybe consuming locally. But they want new concepts and great ideas. Especially as times are rough right now, you know, it's not an easy time in the world at the moment. I think our job is really to provide that experience for people to just have something a little bit fun at the end of the day.
[00:17:41] Tobias: And we all go out on Saturday, on the weekend to go shopping, to meet friends, to go have that brunch, et cetera, et cetera. So let Le Magasin be a stop along the way for them to just have a little bit of enjoyment in their day.
[00:17:56] Jens Heitland: Yeah, and I think that's the same for brands. What I like about the concept is if I have a brand and, let's say a retail brand as one of the examples, and I want to try to enter a market, you could do that as the brand itself and say, "Oh, we do a huge investment. We buy a retail location or we rent a retail location," and there comes all the commitment with that.
[00:18:22] Jens Heitland: You have literally built a platform where if I want to do a retail launch and a test, let's say it like this, in a different country where you operate Le Magasin, you basically give them the possibility to test and try out if they fit to your concept and to the experience that you curate in that time.
[00:18:44] Tobias: Yeah, exactly. And in that sense, it makes it a lot easier for brands, and I think I call it the Soho House effect. I mean, if you think about it, Soho House basically, it's a McDonald's of membership clubs. They're everywhere. If you're a member there, you really start thinking about where do you want to go in the world for your holiday and vacation.
[00:19:03] Tobias: So you're gonna go where there's a Soho House, 'cause you know you've got your gym, you've got your restaurant, you got a place to entertain, you've got a bed to sleep in, et cetera. So I think as we begin to scale the platform and go into new markets and work with new partners, of course, property developers are an essential partner for us across the levels that we will be developing for. And not just the high street. We're fascinated by travel retail. I think there's a lot of opportunities in travel retail as a lot of airports are just a banal experience. But as we grow the partnerships and the distribution network, let's call it, brands are gonna be able to think about physical retail in new ways that maybe they've not been able to before.
[00:19:48] Tobias:'Cause as you said, the gap that we're filling is, yeah, if you're gonna go to a new market, you can start with a pop-up, of course, or you take a shop. So what is that in-between sort of first step to build your brand awareness besides online? We know that online is here. That's not gonna change. That definitely is here to stay, and thank God for online. But that physical engagement gap is what we're looking to fill. And we're seeing that with the brands that we're talking about for our go-to-market strategy for New York. As mentioned, we're planning first to bring the Dry Bar as an engagement there. But for those brands in that sector, they're pretty excited about the opportunity to be able to reach customers at a deeper level in a great market such as New York.
[00:20:32] Jens Heitland: Yeah, I can imagine they would even-- some of them would even not consider to do it without you, I guess.
[00:20:39] Tobias: Exactly. So we want them to be able to dream of new possibilities
[00:20:43] Jens Heitland: Yeah. And I think that that would go the other way around in the same way. So one way is going from Europe to the US, the other way around is in the end the same possibility, which some US retailers would never imagine today maybe. But why not?
[00:20:59] Tobias: Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. So, you know, our biggest challenge right now, I mean, we're in a pre-seed round, and have some work to do to fill that round. But as we grow with the conversations and we talk more and more to property developers... Look, we just did an activation for dry January with the Dry Bar at Bikini Berlin. We have worked with department store NK in Stockholm. Here in Berlin as well, we've had our own doors. But as we are pushing forward now at this point in time, we're seeing that there's a lot of interesting property developers from the department stores to the malls, et cetera, et cetera, that are really looking for fresh amenities to their offering to offer to people. So that is exciting us in terms that people are seeing the benefits of what we can bring as a collective of amazing brands to their spaces.
[00:21:54] Jens Heitland: Let's talk more about the community. So you have been working in that community space before as well.
[00:22:01] Jens Heitland: How is that evolving? You mentioned already a little bit that people go back to physical, but what is important for a community to grow and to really, for a brand or for a company to leverage a community from your experience?
