#16: "It's Time To Swing For The Fences" | Tanbir Grover (Pet Valu)

🙌 In this episode - we had such a great time chatting with Tanbir Grover who is the Chief Marketing & Digital Officer at Pet Valu!

Pet Valu is Canada’s leading retailer of pet food & pet-related supplies with over 800 locations across the country. For the past 50 years - they’ve been bringing joy to devoted pet lovers & their pets alike. 

Tanbir joined at what was a critical inflection point in Pet Valu’s journey. He joined during the midst of the pandemic - when they didn’t sell online, our relationships with pets were fundamentally changing, and the company was on the cusp of going public. Since that defining moment - he has helped them to steward their brand build efforts all the way to their digital capabilities. 

Prior to this role - he has a wealth of experience in the retail industry having worked at Lowe’s, Hudson’s Bay, and Sears. 

Amongst other things - we chatted with him about how Pet Valu continues to stand out in a crowded space, the biggest trends shaping the industry, a fateful call that changed his career trajectory, the value of an outsider's perspective, how you can connect the dots in hindsight & his dog Levi’s awesome Halloween costume (hint:🐕🦸‍♂️). 

More specifically, Tanbir shared his thoughts on the following questions: 

• How would you describe what you do to a stranger? (7:34) 
• What was your “Marketing Moment”? (8:50) 
• What did you take away most from those early experiences? (12:32)
• What is your approach to making career decisions? (14:17) 
• Can you take us back to that defining moment where you decided to start at Pet Valu? (19:23) 
• How did you manage the steep learning curve? (24:16) 
• How was your experience trying to lead a cultural shift within the organization? (27:50) 
• Can you unpack Pet Valu’s priorities & its new brand platform? (30:46) 
• What are the trends that you’re seeing & how is your team capitalizing on them? (38:04) 
• How is your team structured? (42:50) 
• We put Tanbir in the hot seat! (47:47)