‘RetailME ‘Think! I CAN’ Symposium and ICONS of Retail Awards to celebrate visionary and transformational leadership in MENA retail industry’

RetailME is gearing to welcome Retail Leaders, CEOs, and Industry Experts at the Address Dubai Marina Hotel on June 14, 2023.
These iconic personalities will share their aspirational and transformational journey towards success in retail and discuss actionable strategies at this first-of-its-kind symposium to Contribute, discuss their Achievements and to Nurture the next-gen leaders of the fraternity!

Dubai, UAE; June 13, 2023

ICONIC personalities always leave a mark with their actions, ideas, and visionary strategies. They contribute to a shift in approach and RetailME THINK! I CAN! The symposium followed by the ICONS of Retail Awards ceremony, is a celebration of these remarkable personalities. Scheduled to take place at the Address Marina Hotel, on June 14, 2023, this platform will bring together retail leaders to discuss and share glimpses of their inspiring journey with an enthusiastic retail audience.

RetailME THINK! I CAN! Symposium and ICONS of Retail Awards gala will see a congregation of Founders, CEOs and leading CXOs. These industry stalwarts will share their success stories, predict trends, exchange thoughts on winning in retail, and discuss actionable strategies for the GCC retail industry that is set to grow at 5.7 percent from $296.8 billion (Dh1.09 trillion) in 2022 to $370 billion (Dh1.35 trillion) in 2026, according to a recent report by Alpen Capital.

“In the past couple of years, as retail has undergone a massive transformation, certain terms came up very frequently during conversations. These being agility, flexibility, speed, leadership, and culture, among others. When we set out to plan our ICONS event of 2023, there was an overarching theme we wanted to focus on – leadership. A term that means different things to different people but what most agree on is the fact that good leadership leads to great results – if anything, this was proved sufficiently during the pandemic.”

“At a time when fostering an empathetic and people-first culture is non-negotiable, our THINK! I CAN! Conference has been structured to address how leaders are inspiring change, consciously driving the crucial diversity and inclusion agenda, and nurturing the next generation to excel in their chosen paths. Amid evolving understanding of collaboration, transformation, and talent, these leaders will share how they are redefining the very definition of ‘leadership’.”

“Alongside hosting inspiring leaders who will share their rich experiences throughout the day, the evening will be all about honoring and celebrating the ‘ICONS’ of retail, people driving an incredibly dynamic industry forward through their vision and actions,” says Justina Eitzinger, Chief Operating Officer, Images RetailME.

A one-day program around the idea of decoding ‘what makes an ICON’, THINK! I CAN! is an initiative to create a day of learning and sharing for the retail industry and to help create the industry’s next icons. The symposium is planned around four pillars of action – Influence, Contribute, Achieve, and Nurture, with each illustrated and explained by icons using narratives from their own remarkable leadership journeys.

“Leadership is a big responsibility and leaders contribute towards both external and internal growth. Their foresightedness and approach are always microscopic and macroscopic which help nurture a strong team that can stand testimony to the company’s growth story. A leader’s personality is worth celebrating, and more so it is important to understand them to get inspired. THINK! I CAN! is a celebration of such prominent leaders from retail and we are waiting to welcome them to this platform and undergo a journey with them so that we learn, get motivated, and grow. Given retail’s evolving nature it is highly meaningful to understand a leader’s perspective on how they are eyeing the market and doing everything to keep their team ready for the next big change. Let’s come together to see what’s it like to be a leader in retail,” adds Mohammad Alawi, Board member & CEO, Red Sea Markets Company.

“Retail is a vast ecosystem and it varies across length and breadth owing to the rapid evolution of customer behavior. The biggest aspect to consider here is that customers demand a personalized approach and an in-depth understanding of the customer helps teams plan their campaigns and marketing strategies better. Leaders gauge trends faster and they are able to mitigate risks through forward-looking plans, and it is their vision that leads to a transformational approach. To understand the leader’s view on new-age marketing for retail, let’s come together to hear them share their thoughts on the 14th of June,” says Amardeep Devadason, SVP & Head – Global Brand Solutions, RRD GO Creative APAC.

Industry leaders and thinkers such as Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free; Fahed Ghanim, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim-Lifestyle; Khurshid Vakil, Co-Founder of Marina Retail Corporation; Tawhid Abdullah, Chief Executive Officer of Jawhara Jewellery; Laila Mohammed Suhail, CEO, Strategic Alliances and Partnerships Sector, DET and Entities, Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism and Board Member – Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group; Neeraj Teckchandani, Group CEO of Apparel Group; Mark Tesseyman, CEO of LIWA Trading Enterprises; Naim Maadad, Chief Executive and Founder of Gates Hospitality; Renate Baur Richter, Inclusion and Accessibility Strategies, Programme Manager at Sedra Foundation; Halima Jumani, Founder and CEO of Kibsons International; Jonathan Lavender, Head of People, Process and Organisational Design at Sharaf Retail  Group; Anuradha Dhawan, Executive Vice-President for Retail, Al Ghurair Investments; Damian Brown, Group Head of Talent Acquisition at Chalhoub Group; Emma Burdett, Founder of Women in Leadership Delivery (WILD) Network; Aref Yehia, Head of Business Partnerships for Retail & E-Commerce at TikTok for Business; Marie Louis Bishara, Fashion Designer, Partner, Vice-Chairman and CEO at Bishara Group; Victoria Tipper, Strengths Coach and Wellbeing Consultant at 2b Limitless; Rajiv Warrier, CEO of Choithrams; Adel Sajan, Group Managing Director at Danube Group; V. Nandakumar, Director – Marketing & Communications at Lulu Group International; Abdulla Ajmal, CEO of Ajmal Perfumes, Avijit Yadav, CEO of Tamdeen Mall Management; Tapan Vaidya, CEO of PJP Investments Group, and several others will share their path-breaking insights for others to re-think their growth strategies.

What’s more, the day’s event will be followed by the ICONS of Retail Awards gala where 100 RetailME ICONS of 2023 from the region will be celebrated and about 35 will be felicitated for their achievements and contributions to the industry. The IMAGES RetailME editorial team, along with a jury comprising of government, tech giants, and game changers from the service industry put together a power list of top retail leaders who have successfully built retail conglomerates and led and continue to oversee transformation and digitization journeys within their organisations.