JCK’s redesigned seminar schedule puts the focus on strategic business thinking

JCK Las Vegas is a buying fair, but to many education-minded attendees, it’s also a great place to learn about industry issues. In order to streamline the education program, the show is consolidating the seminar schedule into a single day—Thursday, May 28—giving attendees time to take in the sessions before the show floor opens on Friday, May 29. Yancy ­Weinrich, senior vice president at Reed Exhibitions, gave us the inside scoop.

JCK: Why the new approach to the seminars?
Yancy Weinrich: We’re trying to help retailers navigate the new rules—or non-rules—of retail and continue to be successful. Longtime industry consultant Diane Warga-Arias is our education chair/luxury strategist. For the Thursday education program at JCK, she’s bringing in outside speakers to get people excited about their businesses.

JCK: Can you share some highlights?
YW: We’ll have retail ­specialist Terry Hawkins speaking on revolutionary retail strategies, industry veteran and Hiring Squirrels author Peter Smith talking about how to find great employees, and futurists Maia Adams and Juliet Hutton-Squire, founders of the jewelry trend agency Adorn Insight, speaking about topics shaping our industry. There will be a panel discussion on how big data is changing the retail game and a great discussion by Meeting U president James Spellos on the impact of technology on retail.

Clear your calendar on May 28 in Las Vegas for a day of top-notch industry education.

JCK: Will the Luxury Retailer of the Year program continue?
YW: Absolutely. It’s all about redesigning retail. Last year we had almost 60 applications, and we’re expecting more because it was a huge success.

JCK: What else is in store?
YW: JCK is your business solution: the trade show, the magazine, the website. We’re going to videotape all of the sessions. After the show, we’ll create a JCK Talks section on our site, with exclusive access for the industry. It will be available year-round starting in July.