Reaching the Summit
Annual private brand event promises new and exciting offerings.
Retailer and supplier executives responsible for private-brand management, product development, innovation, marketing, packaging or sales are set to gather at the 2014 Innovation & Marketing Summit, brought to the market by Store Brands Decisions and Stagnito Media. The educational and networking conference for the store brand industry will take place Feb. 26–28 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare, in Rosemont, Ill.
The third annual summit, which last year saw record attendance of 350, will feature a conference program developed by the industry, for the industry, in addition to an unparalleled opportunity to network. New this year is an expanded program offering more retailers, more keynote speakers, more sessions and more networking than ever before.
Scheduled keynote speakers include Michael Fox, VP, brand marketing and innovation for Pleasanton, Calif.-based Safeway Consumer Brands; Ben Wynkoop, senior director, private brands for Dallas-based 7-Eleven; Moe Alkemade, group VP, general merchandise manager for Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreen Co.; and Glenn Backus, SVP, innovation for Skokie, Ill.-based Topco Associates LLC.
On the agenda for Feb. 26 are four pre-conference workshops, among them “Building Your Sustainable Packaging Action Plan,” developed in collaboration with Charlottesville, Va.-based GreenBlue’s Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) specifically for the store brands market. The seminar will incorporate content from SPC’s Essentials of Sustainable Packaging curriculum. Also on the program for Feb. 26 is a lunch event hosted by Women Impacting Storebrand Excellence (WISE, separate registration required). In addition, Stamford, Conn.-based Daymon Worldwide will host an opening reception in the Innovation Zone following the day’s program.
On Feb. 27, top industry experts will speak in the morning, including Dan O’Connor, founder and CEO of the RetailNet Group, based in Waltham, Mass., and Rob Christian, SVP, sales at Atlanta-based Symphony EYC. The afternoon, meanwhile, will bring concurrent sessions divided into three tracks: Product Development, Shopper Marketing and Packaging Innovation. Neenah, Wis.-based Bemis will host a reception in the Innovation Zone following the day’s program.
The event will conclude on Feb. 28 with morning speaker presentations from industry executives such as Sue Klug, SVP and chief marketing officer at Commerce, Calif.-based Unified Grocers, and Lynn Dornblaser, director of innovation and insight for Chicago-based Mintel.
For more information, visit www.storebrandsdecisions.com/summit/2014.