PRA lays out roadmap for retail industry growth

MANILA, Philippines — The National Retail Conference and Stores Asia Expo (NRCE), the country’s biggest and most important retail industry event, finally returns to the physical stage with new innovative programs on Aug. 11 to 12 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

With the theme “Retail: Ready, Re/set/ GROW!” retailers can learn from top industry leaders to better prepare their businesses for the new normal in this two-day conference and exhibition, with the activities to be held face-to-face.

“The 28th NRCE is creating a roadmap to a better retail industry. Hence, we must equip fellow retailers and supplier industries to help them expand their respective brands and businesses by providing transformative and actionable strategies as well as harness innovation to achieve global competitiveness,” Philippine Retailers Association (PRA) president and SEVP-COO of Wilcon Depot Rosemarie Ong said.

As retailers and allied industries begin to turn a new leaf, the PRA believes it is time to look for novel and innovative ways to ready businesses for the future, reset the retail ecosystem by adopting new skills and mindsets that cater to the changing needs of the consumers, and grow amid new market conditions and forces.

NRCE 2022 overall chairman and Rustan Commercial Corp. president Donnie Tantoco said it is vital at this point in time to showcase more extensive learning sessions face-to-face among retailers and their allied industries as everyone directs their path to recovery.

Thus, the NRCE committee is launching a new segment called the NRCE Retail Mentorship Program designed to provide an exclusive two-way learning setup where mentor and mentee pairs can have a healthy exchange of ideas and experiences to cultivate an open discussion that can advance their respective careers and businesses.

The event will also feature industry experts, both at the local and international levels such as Tom Oliver, consultant to top Fortune 500 companies, Edwin Hawson of Central Marketing Group, Don Rae of Globe Business, and many more.

There will be three stages throughout the event, serving as a venue for over 30 industry experts to share insights and experiences that will help businesses bounce back from setbacks caused by the pandemic.

They will touch on topics such as social commerce, global talent trends, the metaverse as a blueprint for businesses, and other exclusive talks over the span of two days.

Tantoco said together with the NRCE conference chairmen – Sam Gregory Lim, vice president of Blims Lifestyle Group, and Bryan Liu, vice president for strategy and operations of Penshoppe Group, with the PRA board of directors, they put emphasis on selecting leaders they were sure could provide fresh and valuable insights to the attendees. “The times are now changing, so the industry needs new knowledge and strategies as well,” he said.

Back-to-back with the conference is the Stores Asia Expo, which showcases new and cutting-edge technologies to provide solutions that fit your business needs and can be of help to the growth of your company. The expo also serves as a hub to like-minded retailers and suppliers to build strong relationships through collaboration opportunities.

Interested retailers can still register to attend the event at the NRCE website (www.nrce-ph.com/register). NRCE 2022 is supported by the following sponsors and media partners: Globe Business,The SM Store, Wilcon Depot, PLDT Enterprise, Megaworld Lifestyle Malls, ETP Group, Unilab, Robinsons Malls, Bayer Philippines, CMG Retail Inc., Entrego, Mediacast Digital, Jimac, Vasavah Consultancy (official IT consultant), The Philippine STAR (official newspaper), BusinessWorld (official media partner), Sportshouse, Primer Group of Companies, with media partners DOOH and Manila Times and its official PR partner Media Blitz Group.