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Maktoum bin Mohammed attends The Retail Summit 2022

His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, today attended the opening of The Retail Summit, a global content event held at Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai, March 14-15.

His Excellency Hamad Buamim, president and CEO of Dubai Chambers; Gary Thatcher, CEO and co-founder of The Retail Summit; and Marc Howard, director and co-founder of The Retail Summit, attended the event, which features several leading international brands and more than 800 attendees from around the world.

His Highness attended a session titled “Go Agile or Go Home,” which spoke about the impact of digital transformation in retail and the increasingly sophisticated tools and techniques that eliminate the competitive advantage that traditional retailers once had.

During his visit, His Highness also toured the booths of several international brands participating in the event.

The two-day summit includes a program of 27 presentations, panel discussions and interviews by more than 70 C-level keynote speakers from around the world. Participating speakers will offer insights and spark conversation about the opportunities, challenges and future of the global retail industry.

Commenting on the opening, Gary Thatcher, CEO and co-founder of The Retail Summit, said: “The retail industry is now in recovery from the 2020 pandemic, which changed consumer behavior and highlighted the urgent need for further change in the sector. People are now more open to the digital transformations affecting our daily lives and are looking for smarter choices.” The Retail Summit aims to bring together leading experts from around the world to discuss, shape and evolve the future of the industry based on consumer trends and expectations. We are delighted to have speakers from around the world joining us today, making it a one-of-a-kind event and giving all attendees the opportunity to hear from some of the most influential and innovative experts in the world.”

Addressing Summit attendees, His Excellency Hamad Buamim, president and CEO of Dubai Chambers, described The Retail Summit as the perfect platform to showcase the emirate’s competitive advantages as a global retail hub. “The Retail Summit is a platform for Dubai retailers to learn about the most notable trends and technologies shaping the consumer experience. The event comes at a time when the global retail sector is undergoing unprecedented changes driven by digital transformation, and industry players are adopting and creating new solutions to improve their competitiveness and retain tech-savvy customers,” said Buamim.

On the opening day of the summit, Dr. Ira Kalish, Deloitte’s chief global economist, demonstrated what the economic outlook looks like as we learn to live with COVID-19, and how retailers can build strategies to stay ahead. The presentation talked about supply chain bottlenecks, labor market disruptions and social unrest.

The first day also included some very interesting panel discussions.

Day two of the Retail Summit offered a more in-depth discussion of topics such as e-commerce; measuring the cost-effectiveness of in-store digital advertising; sustainability is not just a phase; the post-pandemic luxury market; and much more. Speakers participating in the Summit include David Boynton, CEO of The Body Shop; Susie Kuhn, president EMEA at Foot Locker; Asma Ishaq, CEO of Modere; Sandra Campos, board director, advisor – former CEO of Diane Von Furstenberg; Thierry Andretta, CEO of Mulberry; Didier Souillat, CEO of Time Out Market.

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