The Indian sub-continent’s largest retail congregation – India Retail Forum (IRF) 2008 will kick start on September 16 this year at The Renaissance, Mumbai; in association with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Retailers Association of India (RAI) and Shopping Centre Association of India (SCAI). The three-day mega conclave will address issues concerning millions of retailers, middlemen and vendors who fear losing their business in the wake of the evolution of organised retail, apart from other issues and challenges faced by this sunrise industry.
Themed as ‘managing the change’, the assembly will focus on sustainable retail, collaborative retail and profitable retail, and will see national and international speakers including Don Keady, chief executive officer, Australian Institute of sales, marketing and management; Bob Pritchard, achievers in retail, visionaries, motivational gurus, cabinet ministers, governors, administrators and other thought leaders.
R Subramanian, chairman, IRF 2008, said, “With participation from all segments of the retail world and world retail captains, corporate majors, policy makers of India and the entire retail fraternity in the audience, IRF promises to be one of the most vibrant retail congregations of the world.”
Elaborating the scope of the forum, Amitabh Taneja, chief convenor, IRF, said, “IRF endeavours to bring the best experience in retail to chart out the future path. Passionate exchanges of opinions and experiences have been driving an atmosphere of knowledge sharing retail’s best practices. After all, retail’s innate dynamism necessitates an endless exchange of experiences and innovative strategies.”
The IRF will culminate in a glittering awards ceremony where national and international players will be felicitated for expanding retail in the region and strengthening sourcing from regional brands and manufacturers.