Wharton’s 2024 CEO Summit Set to Drive Retail Innovation, to Honor Foot Locker’s Mary Dillon
The Jay H. Baker Retail Center at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and the RLC Global Forum are convening retail industry leaders for the 2024 CEO Summit, set for October 15 in New York City. This year’s theme is “Innovate for Impact.” The summit will also honor Mary Dillon.
The invitation-only event will bring together “visionary retail and brand executives to share insights on how leading companies can innovate to successfully navigate ongoing economic challenges and evolving consumer preferences and behaviors,” according to event organizers.
Regarding the summit’s theme, Thomas S. Robertson, Joshua J. Harris Professor and Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, said the price of industry success is the need for continuous innovation.
“The most successful retailers and brands are those that are continually innovating to address changing economic and consumer realities,” Robertson told WWD. “Forward-thinking retail executives are constantly adapting their business models and product portfolios to meet evolving customer needs and industry challenges, but the most effective leaders know that they also need to be thoughtful when incorporating new tools and technologies, like generative AI, into their businesses.”
Dillon, president and CEO of Foot Locker Inc., is one of those leaders, organizers said. On the eve of the summit, she will be honored with the Retail Excellence Award “in recognition of her industry leadership and philanthropic contributions,” organizers said, adding that Dillon “is a well-respected leader known for her consumer marketing and operational expertise and passion for consumers.”
Prior to taking the helm at Foot Locker, Dillon served as executive chairman of Ulta Beauty and previously as its CEO. She has also held various roles at companies including McDonald’s and PepsiCo. Her resume includes philanthropic contributions, such as serving as a trustee of Save the Children and supporting the Foot Locker Inc. Foundation, the company’s community empowerment initiative. Dillon also serves on the boards of several nonprofit organizations.
The summit is expected to draw about 150 executives. Confirmed speakers include Mark DesJardine, associate professor of business administration at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, Harvey H. Bundy III T’68 faculty member and senior fellow at Wharton’s ESG Analytics Lab; John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S.; Ethan Mollick, Ralph J. Roberts Distinguished Faculty Scholar, associate professor of management at Wharton and co-director of the Generative AI Lab; Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation; and Dana Thomas, journalist and New York Times bestselling author of “Fashion Capital: The Cost of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothing.”
Summit organizers said the day’s programming “will provide an insider’s perspective and candid discussions on how leading organizations are driving profitability and customer loyalty through innovation and intentional collaboration in an increasingly fragmented retail landscape.”
“The future of retail depends on its agility and responsiveness, driven not only by market trends but also by consumers’ evolving values,” Panos Linardos, chairman of the RLC Global Forum, told WWD. “Driven by the accelerating development of artificial intelligence, the influence of activist investors, and the relentless push for innovation at scale, retail leaders must remain nimble. Brands that can navigate this complexity will not only survive, but set the strategic agenda for the entire industry. As the industry seeks stability amid economic uncertainty and rapidly changing consumer expectations, those who can adapt and innovate in real time — while elevating the customer experience and driving social impact — will create a blueprint for success that others will follow, turning challenges into opportunities for lasting change.”