Table of Contents
By David Pinto
It happens every spring. As April winds down, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores once again convenes its fabled and nearly flawless Annual Meeting. Once again, upwards of 2,000 retailer and supplier executives will gather in Palm Beach, Fla., at the storied Breakers Hotel, to pursue the business of doing business. They will attempt to do so against the familiar backdrop of palm trees, salt water, and other attractions designed more to attract and appeal to vacationers than business types. And, for the most able and experienced of these executives, the weeklong event will once again come off as an unqualified success.
Steven Anderson
That feeble and unnecessary attempt to define and describe mass retailing’s premier convention will by definition fall far short of reality. Indeed, the simple truth is this: Those mass market executives who choose, or are forced to, bypass this meeting are not doing their job.
Yet year after monotonous year, the age-old question refuses to go away: Is this meeting really necessary? The answer is as obvious as it is dulled by repetition: Yes.
People in the chain drug community who really do know their way around start planning for the Annual Meeting immediately after the calendar ushers in the new year.
There’s nothing mysterious in all this. Industry veterans have been journeying to Palm Beach every April for nearly 25 years — in the case of people like Bob Kwait, twice that number. (Unfortunately, Kwait will miss this year’s Annual Meeting for the first time since the early 1960s.)
But now the time for planning is over. The time for action has begun. Forget the urge to go for a swim, play a set or two of tennis, or join a foursome for a round of golf. Rather, spend the days indoors, in the lobby of the Breakers, where most of the conventiongoers inevitably stop to rest or regroup, and ask for a meeting. In nine out of 10 cases, they will respond positively. And encouragingly.
Oh, yes. About the evenings. Just say yes. Whatever the event, however unpromising it initially appears to be. The same executives whom you’ve pursued during the day will be present at night. Therefore, so should you be.
Two final thoughts. First, the senior editors of Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers will be on hand, soliciting stories and interviews. They have been trained to welcome any and all comers. Moreover, the reward for showing up will be, almost certainly, a favorable story in one or both of these landmark journals. So, in the absence of more pressing appointments, look us up.
Finally, our congratulations. Unlike many of your co-workers, who have bypassed the Annual Meeting in favor of more modest pursuits back home, you have made the correct decision. It’s April in Palm Beach — and you’re here. Have a productive meeting.
