The Convenience & Impulse Retailing New Zealand Expo and Symposium is returning to The Cloud in Auckland on 19-20 October, for two days of education, networking, and business building.
The inaugural C&I NZ Expo in 2019 brought together hundreds of retailers and suppliers from all banners and brands, and with a great selection of exhibitors on board and a solid line-up of speakers locked in for the 2022 event, it will be one not to be missed.
Safa de Valois, Group Publisher at C&I Media, said that the inaugural C&I NZ Expo in 2019 was a huge success and exceeded expectations.
“The level of support from exhibitors and key retailer in New Zealand really showed the hunger for a dedicated trade event for the New Zealand market. We were so excited about the C&I NZ Expo returning in 2021 but COVID meant this was no longer possible.
“Rescheduling the event to October 2022 has been warmly received and registrations are strong. We can’t wait to be back in Auckland to grow on the success of our last C&I NZ Expo.”
C&I NZ Expo 2022 is the only national event devoted to the needs of New Zealand’s convenience retailers. If you own or work in an independent grocery or convenience store, service station, dairy, corner store or mini-mart, you should register before you miss out.
You’ll have the opportunity to sample the latest products to hit the market, meet directly with suppliers, learn from industry experts and network with leading retailers from across New Zealand.
The Symposium will be MC’d by Presenting Partner, Dave Hooker, Executive Director, New Zealand Association of Convenience Stores (NZACS).
“NZACS is excited to partner with C&I to bring you this year’s Expo and Symposium. After the success of their first show in 2019, we are well overdue to get back together, share ideas and look at new business opportunities. Attendance at the trade show is free to convenience retailers and we look forward to a good turnout on both days in October,” says Hooker.
The 2022 Symposium has a solid line-up of confirmed speakers from Australia and New Zealand, including Bruce Cotterill, Motivational Speaker and Transformation Coach, Eddy Nader, Managing Director, NPG Retail (Australia), Andy Baird, General Manager Retail and Customer, Z Energy, Haydn Tierney, Managing Director, Bowser Bean Cafe / Vantage Fuels (Australia), Melinda Baillie, Head of Trents Wholesale, and Julie O’Toole, Director, Coca-Cola Oceania.
Cotterill will be speaking about the changes the world has experienced over the past few years and how our approach to leadership needs to chance.
“The world is changing more rapidly than any of us expected. Even those of us who saw global assets as overvalued have been surprised by the speed with which the market has changed over the last few months. Some components of the change are driven by local factors. Others more global. In almost all cases, the reasons are out of the control of those of us running businesses. On top of that, our customers are more demanding, and our people are more needy and less resilient. That will mean that our approach to leadership has to change once more. The good news is that we can do that. And the answers are more obvious than we think,” he says.
Baird is the General Manager of Retail at Z Energy and has an extensive retail, marketing, and sales background. He is looking forward to sharing with the conference the case for change and the need for urgency.
“We have talked for many years about how retail is always changing but it’s never going to be at the pace we will see over the next seven to 10 years – (Smoke free and Energy Transition) and I don’t think many retailers have really grasped just what that means, how fast those changes will happen and what they need to be doing now to ensure they not only survive but thrive into the future.
“And as I will have just arrived back from the US visiting NACS and several high profile convenience markets am also looking forward to sharing insights, lessons, and any great ideas I have seen,” says Baird.
Nader is the Managing Director of NPG Retail and learnt the petrol convenience industry as a young boy on the forecourt of his father’s service station in Yagoona, NSW.
More than 30 years later Eddy now sits at the helm of a 48 million litre per year petrol and convenience business that includes six retail locations and employs more than 80 staff. He is looking forward to sharing some of his key learnings from the past couple of years with the C&I NZ Expo and Symposium.
“It’s been a fantastic year for NPG Retail, and that’s down to our willingness to explore new opportunities and trial an innovative new food concept in our stores.
“My son Tadros came up with the idea of trialling a new food offer at our Colyton store, essentially running it like a takeaway shop with burgers and fries – a model that hadn’t been done in any metro sites before – and it’s been hugely successful for us.
“We had the unexpected privilege of being joint winners of the AACS Independent Store of the Year and Overall Store of the Year alongside a fellow family-owned retailer, APCO Wangaratta. We then went on to be named as a finalist in the Asia Pacific NACS Retailer of the Year awards held in Singapore.
“I’m excited to be coming along to the C&I Expo and Symposium to talk about the importance of trying new things and building a brand identity that will resonate with your local customer base, in order to survive and thrive into the future,” says Nader.
Tierney is the Managing Director & Founder of Bowser Bean, which has a network of 17 locations throughout regional southeast Australia.
“I’m looking forward to gaining insight from my New Zealand compatriots and sharing how Bowser Bean is pushing the boundaries of P&C,” says Tierney.
Baillie has been involved in the convenience retailing industry since 2003 when she joined Cerebos Foodservice, owners of the Robert Harris Brand. She now heads up Trents Wholesale Ltd, a large food and beverage wholesaler covering the South Island. She is embarking on a governance pathway having been awarded the Emerging Directors Award for the Canterbury Branch of the NZ Institute of Directors.
“I’m looking forward to connecting with suppliers and retailers at this year’s Expo and seeing the innovations coming through for the industry. I’m also excited to talk about leadership and the obvious, as well as the subtle, benefits it can bring to a business,” she says.
O’Toole is the Country Lead for Coca-Cola Oceania and embraces the company’s purpose of refreshing the world and making a difference.
“The face of retail has dramatically changed after COVID-19 abruptly upended our lives and separated us from the routine and events two years ago. Since then, shopper behaviour has evolved and so have consumer priorities. The C&I Expo provides an opportunity to connect with other convenience retailers and industry leaders to share insights, learn from one another and innovate for the future.
“In 2021, our company took steps to emerge stronger from the pandemic and position ourselves for continued growth. Our focus was on creating a portfolio of beverage brands people love while building a more sustainable future for our business and our planet. As a leading FMCG business we have a responsibility to contribute towards sustainable solutions that benefit us all. I’m looking forward to sharing our sustainability journey and the progress we’ve made in our commitment to help drive a circular economy in New Zealand. While we’ve achieved a lot of milestones, there’s still plenty of work to be done and a lot to learn in this area,” says O’Toole.
If you’d like to register to attend or if you’d like to exhibit, it’s not too late. Visit candiexpo.co.nz for more information.