I’m back, and I owe you an explanation

Quick life update before we get back to retail media analysis: sometimes the universe has other plans.

In April last year, I found out that I won the US green card lottery. For rather dull bureaucratic reasons, me and my family had to leave the country while all the paperwork was finalized, a process we knew would take the better part of a year. So we bundled up all our worldly possessions, moved them into a storage unit, and took off for a year of the digital nomad life.

(Note, when I share this with other parents of school aged children they are often very curious how to do this. The wonderful reality is that it’s easier than ever to take off with your kids and work remotely. I have put all my research together here)

Eventually after more dull but also stressful bureaucracy, all the green card stuff was finalized and we flew back to Atlanta. But on our flight home, we learned that the moving company had arrived at our storage facility to find the whole thing infested with rats, so bad that they refused to touch anything.

I had to abandon my in-flight movie and start Instacart-ing camping mattresses and pillows and coffee mugs so we could sleep on the floor of our new rental, while we figured it out.

The grass is always greener

Toward the end of our year-long sojourn we were all quite ready to get back to a routine and having a home base again. The grass always appears to be greener. When I’m grinding away at work, a holiday seems like it could solve everything. When on an extended holiday, I’m craving my routine.

So by the end of the trip we were still trying to be present and enjoy these beautiful new places, but the conversations increasingly drifted toward imagining the first day of school, or adding things to my new office wishlist, or finding new dinner recipes to try out in the air fryer.

All that excitement to get back to ‘real life’ disappeared like a pin popping a balloon. In the end we had to throw away most of our belongings and the insurance payout is laughable (a couple hundred dollars). Financial loss aside – the task alone of replacing everything is very draining.

The morning after our not-so-warm welcome home, my husband and I debated if we should just leave all the junk in storage, break our lease, and leave the country again.

All that abstract longing for routine disappeared when we had to debate whether to abandon everything and leave again. Suddenly the grass wasn't greener anywhere—we just needed to plant new grass entirely.

What’s coming up for RMBC

This year of upheaval reminded me why community matters—especially when everything else falls apart. Here are a few things I want to share with you.

1. I'm bringing on my first sponsor. I’ve been grateful to receive a lot of interest from solution providers in sponsoring the newsletter & podcast, collaborating on events, and producing custom research. I've spent months vetting potential sponsors through my network of brand and retailer contacts—because if you're going to trust my recommendations, I need to trust theirs first. I'll announce the partnership next week.
2. Atlanta meetups are returning. I forgot how much I missed the energy of in-person retail media conversations until I didn't have them. If you're in the ATL area (or visit regularly), I want to gather the local community again. Fill out this form and I'll loop you in.
3. Looking for brand-side panelists. One of the most loved formats of the podcast & newsletter is the 'panel' editions where brand-side practitioners share their real experiences and POVs. I'm planning panels on topics like measurement standardization, retailer relationship management, and budget allocation strategies. If you're a brand-side retail media leader interested in participating—or want to nominate someone— please reply to this email.

With all that off my chest, tomorrow will be back to my regularly scheduled programming: retail, media, and retail media.

Thanks for reading, I hope you’re having an epic summer.