RETAIL RETREAT ROUNDUP

“Wow, what a day we had at the Retail Excellence Retail Retreat, powered by AIB Merchant Services! Over 400 people attended the event held in the fabulous Dublin Royal Convention Centre, there was a real sense of positivity in the room as people talked and shared ideas. While one side of the main function room became the plenary room the other side was converted into an exhibition space where partners like AIB Merchant Services, KPMG, Johnston Shopfitters and others provided solutions and giveaways to attendees. A big thanks thanks must go to our speakers especially Sue Harries from Screwfix who kicked off the day and Penny Grivea from Rituals who closed things out. I know John Fahy’s marketing presentation stole the show for many of you and who couldn’t be impressed by the words of wisdom from reformed Heroin addict Brian Pennie? His words really struck a chord. From your feedback, the breakout sessions landed really well and created much discussion. There was a good blend of speakers from large multiples from Penneys and Ikea to smaller players like Blanaid from Folkster, Chris Furey, Furey Smyth Group and John Burke, Burkes of Rathnew Homevalue. We were even able to ‘shoehorn’ in Minister Neale Richmond for a 10 minute slot. The Minister was delighted to take part and he stayed around to meet members and partners afterwards. The Retail Excellence Retreat is the biggest retail conference in the country and it was a delight to to network with people who love the industry, generating shared ideas and commonality. We were thrilled to return after a short break during the pandemic, and already we are back out there, fired up and already planning for 2024. Please let us know if you have anything you want to share from the retreat, we always love hearing your feedback.”

Duncan Graham, Managing Director, Retail Excellence

Convenience is a true differentiator

Our first keynote speaker was Sue Harries of Screwfix, who spoke about the transformational story of Screwfix on becoming an omnichannel retailer. One core pillar of their strategy is focused on being the most convenient option for their customers. Their research found their customer, is busy and ‘time is money’ is their mantra, so they focused on making sure they had comprehensive store estate to ensure they were closest to the customer. On top of this, they have rolled out ‘Screwfix Sprint’ which focuses on delivering an order to a customer in under one hour or less.

Sue Harries

Brand building eats digital marketing for breakfast

The speaker that got the most amount of positive feedback was John Fahy, Professor of Marketing with University of Limerick. John spoke about the need to focus on building your brand as a true North Star to deliver growth. Rather than focus on short-term tactical digital marketing advertising, John explained brands are now slowly realising the need to rebalance the scales of their marketing spend and to zone in on building their brand.

John Fahy

Develop your culture to drive your retail business

Penny shared the Rituals story and how they have cultivated a truly positive culture while they continue to expand their retail store estate. We all know how challenging it has become to retain and attract talent in todays market, Penny explained. Stories and activities were shared on how they bring this framework to life and posed a great talking point around how you are developing your culture. What values does your business stand for.

Penny Grevea

Will it make my boat go faster?

A standing ovation was given to the truly inspirational Brian Pennie who spoke after lunch at the Retail Retreat. He told a fantastic personal story that posed several questions to the audience, emphasing the importance of the values we live by. Are they truly worthy values? He told a memorable tale relating to his time in Trinity and used the metaphor of a roaming boat for life – will this particular action make your boat go faster? This is what we need to continually ask ourselves as we move forwards, he added.

Brian Pennie