TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The president of Bridgestone/Firestone Retail Operations will be one of the featured speakers at the 19th annual Retailing Day at The University of Alabama Oct. 23-24.
Larry Magee, a 25-year veteran with Bridgestone/Firestone, was appointed to his present position in June 1998. Prior to being named president, Magee was the retail division’s South Central Zone director.
The conference will be at the Bryant Conference Center in Tuscaloosa.
Representatives from several other prominent retailers are scheduled to speak during the conference. They include Bruce Efrid, senior vice president, merchandising and marketing, Bruno’s Supermarkets Inc.; Charles McDonald, executive director, Alabama Retail Association; Dennis M. Minchella, president and chief operating officer, Wings Management Co.; Marsha Sprayberry, president and CEO, Krackeroos Stores Inc.; Thomas Spencer, vice president/senior practice leader retail, restaurant and real estate, Claritas Inc.; and George Whalin, George Whalin’s Retail Management Letter and Retail Management Consultants.
The conference will also include the second annual Alabama Retailer of the Year Awards, co-sponsored by UA and the Alabama Retail Association. The awards will be presented at lunch on Tuesday, Oct. 24, from 11:45 a.m. until 2 p.m. A social gathering, hosted by Wing’s Sports Grille, will be Monday evening.
“The theme for this year’s conference is Odyssey,” said Dr. Robert Robicheaux, Bruno Professor of Retail Marketing at UA. “We thought that an appropriate title because like Odysseus, today’s retailers far and wide are being tossed about on a sea of change.”
Registration fees are $100 for business professionals, $75 for faculty and $25 for students.
The fee includes the sessions, handout materials, daily continental breakfasts, refreshment breaks and luncheons. More information is available from Judy Hand at 205/348-0073 or jhand@bama.ua.edu. Additional information may be viewed at the 19th Annual Retailing Day website at http://www.cba.ua.edu/rday.html.
Other sponsors of the conference include Rich’s/Lazarus/Goldsmith’s; Saks Inc.; Parisian’s, Walgreen’s, the West Alabama Chamber of Commerce, J.C. Penney Co. Inc., Bridgestone/Firestone; Krackeroos; Wings Management Co.; Alabama Retail Association; and Wal-Mart Stores RETAILING DAY
THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
MONDAY, Oct. 23
4:30-6:30 p.m.- Retailing Career Fair (for students), Sellers Auditorium, Bryant Conference Center
4:30- 6:30 p.m.- Reception, Sellers Lobby
TUESDAY, Oct. 24
7:30-8:15 a.m.- Registration Check-in Process and Continental Breakfast, Bryant Conference Center
8:15-8:30 a.m.- Welcome/Announcements, Sellers Auditorium
8:30-9:30 a.m.- “Retailing Circa 2001: Whew!” George Whalin, Retail
9:30-10:30 a.m.- “Retail Operations in the New Millennium.” Larry Magee
Bridgestone-Firestone
10:30-10:45 a.m.- Break
10:45-11:45- “The Turnaround Story: Turning a Battleship on a Dime in a Storm.” Bruce Efird, Senior Vice President Merchandising & Marketing, Bruno’s Supermarkets Inc.
11:45-2 p.m.- Retail of the Year Awards Luncheon
Hosts: Charles McDonald, Executive Director, Alabama Retail Assocation
Robert A. Robicheaux, Ph.D., Bruno Professor & Coordinator of Marketing; Director, Hess Institute for Retailing Development, Management & Marketing
2:00-3:00 p.m.- “Mining and the Future of Retailing,” Thomas Spencer, Vice President/Senior Practice Leader, Claritas Inc.
3:00-3:15 p.m.- Break
3:15-4:15 p.m.- “Determination to Succeed at Retail: Never Say (or Accept) No,” Marsha Sprayberry, CEO, Krackeroos Stores Inc.
4:15-4:30 p.m.- Concluding Remarks: Robert A. Robicheaux, Ph.D.; Carolyn Callis, Ph.D., Head and Associate Professor, Clothing, Textiles & Interior Design
Contact
Bill Gerdes, UA Business Writer, 205/348-8318
Source
Dr. Robert Robicheaux, 205/348-8919