World Retail Congress Aims to Answer Looming Industry Questions

Geoff Short
May 20, 2019
Amsterdam Future of Retail Melissa Gonzalez Melissa Gonzalez Article retail World Retail Congress

Every year since 2007, the biggest brands, executives and personalities of the retail industry have met at the World Retail Congress. The 2019 edition of the conference just concluded in Amsterdam, and was by no means a standard retail event.

Lionesque Group Founder Melissa Gonzalez was among the session leaders this year, moderating a discussion titled ‘Think Different: Creating Spaces that Resonate with Customers’. She was joined by Neelandra Singh, Senior Vice President of DTC and Franchises at Adidas, and George Gottl, Co-Founder of FutureBrand UXUS.

The panel explored experiential retail and how brands can create scalable footprints.

Gonzalez passed along these images of her time at the event, which was held in Amsterdam this year.

Other speakers included National Retail Federation CEO and President Matthew Shay, Harrods CEO Michael Ward, Kroger Chairman and CEO Rodney McMullen and Walmart International President and CEO Judith McKenna.

For more retail perspective from Melissa Gonzalez, click here!

For more coverage of Retail World Conference, and the latest in retail news, head to our industry page!

 

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

University of Michigan Center for Innovation
What the University of Michigan Center for Innovation Means for Detroit: Education, Jobs, and a Community-Driven Vision for the Future
December 1, 2025

Detroit is in the middle of a historic transformation—powered increasingly by technology, workforce innovation, and community-driven economic mobility. As industries shift and new tech corridors rise, cities like Detroit are asking a critical question: How do we ensure the future of innovation belongs to everyone who lives here? The upcoming launch of the University of…

Read More
Impact Consulting
The End-to-End Model: Impact Consulting’s Strategic Approach to Work-Based Learning
December 1, 2025

As colleges and universities grapple with enrollment pressures, shifting student expectations, and a tightening labor market shaped by AI and automation, the demand for meaningful work-based learning experiences has grown dramatically. Research across the UK’s higher education sector shows that hands-on industry engagement is becoming a leading factor in student decision-making and employability outcomes. Institutions…

Read More
private credit
Alts Innovators: AllianceBernstein’s Brent Humphries and Marc Cooper on Private Credit
December 1, 2025

Private credit has become one of the most significant shifts in modern finance—quietly but rapidly reshaping how private companies access capital. Over the last decade, assets under management in the space have surged from roughly $500 billion to about $2 trillion, fueled by post-crisis regulation, a growing appetite for yield, and the rise of…

Read More
Kim Lopez-Walters
Inside the Mind of an Innovator: How Marketing Leader Kim Lopez-Walters Blends Curiosity, Strategy, and Consumer Insight to Build Products People Love
November 26, 2025

In a business landscape where AI and automation are reshaping how brands understand consumers, the craft of human-centered innovation is becoming both rarer and more valuable. Companies are seeking leaders who blend strong analytical thinking with an interest in real human behavior, helping them make sense of new trends and create products that connect with…

Read More
Related
luxury resale
Software & Technology
How Luxury Resale Became Big Business: Inside Fashionphile’s Playbook
October 30, 2025
Faherty
Healthcare
From Heritage to Hospitality: The Faherty Blueprint for Authentic, Community-Centered Branding
October 15, 2025

Great clothes may be where it starts, but today’s shoppers are looking for something more — a sense of connection, belonging, and shared purpose. Research shows that 90% of consumers value authenticity when deciding which brands to support: a clear reminder that while quality and design remain vital, meaning has become the new measure of loyalty….

Read More
youth
Healthcare
Fashion, Identity, and Digital Life Collide: Why Brands Must Listen, Collaborate, and Co-Create With the Next Generation of Youth
October 8, 2025

As the lines blur between fashion, identity, and digital life, brands are racing to understand how today’s youth are reshaping culture and commerce. Pacsun’s new Youth Report 2025, produced in partnership with GlobalData, offers one of the most detailed portraits yet of Gen Z and Gen Alpha—two generations united by self-expression but divided by…

Read More