20+ years of multi site facility management, sustainability and procurement expertise. 

Created and led the facility and sustainability strategies, budgets and operations inclusive the procurement of goods and services not for resale for a national retail organization for more than 2 decades. Inclusive of stores, supply chain and corporate locations. 

Active in the FM community with associations inclusive of a new stream at RCC

3 time Clean 50 recipient for work related to sustainability. Notably waste diversion and customer recycling initiatives, energy efficiency, renewables and decarbonization. 

Andy Iakobson began their career with a passion for design, with formal training as an industrial designer and a foundation in the core principles of design thinking, iterative methodologies and user experience research. They quickly discovered a deeper interest in the development of learning and educational materials, where their expertise in design and passion for writing could be combined to create engaging, effective and visually appealing learning experiences for diverse client groups in retail and telecommunications.​

Today, with 10+ years of experience in Learning and Development, they support a varied portfolio of internal clients at The Home Depot to plan and manage associate training strategy. Their work includes everything from development of specialized, large-scale blended programs to everyday mobile micro-learning interactions.

Michael Richardson is the Sustainability Manager at SGS North America within the consumer products sector and supports clients’ sustainability assessment, communication and improvement efforts. 

Michael’s environmental engineering and sustainability experience span 20+ years, including over 10 years with SGS.  He has worked with clients on assessments, environmental labels and tailored projects for electronics, textiles, packaging and other products.  He is the Chair of SGS green marks steering committee, and also provides internal and external sustainability technical support. 

With nearly two decades of experience in retail, Sherri Nunn is passionate about fostering environments where associates can thrive, and customers feel empowered to tackle their next home improvement projects. Sherri’s career began at The Home Depot in 2006, where she gained hands-on experience in various store roles before advancing to the Store Support Centre. There, she served as a manager for sales execution within store operations, sharpening her ability to streamline processes and enhance customer experiences.​

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In her current role as a Learning Strategy Manager, Sherri collaborates with cross-functional teams to drive learning strategies for store operations, focusing on initiatives that elevate both associate development and customer engagement. Her work has supported national projects aimed at improving the overall in-store experience, ensuring that both associates and customers alike benefit from seamless and meaningful interactions.​

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Sherri has also shared her expertise by judging a business plan contest for commerce students at Fanshawe College, where students presented innovative business plans. This experience further strengthened her ability to assess creativity, innovation, and practical execution—key elements she would bring to her role as a judge for the retail awards conference.​

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Sherri’s dedication to creating positive, high-performance environments aligns with her passion for continuous improvement and innovation in retail. She brings an insightful and experienced perspective to evaluating the strategies and achievements that set outstanding retailers apart in the industry.

Michael is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. He has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions with C-level executives and participated on thought leadership panels worldwide.

Michael is also the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts, including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus the Remarkable Retail with author Steve Dennis, Global E-Commerce Tech Talks and The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, all available on Apple, Spotify, Amazon and all major podcast platforms.

Isabelle Godin has worked in the field of loss prevention for more than 20 years. Isabelle first gained expertise in retail operations and management before joining the Loss Prevention sector. Isabelle has been trained in investigative interviewing and interrogation techniques, having received specialized training with Wicklander-Zulawski. 

As an active member of the RCC Loss Prevention Advisory Committee, Isabelle contributes to various sub-committee initiatives, demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement and collaboration within the industry. 

Sarah is a Senior Security Professional with over 20 years of progressive experience in Retail, Grocery, Hospitality and Food & Beverage Industries. She has spent the bulk of her career in Loss Prevention implementing and influencing security practices and procedures. With a focus on identification, investigation and resolution of internal and external criminal activity and incident management. She has also overseen Health & Safety programs to ensure compliance with regulations, legislation as well as reduce risk and liability associated with employee or customer injury or illnesses. 

Michelle’s passion for design began at a young age, sketching and reimagining floor plans from the new homebuilder section of the newspaper. This early interest led her to pursue a degree in Interior Design and embark on a career with The Home Depot in 2005.​

Over the years, Michelle has honed her design and sales skills, serving a diverse customer base. She earned her Certified Designer designation from the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) and was inspired to create a program within The Home Depot to help other designers achieve their accreditation.​

Michelle’s commitment to the industry extends beyond her professional role. In addition to volunteering as a judge for the RCC, she has also participated as a judge for a provincial student design competition, enjoying the opportunity to recognize and encourage emerging talent.​

With 20 years of experience in retail and Learning & Development, Michelle has recently taken on the role of Senior Manager of Learning Strategy. In this position, she is dedicated to empowering associates and enhancing workforce capabilities through innovative learning solutions.

Vy Hoang, known to many as Vee, is the Chief Customer Officer at i3 International, a forward-thinking AI technology company delivering innovative and affordable AI solutions to the retail, commercial, and institutional sectors. With an impressive 37 years of leadership at i3, Vy has been integral to the company’s customer-focused approach, driving both business growth and security advancements that prioritize client needs. 

Under Vy’s strategic direction, i3 has achieved notable success, including securing 9 US and Canadian patents in AI and data analytics, as well as earning the prestigious “Best Cloud Hosted Solution” award from the Security Industry Association (SIA). His efforts in cultivating strong partnerships and delivering tailored, cutting-edge solutions have positioned i3 as a leader in the AI security space. 

Beyond his professional achievements, Vee’s personal story of resilience—from his family’s journey as refugees in the 1980s to his own battle with cancer—has shaped his commitment to innovation with purpose. These experiences have deepened his dedication to creating impactful solutions while fostering a culture of collaboration and compassion within i3. 

