About The Voice of the Frontline
The Voice of the Frontline is an all-inclusive weekly newsletter. It covers retail news, workers' rights, and the community that supports them.
Subscribers get weekly emails about important retail and labor-related news. Each edition is from the frontline workers' perspective. VotF also publishes insider articles, interviews, and more.
VotF invites paying subscribers to join the community in Substack chats, ask Kit questions, and take part in Substack Live events.
Information and opinion inundate us every minute.
The retail industry and labor practices are undergoing rapid changes. New leaders in government make these matters even more complex. VotF examines how new decisions, laws, court rulings, and even retailer bankruptcies affect the frontline workforce.
VotF gives readers a clear path amid the information overload.
You can also follow Kit’s work on LinkedIn and Bluesky. Her book, The Retail Leader’s Field Guide, is available now.
About Kit Campoy
I’ve been working in retail for twenty-six years. I graduated college with a B.S. in merchandising and had dreams of being a stylist. However, when I started working in stores and leading teams, I couldn’t get enough. All I wanted to do was support people, connect with my local community, and run excellent businesses. So, that’s what I did.
Leading a retail team through the COVID pandemic was arduous and scary. But the entire time I had high hopes that a tragedy of that magnitude could change the way we worked for the better.
I was wrong.
Since 2020, retail companies have cut payroll and frontline leadership jobs. They have stalled raises and demanded more with fewer resources.
The workforce is at a breaking point. It is no longer sustainable.
In 2022, I made the most difficult decision of my career—to leave it. My side hustle as a writer had opened new doors that I had to pursue. Writing then led me back to retail.
In 2023, I published a practical how-to book for retail leaders, The Retail Leader’s Field Guide. Resources for new leaders are scarce. I wanted to show new retail leaders an easier way.
The Voice of the Frontline was established in March 2023.
Why Subscribe?
Because the way we work is changing rapidly. Because mega corporations are gobbling up media, retail, and entertainment. When a few people own almost everything, the rest of us have little say.
In this era of information-avalanche, we can’t afford to tune out. We can’t get apathetic. We must share independent journalism and focus on what matters for future generations. We must see the retail mergers, the worker strikes, and the billions that enrich a few. The rest of us can barely afford rent.
Get unlimited access to the best of The Voice of the Frontline for less than $1/week.
Because major news outlets don’t give airtime to the labor workforce. Because labor is not valued. Here, it is.
At VotF, we know what it’s like to drive fifty miles a day to work an hourly job. We know what it’s like to get a 3% raise every year on top of a terrible salary. Or get no raise at all because the company has to “cut costs."
We know what it’s like to be short-staffed on purpose. We can feel the sweat roll down our backs. We apologize to the customer in front of us because we don't have another person to help them.
Because we can connect and share ideas here without our bosses breathing down our necks.
Because I will never ask you to consider if it’s “good for the company."
Because the work you do matters, and I want you to know that.
Because I've gained people's trust in the field. I get messages daily from people telling me their truths and sharing their stories. While they remain anonymous, you get the insight.
The best way to support my work is by signing up for a paid subscription. Also, I want my work to be accessible to everyone. You can read every edition of The Voice of the Frontline with a free subscription.
For those who can afford an extra subscription, you can gift a subscription here.
Your paid membership means that this newsletter is available to all the leaders in the field who want to read it. But some leaders can't afford the $50 because their companies cut bonuses and didn't give them raises this year.
Your dollars help democratize The Voice of the Frontline.
If you ask me, that’s pretty badass.
You can also make a one-time donation here if you’re in the position to give a little extra.
I’m glad you’re here. Your support of the frontline workforce will increase their visibility. They don't usually get it. Thank you—a lot.
See What Others are Saying
“Kit's newsletters does an amazing job of championing the frontline worker in retail. Her newsletter is thoughtful, passionate and it provides kick-ass content. ”
- Steve Worthy, Worthy Retail News
“To the point, crisp, suggestive.” - Suntonu Bhadra, Travel Muse by Shants
"I support your work, because the truth needs to be told for us and the future."
-M. Romano
“You have found a way to support and encourage workers who are an important part of the American economy." - K. O’Neill
“Kit's newsletter is a weekly dose of no-BS retail reality that helps keep me in check. A must-read for anybody who works in service to stores!”
- Emily Lane,Store Comms Collective
“As a former rue21 employee , you made sure that everyone knew every detail and that was awesome! Thank you and I will be reading your publications from here on out." - Paid Subscriber
