Cold Link Africa July/August 2018 | Page 24

EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN SACSC research conference delivers valuable insights The South African Council of Shopping Centres’ (SACSC) Annual Research Conference celebrated its eighth anniversary recently with more than 270 delegates representing the country’s most respected companies and brands, in attendance. further suggested that landlords need to important aspects of the South African consider re-strategising in order for tenants retail and shopping centre landscape to capitalise on the stronger economy. and also touched on our international Malala added that he had a positive counterparts and how that affects the outlook on consumer spend, saying that local markets. The future of retail, the South we need to shop more to strengthen the African economy and consumer, as well economy. “Ramaphosa brought about a as the evolution of retail in a digital age, sense of consumer confidence. I am glad to were some of the key aspects touched on see growth and for us to continue to grow, at this year’s conference. Sesfikile Capital’s Kundayi Munzara joined political commentator Justice Malala in a panel discussion unpacking the current state of the South African economy. Both agree that the rand has strengthened in the past few months following the leadership changes in the country. According to Munzara, this will increase consumer spend in the next few months, which may yield better results than last year. Munzara 24 my advice is to keep calm and carry on shopping,” he added. Steven Burnstone, CEO and head of analytics for Eighty20 Consulting, highlighted the importance of loyalty programmes in retail. Burnstone also added T his year’s speakers highlighted many that standing out and being attractive to consumers is not impossible — all it takes is an understanding of your customers and partnering with the right brands. “The way businesses communicate to customers is Steven Burnstone, CEO and head of analytics of Eighty20 Consulting, spoke on the loyalty, personalisation, and understanding of customer behaviour changes. www.coldlinkafrica.co.za COLD LINK AF