The Retail Conference

The Retail Conference would never be possible without the generosity of our sponsors. Their sponsorship covers the costs of the event so that we can continue to offer the event FREE to retailers.

The Retail Conference was the first event of its type to be offered FREE and we're delighted to now see other events following in our footsteps to the benefit of you, the delegates!

Another unique feature of The Retail Conference is that our sponsors have exclusivity in their primary field of business activity - meaning that delegates get to speak to a range of providers without being swamped with just one message, and meaning that sponsors can be open and honest with delegates - knowing their business information won't end up in the hands of their competition.

Which leads us onto yet another unique feature of The Retail Conference - we only allow a limited number of non-retail attendees (outside of the sponsor-delegates). The reason for this is twofold:

If delegates are predominantly retailers this makes for better networking and discussion for the primary audience (retailers) and avoids an environment that is more focused on selling than learning, sharing and networking...
Sponsors have power of veto of these non-retailer delegates if they are deemed to be competitive in their primary field of business activity. This further securing their confidence that if they share their materials either at the event, or afterwards by way of delegate download, then their competitors will not have ready access to it.

Conference Organiser - Retail Acumen

Retail Acumen: Trusted Experts, Exceptional Results

- Improving Margins - Reducing Costs - Delivering Excellence in Retail -

Retail Acumen offers retailers access to expert retail consultants and practitioners, either in a consulting or an interim management capacity.

The Retail Acumen team all possess many, many years of practical, hands-on retail experience and work with retailers on either a consultancy or interim basis to identify and capitalise on the opportunities within their business for improved efficiencies and performance.

If you wish you could find consultants who:

Offer Real World Retail Expertise
Have Proven Results
Provide Fresh Insights
Deliver Pragmatic Solutions

Retail Acumen tick all the boxes!

A fresh approach: A fresh pair of eyes...

Could you benefit from a new perspective?
A second opinion?
Someone to bounce your ideas off?

With a fresh pair of eyes we'll help you review what you're working on, offer you our feedback, our thoughts, and some fresh insights.

Contact us on 0844 4145153 to find out how we can help you to make a real difference in your business.

www.retailacumen.com

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Conference Sponsor - K3: The Retail People

K3 deliver multi-channel solutions based on Microsoft technology to retailers helping them create joined up shopping experiences for their customers whether they choose to buy on-line, direct or in-store.

Our solutions are modular - meaning you can build your business at the pace you want, without disruption to your current operation. K3 offer swift ways to better your business across:

EPOS
Retail CRM
Merchandise Management
E Commerce
Back Office
Warehousing & Distribution
Call Centres
Loss Prevention
Financials
Kiosks
Pricing & Promotions
HR & Payroll
Mobile
Staff Scheduling
Business intelligence

With more than 18 years experience in delivering business solutions, K3 have grown to become the UK's leading supplier of Microsoft Dynamics in retail. As a Gold Level Partner we offer a clearly defined roadmap and a product with a proven track record backed up by a $2 billion annual investment in Research and Development.

Customers that have benefited from a K3 retail solution include: Adidas, Alliance Boots, Agent Provocateur, American Golf, Beales, Booths, Carpetright, Clinton Cards, Dobbies Garden Centres, Dreams, Gamestation, GameStop, Jigsaw, Kiddicare, Leekes, National Gallery, Rugby Football Union, Ryman the Stationers, Shoon, Smyths Toys, Space NK, The Steinhoff Group and The White Company.

For more information visit www.theretailpeople.com

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Conference Sponsor - e-mphasis: Internet Marketing

e-mphasis is an internet marketing agency that specialises in providing search marketing and social media marketing to clients whose customers are consumers - specifically to clients in retail, travel, hospitality and leisure.

e-mphasis was founded by Andrew Rayner, who has been working with internet related technologies since the internet itself came into existence! Andrew is considered to be a search marketing expert and, with the team at e-mphasis, he has developed innovative techniques to enable clients to get found online for their desired search terms.

e-mphasis offers search engine optimisation (SEO), social media marketing (SMM) and also developed a unique offering called Google Places Optimisation (GPO) - ideal for multi-channel search marketing.

