WORLD RETAIL CONGRESS ANNOUNCES U.S. ADVISORY BOARD & SPEAKER LINEUP

The World Retail Congress, the world’s biggest gathering of global retail executives, has geared up for its annual gathering next month by creating and naming a U.S. advisory board and announcing a list of prominent speakers at the event, which will take place in Rome, Italy September 8-10.

The members of the new  U.S. advisory board, which will support the development of WRC’s event program, speakers and American retail leadership audience, include fashion industry executives Rick Darling, executive director of government and public affairs, Li & Fung Ltd; Jerry Storch, CEO, Hudson’s Bay Company and  Deborah Weinswig, head of global research & intelligence, Li & Fung/FBIC Global.

The remaining board members are former Liz Claiborne CEO  Paul Charron who is now chairman of the board, Campbell Soup Company and chairman of the US Department of State Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy; Gilbert Harrison, chairman, Financo; Matt Rubel, senior sdvisor, Roark Capital Group; Ken Seiff, managing partner, Beanstalk Ventures; Linda Shein, managing director, Wharton’s Baker Retailing Center; Steve Sadove, principle, Stephen Sadove & Associates and Kip Tindell, CEO, The Container Store and chairman, National Retail Federation (NRF) and Andrea Weiss, Founder, The O Alliance.

The theme of this year’s congress will be “Retail Transformation Today, Tomorrow and Beyond” and keynote speakers will include Jonathan Alferness, global VP of shopping products, Google; Hayley Barna, co-founder, Birchbox; Jingming Li, general manager, Alipay U.S., Ant Financial Services Group; Stephen Zoll, VP, eBay Germany; Olaf Koch, CEO, Metro Group and Kip Tindell, founder, chairman and CEO, The Container Store and NRF chairman. Tindell will also be inducted into the WRC’s Hall of Fame this year.

“The Congress places global retail transformation at the very heart of all content, which will be reflected strongly in our conference program this year,” said Ian McGarrigle, chairman of The World Retail Congress, in a statement.  “As the meeting place for senior retail leaders from across the world and all retail sectors, our 2015 conference will include emerging, innovative and disruptive retail businesses from more than 60 countries.”