Retail conferences provide a wealth of knowledge, resources, and networking opportunities, enabling retailers to stay informed about the latest industry trends and best practices, and to understand how to integrate these into their businesses. This article will guide you through the top retail events, their upcoming dates, and help you identify the ones that best align with your interests and needs, allowing you to plan which events you should attend.
Top Shows to Attend in 2024
North American Retail Conferences
NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show
WHEN: January 14 – 16
WHERE: New York City, New York
Retail’s Big Show stands as one of the most prominent retail conferences globally, serving as a hub for innovation. It provides retailers with the opportunity to establish new connections and gain insights into strategies employed by leading brands in the industry.
FFANY Market Week
WHEN: February 5 – 9
WHERE: New York City, New York
Discover new brands, connect with industry partners, and get the first look at the latest footwear trends. FFANY Market Week occurs four times each year, bringing store owners, stylists, buyers, and brands to NYC, the heart of the fashion footwear industry.
MAGIC Las Vegas
WHEN: February 13 – 14
WHERE: Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas
MAGIC Las Vegas is not just an event, it’s an entire fashion experience. The largest go-to market event happening twice a year offers a must-attend, high-energy, all-encompassing fashion experience for brands and retailers alike. Home to the most comprehensive selection of trend, young contemporary, and modern sportswear fashion brands across all categories in the industry – MAGIC Las Vegas is the largest, go-to market event of the year.
MAGIC New York
WHEN: February 20 – 22
WHERE: Javits Center, New York City
MAGIC New York is your must-attend east coast market, happening twice a year, and where you’ll find must-have collections for this season and next.
Fusing scale with curation to drive commerce, creativity, and connections, MAGIC New York joins a global audience of retail buyers – from big-box to boutiques – with the industry’s leading women’s trend, young contemporary, and modern sportswear brands. MAGIC New York is not just an event, it's a vibrant community.
eTail West – Palm Springs 2024
WHEN: February 26 – 29
WHERE: Palm Springs, California
Looking to revolutionize your retail strategies and effectively engage with customers? Gain valuable knowledge from some of the most accomplished retailers in America who will offer insightful advice on transforming your omnichannel retail experience.
Shoptalk 2024
WHEN: March 17 – 20
WHERE: Las Vegas, Nevada
Shoptalk is the leading event for retail marketing—the place where thousands of retail change-makers come together every year to create the future of retail. The Shoptalk agenda covers the latest technologies, trends, and business models, as well as the rapid transformation of what consumers discover, shop for, and buy.
MAGIC Nashville
WHEN: April 3 – 4
WHERE: Music City Center, Nashville
MAGIC Nashville – a two-day lineup of non-stop shopping, networking, and entertainment – showcases all your favorite MAGIC brands across apparel, accessories, and footwear, while also offering new immediates, local collections, first look at holiday, and much more.
High Point Market
WHEN: April 13 – 17
WHERE: High Point, NC
Market stands as the pinnacle event in our industry. From influential editors and product designers, and all the leading brands, this is where industry standards are set and future trends are forecasted. It's an unparalleled opportunity to engage with the best in the business, gain insights into upcoming trends, and source unique products that set your business apart. Market is not just an event; it's a converging point for the brightest minds in our industry.
FDRA | 2024 Shoe Executive Strategy Summit
WHEN: April 17 - 18
WHERE: Washington, DC
Don't miss out on FDRA's Executive Summit featuring industry networking and issue briefings on Capitol Hill. This event is designed to grow your understanding of the developing artificial era and help you navigate the marketplace in this current political climate. Footwear executives will take away invaluable tools to help build informed strategies impacting business decisions enhancing the bottom line.
PI Apparel West Coast 2024
WHEN: May 21 - 22
WHERE: Sunset Boulevard, LA
PI Apparel is where the pulse of fashion meets the pace of technology. Since 2015 our West Coast event has convened leaders and visionaries to explore the technological changes revolutionising the industry.
For 2 immersive days, join your peers to discuss the transformative power of technology on the iconic Sunset Boulevard. Whether you're looking to redefine design, understand AI, or champion green initiatives, this is the event for every forward-thinking fashion maven.
Retail Innovation Conference & Expo 2024
WHEN: June 4 – 6
WHERE: Chicago, Illinois
The Retail Innovation Conference & Expo brings together 5,000+ retail professionals to discuss the latest trends and innovations in the industry. The event includes three micro-conferences that are designed to provide focused value to different job roles and teams. It also consists of a huge array of interactive experiences and networking opportunities.
PI Apparel New York
WHEN: June 26 - 27
WHERE: New York City
PI Apparel is where the pulse of fashion meets the pace of technology. Since 2015, this event has convened leaders and visionaries from across the world in New York to explore the technological changes revolutionising the industry.
