News Releases

Shoptalk Announces Preliminary 2019 Agenda, First 100+ Speakers And Unprecedented Educational Programs
Shoptalk Launches Standardized Core Curriculum and Annual Retail Education Certificate to Redefine the Conference Experience Around Education

NEW YORK, Sept. 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Shoptalk, the world's largest retail and ecommerce conference with more than 8,000 attendees, including over 750 CEOs, today released its preliminary 2019 agenda and initial lineup of more than 100 speakers that includes:

  • Nordstrom Co-President, Erik Nordstrom
  • Gap Inc. President & CEO, Art Peck
  • Canada Goose CEO, Dani Reiss
  • Crate and Barrel CEO, Neela Montgomery
  • Pinterest Co-Founder & CEO, Ben Silbermann
  • Tapestry CEO, Victor Luis
  • DSW CEO, Roger Rawlins
  • Lowe's Chief Marketing Officer, Jocelyn Wong
  • Mattel, Inc. Chief Strategy & Development Officer, Sid Mathur
  • Taubman Centers, Inc. Chief Operating Officer, Bill Taubman
  • Ulta Chief Merchandising & Marketing Officer, Dave Kimbell
  • lululemon, EVP, Americas, Celeste Burgoyne
  • Walmart VP & GM of Walmart Media Group, Stefanie Jay
  • KFC Global Chief Digital Officer, Ryan Ostrom
  • ipsy Co-Founder & President, Jennifer Goldfarb

The final agenda will feature a total of more than 350 speakers. Shoptalk will be held on March 3-6, 2019 at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

Shoptalk also today announced two new groundbreaking education initiatives that will launch with the 2019 event:

  1. A standardized set of agenda sessions called the Core Curriculum, representing courses that will be offered every year, but with updated perspectives.
  2. An Annual Retail Education Certificate which is awarded each year to those individuals who complete at least 10 credits of approved continuing education at Shoptalk.

"As Shoptalk gears up for its fifth show, we continue to set new standards for the industry and break new ground with our agenda and unprecedented onsite programs," said Anil D. Aggarwal, founder and CEO of Shoptalk.

"Learning has become critical to being a leader and key contributor in the retail industry. To succeed, retail leaders--and aspiring leaders--must now focus on their professional development to deepen their knowledge of retail trends and technologies. Our new Core Curriculum and Annual Retail Education Certificate are designed to empower the entire retail industry with the absolute best continuing education opportunities at this critical time."

Introducing Shoptalk's Core Curriculum

Shoptalk has created a standardized set of sessions called the Core Curriculum. Starting in 2019, approximately half of Shoptalk's 40-minute track sessions will form the standardized Core Curriculum.

Core Curriculum courses (sessions) include many of the fundamentals of retail that will remain relevant for years to come. Courses in the Core Curriculum cover a wide range of topics, from Innovations in Store Design to Hiring and Training Digital Talent, and from Selling on Marketplaces to Next Generation Supply Chains. These courses will be offered every year, but with updated, current perspectives. Other sessions on the agenda--those outside the Core Curriculum that may not be repeated--address topics that are just as critical, but may be covered differently in future years.

This groundbreaking new approach to standardizing industry education enables retailers and brands to get a fresh perspective each year on the core issues they must continue to address, and to learn from companies at the forefront of change.

Announcing the Annual Retail Education Certificate

Shoptalk also launched an Annual Retail Education Certificate which is awarded to those individuals who complete at least 10 credits of approved continuing education at Shoptalk. Starting in 2019, individuals can earn credits onsite during the event by attending main stage and track agenda sessions as well as taking part in other Shoptalk learning programs including:

  • Tabletalks - Interactive peer group discussions among retailers and brands
  • Techtalks - Overviews of technology innovation presented by tech company executives
  • Hosted Retailers & Brands Program - Meetings with tech company executives

The Annual Retail Education Certificate helps recipients distinguish themselves at a time when retail industry professionals there is a significant divide in retail industry professionals' knowledge of digital innovation. Any attendee can qualify for an Annual Retail Education Certificate and Shoptalk is working directly with employers to help teams across their organizations participate in the annual certificate program.

Shoptalk's 2019 preliminary agenda is available at: https://shoptalk.com/agenda and the initial speaker lineup can be viewed at https://shoptalk.com/speakers.

Those interested in speaking can apply at https://shoptalk.com/speakers/apply.

About Shoptalk

Shoptalk is the world's largest conference for retail and ecommerce innovation. Held annually in Las Vegas, Shoptalk is an unprecedented global gathering of individuals and companies reshaping how consumers discover, shop and buy. The event provides a platform for large retailers and brands, startups, tech companies, investors, media and analysts to learn, collaborate and evolve. Shoptalk will be held on March 3-6, 2019 at the Venetian in Las Vegas. For more information, visit www.shoptalk.com. Follow @shoptalk. Like facebook.com/shoptalk.

SOURCE Shoptalk

For further information: Rob Wells, Media Relations, rob@shoptalk.com; Catherine Shi, Marketing Director, catherine@shoptalk.com