NAPLES, Fla. — At its Regional Chain Conference here this week, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores turned the industry’s eyes toward its upcoming Total Store Expo, a new event announced last year that melds three key NACDS trade shows.
NACDS chairman and H-E-B executive Robert Loeffler said Tuesday at the regional conference that chain drug industry professionals and suppliers won’t be disappointed with the program that the association is working on for the Total Store Expo, scheduled for Aug. 10 to 13, 2013, at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas.
"To the suppliers here with us today, I want to tell you in no uncertain terms that the NACDS chain membership is looking forward to grabbing the NACDS Total Store Expo and running with it," Loeffler stated. "In fact, the NACDS board of directors has committed to adding an additional board meeting to its schedule, during the NACDS Total Store Expo. These chain CEOs will engage energetically in this new meeting format."
To help build excitement for the event, NACDS has launched a promotional web advertisement that it said highlights the compelling opportunities that the Total Store Expo, which was unveiled at last year’s NACDS annual meeting, will offer retailers and suppliers.
Also released on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook, the ad describes the unification of three NACDS meetings: the Supply Chain & Logistics Conference, the Marketplace Conference and the Pharmacy & Technology Conference into "one powerful event" that will cut across departments and across the entire store. The ad also promises that the Total Store Expo "will create more synergy, provide efficient access to high-caliber meetings and deliver a complete approach to health and wellness."
Meanwhile, Loeffler noted that the NACDS Regional Chain Conference and NACDS Annual Meeting will continue in their current forms and keep on bringing members innovative content while fostering industry interaction.
"It is readily apparent, if you attend this Regional Chain Conference just one time – and in fact, you have told us this – that this meeting serves an important purpose for the regional chains and suppliers alike," Loeffler told attendees at the regional event, which is designed to address challenges facing senior retail executives who operate up to 250 stores.
Besides remarks by Loeffler and NACDS president and chief executive officer Steve Anderson, as well as one-on-one business meetings and strategic exchange discussion sessions among chains and suppliers, this year’s Regional Chain Conference included presentations addressing pharmaceutical trends, the changing shopper, social media, front-end busines strategies, labor and employment and corporate citizenship. The latter topic was covered in a panel discussion featuring Mark Gregory, vice president of pharmacy and government relations at Kerr Drug; Tim Weippert, executive vice president of pharmacy at Thrifty White Pharmacy; and North Carolina State Rep. Tom Murry (R.).
NACDS added that chain retailer participation at the 2012 Regional Chain Conference exceeded 2011 levels, with attendance for retailers climbing more than 15% — the largest attendance in the past decade.
