NGA Show to feature expanded education program

SHELTON, CT – This year’s NGA Show will feature a new and extensive education program focused on the needs of independent grocers, the trade group said on Wednesday.

The event, which will be held February 27 through March 1 in Las Vegas, will include an education program with tracks focused on the most relevant needs of retail grocers – including consumer insights, digital transformation, e-commerce, fresh foods, innovation discovery, international perspective, merchandising, omnichannel marketing, operating for excellence, people development, shopper experience and technology.

“The NGA Show continues to be on the cutting edge, providing retailers and wholesalers with the knowledge and tools necessary to adapt and thrive in an industry that is always changing,” NGA president and CEO Greg Ferrara said. “And this year, with our mission to help guide retailers into the future, we are pleased to bring a unique look at the store of the future with an entire afternoon of unique programming, presented by our partners at Retail Tomorrow. Regardless of the education path chosen – from the present to the future — The NGA Show will provide all participants with a robust offering of tools to guide them, from immediately actionable updates to a blueprint for long-term change and growth.”

The program for the show’s opening day, which has the theme “The Shopping Experience of the Future: Evolving From Today to Tomorrow – Powered by the Consumer Heartbeat of Demand,” comprises 14 sessions, including:

Store Design, Experience and Technology to Inspire the Shopper
Food Innovation – the Operator Perspective
The Accelerator Perspective: Incubating Innovation
Scanning the Horizon through AI
The Offshore Perspective: China and Europe
Start with the Consumer and Work Backwards
Using Data and Analytics to Drive Consumer Intimacy
Digital Value Creation

NGA said it is co-locating the show with the Independent Grocers Alliance to bring additional educational offerings, which are designed for and open to all independents, regardless of whether they are IGA retailers. Those sessions include:

Save Money and Increase Sales with the Right Media Mix
Revitalize Your Competitive Strategy with Marketplace Analysis.
Optimizing Center Store Sales
How the Greening of Grocery Can Increase Sales and Save You Money
Ransomware: The Biggest Threat to Your Business
Groceries and Hardware – A Winning Combination

The full three-day conference program will feature more than 50 workshops and sessions that address industry trends, emerging issues and best practices, the trade association said. The program’s breadth is indicated by the titles of those sessions, which include:

Navigating the New Norm of Retail – What Does 2022 Hold for Independent Grocers?
Fresh Ideas to Boost Sales in Produce
Independent Insights – Aggregating Industry Sales and Category Data
Marketing to Hispanic Shoppers
Navigating The Digital Continuum
Why Retailers Need to Plan for Tomorrow’s Trends
Evolution of the Meat Case — Tracking Shopper Trends
Families, Farmers and Future Growth: How Reasor’s Uses Recipes to Accelerate Digital Opportunity
Fresh Innovations to Reduce Shrink
Recruiting a Changing Workforce
The Innovation Conversation / The Big Picture
“On Common Ground”: The Untold Story of How Women Helped Build Stuckey’s