Best of NRF 2014: Top 10 Takeaways

  1. The Big Show Keeps Getting Bigger
    This year’s NRF Big Show expanded its footprint taking over 200,000 square feet of the Javits Center – including the North Building for keynote presentations – with more than 30,000 attendees and 500 exhibiting companies. The vibe was very positive with a renewed confidence for retailers and vendors alike. With more space came a more comfortable show floor – the aisles weren’t cramped and busy booths weren’t obstacles to get around – in general the booths seemed more spacious. The Big Show doesn’t just get bigger physically though, it’s been reported that next year the Big Show will be a day longer, opening on Sunday.
  1. Home Depot Improves Store Assortment Planning Data across 2,200 Locations
    The Home Depot implemented the Predictix assortment applications suite, including modules for analytics, planning and in-season management across its 2,262 stores. The solution allows the retailer to creat assortments that meet customer demands and optimize sales and margins, enabling the retailer to spend more time on forward-looking planning and analysis. “The Predictix tool provides a seamless ability to evaluate assortment changes at both the national and local level,” said Steve Huth, VP The Home Depot merchandising. “The flexibility of this solution enabled integration with internal systems. This provides our merchants tools to evaluate and execute decisions quickly, in turn enabling an increased service to our customers.”