This past January, I had the opportunity to travel with three other Retail Management students to New York to attend the National Retail Federation Conference. With over 17,000 retail representatives and executives from across the globe, the conference was full of people with diverse views and ideas on retail today. During our three-day stay in New York, we listened to many executive speakers talk about their experiences in retail, the current retail environment, and what they think the future holds for the retail arena.

Throughout the conference, the main idea that the speakers emphasized was technology. The boom of e-commerce in the retail industry has forced many companies to re-evaluate and change their traditional business models to accommodate the changing environment. Online communities such as “Second Life” have emerged in the market and people are finding new opportunities to meet and network with people around the world, right from their computers. Today’s consumer is better informed and inclined to utilize the Internet to research a product before making a purchase.

The conference discussion also focused on creating customer convenience. The Apple iPhone and other enhanced cell phones are becoming a new way for retailers to use their Web sites to meet customer demands. In this fast-paced, ever-changing retail environment, harnessing mass collaboration in these and other areas will undoubtedly show consumers that retailers are taking advantage of the new technological advances to innovate not only products, but processes.

I am so happy to have had the chance to attend such an amazing, creative, and informative retail conference. Not only did I come away from the trip with a journal full of notes, but I witnessed the importance of embracing technology and applying its concepts for the betterment of retail. Due to the large number of international attendees, the significance of focusing on the international customer in addition to the domestic customer was emphasized. If the retail industry can continue to innovate and utilize technology to its advantage, not only will they be able to capture a local consumer, but they will succeed in the international realm of retail as well. Attending this conference not only opened my eyes to the many facets of retail, but it inspired me to use what I learned and apply it when I enter the real world next year.

Retail Management Institute - Santa Clara University
rmi.scu.edu