Google Places Optimisation, unlike high cost pay per click (PPC) campaigns, puts clients onto page 1 of Google for a fixed monthly fee. This is currently being trialed by Tesco Phone Shops, and is presenting some great results!

This highly targeted approach to Internet Marketing is a hugely untapped area of online marketing strategy and one which is now beginning to generate interest and excitement from other major UK retail brands. Andrew will be speaking during several of the break-out sessions at The Retail Conference about Google Places Optimisation, so, as a delegate you will have the chance to find out more about this exciting development for retail internet marketing.

For more information contact Andrew Rayner on 0844 4145159 or 07730 075127 or email him - getresults@e-mphasis.com

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Sponsor - Charteris Plc

Charteris helps leading retailers improve their business performance through tangible business change and the strategic application of the latest proven technologies.

Offering a rare blend of business expertise and technological flair, Charteris provides impartial advice and advanced solutions - bridging the gap between business and technology to deliver true enterprise agility.

Charteris' expert practitioners bring a wealth of hands-on business systems integration experience gained on major business change programmes. This unrivalled experience - coupled with a sharp focus on integrated Multi-Channel Retailing, Smarter Retailing, Customer Centricity and the Integrated Enterprise - helps retailers leverage systems, processes and sales and communication across multiple channels. The result of such an integrated approach includes dramatic improvements in sales, market share, customer service, staff satisfaction and competitive edge.

Charteris' clients include many of Europe's most successful retailers, including Boots, Debenhams, GAME, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis Partnership, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Waitrose to name but a few. Charteris' client list also comprises many other well-known organisations in Finance, Media, Government and Services.

www.charteris.com

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Sponsor - CTS Retail

CTS deliver hardware, software and support services to retailers. We have over 25 years experience of working with innovative and exciting companies, 2009 has given retailers serious challenges to meet and we are working in every area of our business to enable them do this.

Hardware is delivered through EPOS Partners, visit our web store at www.epospartners.co.uk

Business consultancy, installation, training and software product enhancements from our in-house team of software engineers are also offered with full time support from our help desk, handling enquiries 364 days a year both in the UK and the USA.

By investing in technology and research and development and by employing personnel with superior knowledge and experience of both the Retail market and technology we aim to ensure that you meet and exceed the exacting demands of the consumer, your customer.

CTS-Retail - the independent alternative that delivers
www.cts-retail.com

Cervello - Pay Per Transaction POS

We are a software reseller for Microsoft RMS and Microsoft Dynamics POS 2009 and have our own newly released product, Cervello. Cervello delivers everything you would expect from a 21st Century retail solution with no capital expenditure and a unique 'pay per transaction' model. Find out more at cervello-pos.com

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Conference Sponsor - Service Management Group

Service Management Group (SMG) has a singular focus: providing actionable analysis that improves the customer experience. We measure the customer and employee experience for global retail, restaurant and service brands at over 90,000 locations in 49 countries. As a result, we�ve created the largest comparative database of retail interactions in the world...

More details about Service Management Group will be published soon, for the time being however please visit the website at www.smg.com

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Conference Sponsor - emnos

Delivering customer-centric growth

emnos get you closer to your customers using multiple sources of insight to guide strategic, actionable recommendations.

Integrated within the emnos offering are tools and technologies to implement these recommendations successfully and bring real commercial and customer benefits.

We have expertise and practical experience in each of these areas - in various consumer-based industries - all under one roof.

To learn more about our service offering please visit the website at www.emnos.com

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Sponsor - Stibo Systems

Thriving in the competitive multi-channel retail environment requires quick response to market opportunities and customer demands. Accurate product information is a key enabler helping customers to make confident buying decisions.

With product data often being held in many disparate systems and in different formats, providing a consistent and accurate view of products across all channels is becoming more and more complex and time consuming.

Retailers now recognise product data as a business-critical asset. Stibo Systems (stibosystems.com) provides innovative solutions that help retailers take control of product information and digital assets to streamline the end-to-end process of product on-boarding, enrichment and multi-channel delivery. We help retailers to reduce manual efforts, improve time to market, and ensure brand and promotion consistency. Product analysis, SQUINCH, and multi-channel marketing (Websites, Catalogues, Flyers, POS, Signage, and more) are a breeze with our STEP system. Configurable user interfaces allow you to be up and running quickly, while providing fast ROI.

