CHICAGO (BRAIN) — Organizers of the CABDA trade shows are planning an industry summit event to be held at Florida's Disney World Resort in early November next year.
CABDA will host three trade shows in early 2020, in San Diego, Chicago and the New York City area. The summit will be a different format, with long-format presentations and in-depth seminars, said CABDA's show director, Jim Kersten.
“We need to be at the forefront of educating our industry. The clinics we host at our expos are great for quick hits, but we need a deeper dive,” Kersten said. “Also, it’s hard to host programming for manufacturers and sales reps when they have their hands full working their booths.”
The event will include tracks for corporate attendees, shop owners, and managers/employees. Kersten said he hopes to allow conference attendees to tailor the sessions they attend to fit their needs.
“We really think our ‘choose-your-own-adventure’ format is going to be a big hit with our attendees. It allows folks to pick and choose sessions based on what matters to them,” Kersten said.
The inaugural CABDA Summit is titled “If It’s Broken, Let’s Fix It!” and will feature speakers from other industries as well as branding and customer service experts from the Disney Institute, the professional development and external training arm of The Walt Disney Company.
“We have a ton to learn about customer retention and improving retail interactions from our friends in the cosmetics, powersports, and automotive industries,” Kersten said. “If our industry is going to survive, we need to evolve. And we must look everywhere we can for the means to improve.”
Conference attendance includes a catered breakfast and lunch each day, networking breaks, nightly cocktail receptions, and a finale keynote dinner that ends with dessert served under the fireworks inside of the Epcot Park.
The two-day conference is scheduled for Nov 2-3. 2020 at the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort. Attendees and their families will have access to discounted theme park tickets as well as extended theme park hours. Registration will open in early 2020.
