The National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) announced its speaker lineup for the 54th Annual NSGA Management Conference & 20th Annual Team Dealer Summit on May 20-22 at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa in Bonita Springs, Florida.
Experts from innovative companies will lead discussions on key issues facing sporting goods business owners today. After a keynote address on Monday morning from Michigan State University basketball coach Tom Izzo, the educational sessions kick off, focusing on the question on the top of many business-owners’ minds: How do I compete with Amazon? Todd Nicholson, chief marketing officer of BookingBug, will present “How to Do Things Amazon Can’t,” discussing how to bring customers back into the store and how to use customer data to increase revenue. Phil Chang, a leading retail expert, will continue the conversation in his session, “Compete with the Amazon Effect, Differentiation and the Curated Future.”
On Tuesday morning, two recruiting experts, Larry Ryan, founder of Roberts & Ryan executive search firm, and Jeff Roberts, president of the Toy and Sports Agency, will participate in an educational panel discussion, “Hire Right: Best Recruiting Practices.” In addition, Dr. John Duffy, author and psychologist, will discuss the challenges of teenage and young adult employees and how to engage them to drive customer experience and increase sales.
Matt Nurre, president of Retail Design Sources, Inc., will discuss the importance of enhancing the retail shopping environment and store appearance. Nurre’s experience in design, product presentation, store development, fabrication and merchandising systems will provide a primer on best practices in creating the right shopping environment. Tuesday will close with Jeff Zimmerman, chief operating officer of Clearent, looking into the future of payments.
The Team Dealer Summit, sponsored by Mueller Sports Medicine, will focus on ways dealers can increase their businesses. The Monday morning session “Sell More: Recovery Products to Keep Athletes Ready to Play,” features Jordan Russ, who helped launch Under Armour’s revolutionary Athlete Recovery category and Roy Choquette of RAD Roller. “Innovative Decorating Techniques presented by GroupeSTAHL” will conclude the morning’s sessions with a hands-on demonstration.
On Tuesday morning, “Sell More with Development Models” will feature Beth Porreca of USA Football and David James of Major League Baseball and will give attendees competition insight as to the correct and varying equipment needed for athletes at every level and age of play.
The NSGA Management Conference & Team Dealer Summit will include attendee favorite programming with the return of Speed Networking and the NSGA Innovations Arena. Speed Networking, in its second year, provides retailer and dealer attendees the opportunity to diversify their offerings when suppliers and brands present their product in a timed rotation on Monday afternoon. The NSGA Innovations Arena also returns, showcasing innovative industry products. Attendees will have the ability to visit the Innovations Arena throughout each day and connect with manufacturers.
Registration is open for the event. More information is available at nsga.org/conference, including a full schedule and speaker biographies. For more information, visit nsga.org/conference.
