The D3 Retail Supply Chain Summit

At the D3 Retail Supply Chain Summit, which took place earlier this month in Brooklyn, CEOs and Chief Supply Chain Officers discussed the most pressing topics in today’s retail supply chains, from flexible distribution centers to attracting and retaining talented new hires.

As the only student to attend the summit, I was so nervous to be in a room full of high-level professionals; however, I was pleasantly surprised by the friendly support everyone offered. The discussions I heard at the summit related back to previous talks and lessons from my LIM College classes, but it was a different learning experience to hear about companies’ supply chain struggles from the CEO’s perspective.

During the speaker sessions, I learned about:

- QVC’s use of drop-ship methods to reduce inventory in their distribution centers.

- Crowdfunded delivery apps, such as Roadie, and logistics platforms, like Bringg, which are helping companies compete in the age of Amazon’s two-day shipping.

- Dick’s Sporting Goods partnering with Onera to use AI to optimize customer experience.

One of the most exciting moments during the summit was the cocktail hour, when I accidentally ran into the one person on the guest list I was dying to meet. Hopefully this new connection will lead to a job!

Without the help of LIM's Center for Graduate Studies, my attendance at this conference would not have been possible.