FRA Students Compete at the World Retail Congress

The World Retail Congress is the industry’s largest and most prestigious annual forum. CEOs and leaders from all over the globe come together to share, debate and network with each other. It has also become the annual platform for discussing challenges and critical issues facing retail. 

In 2009, the Congress established the Retail Futures Challenge student competition. Now in its 5th year, the challenge promotes future talent in retail from across the world. 

This year, our team from the Fashion Retail Academy represented the UK in the Challenge. Competitors arrived in Paris a few days before the start of the conference, to be briefed on their task. They had two days to complete the challenge, with help from some senior retailers. During the Congress, the teams presented their projects to over 1,000 retail executives and a panel of judges.  

Fashion Retail Academy students Danielle Caveney, Claire Lacey, Nicola Wheeler and Charlotte Newman created a business plan for the international expansion of Mrs Kibble's Olde Sweet Shoppe. The family-run store is located on London’s Oxford Street.

“Once again the standard of entries from these young students has been fantastic and their ideas for creating a shop of the future are groundbreaking,” said Ian McGarrigle, Chairman of the World Retail Congress. “The competition has grown to become one of the high points of the Congress and it is inspiring to see these future leaders of retailing setting out their ideas in front of an audience of retail professionals.”