The World Retail Congress, one of the biggest annual gatherings of global retail industry, has been postponed until October this year, as speakers and participants struggled to reach Berlin ahead of the scheduled first day on Wednesday. Retail industry leaders from across the globe were set to congregate in Berlin this week, from April 21-23, but will no longer be able to participate following the unprecedented disruption to international travel as a result of the volcanic eruption. The confirmed dates for October 2010 are to be announced shortly.
As the world begins to emerge from the effects of the global recession, the Congress was expected to welcome more than 50 per cent more participants than 2009 to debate what the future holds for the industry.
Organisers are already in discussion with more than 100 industry experts who were set to speak and are hopeful that most will be able to participate at the Congress later this year. Scheduled speakers at the event included Dr Eckhard Cordes, chairman and CEO, Metro Group; Angela Ahrendts, CEO of Burberry; Hans Schmitt, senior vice-president, Hugo Boss; Philipp Schindler, vice-president, Google; Sarita Nayyar, head of Consumer Industries, World Economic Forum USA; Mindy Grossman, CEO, HSN Inc and Laura Wade-Grey, CEO, Tesco.com.
The aim of World Retail Congress is to drive growth in the global retail economy, promote the benefits of global retail excellence and gain sustainable, competitive edge in domestic and international markets. With thousands of key retail professionals and politicians expected to attend, the focus will be on discussing and influencing the issues for change.
The Congress is being organised by Emap Communications, in association with key sponsors, Deloitte, MasterCard and Oracle.
— IndiaRetailing Bureau