[00:22:17] Tobias: Interesting. Yeah, this is interesting, and we're seeing this a lot. I get back to the wellness space, so everything from the run clubs, from Adidas to On, et cetera, et cetera. So of course, that, for the past decade or so, has been an important, say, marketing strategy in terms of reach. What we are seeing our perspective--
[00:22:40] Jens Heitland: No worries. So from a community aspect, what do you see evolving?
[00:22:48] Tobias: Interesting. Okay. For community, what I am noticing: It's fascinating that there is such a hunger right now to connect offline, and I think the promise of our digital lives has not been fulfilled. And especially with the growth of, you know, where are we going with AI? Social media, of course, is what it is. That hunger to be in physical is really there. And what I'm seeing a lot, because, of course, I have worked in the membership space for quite some time, even consulting in the membership space, is that there really is a genuineness within it. And I think back to my days living in New York when you go to these networking events, which could happen anywhere in the world, many times you're just meeting people that are there to get the business card and try and do business with you at the end of the day.
[00:23:48] Tobias: And I wouldn't say most of the times, many times it may not be people that you actually want to interact with. So I think what's interesting right now in this period of time, at least from my vantage point, there is a certain authenticity that we're seeing in moments, in spaces. And I think for a brand to engage with that authenticity of moments within spaces right now, there obviously is a fine line.
[00:24:14] Tobias: Everyone understands marketing. Everyone understands when they're being sold something. Even kids understand when
[00:24:21] Jens Heitland: Ja
[00:24:22] Tobias: something. So I think brands definitely need to step up the game in terms of how they interact in the physical space and bring that sense of authenticity. So whether it is a sharing circle or whether we're doing Pilates with an infrared light, whatever it is that we're doing or we're having a fantastic dinner party, it's not really about your brand at the end of the day, and I think the smart brands really understand that, that it is about fostering authentic connections, and that's what makes you valuable in the aspect of the community.
[00:24:54] Tobias: So that authenticity right now is what I'm seeing, and that's exciting to me because it's a crazy time in the world
[00:25:03] Jens Heitland: Yeah.
[00:25:03] Tobias: that way, and we need each other.
[00:25:06] Jens Heitland: And I think the combination to the physical and the digital is the interesting thing, at least for me. I'm part of several communities where because it's a global community, you cannot meet every week on Fridays to hang out or go for a run, as an example. But if you have these anchors in between that can be even, if it's really far away, once per year where you meet in person,
[00:25:35] Tobias: Mhm.
[00:25:35] Jens Heitland: and then you have digital interactions more often obviously, it still works.
[00:25:40] Jens Heitland: And then you have digital interactions more often obviously, it still works. But you need to have the physical anchor, at least in my experience, that really makes the difference, where you really get to feel the other person in a completely different way. And I think that's a bit what you bring in with the physical space in that way as well.
[00:25:56] Tobias: Mm-hmm. Absolutely. I would agree 100%.
[00:26:00] Jens Heitland: So
[00:26:02] Jens Heitland: Where do you see whole retail moving in the next coming years?
[00:26:08] Tobias: That's a beautiful question as well. If I were to pull up my crystal ball and think about where retail is going, I mean, we have a motto, one of our sayings. We have these cute little sayings that we put in the store. One of them is, "Retail is dead. Long live retail." So, I mean, physical retail is definitely not dead.
[00:26:31] Tobias: It's challenged right now, and it must evolve. And I think about some of my favorite places in the world. One that springs to mind that is very inspirational... Again, we just did a trend tour in New York, but we were at Printemps. So the French department store has opened down on Wall Street. And that space is a vibe. First off, the building itself is just this incredible, I guess it's an art deco building. Architect nerds, forgive me if I got that wrong, but it should be an art deco building. But it's just very beautiful. But what they've done right is the experience.
[00:27:11] Tobias: So when you walk in, there's a little cafe downstairs. Upstairs there's, like, two or three little hidden bars. I remember the last time we were there, at the top of the hour, I was talking to a staff member, and then loudspeaker music came on, and then they just started dancing. Like, five of them started dancing in the middle of the room. So experience and
[00:27:32] Jens Heitland: Ja
[00:27:32] Tobias: is very much alive, you know, from Printemps. I mean, obviously Printemps is a special case, you know, and able to make such an investment in New York. But there are other spaces for other reasons that are very inspiring. Here in Berlin, we've got one of the best curated magazine shops in Europe called Do You Read Me?
