The Jay H. Baker Retailing Center at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the RLC Global Forum are convening retail industry leaders for its 2024 CEO Summit, which is set for Oct. 15 in New York City. The theme this year is “Innovate for Impact.” The summit also will honor Mary Dillon.

The invitation-only event will convene “visionary retail and brand executives to share insights on how leading companies are innovating to successfully navigate ongoing economic challenges and shifting consumer preferences and behavior,” organizers of the event said.

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Regarding the summit’s theme, Thomas S. Robertson, Joshua J. Harris professor and professor of marketing at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, said the price of success in the industry is the need for ongoing innovation.

“The most successful retailers and brands are those that continually innovate to meet changing economic and consumer realities,” Robertson told WWD. “Visionary retail executives constantly adjust their business models and assortments to meet shifting customer demands and industry challenges, but the most effective leaders know they also need to be thoughtful and deliberate as they incorporate new tools and technologies like generative AI into their businesses.”

Organizers said Dillon, president and chief executive officer of Foot Locker Inc., is one of those leaders. She will be honored the night before the summit with the Retail Excellence Award “in recognition of her industry leadership and philanthropic contributions,” organizers said, adding that Dillon “is a highly respected leader known for her consumer marketing and operational expertise and passion for the consumer.”

Before taking the helm at Foot Locker, Dillon was executive chair of Ulta Beauty, and, previously, served as its CEO. She also held various positions at companies such as McDonald’s and PepsiCo. Her résumé includes making philanthropic contributions, such as serving as a trustee of Save the Children Federation and championing the Foot Locker Inc. Foundation, which is the company’s community empowerment program. Dillon also serves on the boards of several nonprofit organizations.

The summit is expected to draw about 150 executives. Confirmed speakers include Mark DesJardine, associate professor of business administration and Harvey H. Bundy III T’68 faculty fellow at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and senior fellow at Wharton’s ESG Analytics Lab; John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S.; Ethan Mollick, Ralph J. Roberts Distinguished Faculty Scholar, associate professor of management and co-director of the Generative AI Lab at Wharton; Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, and Dana Thomas, journalist, New York Times bestselling author and author of “Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes.”

Summit organizers said the day’s programming “will offer an inside view and frank discussions of how leading organizations are driving profitability and customer loyalty by innovating and collaborating mindfully in an increasingly fragmented retail landscape.”

“Retail’s future hinges on its ability to be agile and responsive, not just to market trends but to the evolving values of its consumers,” Panos Linardos, chairman of the RLC Global Forum, told WWD. “In a landscape shaped by the accelerating forces of AI, the influence of activist investors, and the relentless push for innovation at scale, retail leaders must be nimble. The brands that can navigate this complexity will not only survive but will set the strategic agenda for the entire sector. As the industry seeks stability amid economic uncertainties and rapidly shifting consumer expectations, those who can pivot and innovate in real-time — while enhancing customer experience and driving social impact — will create a blueprint for success that others will follow, transforming challenges into opportunities for lasting change.”

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