As the curtain falls on The Consumer Goods Forums’ Global Summit, we look at the key themes and issues discussed by speakers from Ahold Delhaize, Danone, Majid Al Futtaim and ending with Madeleine Albright's powerful speech on the changing global political environment.
Health & wellness, a priority
Dick Boer, Ahold Delhaize CEO, underlined that health is not a consumer or industry problem, but a societal imperative requiring partnership across industry, government, consumer and academia. Working together, we can make a difference and empower people to live healthier lives.
Boer was then joined by Danone's Chief Executive, Emmanuel Faber, who spotlighted the ongoing food revolution happening everywhere. Faber said, as consumers demand healthier choices, consumer goods companies could become irrelevant, unless they address the issue.
After the inspiring talk, CGF Managing Director Peter Freedman paid tribute to Boer, for his long-time engagement and invaluable commitment to CGF, as Boer steps down as Ahold Delhaize CEO at the end of June.
Change, a necessity
Alain Bejjani, Majid Al Futtaim’s CEO, described how customer behaviours have changed over the last decade. Bejjani said to win customers’ hearts back, retailers would need to use a mixture of big data, technology and human judgment.
Sebastian Mejia, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Rappi, reminded the traditional businesses that ‘the biggest threat is not doing anything at all’. Having transformed a traditional company in Japan to a strong global business, Masahiko Uotani, CEO of Shiseido, shared his experience in turning an inward-focused culture into one with the customer at its heart.
Matilda Ho, CEO of Bits & Bites highlighted the shift in the ‘purpose of food’ in China driven by consumption upgrade and transformative technology. This was elevated by Madeleine Albright who said, ‘We are living in an era of profound change across the globe.’ As ‘a new psychology of separation has taken hold’, both public and private sector leaders need to do more to build a brighter future.
Looking forward to Vancouver 2019
Olaf Koch, Co-chair of the CGF and Chairman of METRO AG, closed the Summit and invited delegates to the 2019 edition in Vancouver.
Want to start preparing for the 2019 summit in Vancouver now? Read our article on Canadian grocery retailers' growth priorities. Subscribers of Retail Analysis can also download our insight presentation on trends in the country here.
For IGD's roundup of Day One and Day Two, please click on the links.