SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif. (BRAIN) — Interbike has announced plans for the second installment of its short-form retailer education series, The Forum, which will be held each day of the tradeshow in the Reno-Sparks Convention Center.
The Forum, presented by eBay and held on the show floor in Hall 2, features retailer-centered educational sessions that are 30 to 40 minutes in length. The Forum's mission is to help specialty bike shop retailers grow their businesses by delivering timely and actionable information in an easy-to-access, drop-in format.
Its 2018 speakers include Holly Wiese of the retail design and visual merchandising company 3 Dots Design, retail sales trainer Sam Dantzler, Ryan Atkinson of SmartEtailing, and Paraic McGlynn, a bike fitting instructor and business development consultant.
"The Forum, which started last year, makes it possible to learn from the best in the business without even leaving the show floor. It's incredibly convenient," said Kent Cranford, owner of North Carolina's Motion Makers Bicycle Shop and a board member of the National Bicycle Dealers Association.
"As a retailer, I think the content is right on the mark, and I really appreciate the fact that the sessions are only 30-40 minutes long."
Sessions are scheduled at the top of each hour from 10-5 p.m. on Tuesday Sept. 18, 10-4 p.m. on Wednesday Sept. 19 and from 10-11 a.m. on Thursday Sept. 20.
A selection of the sessions that will be presented in 2018 includes:
- Overcoming the Challenges of Selling Apparel in the IBD
- Promoted to the Phone — How to Train Your Sales Staff to Communicate with Customers Professionally and Effectively
- Three Essentials of Bike Shop Marketing
- How to Capitalize on the Clicks to Bricks Opportunity Presented to Today's Omnichannel Consumer
- The Business of Fit — The "How" of Profitable, Sustainable Bike Fitting as Part of Your Retail Strategy
A complete schedule is on the Interbike website at interbike.com/conference/the-forum.
"The Forum is the only educational track of its kind," said Interbike's show director, Justin Gottlieb. "Its sessions are completely tailored to the IBD, and delivered by knowledgeable speakers in a totally accessible format on the show floor. We encourage all retailer attendees to drop by and learn something new at The Forum this year."