[00:27:51] Tobias: Every time you walk in for architecture, fashion, design, lifestyle, everything in between, it's just an impeccable curation. Spend my whole paycheck there. So I think in terms of physical retail, it is offering that refuge, that inspiration to the consumer that walks through the door. And I think whether it's a small local mom-and-pop shop or a large retailer... For me, what I believe is the USP that must be met is that connection to the customer from a local perspective. Your regulars that come through the door, I mean, we've got regulars that come in, we've had regulars in our last activation that came in one month three or more times. You know, we're greeting them by their names at that stage. So that connection, much like a great hospitality experience. Think of your favorite hotel or that one restaurant you go back to. They know your name. You're a local, and they treat you like a local, and they treat you with that familiarity or that family feeling. So I think retailers that are really thinking about the next stage have to embrace hospitality, much like a great hotelier
[00:28:58] Jens Heitland: Ja.
[00:28:59] Tobias: and create that feeling. I wanna come back to places that make me feel good. Take my wallet, please. But a place that doesn't even greet me or even bother to say hello when I come in the door- I'm not spending any money with you.
[00:29:13] Tobias: In fact, I'm out the door the other way. So that definitely in certain places I get the snob factor. It may be why you want to feel elitist in some stores, but I don't think that's the future of retail, if you ask me
[00:29:26] Jens Heitland: Yeah. What I love with that is with all the technology available today, you can make this personalization way easier than maybe 10 or 15 years ago.
[00:29:38] Tobias: It's very
[00:29:39] Jens Heitland: If you take AI or all the other things, you have all the technology available today and it's not expensive at all.
[00:29:50] Tobias: This is very true. I'm actually, once we are back with doors open, we're in process of looking for a flagship home in Berlin. So any property developers out there that's looking for a great amenity called Le Magasin, please be in touch. But one of the thoughts is, to your point, how can AI create a deeper connection with our regular customers and of course introduce all of our amazing brands to new customers that are in play?
[00:30:16] Tobias: So I would love to partner with some AI company to come up with some sort of experience so when you walk in the door you can dive deeper on what's there. Maybe we build it ourselves at some point, but I'm with you 100%.
[00:30:29] Jens Heitland: Yeah. A very interesting person for you to talk to is one of my previous guests, David Basok. He's in spatial development and working with AI topics and theater and so on. Yeah, I can connect you. It's definitely worth talking to him because he's deeply into all of these topics which are experience-driven, definitely.
[00:30:52] Tobias: love that. Thank you, Jens. Sounds amazing
[00:30:55] Jens Heitland: Now w- r-
[00:30:56] Jens Heitland: Rounding this interview off, what do you get across to people that would love to explore the magazine and you personally more?
[00:31:09] Tobias: Do you mean in terms of how to get in
[00:31:11] Jens Heitland: Ja
[00:31:12] Tobias: How to get in touch, easy to get in touch. I'm on LinkedIn, Tobias Tanner. You can drop an email as well. My email is very simple, Tobias, I'll spell it, T-O-B-I-A-S, @lemagazin.store, L-E-M-A-G-A-S-I-N dot store. Easiest way to get in touch
[00:31:32] Jens Heitland: Excellent. And I will put that as well into the show notes so people can click directly towards you. Tobias
[00:31:40] Tobias: I just, I just have one ask. If you do reach out, please tell me what is your favorite retail experience in the world, whether it's big or small, and why.
[00:31:50] Jens Heitland: Yes
[00:31:50] Tobias: Always curious to learn more about what people find interesting out there in the world.
[00:31:55] Jens Heitland: Love that. I'm looking forward to see Le Magazine, um, development going forward and, like, definitely looking forward to see what's going on in New York and across the world. Thank you very much, Tobias, for your time
[00:32:09] Tobias: And thank you, Jens. We always appreciate your support. I have to say I want to thank you as well. You're one of our early believers. You were on our advisory board in the early days, so thank you as well