Russian Retail Week 2016 at WTC Moscow

MOSCOW, RUSSIA - The Russian Retail Week opened today at the WTC Moscow. It is a major retail industry event, and it is used as a platform to bring together representatives of businesses and authorities. The key conferences and discussions of the forum will be taking place over three days, from June 7 to 9, and the Russian Retail Week will last till June 12.

The first pivotal event of the first day of the Week is over. It was a plenary session, “Trade in Russia: Moving forward or walking back?!,” moderated by Viktor Yevtukhov, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation.

Ilya Jacubson, former Chairman of the Board, Association of Retail Trade Companies, Lev Khasis, First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Sberbank of Russia, Vladlen Maksimov, President, Coalition of Kiosk Keepers, Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman, State Duma Committee for Economic Policy, Innovative Development and Entrepreneurship, and other dignitaries expressed their opinions on the trends of trade development in Russia and on the role of the government in its regulation.

According to Mr. Jacubson, the best thing the government can do in the current situation is to stop regulating national retail trade altogether, leaving self-regulation to businesses. Mr. Khasis noted in response that based on his experience Russian trade is one of the least “over-regulated” in the world, and he added that the government regulation ensures a balance of interests between suppliers and retailers, forgetting about the ultimate consumer — the shopper.

He also drew the audience’s attention to the technological development of trade, where trade flows are moving over to digital channels. “The technologies that we are hearing so much about now will change a lot in trade, and at some moment in time it will cease to be an art. All retailers thinking about tomorrow must focus on big data.” Mr. Khasis found a backer in Alexander Tynovan, Chairman, M. Video, who said that “Any company must become a technology-based company.”

On the second day of the forum, June 8, the opening ceremony of the Retail’s World trade fair will be held. The fair will have on display the latest solutions and technologies of retail. In addition, a ceremony to bestow prizes on the winners of the 2016 Russian Retail Awards will be organized.

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