Annual Digital Consumer Channel launches Retail Academy

The Academy will be hosted on the final day (21st May) of the upcoming fourth annual Digital Consumer Channel Middle East & Africa (DCC MEA) event scheduled to be held at the Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort, Fujairah from 19th to 21st May, 2008.

This year's event will include, for the first time, consumer electronics products such as photo- and video-related product, mobile phones and other convergence technology kit.

The addition of new product categories will see an expected 40% new vendors and retailers within the participants at this year's event.

'Education, inspiration and motivation will be on the agenda as we launch the new Retail Academy at this year's DCC MEA, with a whole morning dedicated to best practice principles, workshop sessions and panel discussions,' commented Farouk Hemraj, CEO and co-founder of DISTREE Events. 'We have some leading members not only from the industry in the MEA region sharing their best practices but also several key research and vendor partners who will share international expertise with the CEOs of some of the Middle East's key retailers'.

The Retail Academy will include sessions on Category Management, Store Design, Trends in the Convergence Market, and other key topics of interest to the MEA's burgeoning consumer electronics convergence market. Confirmed speakers include senior executives from research house, GfK, store concept gurus from Kiki Lab plus top retail channel analysts and experts from across the region.

The DCC Retail Academy will also feature an awards ceremony showcasing some of the most innovative and successful retail initiatives from across the MEA region, allowing delegates to see first hand how sophisticated retail techniques can deliver real business results.

More than 100 senior executives from the region's top CE and IT retailers will meet later this year at Digital Consumer Channel Middle East and Africa including a strong delegation from the booming Saudi Arabian market.

DCC MEA is an invitation-only, focused event where retail executives from leading stores selling consumer electronics, digital device and ICT products in the MEA region meet leading international vendors.

It brings high-level buyers from emerging markets across the MEA region into productive contact with international vendors.