Cold temps but hot topics at NRF’s BIG Show

My Monday began with my commute to the Javits Center. After freezing from the 15 degree wind chill, I quickly warmed up by the commotion of the Big Show.

My first stop was the opening of the Expo Hall. I was overcome with the amount of booths and vendors that took part in the conference this year. Vendors brought new and upcoming technologies such as, a product that would be used for shoppers to try on clothes virtually. It was awesome!

Then I headed to my first session of the day, “Winning in the Age of the Shopper.” This session presented information about how retailers can improve their understanding of price pertaining to their target customer. By using a new technology called Revionics, Mark Kelso shared how Pamida Stores catered price to their customer.

The next session that was the highlight of my day was President’s Clinton’s speech. Even though he has been out of office for some time, President Clinton still seems to always lend a helping hand. “When you leave as a President, you should still help your people”, he stated. To show his philanthropy he brings his efforts through the Clinton Foundation. He travels and volunteers his time to efforts such as AIDS and Malaria foundations in 70 countries After I heard him speak I am proud to say, I will never forget the great knowledge that I’ve gained from this influential man.

Lunch time! It was time for the “Members Only Lunch” where Peter Sheahan and Andrew Mantis spoke about strategies for retailers. This session was an opportunity for members to network and mingle with one another and gain interesting knowledge. From competitive advantage and turning challenges into opportunities, this event was a crowd pleaser. With quotes from Steve Jobs and other innovative companies it was hard to look away from the gigantic screens. Questions and laughs were thrown to the audience which made this a great session.

The rest of my day was filled with seeing the session, “The Convergence of Merchandising Trends & the Technology Empowered Consumer‘ and visiting the Expo Hall. The session was another great one. Learning about how consumers are becoming more knowledgeable daily and how retailers need to adapt to their target market. The end of my day was filled with traveling to vendor after vendor. Did I say I am glad I wore flats? This place is huge!

This was a Monday I can definitely remember and most definitely always will!