On November 18th, the first edition of the Modern Distribution Congress was held at the Hilton Warsaw Hotel and Convention Center. Over 800 participants had the opportunity to listen to substantive presentations and debates with the participation of government representatives, presidents of international trade and FMCG concerns, technology companies and market experts.
The event was officially opened by Renata Juszkiewicz, President of the Management Board of the Polish Trade and Distribution Organization and Chairwoman of the Congress Advisory Board. “I want to stress – there would be no success of the Polish economy without strong trade. And this was achieved thanks to international trade concerns that have invested 50 billion euros in our country and contributed to the modernisation of the country. Trade networks provided a development impulse for agriculture and the small and medium-sized enterprises sector, implemented food safety standards, pursued a policy of care for the environment, undertook the fight against food waste, supported a number of social campaigns, and finally, became an important employer by implementing modern employment standards.” – said President Juszkiewicz. Then, a letter of congratulations and appreciation for the innovative initiative from Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki was read by Wojciech Labuda, Advisor to the Head of Government. Tadeusz Kościński, Minister of Finance, in turn, emphasised the role of retail chains in shaping Poland’s image abroad. The keynote speech on the challenges of 21st century trade was given by Christian Verschueren, CEO, EuroCommerce. As part of the inaugural opening, Adam Abramowicz, spokesperson for small and medium enterprises, and Senator Jacek Bury, spoke. The event was hosted by economic journalist Robert Stanilewicz.
The substantive part began with the speech of Prof. Witold Orłowski from PwC, devoted to the economic transformation of the turn of the century and the importance of trade for the development of the Polish economy in the last thirty years. Adam Czerniak, Chief Economist of Polityka Insight, talked about the impact of the digital revolution on trade. During the rest of the Congress, participants listened to inspirational speeches and panels on new business models, the future of the sector and the vision of leaders – in the context of trade challenges, including digital transformation and the new generation of consumers. In the second part of the day, the event was divided into two parallel thematic paths under the slogans of Supply Chain and RetailTech, which included discussions on production and distribution, as well as technology and logistics. Participants listened to the debates on cooperation with trade networks as a platform for the development of SMEs, local and organic products as well as sustainable development and responsible social investments. There were also topics such as: megatrends in the retail industry, effective distribution chain in planning and optimisation, presentation of the latest technologies in the area of customer experience.
The speakers included:
- Izabella Byszewska, President of the Board, Polska Izba Produktu Regionalnego i Lokalnego
- Karol Gębka, Commercial Director, Farma Świętokrzyska Sp. z o.o.
- Carolina Garcia Gomez, President of the Board, IKEA Retail Polska
- Bartłomiej Grelewicz, Director of the Promotion Division, Kaufland
- Ks. Waldemar Hanas, Archidiecezja Poznańska
- Maciej Herman, President of the Board, Lotte Wedel
- Beata Jankowiak, Member of the Board, Jeronimo Martins Poland
- Jakub Kiwior, Managing Director of Visa in the region of Central and Eastern Europe
- Agnieszka Kubera, Managing Director Products Poland, Accenture
- Wojciech Konecki, Director General, APPLiA
- Marek Kopyto, Country Manager, Unilever
- Jean-Philippe Magre, President of the Board E.Leclerc
- Michał Nowaczyk, Member of the Board, Lidl Polska
- Alejandro Paz Olivares, Director, Global Data & Analytics, Procter & Gamble
- Henryk Orfinger, Vice-President, dr Irena Eris
- Alexander Orlowski, President of the Board, Transgourmet
- dr Krzysztof Pawiński, President of the Board, Grupa Maspex
- Marcin Petrykowski, Managing Director, Regional Head & CEO EMEA CEE, S&P Global Ratings
- Michał Pieprzny, Partner, Deloitte
- Christophe Rabatel, President of the Board, Dyrektor Generalny, Carrefour
- Aleksandra Robaszkiewicz, Head of Corporate Communications, Lidl Polska
- Artur Rytel, President of the Board, Green Holding Sp. z o.o.
