Hollywood, Fla. (June 11, 2009)—The 2009 A.R.E. Shoptalk series fall schedule will include Columbus, OH, for the first time this year, with return visits to San Francisco, Dallas and Toronto.

Well-known retail experts will headline the regional networking/educational events for retail visual merchandisers, store planners and designers. The evening events, held at major retail venues and hosted by leading retail executives in each region, bring educational and networking opportunities to local markets, saving both time and travel costs.

The series kicks off September 17 at Nordstrom, San Francisco, with speaker Kate Newlin. Newlin, author of the newly released book "Passion Brands," is principal owner of Kate Newlin Consulting, where she works with Fortune 100 and entrepreneurial firms. Prior to that she was president of Faith Popcorn's BrainReserve, a trend-based marketing consulting firm. During her career, Kate has consulted with scores of large and small companies, including Procter & Gamble, Kraft, Nabisco, Waldenbooks, Title 9 Sports, Specialized Mountain Bikes, Johnson & Johnson, WeightWatchers, and Godiva Chocolatier.

San Francisco
San Francisco retail hosts include Shawn Thrapp, Nordstrom; Michael Trowbridge, Gap Inc.; and Paul Loux, Sephora. Sponsors for the San Francisco Shoptalk include Grottini and B+N Industries.

Columbus, OH
On October 1, Limited Brands, Columbus, OH, hosts the next Shoptalk, where Kate Newlin will also speak. Retail hosts include Bob Waddell, Limited Brands. Sponsors for this event are Grottini and Marlite.

Dallas
This year’s Dallas Shoptalk will take place October 15 at Neiman Marcus. The speaker will be Ken Downing, Senior Vice President and Fashion Director at Neiman Marcus. Downing joined Neiman Marcus Stores in 1990 in the Visual department of the Beverly Hills store. In 1992 he advanced to Visual Manager in the same store and subsequently was promoted to Director of Visual Planning and Presentation for all stores. Prior to joining Neiman Marcus, Ken worked in visual merchandising at I. Magnin.

Dallas Shoptalk retail hosts include Ignaz Gorischek, Neiman Marcus; Peggy Doughty, The Container Store; Jeanne Solitare, JCPenney; James Francois, JCPenney; Brenda Houston; and Greg Hill, RadioShack. Sponsor for the Dallas event is Grottini.

Toronto
Wrapping up this year’s series on October 22, Hudson's Bay Co. will host the Toronto event, where Kate Newlin is the speaker. Retail hosts include Richard Hamori and Ted Wilson, HBC; Mary Ferri, Bell Canada; Jackie Bonic, LCBO; and David Hicks, Canadian Tire. Sponsor for the event is Grottini.

Shoptalk attendance is open to retailers, design firms and sponsors only. To register, click here. For information on becoming a retail host for your regional Shoptalk, email Karen Schaffner or call at 954-241-4810. For information on becoming a sponsor, email Susan Kimelman or call at 954-241-4812.  

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About A.R.E.
Members of the Association for Retail Environments, formerly NASFM, are retail environments professionals and proven industry leaders—companies that are well known for excellent craftsmanship, topflight service, and cutting–edge innovation. Member companies offer a full range of products and services for retail environments, and include store fixture suppliers, retail design firms, suppliers of visual merchandising products, and suppliers of materials and equipment for the retail environments industry. Member capabilities include importing, exporting, consolidating, installing, project management, engineering, design, and more.