Anna Samkova is rewriting the rules of customer strategy. As the founder of Albany Advisory and former Group General Manager at Brand Collective, she has spent over 15 years shaping customer strategies for some of Australia’s biggest retailers, including Clarks, Hush Puppies, and Shoes & Sox. Now, she helps businesses move beyond outdated tactics and build data-driven, customer-first strategies that actually drive retention and revenue.
In this episode of Add to Cart, Anna pulls back the curtain on the biggest mistakes retailers make with customer ownership, data and loyalty. If you think loyalty is just about points, or that collecting data automatically leads to smarter decisions—you could be driving customers away without even realising it. As Anna puts it: “You don’t need more marketing—you need a smarter customer strategy.”
If No One Owns the Customer, the Customer Gets Lost
Too many brands assume that if everyone cares about the customer, then customer experience is a shared responsibility. But according to Anna, that assumption often leads to zero accountability.
I always ask retailers, ‘Who owns the customer in your business?’ And I get two answers: either everyone or no one. Both are equally wrong. If everyone owns it, then no one actually does.
Without a dedicated owner, businesses fall into silos, where eCommerce, retail operations, and marketing all work independently, without a unified strategy. The result? A fragmented customer experience.
“Ecommerce does their thing, retail ops do theirs, and marketing is running separate campaigns. Everyone’s working hard, but they’re not aligned. And when that happens, the customer experience falls apart.”
Anna believes customer ownership should sit with a Chief Customer Officer or a centralised team that has full visibility over the customer journey. But leadership also plays a huge role. If the executive team isn’t prioritising customer experience, neither will the wider business.
“I ask retailers, ‘What’s your retention rate? What’s your customer lifetime value?’ And I often get blank stares. If you’re not tracking those numbers, you’re not customer-centric.”
Data Without a Strategy is Just a Bunch of Numbers
Retailers have more customer data than ever, but most aren’t using it effectively. Anna regularly challenges leaders with simple questions like: Who are your high-value customers? How many of them do you have? How often do they come back?
“The moment I ask those questions, I see people’s eyes widen. They have the data, but they’ve never really looked at it in a way that drives action.”
Many retailers also make the mistake of keeping data locked in different systems—marketing, eCommerce, and finance all hold separate pieces of the puzzle. Without a Customer Data Platform (CDP) or a unified view, businesses struggle to get meaningful insights.
You have to break down silos and start asking the right questions. Data should inform business decisions, not just sit in a dashboard no one checks.
For Anna, the key is to turn data into action. It’s not enough to collect numbers—retailers need to use them to personalise experiences, refine marketing efforts, and improve retention.
Loyalty Isn’t a Program—It’s a Mindset
Anna isn’t a fan of the word “loyalty” because, for many retailers, it’s synonymous with discounts and points-based programs. But in reality, loyalty is about emotional connection, not transactions.
“One of my clients assumed they didn’t need a loyalty program. But when they finally asked their customers, the response was overwhelming—people wanted one because they saw loyalty programs everywhere else. It wasn’t about discounts; it was about feeling recognised.”
The problem is that most retailers think loyalty is something you can buy, when really, it’s something you earn. Customers want to feel valued, not just rewarded with another 10% off.
Loyalty shouldn’t just be about points. Customers want to feel valued—through personalised offers, VIP access, or experiences that go beyond transactions.
Anna points to Harvey Norman as an example of what real loyalty looks like. After she dropped her laptop and rushed to the store in a panic, a staff member named Sasha turned a stressful moment into an incredible customer experience.
“He immediately took control of the situation and reassured me. Half an hour later, he came back and said, ‘I don’t have great news—you’ll need to replace it. But don’t worry, we can transfer your data, and it’ll be ready by 11 AM tomorrow.’”
Anna was so impressed that she shared the experience on LinkedIn—and the post went viral internally at Harvey Norman. Senior leadership recognised Sasha’s efforts, and his story became an example of great customer service in action.
“That wasn’t a corporate initiative. That was a culture of service. And it starts from the top.”
Stop Treating Customers Like a Transaction
At the end of the day, customers don’t just want to buy from you. They want to feel valued. Too many retailers focus on short-term sales instead of long-term relationships—and that’s where they go wrong.
A customer strategy isn’t just about discounts, data, or even technology. It’s about understanding your customers, making them feel seen, and ensuring they keep coming back—not because they have to, but because they want to.