Retailers using Stibo's STEP master data platform report far-reaching benefits, including:

Improved cross-sell and up-sell conversions
Reduced time to market of new products
Improved on-boarding of supplier data
Reduced inventory costs
More intelligent merchandising, smarter and more targeted promotions
More consistent and creative multi-channel promotions
Fewer point-to-point integrations between applications
Lower administrative and data-cleansing costs
Greater procurement efficiencies and procurement leverage

Visit us at stibosystems.com, or ask us how we help leading retailers including Mothercare, Sears, Figleaves, Early Learning Centre, B&Q, The Home Depot, Colruyt, Screwfix and others manage their critical product data, version it for multiple uses, and easily publish it in electronic or printed format for all sales, marketing and customer support purposes.

For more information visit www.stibosystems.com/retail

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Sponsor - RELEX

RELEX offers retail companies guaranteed results from automating and optimising their forecasting and replenishment!

RELEX solutions make it possible to reap the benefits of sophisticated algorithms and optimisation logic in a straight-forward, user-friendly way. Maximising the level of automation and accuracy of forecasting and replenishment while minimising the need for resources.

RELEX makes implementation simple and risk-free. A working, live pilot can be set up within a month so you can try out your solution before buying. We follow the SaaS (Software as a Service) paradigm, which means that no significant up-front investment is required; instead, you pay as you go, and as you see the benefits.

Our state-of-the-art solutions and lean implementation project has enabled RELEX to quickly expand our base of satisfied customers. Our customers include, among others, Europe's fifth largest DIY company, vendors of books and office supplies, home electronics retailers, and grocery companies.

Founding partners Dr. Johanna Smaros and Dr. Mikko Karkkainen will be attending The Retail Conference. If you believe that implementing sophisticated solutions for highly automated and optimised forecasting and replenishment must be a time-consuming, high-risk endeavour, please let us prove you wrong - we make it simple!

For more information about RELEX visit www.relex.fi/en/

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Sponsor - CitySprint Retail

"When you look at why people choose not to purchase something online, even if they research it online, the number one reason is because they want something immediately" Source: Forrester Research

CitySprint's dedicated Retail Sector team provides flexible and innovative home delivery solutions to retailers 7 days a week including ALL Bank Holidays.

CitySprint Retail is a tailored delivery solution enabling retailers to offer a same day delivery option to their customers. By providing customers with a wider selection of delivery options customers can choose a service which suits them and their reason for purchase. By defining the delivery window CitySprint can also help you maximise important shopping seasons or the key sales periods.

CitySprint operating 24/7, supported by its unique infrastructure, alongside a strong geographical presence, has made this leading retail solution possible. With 31 ServiceCentres located throughout the UK covering each of the major conurbations, CitySprint's fleet is never far away.

Why Retailers choose to use CitySprint:

UK's leading SameDay Courier
SameDay specialists
Network of 31 ServiceCentres across the UK
24/7 operation
Brand protection - uniformed and CRB checked couriers
Customer convenient service available 7 days a week including ALL Bank Holidays
Delivery within a defined window
Latest possible cut off times
Focused on delivering within demanding timeframes
Flexible and responsive approach
Customers unique order number used throughout the delivery cycle
Delivery updates generated through barcode scanning
Live audit trail / map location of each delivery
Integrated retail customer support team
Management information and reporting made available
Performance monitoring

CitySprint's focused investment in the retail sector means we can offer all our retail clients knowledge and experience as well as:

Account management
Dedicated operations team
Brand protection - Retail sector couriers
Customer support team, available 7 days a week
IT support team

Working closely with our customers to keep ahead of consumer demand

For more information about CitySprint Retail visit www.citysprint.co.uk/retail

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Sponsor - Netbiscuits

Netbiscuits operates the world's leading B2B Web software platform for the creation, operation and monetisation of mobile Web sites and apps. It serves the mobile Internet programs for premium online and media companies such as eBay, Universal Music, MTV and Axel Springer and leading agencies such as SapientNitro, Publicis and Ogilvy.

