This week we go deep on the future of department stores with Simeon Siegel, senior retail & ecommerce analyst at BMO Capital Markets and Ethan Chernovsky, VP of marketing at Placer.ai. Our fast-paced discussion covers a lot of territory, from how department stores have evolved, to what we mean when we talk about "department stores" today, to whether recent positive news suggests a renaissance or more of a dead count bounce. We also separate the optimists from the pessimists by dissecting the prospects for malls and particular well known retailers.But first we open up the episode with our quick takes on recent retail news that caught out attention, including Allbirds IPO filing, more proof that the retail apocalypse narrative is just silly, Amazon's and Walmart's robust hiring plans and whether Chewy's earnings have more bark than bite. NOTE: We're now back to regular weekly episodes.Be sure to join us for Part 2, where Michael and Steve weigh in with their personal takes on whether department stores can escape "death in the middle."Also check out our newish  YouTube channel. Simeon Siegel, CFASimeon Siegel is a Managing Director and Senior Analyst at BMO Capital Markets specializing in Retail and E-commerce. Simeon started his career at Goldman Sachs and his since worked on the #1 ranked Retail franchise at JPMorgan and Nomura | Instinet.  Simeon has been named a Rising Star of Wall Street by Institutional Investor, a Rising Star of Equity Research by Business Insider, a Top Stock Picker by StarMine and a Top Earnings Estimator by Thomson Reuters and Refinitiv. He has worked on the Institutional Investor #1 ranked All America Research Team for Specialty Retail and the Wall Street Journal's "Best on the Street" list of top analysts. He is in constant dialogue with investors and C-Level Management across the industry, analyzing and advising on the ever-evolving retail landscape. He is a regular guest on CNBC and frequently quoted across the media including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Women's Wear Daily, The Business of Fashion, Barron's and Bloomberg, among others.  Simeon received a BA in Economics and Philosophy from Columbia University and is a CFA charterholder. He serves on the Boards of Read Ahead and the Hebrew Free Loan Society and is Vice Chair of the UJA Luxury Division. Steve Dennis is an advisor, keynote speaker and author on strategic growth and business innovation. You can learn more about Steve on his       website.    The expanded and revised edition of his bestselling book  Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption is now available at  Amazon or just about anywhere else books are sold. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a      Forbes senior contributor and on       Twitter and       LinkedIn. You can also check out his speaker "sizzle" reel      here.Michael LeBlanc  is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice.   He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career.  Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast,       The Voice of Retail, plus        Global E-Commerce Tech Talks  and       The Food Professor  with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois.  You can learn more about Michael       here  or on       LinkedIn.