The IBD Summit is far from being “just another trade event.” It was created out of a need - a need to help independent bicycle retail leader’s fine tune their business acumen. We’ve spent months orchestrating a lineup of speakers that will have you leaving the event feeling like you’ve grown professionally – and can translate the content directly to your business.
Keynote Address
Time to Cut Out the On-Line Clutter – David Shing
Why Defriending and Unfollowing Will be the Next Trend Among Social Media Users – David Shing, AOL’s Digital Prophet has told his bosses that defriending and unfollowing are going to be the next big thing as users realize that the increasing "noise" on social networks is counterproductive. He believes the new challenge for both individuals and marketers trying to promote their brands using social networks is to stop adding to the noise. Shing will wow attendees with his extensive knowledge of the internet and provide a guided tour and overview of how powerful the web can be if tapped into correctly. In his presentation he will tell what two websites to watch and become more involved with as a retailer. His insights will inspire you and will put you ahead of the digital movement. You will come away with a clear cut plan to move your store’s strategy to a conversation with your customers and away from just creating more chatter.
View David Shing's book here.
Six Strategies for Stealing Customers Away From Amazon - Craig LaRosa
Consumers today have unlimited access to retailers. Thanks to smartphones, they can walk into a store, experience the product or service, but then actually make the transaction online--where products might be 10% to 15% cheaper--with the added bonus of having it delivered to their doorstep. This process is called “showrooming”--and it’s causing a lot of businesses to scramble.
With Amazon prices sitting 9% to 14% lower than most retailers, the online-only retailer jumped from 19th to 13th largest retailer between 2010 and 2011, during which time Best Buy’s company stock lost 40% of its value. Based on these types of results the retail giant is not going away any time soon, so what are you as an independent retailer going to do to compete?
Craig LaRosa, a Principal for Continuum – a global design and innovation consultancy firm, will show you a fresh new way to approach this “showrooming” problem by first thinking of the business as an ecosystem that exists holistically, rather than a system of channels. In order to boost the value of a brick-and-mortar shopping experience, a business needs to step back and look at its offerings together on the whole to become a true service provider. Instead of creating a multichannel strategy, what companies really need is a customer-centered strategy. Craig will walk the audience through 6 strategies designed to enhance service innovation, giving you tangible tools to take home and implement.
Social Media – Stop Wasting Time! Real Businesses, Real Campaigns, Real Results - Patrick Schwerdtfeger
The vast majority of independent bike shops spending time on Facebook and Twitter are just wasting time. For the most part, they’re using unfocused ineffective tactics that do nothing to attract new consumers or further connect with current customers. Meanwhile, a few are using simple but powerful strategies to explode their businesses virtually overnight. Patrick is passionate about finding the unfair tricks – those juicy secrets – that transform social media from a relentless time waster to a reliable business builder.
Tangible Take-Aways
- See how different companies are using Twitter to find new customers
- Leverage the biggest opportunity on Facebook to build your business
- Discover unfair tricks to get more views for your YouTube videos, an much more
Why Are You So Afraid of What Could Be Your Most Attractive Customer?
Capitalize on One the Fastest Growing and Most Lucrative Customer Segments – The Triathlete A panel discussion moderated by Jack Caress and including Dan Empfield, Skip McDowell, Dave Alberga
Why are the industry’s leading manufacturer’s and your key suppliers dedicating so much in design and marketing resources to a segment that you as a retailer might not even want to talk to? What do they know that you don’t? Why are these customers forced to seek out products on line instead of at their local bike shop? In this compelling session we’ll be opening a can of worms that may make some people feel uncomfortable, but hopefully will help you see what incredible opportunity this audience represents. Triathlon participation continues to grow at a very attractive rate. Events are happening every weekend in large venues all over the country as well as in small local neighborhoods. The participants are no longer Ironman-only enthusiasts, but are now including moms, dads and kids. Our panel of industry experts will help de-bug some of the myths of the triathlon consumer and will help get you on a path of inclusion. Learn specific details on what makes these customers tick and where they are spending their dollars. Ask meaningful questions and get straight answers from people that live, eat and breathe the sport. Don’t be afraid to embrace this segment – it may be the easiest and most profitable decision you make this year.
Building a Bridge to Your Island
The NBDA’s P2 Group is Back to Tackle The Most Complex Metrics that Drive Profits – A panel discussion moderated by Dan Mann and made up of some of the nation’s leading retailers.
Too many Independent Bicycle Dealers feel like they’re isolated and on an "island" with no sounding board, no way to compare themselves to their peers, and no road map to improvement. In this practical session we will help dealers really understand their P & L and will clearly identify where they might be losing valuable profit dollars. Once identified our dealer panel will deliver real-life, tangible solutions to address the issue and get you back on the right track. These solutions will come from actual case studies in their own businesses that will show real numbers and real results. This session was rated #1 by our retail attendees as the most valuable content at our first conference. We’ve asked the P2 Group to come back and to dive even deeper into the tools and opportunities that this group can bring to the table. Be prepared to ask lots of questions and take lots of notes. This hour and half session could be the best investment you’ve made in your business in years.