Globally Netbiscuits delivers more than 2.5 billion mobile page impressions each month. Founded in 2000, the company has 85 employees in the USA, Germany, and Singapore.

The award winning Netbiscuits platform is available as a cloud-based software service (SaaS). From their website (see link below) all tools, interfaces and mobile enabling technologies are provided to develop, publish, monitor, and monetise professional mobile web services. By using Netbiscuits, media companies, agencies, retailers, brand owners, developers, and service providers achieve a faster path to profit from their mobile Internet programs.

In 2009 Netbiscuits won the internationally accepted ME Award for the 'Best Mobile Publishing Platform'.

For more information about Netbiscuits visit www.netbiscuits.com

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Sponsor - Smartbags.co.uk

Smartbags.co.uk is a wholesale supplier of branded eco bags to retail and business.

Smartbags specialise in woven and non-woven polypropylene bags. The bags are 100% reusable and recyclable with quality printing that enhances any brand. Attention to detail is the key creative aspect of their bespoke service. Clients can customise any reusable bag size to suit business and product needs.

With NWPP your branding requirements will benefit from the best quality printing techniques with silk screen, heat transfer or full colour printing. The bags can also be laminated in matte or gloss finish to enhance designs with a stunning effect. Other add on options include pocket, zipper, popper fasteners, name card holder, barcode, card board base and various handle lengths... just to name a few, with every part being recyclable.

Smartbags are not limited to NWPP, they also supply high quality rPET, cotton, Jute and paper bags too.

For more information about Smartbags visit www.smartbags.co.uk

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Supporter - Retail Trust

Retail Trust is the national retail charity, with the aim to provide support and assistance to people working in, or retired from, the retail industry when they or their families need it.

They provide accomodation for people who have retired from the retail industry at five estates across the UK. For those who have retired or are still working in retail a Helpline is provided which gives access to support, information, legal advice, counselling and financial assistance if required.

Retail Trust is working to implement a strategic plan that will define it as a modern and dynamic organisation continually increasing its value to all employees across the retail sector. This involves the development of services, expanding the Helpline, increasing the award of financial grants, committing to a major refurbishment programme across all their existing estates, and adding to their portfolio of retirement estates across the UK.

They are also developing additional services for people working in the retail sector, particularly in the area of education, training and lifelong learning.

They have an active fundraising program, including an exciting events schedule, corporate fundraising, and grants from Trusts and Foundations, which supports their core activities and the expansion of their services.

www.retailtrust.org.uk

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Supporter - Skillsmart Retail

Established in 2002, Skillsmart Retail, the Sector Skills Council for Retail, is a not-for-profit organisation, part-funded by government and aims to be the recognised authority on retailers' skills, needs and priorities. Its mission is to drive a step change in skills levels in retail by:

Making a compelling case for the formal recognition of retail skills
Uniting retailers to simplify and improve access to the skills system
Improving the quality of new recruits into the retail sector
Raising the skills levels of the existing workforce in retail operations

Skillsmart Retail is led by retailers for the benefit of all retailers employing people in the United Kingdom. We work with businesses of all sizes to understand their skills issues and improve performance through the development of their people - a particularly key role in a time of recession.

Together with our partners which include awarding and regulatory organisations, we develop fit-for-purpose qualifications including Retail Apprenticeships and Foundation Degrees. This work is supported by the ongoing development of authorative labour market intelligence.

For more information about Skillsmart Retail and its work in the sector, visit our website

"Skillsmart Retail is delighted to be part of Retail Conference 2010 as it will provide a rare opportunity for some of the country's leading retailers to get together with the focus on a common goal. The theme of 'dynamic retailing' will provide a platform for all delegates to share best practice and leave with fresh ideas to take back to their businesses. We hope that even more of the UK's major retailers will see the importance of skills in the retail sector and the benefits that a trained workforce will bring. With the launch of the National Skills Academy for Retail this year and next year's Diploma in Retail Business, this is an exciting time for skills within the sector"

www.skillsmartretail.com

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Sponsors of The Retail Conference 2010