Hello from the 2024 Women in Retail Leadership Summit at the beautiful Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island, FL. I am reporting live from the third and final day of the Summit and I am feeling inspired, invigorated … and yes, a little tired! But it’s a good tired: The feeling you get after doing something you love or accomplishing something meaningful! I also feel reflective: This is the Summit’s 10th anniversary, and it has been amazing thinking about our  journey that has transformed the Summit from an event into a powerful movement!

It has been a great few days here in sunny Florida! We’ve listened to insightful content, done some fabulous shopping at the pop-up shops and, of course, made great connections! Here are a few highlights from some of the great speakers that took the stage this week:

  • Kat Cole, the president and chief operating officer at Athletic Greens, was a super inspiring keynote speaker on Monday. Through great storytelling and examples, she shared the lessons she’s learned about leadership and innovation from her esteemed career.  She also spoke about her years at Focus Brands — most recently as president and chief operating officer — where she led the transformation of Cinnabon into a multichannel global business with over 1,200 stores in 56 countries and sales topping the $1 billion mark.
  • On Monday, we also heard a great keynote conversation between tennis great Chris Evert, Monica Rich Kosann (founder of her eponymous jewelry company), and Cindy Solomon, founder of the Courageous Leadership Institute. We learned about a few of Evert’s greatest accomplishments, how she navigated challenges in her illustrious career, and how Kosann and Evert came together to create the CE Tennis Bracelet brand.
  • On Tuesday, Angela Howard, the CEO and founder of Call for Culture, facilitated a workshop where attendees discussed the workplace culture challenges they deal with, as well as learn how to  promote meaningful and positive change in their organizations through deliberate culture-building.

There will be many more highlights by the time the Summit is over this afternoon, and we will be sharing them with you all in the weeks ahead via this newsletter and our Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) website. And remember, Women in Retail members get access to all of our recorded keynotes and panels from the Summit, on-demand and at your fingertips. Not a member? Apply today!