How Do You Get Your Customers to Buy More, More Often?
Transforming Your Business Through Innovative Store Design – Patrick Dalessandro
New innovative ways of selling service along with creative solutions for retail merchandising is helping to reinvigorate the consumer experience and drive sales across broad retail channels. So
what can independent dealers do to integrate experience and products into a retail strategy that creates real lift and boosts sales? As Director of Client Strategy for JGA, one of the nation’s leading retail design, brand strategy and architectural firms, Patrick Dalessandro has helped brands like Porsche, Coca Cola and Verizon. In this session Patrick Dalessandro will teach you how to make your retail experience pay! By building upon the one thing the web cannot offer – service – and by focusing on the importance of accessory selection and placement, Patrick Dalessandro will show you how to make sure your customers buy more and more often!
The Green Lanes We Ride and How Advocacy Increases Bike Sales- Bruno Maier
Americans face a number of societal challenges including poor health, congestion, and air quality. Bicycling can be part of the solution to addressing these critical issues, but we need the activity to be safe, accessible and mainstream. Bike advocates across the U.S. are helping communities build progressive bicycle facilities, and these green lanes, bike paths, bike parks, single track, etc. make bicycling safe, appealing, and increase ridership. During his presentation, Bruno will address how a small investment in bicycle advocacy can grow the bottom line.
David Shing
David Shing is the Digital Prophet for AOL and recently was the head of Media and Marketing for AOL Europe before relocating to New York in 2011. He regularly speaks at conferences across the globe, discussing the latest trends and the future of the web, providing his insight on the evolving digital landscape and where he believes it is headed in the future. Prior to joining AOL Europe, David spent over 12 years helping to building successful web technology start-ups and multimedia businesses in the USA and Australia. He is passionate about online innovation, smart design and not surprisingly is the holder multiple internet related patents. When he’s not online David can be found performing as a singer songwriter around New York.
Craig LaRosa
An accomplished design and innovation leader, Craig has proven his expertise by working with clients across a range of industries including Holiday Inn, Sam Adams, Cervélo, Hershey’s, Audi and Quest Diagnostics. Through immersive research and journey mapping, Craig shapes experiences that transcend functional and emotional needs of customers and create positive business results for organizations.
Craig is a member of the Service Design Network’s media board and he has been published extensively in Fast Company, Washington Post, USA Today, Business Insider, Service Design Journal, Chain Store Age and Nation’s Restaurant News.
Patrick Schwerdtfeger
Patrick Schwerdtfeger is a leading authority on self-employment and
the author of the award-winning book, Marketing Shortcuts for the
Self-Employed (2011, Wiley). He is a regular speaker for Bloomberg TV
and has spoken about business trends, modern entrepreneurship and the
social media revolution at conferences and business events around the
world. Patrick spoke about “Learned Intuition” at the TEDx Sacramento
event in August, 2012.
Patrick’s past books include Webify Your
Business: Internet Marketing Secrets for the Self-Employed (2009) and
Make Yourself Useful: Marketing in the 21st Century (2008). He has been
featured by the New York Times, LA Times, San Francisco Chronicle, CNN
Money, Fortune, Bloomberg Businessweek, the Associated Press, MONEY
Magazine and Forbes, among others.
Patrick Dalessandro
Mr. Dalessandro joined JGA in 2011 to lead the JGA strategy practice. As Director of Client Strategy, Patrick is responsible for both business development and program delivery. He leads multiple design efforts by integrating strategic positioning of brand and retail design to evolve our clients’ brand position and improve consumer experience. Patrick’s business background and branding experience adds a unique dimension to JGA’s design values and ultimate outcome for its clients. His knowledge and institutional insights into the retail consumer are integrated into conceptual development and strategic positioning for retail operators, manufacturers and brand marketers.
Mr. Dalessandro holds a Bachelor’s Degree with a concentration in Business Management and Communications from The University of Toledo. Patrick’s consultative background provides tactical solutions with a strategic perspective for both small business and Fortune 500 companies, such as Xerox, Macy’s, Porsche, Coca Cola, NOS Energy Drinks, Verizon and Penske Racing. With over 15 years of industry and consulting experience, he previously served as Vice President for Motorsports Experience International, a full service motorsports and experiential marketing firm. Prior to that, he served as a Managing Director for the Accenture global consulting practice.
Dan Mann
Founding partner of the Mann Group, a business consulting company based in Weaverville, NC
Dan began as a teacher with the goal of creating leaders. He spent many years at Bachrach, where he led the largest privately-owned men's clothing chain, rising from sales associate to vice president of retail where he developed "Customer Communication Strategies" that enabled the company to compete at a whole new level.