For 2 immersive days, join your peers to discuss the transformative power of technology in the heart of Manhattan. Whether you're looking to redefine design, understand AI, or champion green initiatives, this is the event for every forward-thinking fashion maven.
eTail East
WHEN: August 12 – 15
WHERE: Boston, Massachusetts
eTail East brings together successful retailers to share innovative insights and strategies in e-commerce and omnichannel spaces. The conference features industry-leading speakers from Lowe’s, Paper Source, Crocs, and The Container Store, providing great networking opportunities and a chance to stay ahead in retail innovation.
PI Apparel Merchandising Planning 2024
WHEN: September 2024
WHERE: New York City
Engage with leading Merchants as we explore the latest in data analytics, smart forecasting, and strategic planning for crafting supremely customer-focused products.
Embracing digital platforms like AI, Big Data, and predictive tools is essential. Merchants today must navigate online shopping patterns and ever-changing pop culture trends. This shift calls for retailers, designers, and manufacturers to harness data and tap into consumer insights more deeply than ever.
Join us as we dive into the cutting-edge tech reshaping the Merchant landscape and the vital strategies for producing customer-centric products while reducing markdowns and returns.
Groceryshop
WHEN: October 7 – 9
WHERE: Las Vegas, Nevada
Groceryshop caters to the constantly changing retail scene for grocery stores, including supermarkets, mass merchants, convenience stores, drug stores, club/warehouse stores, discount stores, and e-commerce retailers. The event this year will cover developments in the production and distribution of consumer goods such as fresh and packaged foods, beverages, beauty, household, and health products.
Shoptalk Fall
WHEN: October 16 – 18
WHERE: Chicago, Illinois
Similar to the renowned Shoptalk event in Las Vegas, Shoptalk Fall will once again showcase the retail industry's most innovative brands, placing them in the spotlight and facilitating tens of thousands of valuable connections.
European Retail Conferences
eCommerce Berlin Expo
WHEN: February 22
WHERE: Berlin, Germany
This exposition is specifically tailored to cater to e-commerce service providers. With a grand display of 200 exhibitors and an impressive lineup of 50 speakers, this event attracts over 8,000 participants annually.
EuroShop
WHEN: February 26 – March 2
WHERE: Düsseldorf, Germany
This is a great place to find innovative, cutting-edge technology that will help grow your business. Hundreds of companies will display their newest products at this conference as well as cover topics such as sustainability and customer-centricity.
PI Apparel Europe 2024
WHEN: March 12-13
WHERE: Lake Maggorie, Italy
For 2 immersive days, join your peers to discuss the transformative power of technology on the banks of the beautiful Lake Maggiore. Whether you're looking to redefine design, understand AI, or champion green initiatives, this is the retreat for every forward-thinking fashion maven.
World Retail Congress 2024
WHEN: April 16 – 18
WHERE: Paris, France
This conference brings together some of the brightest minds in retail, including those from academia and politics. The event provides a high-level forum for retailers to learn, share knowledge, form meaningful relationships, and shape the future of global retail.
Shoptalk Europe
WHEN: June 3 – 5
WHERE: Barcelona, Spain
Shoptalk Europe is a highly anticipated event that will bring together more than 3,500 leaders in the retail and grocery industry. The event will include decision-makers from some of the world’s top retailers, brands, startups, tech companies, investors, real estate operators, media outlets, and analysts. In addition, Shoptalk Europe will host an onsite meetup where attendees can schedule over 20,000 meetings.
PI Apparel | Supply Chain Forum Europe
WHEN: September 2024
WHERE: Berlin, Germany
PI Apparel’s Supply Chain Forum returns for another deep dive into the industry's most disruptive technologies; helping brands, retailers and manufacturers improve their infrastructure & achieve their digital ambitions throughout the extended value chain.
Join us as we curate an agenda of industry leading stakeholders; sharing their challenges, pain points & solutions that have impacted their company's supply chain most recently. Our focus is simple... to improve and maintain supply chain efficiency, collectively.
PI Apparel | Merchandising Planning Europe 2024
WHEN: September 2024
WHERE: London
Join top Merchandise Planners at the cutting edge of data analytics, intelligent forecasting, and strategic planning for an event that focuses on creating customer-centric products. Explore the impact of AI, Big Data, and predictive tools in navigating the dynamic landscape of online shopping and pop culture trends. Discover essential strategies to develop products that resonate with consumers, reduce markdowns, and minimize returns. Don't miss the forefront of technology reshaping the merchant landscape in Europe.
Asia Retail Conferences
PI Apparel Hong Kong
WHEN: April 9 - 10
WHERE: Hong Kong
Join us at PI Apparel Hong Kong, the epicenter of fashion evolution in the Asia Pacific. Here, luminaries from apparel and footwear sectors navigate the intricate maze of digital innovation, advocate for a sustainable tomorrow, and redefine production and supply chain paradigms.
