 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Shopping Centers Today -> March 2004
 PRINT THIS STORY: |
  CHANGE TEXT SIZE: |
|
EUROPE CONFERENCE TO COVER WORLD OF RETAIL
BY DEBRA HAZEL
 |
| Attendees from around the world will converge on Rome next month. |
Attendees will get an overview of the Italian shopping center industry and a virtual tour of centers around the world that will carry them across Europe, through the Middle East and into the Far East.
They will examine case studies of such high-profile European retail developments as The Bullring (SCT, December 2003), the architecturally striking center that opened last year in the formerly blighted center of Birmingham, England.
The rapidly changing European Union, customer-analysis improvement and the key to successful international expansion will be among the topics at this, the 29th European Conference, scheduled for April 19-21. Dr. Norbert Walker, chief economist of Deutsche Bank, will present a “State of the Union” report discussing the impact of the economy, the war in Iraq, EU expansion and the increasing strength of the euro on Europe’s shopping center industry.
In a separate session, Jacques Attali, former president of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development, will offer attendees perspectives on commerce, the investment climate and the future of Europe.
Another panel will deal with the present and future of international retailing. In particular, these panelists will look at the success and failure of retailers trying to expand beyond their home countries and offer the criteria for a successful foray into foreign markets.
On the shopping center level, Brenna O’Roarty, head of European retail research at Jones Lang LaSalle, will explore new methods of analyzing consumer groups. Among the topics she will cover: trade-area analysis, the relationship between spending and consumer nonconformance to sociodemographic stereotypes, and the use of center design and tenant mix to enhance market share.
As in years past, the conference includes the presentation of the annual Solal Marketing Awards (named after the visionary French developer Jean Louis Solal) to honor outstanding shopping center marketing campaigns across the Continent, and the European Shopping Centre Awards, which recognize achievements in the development of new and refurbished centers. A gala dinner is also planned.
At press time the conference was scheduled to conclude with tours of local shopping centers.
For more information on the meeting, visit www.icsc.org.
 | Current Issue February 2012 |