Hispanic Retail 360 Summit Moves to Chicago in 2006

CHICAGO -- The second annual Hispanic Retail 360 Summit will be held August 2-4, 2006, at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in downtown Chicago.

Hispanic Retail 360 is the retail industry's only conference, workshop and product showcase designed to help companies maximize their business to the growing Latino consumer market in the U.S. The inaugural event, held in September 2005 in Dallas, attracted more than 400 attendees composed of retailers from across all channels of retailing and major consumer products goods manufacturers.

The 2006 sessions and format will be new and more interactive. The theme is "Taking Hispanic Retailing to the Next Level." The event will feature:

-- New workshops and working roundtable sessions to foster knowledge-sharing among attendees
-- Best practices and new ideas to help retailers become skilled at serving the needs of the growing Latino population in the U.S.
-- Concurrent sessions that allow attendees to pick and choose the topics that are most important to them
-- More product areas from food to general merchandise and topics of interest to all retail channels including department stores, mass merchandisers, supermarkets, convenience stores, drug stores and specialty retailers.

The Hispanic/Latino population is the fastest growing minority group in the U.S., and this is projected to grow even more by the year 2020 -- outpacing any other demographic group. In addition, Hispanics' purchasing power is around 8.5% of the total U.S. population and will reach 11% by the year 2010.

"Food retailers that have not taken into consideration this important ethnic group will miss out on future total store sales and profitability by not reflecting the communities they serve," says Mirna Evans, category manager, Food Lion, who is one of 26 retailers on the conference's advisory board. "We (Hispanics) are unique individuals with strong cultural backgrounds who truly appreciate the enjoyment of foods with our families, often making it the center of our lives."

Hispanic Retail 360 Summit is still the only cross-channel event that combines the power of VNU's world-leading information companies -- including ACNielsen, Spectra, Claritas, Scarborough and Nielsen Media Research -- with its industry-leading retail publications. Like last year, the agenda will be shaped by the Hispanic Retail 360 Retailer Advisory Board consisting of market leaders across all channels of retailing -- including drug stores, mass retailers, department stores, dollar stores and convenience stores in addition to supermarkets.

The Summit also offers face-to-face interaction between retailers and suppliers via an intimate pre-conference reception for major sponsors and retailer invitees, select private meetings with participating retailers and a robust product showcase exhibition room.

One of the highlights of the Summit will be the presentation of the Hispanic Retail Excellence Award. Last year's winner was Pros Ranch Market, which operates five Hispanic market stores in southern California and four in Phoenix, AR.

Publication partners for Hispanic Retail 360 include Progressive Grocer, Marketing y Medios, Convenience Store News, The Gourmet Retailer, and Display & Design Ideas.

Trade association partners include the National Grocers Association and the Mexican American Grocers Association.

Hispanic Retail 360 Summit is produced by VNU Business Media, the preeminent authority in the B2B arena with 44 market-leading trade magazines, 70 conferences, 59 trade shows and 150 electronic products.

Sponsorship packages, which include attending a pre-conference VIP reception with the retailer board of advisors, taking part in an appropriate session or panel, and showcasing Hispanic-market products are currently availability. For more information on sponsorships, please contact Jeff Friedman, vice president, channel information & solutions, Retail Channels Group, at 646-654-7452, or email: Jfriedman@vnubuspubs.com.

Attendees can register for the conference at http://www.hispanicretail360.com. For more information, please contact Don Longo, director, editorial and content development, Retail Group, VNU Business Media, at 646-654-7489, or Dlongo@vnubusinessmedia.com.