Smartzer at Shoptalk 2017
- Karoline Gross
- Mar 27, 2017
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 17, 2021
Last week, Karoline (Smartzer Founder and CEO) and Miles (Head of Business Development) headed to Las Vegas to attend Shoptalk 2017.
Shoptalk is one of the largest and most exciting global retail and e-commerce events with over 5,000 attendees and over 2,000 companies in attendance this year. The event provided the opportunity to learn and share ideas about the changing consumer shopping experience. Emphasis was placed on the use of technology and changes in the ideal shopping experience from the perspective of both consumer preferences and their expectations.
We made the most of the opportunity to network with some incredible retail experts and maximised on the wide array of talks which were scheduled. With over 330 speakers at this year’s Shoptalk, there were so many innovative companies and inspirational people represented. We were kept busy attending as many talks as possible!
It was great to hear talks given by individuals representing Smartzer clients such as Kohl’s and Halston. We enjoyed hearing Kevin Mansell (Chairman, CEO and President at Kohl’s) discussing the importance of technology at Kohl’s. Kevin explained the variety of ways that the $2bn Kohl’s has invested in technology over the past 2 years. He described how it has been used to enhance the consumer experience online and in store, as well as in streamlining supply chain processes. It was great to hear how our interactive video commerce technology has aided in improving the consumer experience at Kohl’s.
We also heard Suzanne Hader (CMO at Halston) talking in a panel alongside Jim Squires of Instagram and Brian Monahan of Pinterest, discussing the future of social commerce and the importance of influencers as the core to social marketing.
Especially pertinent to Smartzer was Mindy Grossman’s (CEO and Director at HSN, Inc.) talk about a runway made shoppable last season, and how this can be advanced next season. This certainly got us thinking about how our interactive technology could be used! In a similar vein to this was Uri Minkoff’s (Co-Founder and CEO at Rebecca Minkoff) discussion of the necessity for retailers to be flexible and adaptable to changes in the retail world. Specifically, in relation to streamlining and optimising the consumer experience.
Calvin McDonald (President and CEO at Sephora Americas) also emphasised the importance of innovation in engaging, educating and exciting clients in developing the consumer experience. One way that Sephora is doing this is in their new Classes for Confidence: Brave Beauty in the Face of Cancer programme, driven by the Sephora concept of Teach-Inspire-Play.
Another highlight included hearing the multi-talented Lionel Ritchie sharing not only his elegant homewares line Lionel Ritchie Home, but also his story about how he had pursued his dream despite his parents hoping he would train as a doctor or lawyer instead.
Beyond attending these (and many more!) interesting, educational and inspiring talks, we also took the chance to catch up with existing Smartzer clients as well as the New York Fashion Tech Lab and Plug and Play. To do so in such an exciting environment made for some brilliant conversations.
Smartzer would like to say a massive thank you to Shoptalk for such a fantastic three days in a beautiful location learning about the evolution of retail and the consumer experience and for the opportunity to share our concept and connect with incredible new people.
We’ve left Las Vegas with a spring in our step, some exciting new ideas and eagerly anticipating Shoptalk Europe in Copenhagen later this year!
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