Retail's BIG Show - A Brief Guide To NRF 2024
A look ahead to NRF 2024 which once again takes place in New York, January 13 - 16
Long days, short nights, walking miles, networking to within an inch of our lives, it can only mean one thing; NRF 2024 is just around the corner. And it looks like being the biggest and best ever.
I confess that after many years attending each and every year, a combination of Covid and moving house meant that this will be my first time back since the Jacob Javits Convention Center was extended, offering yet more room for a burgeoning conference.
Because NRF 2024 brings together more than 6,200 brands from around the globe to New York City for three days of learning, collaboration and discovery. And the small matter of an expected attendance in excess of 40,000 delegates. And owing to my aforementioned exile from it, personally I can hardly wait for what is always an adrenaline fuelled three days.
But with so much to see and do, what are my personal highlights that I am looking forward to?
Intro
It all kicks off on Saturday with a series of retail store tours in NYC. With the exception of possibly London, there’s no better place that I can think of to explore what’s new in physical store design.
And of course, 2024 will be the year that (post-pandemic) we really begin to see the convergence of digital and physical. Expect to see some inspirational examples of why retail media is such a hot topic right now. This will be a deep dive into how in-store media networks will deliver significant streams of new revenue from the physical store.
And then of course there’s the opening party on Saturday evening - always a great way to kick off the networking.
Talking of which, my itinerary is packed with after parties and VIP receptions, which is all very well, but not necessarily conducive to the early morning starts. But thanks must go to the following for their very kind invitations, I promise I will endeavour to get around to each and every one:
Retail Insiders with Cathy Hotka
Throw in numerous breakfast and evening meetings and it promises to be just as busy outside the show as in it.
Sessions
Regular visitors will know that the conference begins on the Sunday and I’ll be taking in some sessions. Through getting to know their SVP for southern Europe, I’ve followed the progress of Levi Strauss for a while now and so I’m looking forward to the fireside chat Matthew Shay will be having with their President, Michelle Gass.
It’s clear that the star of the Show will be AI in all its manifestations - the agenda is liberally sprinkled with AI sessions from AI powered forecasting, to AI driven POS, to something which sadly is very topical - combatting organised crime. I’ll try and get around to as many of the AI sessions as I can.
Some other stand-out sessions for me include, ‘Driving performance and sustainability in e-commerce with store digitalisation’. Anne Mezzenga from Omni Talk is always worth listening to and the topic of this session will be one of the key discussion points for 2024. Sunday 1pm, Elastic Path Stage.
Another is ‘The power of understanding customer and associate journeys in-store’ which is an exhibitor big idea. Again, this will be a topic of discussion throughout 2024 and it will be interesting to see how stores develop against a background of becoming more and more key for brands as opposed to growing online presence. Monday 1.30pm Expo Stage 2.
Then on Tuesday, a session I am already fascinated by, ‘Online retail for a new generation of shoppers, how AI will humanize the digital experience’. And if there’s one thing that every brand is grappling with, it’s this: how to most effectively deploy AI across the business. Tuesday, 11am goTRG Stage.
Expo
The Expo is once again huge, and it is often hard to find the time to get around to see everything on offer, however, along with The Industrious, I am looking forward to seeing some of the latest technology from the following:
SES-imagotag #2210 / #4503 / #5420
SES-imagotag has over 300 retail customers worldwide and claims to be the world leader in smart digital labels and IOT solutions for physical retail.
Stop by their booths to experience how they are driving the digital transformation of commerce for Physical Retail.
They will be hosting thought leadership sessions with experts and industry speakers to discuss retail's most pressing topics such as: local e-Commerce, fresh & waste, sustainability, inventory availability & management, assortment & merchandising, workforce empowerment, NPS, collaboration with suppliers and much more. They are on a mission to turn physical stores into high value digital assets, automated, data driven and connected to consumers and suppliers.
I’ll be at their booth Sunday morning.
Profitmind from Netail #8041
Profitmind is an AI-driven business analyst that analyzes data and surfaces easy-win growth opportunities across pricing, inventory, assortment and the competitive market place giving increased productivity, transparency and profit.
Profitmind tracks competitors, analyzes a brand’s internal data, and surfaces easy-win growth opportunities. They will be located in the Innovation Lab.
Other highlights for me on the Expo floor include Tech Mahindra, UKG, AsReader, Zebra, and of course the aforementioned Innovation Lab which grows with relevance year on year.
And all that may look like a pretty full agenda but there’s more if your feet can take it.
For those arriving a little earlier, the NRF and STRATACACHE are partnering to dedicate a full day on Saturday to take a deep dive into how in-store media networks will deliver significant streams of new revenue from the physical store.
Programming features roundtable panel discussions and sessions led by experts from companies like Confluencer Commerce, LLC, Deloitte Digital, LiveRamp, McKinsey & Company, Solomon Partners and more.
Or if you prefer, on Sunday there is an all-day supply chain summit, which takes a deep dive into solving retail's toughest supply chain issues. The program features eight sessions led by industry experts and gives you the opportunity to connect with supply chain professionals facing the same challenges.
But more than that, as the NRF say, the conference has grown to become NRF Retail Week, a week-long celebration of parties, high-profile partner events, innovative store tours, experiential tech, workshops, and educational sessions.
The only challenge is making the time to get around it all.