Wal-Mart mogul to star at Retail City

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The ex-senior vice chairman and COO of the world's biggest retailer Wal-Mart will deliver the keynote address at Dubai's Retail City.

Don Soderquist, the driving force behind the ‘pile 'em high, sell 'em cheap' philosophy will share his insights with Middle East professionals, regarding transforming a modest business into a global giant.

Soderquist will examine the remarkable growth of the US retail giant from June 1 to 3 at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre.

"No other executive since the legendary Walton himself has embodied the principles of the company's culture. Don will share his knowledge and experience of Wal-Mart's amazing success, something that regional retailers should find invaluable," said Irina Awote, conference director of Retail City 2008, organised by IIR Middle East.

Founded by Sam Walton in 1962, Wal-Mart is the world's largest public corporation by revenue, according to the Fortune Global 500. Wal-Mart built on Soderquist's mantra by re-investing profits to obtain better terms from suppliers, in turn leading to better deals for customers.

After Walton's death, Soderquist became known as the ‘keeper of the culture' and said business ethics were not a luxury but an essential element in creating high performance organisations.

Now with 7100 stores in 15 countries, Wal-Mart recently reported three months sales above US$100 billion for the first time in history. With almost two million employees, Wal-Mart is also the largest private employer in the world and the fourth largest utility or commercial employer after the Chinese army, the UK National Health Service, and Indian Railways.

"Put into perspective, Wal-Mart is bigger than Europe's Carrefour, Tesco and Metro combined," added Awote.

The Retail City 2008 exhibition and conference will gather global retailers, investors, shopping centre developers, franchise networks, shopping centre management, architects and regional authorities to discuss the dynamic retail sector in the Middle East and other emerging markets.

High profile speakers on the conference programme include Dr Ira Kalish, director of Global Economics & Consumer, Deloitte Research; Girish Gupte, general Manager of Al Futtaim Retail and Richard Ried, SVP Development from MAF Shopping Malls.

John Hadden, retail property director from M.H. Alshaya, the director of South Africa's Old Mutual Properties Ian Watt, the associate director - Retail Services of Colliers International Dave Wallace, and Ghassan Hout, head of wholesale, adidas - Emerging Markets, will also be in attendance.

The Retailers Pavilion will also be unveiled this year, providing networking opportunities for new and established retailers to expand their brand presence and to make direct contact with key industry figures.

The prestigious Retail City Awards will take place at the event to reward excellence, with categories such as Emerging Market Retailer, Retailer of the Year, Corporate Social Responsibility, Architectural Designer, Franchise Operator, Mall of the Year and World's Best Retail Destination.

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