Columbia’s Retail & Luxury Goods Club Examining Retail’s ‘Rewrite’

The Retail & Luxury Goods Club at Columbia Business School is looking to “celebrate those who dare to blur, bend and break the lines in an industry that reveres legacy” at its 20th Annual Retail & Luxury Goods Conference.

The event, dubbed, “Intersections: Retail Rewrite,” will be held from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Columbia’s Manhattanville campus on Feb. 21.

More than 300 MBA students, executives and industry leaders will be on hand for speakers, panel discussions and a private lunchtime market set up in collaboration with Normal New York, a platform spotlighting emerging designers, vintage vendors and experiential retail concepts.

Keynote addresses will be made by:

• Amanda Smith, chief executive officer of Fairchild Media Group, parent of WWD, Beauty Inc, FN and Sourcing Journal, who will speak on the intersection of culture and commerce. The club said, “Her keynote will examine shifting consumer behavior, the changing media landscape, and her career navigating and influencing the global fashion and retail ecosystem.”
• Maxine Clark, founder and director emeritus at Build-A-Bear, in conversation with Sharon Price John, the retailer’s CEO, on founding and operating. Clark and John will focus on “how the original vision behind such a beloved brand adapts, scales and transforms under new leadership while remaining anchored in its core creative and consumer principles,” said the club.
• Noura Sakkijha, CEO and cofounder of Mejuri, on aspiration and access. “Her session will delve into the intersection of aspiration and access, exploring how elevated craftsmanship, digital-first retail, and a rising self-purchasing culture can democratize luxury in an industry ripe for reinvention,” the group said.
• And Shira Suveyke Snyder, CEO of Proenza Schouler, on heritage and evolution. She will zero in on “the intersection of heritage and evolution, focusing on how legacy houses modernize through integrated consumer experience, digital innovation, and long-term brand building.”

Panels will include discussions on retail and investing, AI and the retail value chain as well as consumption and circularity — all hot-button topics.

For 28 years, the Retail & Luxury Goods Club has brought together students with the global retail and luxury industries.

“The club’s mission is to bring the most influential and forward-thinking leaders in retail and luxury to engage with the Columbia Business School community,” according to the group. “The club includes more than 500 members across MBA, EMBA, and MS programs, supported by a network of more than 4,000 alumni.”