Just back from the rarified atmosphere of Mosimann’s for the Endeca Retail Dinner.
Great group of people – Shop Direct, RS Components, Wiggle, Game, Tui… fun to catch up with people and meet new faces.
Endeca sponsored the last InternetRetailing CEO Dinner (see the photoset of Dinner05) and we had a wonderful and relaxed evening, so I was pleased to accept the invitation to say a few words to open (or delay!) dinner. I covered some topics from recent editorials – changes in retail, the growth of the voice of the customer, the challenges to eCommerce Directors as they embrace multi-channel and move to the Board table, and – of course – my most recent editorial on Total Retail, brining the skills, attitudes and approaches together.
We eat in the “Mappin & Webb” room (goodness only knows why the rooms are named after retailers and brands – the others are Mont Blanc, Davidoff, Bentley, Parmigiani Fleurier…). I had visions of watch salespeople jumping out mid-course, but the goods were locked in glass cabinets around the outer edges of the room. Mosimann’s is in a converted 19th century church and the M&W room was the old belfry.
Great venue, but I wonder why it wasn’t just called the Belfry… 😉 Meanwhile, any guesses welcomed as to how much M&W pay to sponsor the room, whether anyone takes that seriously, and how would you measure the ROI on the cost?
Thanks to Endeca for being great hosts and making the evening happen.