Resilient Retail. Powered By The Customer
Achieving Unified Commerce For A Future Beyond Meeting The Customer Where They Are
September 23-24 2025 | Hyatt Regency, Jersey City, New Jersey
Agenda Day 2
8:00 am - 8:30 am
REGISTRATION & COFFEE
8:30 am - 8:40 am
CHAIR'S OPENING REMARKS
Shannon Flanagan -
Founder,
Retail Women In Tech
8:40 am - 9:10 am
FIRESIDE CHAT – DRIVING SEAMLESS SERVICES: PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN CX AND OPERATIONS
Maurice Edwards -
Executive Vice President of Operations,
Gardner-White Furniture and Mattress
CX and operations leaders are both driven by the goal of enabling smooth, seamless services. While operations focus on efficiency and streamlining processes, CX leaders understand that those very processes directly impact the customer’s journey. When operational delivery doesn’t meet expectations, the result is a frustrated customer and a damaged experience.
In this fireside chat, a CX leader and an operations leader explore the intersection of their roles. Learn how to most effectively elevate service standards based on customer sentiment to improve efficiency and satisfaction, ultimately delivering better results for both the customer and business.
9:10 am - 9:40 am
EVENT PARTNER PRESENTATION – UNLOCKING THE POWER OF UNIFIED COMMERCE
Learn how unified commerce is revolutionising retail by delivering seamless, personalised, high-converting customer experiences across every channel — all while reducing costs and streamlining operations.
Holding Session Reserved for Shopify
Sponsored by: Shopify
As AI is increasingly leveraged in customer service channels, it holds growing potential to transform quality assurance. By using AI to monitor and evaluate interactions at scale, businesses can uphold service standards, uncover performance trends and coach teams with greater precision.
This think tank will explore how AI can elevate quality assurance efforts, helping overcome challenges around inconsistent service and fragmented issue resolution.
10:50 am - 11:00 am
COFFEE BREAK
In a world of big-picture strategies and constant CX noise, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed about where to begin to make a meaningful impact. While large-scale transformation is important, lasting change can often start small, with intentional and human moments that resonate deeply with customers.
In this interactive think tank, participants will explore the mindset of Kendra Scott's ‘The Yellow Thread’, going beyond expectations by finding powerful opportunities in the smallest, most personal gestures. Identify practical ways to cut through the clutter and create meaningful moments that leave lasting impressions.
11:35 am - 12:05 pm
FIRESIDE CHAT – BUILDING STORE EXPERIENCES THAT ENDURE: EVERYDAY EXCELLENCE VS. EXPERIENTIAL EXCITEMENT
Bree Richmond -
Vice President, Retail,
Good American
Jennifer Ferrando - Senior Vice President, Global Retail Operations, MillerKnoll
As physical retail continues to evolve alongside rising digital engagement, brands are reimagining the role of the store. While some invest in immersive, high-impact brand moments to drive engagement and awareness, others are reinforcing the everyday store experience, using technologies such as AI to empower associates, personalize in- store interactions and elevate the longer-lasting physical experience.
In this cross-perspective fireside chat, experts will discuss:
- How AI is enhancing the human element of retail through more informed, responsive in-store experiences
- The role of experiential retail in creating emotional connections with customers
- Balancing novelty and consistency for a modern, future-fit physical retail strategy
12:05 pm - 12:35 pm
EVENT PARTNER PRESENTATION – MEANINGFUL AI IMPLEMENTATIONS FOR BUILDING TRUST AND DELIVERING ROI
Despite significant investment, many AI initiatives can fall short of expectations. No one-size-fits-all and businesses must have a clear plan to ensure their investments deliver real value. Even with a well-defined strategy, AI implementations can end up as costly experiments with little, tangible impact.
This expert presentation will inform:
- Building a culture where AI is embraced without scepticism or fear, and delivers meaningful results
- The trial-and-error process: testing, refining and scaling AI effectively
- Proving the ROI of AI on customer experience, efficiency and revenue
Holding Session Reserved for Event Partner
1:10 pm - 2:00 pm
NETWORKING LUNCH BREAK
Customers expect personalized experiences that cater to their unique preferences and behaviors. To deliver these experiences, businesses must ensure they are collecting the right data and leverage effectively, enhancing both engagement and revenue opportunities.
In this think tank, participants will discuss:
- Ensuring data is clean, relevant and accessible across all channels
- Balancing hyper-personalization with customer trust
- Scaling personalized experiences to consistently drive engagement and drive loyalty
2:35 pm - 3:05 pm
EVENT PARTNER PRESENTATION – CREATING TAILORED EXPERIENCES WITH AI-DRIVEN PERSONALIZATION FOR MAXIMIZED CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT
Effective personalization is key to keeping customers engaged, purchasing and returning to a business. AI-powered personalization leverages data-driven insights to deliver real-time, tailored interactions that build long-term customer relationships and enhance satisfaction.
This presentation will demonstrate the importance of personalized offers at scale and the outcomes they deliver. Learn how to integrate personalization across channels, predict customer needs and adapt engagement strategies based on real-time behavior.
3:05 pm - 3:35 pm
PANEL DISCUSSION – EXPANDING THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY: FROM MEETING NEEDS TO FINDING OPPORTUNITIES
Celeste Risimini-Johnson -
Chief Merchandise & Operations Officer,
Barnes & Noble College
Ian Dewar - Senior Director Global Strategy, Anthropologie
For the future of customer experience, businesses must go beyond just meeting customer expectations and needs and towards discovering untapped opportunities to deepen engagement and loyalty. Rather than reacting to customer’s needs, forward- thinking businesses are proactively identifying areas where they can surprise and delight, offering products, services and experiences that customers didn’t even know they wanted.
In this panel discussion, leaders discuss ways in which they seek to go above and beyond for their customers:
- Uncover untapped product opportunities that drive bigger shares of wallet
- Going beyond products to offer services that forge deeper connections
- Delivering ongoing value that keep customers coming back
3:35 pm - 4:05 pm
CLOSING PANEL DISCUSSION – EXPERIENCE, EVERYWHERE, ALL AT ONCE: THE FUTURE OF UNIFIED COMMERCE
Sree Sreedhararaj -
Chief Technology Officer,
Ipsy
Neha Kovach - Group head CRM, Data Insights & CX, David Yurman
Customers don’t experience brands in channels, rather, they experience brands as a whole. With the same level of service, ease and personalization, they expect brands to meet them where they are. For retail organizations, delivering consistent and high- quality experiences across all channels is no small task.
In this closing panel discussion, learn how leading retailers are reimagining the customer journey end-to-end. Through connected systems and channels built around the customer, organizations can reduce friction, increase loyalty and meet ever- evolving expectations.
