I love that we live in a world where we can enjoy the modern conveniences of online shopping, same-day delivery and virtual meetings just as much as the next person. But every so often it is important to get up off of the couch, pack a bag, go out into the world and be an active member of society.
As a seaside retailer who operates a brick-and-mortar store, you rely on that need for personal connections for your businesses to thrive. You know that people who visit your beach destination want a stellar shopping experience where they can try on or sample a product before they buy it. They didn’t go on vacation so they could return home and order a keepsake from you online. They want to touch, feel and experience products in store and decide to take them home with them then and there.
The same thing is true when it comes to improving your business. Nothing compares with being in the same location as retail experts, coastal retailers and wholesalers. It’s the best way I can think of for a seaside retailer to gain the advice and tools to run their businesses better because they are hearing it in person from people who have experience on the topic or come from a similar retail background.
The October Coastal Connections Conference provided that exact opportunity. More than a dozen speakers with various backgrounds in retail shared their expertise in inventory management, employee retention, building relationships, social media, experiential retail, visual merchandising and more. I had so many people approach me during the conference and tell me they have been in retail for decades and still took so many notes and had so many takeaways from the event that they were going to implement in their stores. That tells me that a conference like the Coastal Connections Conference is critically important for our industry and its future success.
"I enjoyed meeting all of you and look forward to staying in touch with you through the pages of Seaside Retailer until we can meet face-to-face again."
You can read more about that conference in the article, “Keeping the connections going,” on p. 28. Throughout the year we will provide more in-depth coverage from individual sessions that took place. This will give you a further glimpse into how the Coastal Connections Conference provides retailers with new ideas and suggestions that can help them increase traffic and profits. I hope reading these articles will help you further your business and understand how attending the event can help you elevate your retail operation.
To those who did make the journey to Orlando this October, thank you for supporting this important educational and buying event designed to help strengthen retail businesses and connections in our industry. I enjoyed meeting all of you and look forward to staying in touch with you through the pages of Seaside Retailer until we can meet face-to-face again. We hope to share the exciting details of the next Coastal Connections Conference with you soon!