He has long enjoyed active endeavors such as cycling and hiking. After his third bicycle purchase where he helped the kid in the shop sell him his bike, he realized that "Customer Communication" wasn't just a clothing strategy. So in 2003 he formed The Mann Group to provide retail consulting services to retailers in active lifestyle industries.
Jack Caress
For over 30 years, Jack Caress has been producing and marketing participant sports events. He is the founder and President of Pacific Sports LLC and a Founding Member and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Triathlon America, Inc. Caress is an Operating Partner for VO2 Partners in New York and a consultant for both the Gerson Lehrman Group and ForensisGroup. Since the firm’s inception Pacific Sports has produced over 430 multisport events throughout the world. Jack has also been an active member of the academic community serving as a professor at Chapman University in the School of Business & Economics for 10 years, as the Director of the Freshman Seminar Program in Political Economics at Chapman for three years, and currently as an adjunct faculty member at the University of San Francisco in the graduate program in Sports Management.
Skip McDowell
Skip McDowell is President and owner of Nytro Multisport, a worldwide leader in providing products and services to the triathlon and cycling markets. Founded in 1992, Nytro operates a store on Pacific Coast Highway 101 in Encinitas, California and has one of the largest websites in the marketplace, (www.nytro.com).
Prior to Purchasing Nytro with his wife Kristie in June of 2007, Skip’s professional career largely consisted of managing Sales & Marketing for high tech communication companies from the start-up stage to over $1 billion in sales. He helped lead three companies through successful IPO’s and has served on several Boards.
Skip earned his MBA and accounting degree at San Diego State University. He completed his first triathlon in 1983, remains active in all outdoor sports, and enjoys sunset beach runs with his two golden retrievers.
Dan Empfield
Empfield competed in the first Ironman held on Hawaii's Big Island, in 1981.
He designed the original triathlon wetsuit, and founded wetsuit manufacturer Quintana Roo in 1987. In 1989 Empfield debuted another design, the first bike "built from the aerobars back." The first Quintana Roo Superform had 650c wheels front and back, and an 80-degree seat angle.
He sold Quintana Roo to Saucony, Inc., in 1995, and stayed on to run Saucony's bike division - which included Quintana Roo and Merlin - for four years. He left in 1999 and founded Slowtwitch.com.
In 2003 Empfield developed the F.I.S.T. Tri Bike Fit System for triathletes, featuring "stack" and "reach," a set of bike fit metrics popular among tri bike manufacturers and fitters. He's given fit clinics and workshops all over the United States and Europe. He continues to write for, and publish, Slowtwitch.com.
Empfield still swims, bikes, runs and races several times a year. He lives with wife Tanya, dogs, and horses on 8 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California.
Dave Alberga
Dave Alberga, ACTIVE’s CEO for the past thirteen years, has been named Executive Chairman. In this role, he will continue to focus on advocating the new industry category of Activity and Participant Management, expanding ACTIVE’s alliances with industry and strategic partners, interfacing with the financial analyst and investor community, and championing the Company’s health and wellness causes on Capitol Hill.
Prior to joining Active Network, Alberga headed operations for the CityGuide portion of Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch Inc., a leading portal and transaction company and now an operating business of IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI). In his three years at Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch, Alberga held positions of increasing responsibility including general manager of CitySearch City Guides, executive vice president and chief operating officer. Ticketmaster career highlights include successfully leading local management teams in 35 markets while overseeing operating and reporting procedures for each field organization, and participating in raising private and public equity for CitySearch. Additional experience includes senior management positions with Linear Technology Corporation and Silicon Valley Technology (SVT), as well as consulting and brand management at the Boston Consulting Group and Procter & Gamble Company.
Alberga holds Master of Business Administration and Master of Arts degrees from Stanford University. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in general engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Bruno Maier
Bruno Maier is the Sr. Vice President of the Bikes Belong Coalition, the U.S. bicycling industry association dedicated to putting more people on bicycles more often. He has helped lead this growing national organization since joining in June 2009.
Maier also serves as Sr. Vice President of the Bikes Belong Foundation, an affiliated 501c3 national non-profit group that works to enhance children’s bicycling, develop bike safety projects, and build a national movement of individuals who believe in the power of bicycling and want safer, more appealing places to ride.
The Bikes Belong Coalition and Bikes Belong Foundation together stand as the nation’s largest non-profit bicycling advocacy organization, with a combined annual budget of close to $8.0 million.
Prior to joining Bikes Belong, Maier has worked in the bicycle industry since 1993. He has held positions with Huffy Bicycle Company, Brunswick Bicycles, and Cycling Sports Group / Pacific Cycle (Cannondale, GT Bicycles, Schwinn, Mongoose).
Maier started his career in cycling as a sales intern at Huffy Bicycle Company. Since that time has held positions as Account Manager, Director of Sales, Vice President, and finally as Executive Vice President of Marketing for Cycling Sport Group and Pacific Cycle.
He is an avid cyclist and tri-athlete, and has completed several Ironman triathlons and the Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race.