- Andrzej Skubiszewski, President of the Board, JTI Polska
- Marek Stoiński, Chief Financial Officer, JYSK Polska
- Jarosław Sokolnicki, Retail & Consumer Goods Industries Country Lead, Microsoft
- Tomasz Suchański, President of the Board, Dyrektor Generalny Żabka Polska
- Marek Szeib, President of the Board Auchan in 2010-2018
- Jakub Tyczkowski, President of the Board, Rekopol
- Paweł Świętochowski, Manager of Business Relations and Social Projects, Castorama Polska
- Bartosz Urbaniak, Head of Banking Agro BNP Paribas for Central and Eastern Europe and Africa
- Katarzyna Warchał, Member of the Board, IKEA Purchasing
- Karolina Zajdel-Pawlak, Managing Director, Nielsen Connect Polska
- Katarzyna Zubrzycka, Head of Merchant and Acquirer CEE, VISA
- Ireneusz Zygmunt, Vice President for Purchasing, MediaMarktSaturn Polska
In the specially arranged Buyers’ Zone, talks between representatives of purchasing departments and suppliers interested in establishing relationships and cooperation took place at the stands of the largest retail chains.
At the Store of the Future, representatives of Microsoft conducted a demonstration of the latest technological solutions supporting sales.
Throughout the Congress, there was a Congress Television Studio, from which Media Patrons – journalists from Puls Biznesu and Tok FM – reported on the course of the event, supplementing journalists’ statements with interviews with excellent guests invited to the studio.
The culmination of the Congress was the evening MODERN RETAIL GALA with the MODERN RETAIL AWARDS ceremony. Awards in individual competition categories were received by:
- FOOD & FARMING: Mleczarnia EkoŁukta
- LOCAL PRODUCT: Ami
- FOOD PRODUCTION: SM Spomlek
- START-UP: Synati
- PAYMENTS: PayPo
- ECO: Stella Pack
- ECO DISTINGUISHMENT: Farma Świętokrzyska
- OWN BRAND: Maspex
- NON-FOOD PRODUCTION: Befaszczot
- NON-FOOD PRODUCTION: dr Irena Eris
- SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS: CHEP Polska
- RETAIL TECH AWARD: ZenCard
The special award during the Gala was received by Renata Juszkiewicz, President of the Board of the Polish Trade and Distribution Organization.
The Modern Distribution Congress was met with an extremely favourable reception from participants and representatives of governmental circles, proven by the attendance and numerous congratulations submitted to the organizers of the event: the Polish Trade and Distribution Organization and the Modern Distribution Foundation. The organizers hope that the congress will become a permanent addition to the calendar of the most opinion-forming industry events.
We invite you to view the photo gallery of the event.
Strategic Partners:
Ab initio, Accenture, Selfmaker, Visa, W.P.I.P.
Partners:
APA Group, AMS, BNP Paribas, eService, IBM, MSC, Pobuca, Fundacja Polska Bezgotówkowa, Sagra Technology, UPEMI, REKOPOL, Lotte Wedel, XPLUS, ZenCard,PKO Bank Polski
Supporting Partner:
JTI
Substantive Partners:
Deloitte, Nielsen, Polityka Insight
Technology Partner:
Microsoft
Interpretations Partner:
Bireta
Honorary Patronage:
Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, Lewiatan Confederation, British Polish Chamber of Commerce, French-Polish Chamber of Commerce, Polish-German Chamber of Commerce, The Heart, Startup Poland, ECR Polska, Polish Chamber of Food Industry and Packaging, National Chamber of Poultry and Feed Producers, Polish Chamber of Information Technology and Telecommunications, Polish Chamber of Regional and Local Products, Polish Chamber of Commerce for High Technology, Food Economy Federation, Polish Federation of Food Industry, National Union of Juice Producers, Polish Council of Shopping Centres, National Union of Fruit and Vegetable Producer Groups, Polish Association of Beef Cattle Breeders, POLBISCO Association of Polish Producers of Chocolate and Confectionary, Polish Association of Fish Processors, “FRUIT UNION” Association, Polish Association of Oil Producers, Polish Association of Logistical and Purchasing Managers, Association of Butchers and Cured Meat Makers of the Republic of Poland
Media Patronage:
Puls Biznesu, TOK Fm, Rzeczpospolita, WP, Handel, Wiadomości Handlowe, Poradnik Handlowca