Vy holds an MBA from the Ivey School of Business, and his blend of professional expertise and personal insights make him a compelling speaker. He inspires audiences with his unique perspectives on leadership, perseverance, and the future of AI-driven security, while remaining committed to helping i3’s partners achieve their goals. 

Athena Kalkanis is a strategic marketing leader with extensive experience in the retail and
service sectors, both corporate and franchise, with a focus on the hair, beauty, and fashion
industries across North America and the Caribbean.
Athena established her career as the Director of Marketing at Regis Corporation, one of the
biggest haircare companies in the beauty sector with more than 7,000 locations across North
America. She advanced through various roles spearheading the marketing efforts for Canadian
brands such as First Choice Haircutters, Beauty Supply Outlet and Magicuts, during her
employment with the company.

One of the keys to her success is her ability to translate big picture ideas into award-winning,
innovative campaigns that drive results. Over her years of experience, she developed many
successful national and regional marketing campaigns speaking to various target groups and
leveraging all forms of communication vehicles.

Athena is known as a passionate marketer who brings creative ideas and visions to life, helping
brands flourish using engaging storytelling. She is a Ryerson graduate.

With over eight years of leadership in the non-profit sector, Preet Kiran Sandhu brings a wealth of experience in employer engagement, community outreach, and cross-sectoral partnerships development. Currently serving as Manager, Inclusive Employment at United Way Greater Toronto, Preet oversees initiatives that create meaningful employment pathways for marginalized communities.

Preet has successfully collaborated with over 50 organizations, including corporations, government bodies, and community agencies, to deliver impactful social programs. Her expertise spans designing workforce development programs for equity-deserving groups, such as immigrants, women, and youth. She is a proven leader in building strategic partnerships, with a track record of securing funding and developing innovative projects like the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council – TRIEC’s podcast series Voices for Change.

A passionate advocate for social inclusion, Preet holds a Master’s in Marketing from Queen Mary University of London and has been recognized for her community contributions with awards like the ‘Collaborator Award.’

Nicky Arthur is the Energy Management and Sustainability Specialist at Lush Cosmetics, North
America, working within the Global Earthcare team to Leave the World Lusher Than We Found
It. Her areas of focus include energy management and procurement, emissions reduction, and
electrification strategy design and implementation.
Nicky led Lush’s global review of renewable energy options and implementation for the brand’s
‘100% renewable energy everywhere’ goal for electricity. In North America, she also leads
emissions tracking, benchmarking and reporting across manufacturing and 260+ retail shops.
When it comes to new locations, Nicky works closely on the development of green lease
documentation to ensure alignment with Lush’s sustainability goals wherever possible in terms
of energy, water data sharing and waste diversion opportunities, along with development of the
Construction Materials Design Guide, which ensures retail projects align with Lush’s ethics
through materials sourcing and equipment selection.

Dynamic sales and marketing leader recognized for creativity, resourcefulness and sense of urgency while engaging with stakeholders and a track record of exceeding targets.

Rui Rodrigues, RCC Executive Advisor, Loss Prevention & Risk Management, has extensive leadership experience overseeing Loss Prevention, Risk Management, Security, Health & Safety and Audit functions with retailers such as ICI, Shoppers Drug Mart, Best Buy, Staples and Holt Renfrew. He has been actively involved with Retail Council of Canada and National Retail Federation for over 15 years helping to organize conferences, participating on LP Committees and as an active speaker / presenter at industry events. Rui has also served a 5 year term on the Peel Crime Stoppers Board with 2 of those years as Chairperson.

Rui’s role with the RCC is to support Loss Prevention, Asset Protection and Risk Management to enhance programs and services for members from coast to coast.

Corinne Kepper is the Vice President, Corporate Giving at Aritzia. Aritzia is an innovative design house delivering Everyday Luxury shopping experiences on aritzia.com and in 100+ boutiques throughout North America.

Corinne established Aritzia’s corporate giving department with a mission to drive positive change for women and girls. Under her leadership, Aritzia Community has built programs and partnerships to contribute more than $66 million of Aritzia product, financial and volunteer resources in key Aritzia cities across North America.

In prior roles she was a champion of culture and employee engagement through the creation and leadership of Aritzia’s Voice of People department to support understanding and amplifying the voices of our people to enable optimal business decisions. She also established Aritzia’s public relations department to support market entry in New York and Montreal and managed Aritzia’s 2016 IPO communications.

A passionate advocate for women’s advancement, Corinne frequently mentors young women, has served as a Board Director for Dress for Success Vancouver, a mentor for Pow Wow Pitch and a volunteer for many local organizations. Corinne earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree at Queen’s University.

Andrew is a seasoned Technology Executive with a history of identifying and leading successful business transformation programs. His background includes leading teams at Bell Canada and The Source to deliver new business capabilities, enhanced sales and productivity, and world-class customer service.  Since leaving The Source, Andrew has set up shop as an Executive Consultant, serving Retail, Telco, Health Care and Alternative Energy sector executives with both Senior Advisory strategy services as well as hands on leadership. He is known as a listener, consensus builder, visionary and driver of technological innovation that enables his customers to thrive. His interests include anything tech and acting on climate change. 

As an award-winning sales, ecommerce, marketing and technology leader, Sean has over 20 years’ experience in high growth B2B, B2C and C2C industries.   
 
Prior to founding Engagement Agents, Sean was the Director of Sales & Marketing for Stitch It Clothing Alterations, North America’s largest alterations service provider with 85 locations in major shopping centres. While helping Stitch It  drive traffic & sales, he discovered a problem; every retailer pays significantly for digital and physical marketing opportunities each month through their leases; via gross rent, variable/percentage rent, CAM fees, marketing/promo/ad funds and merchant association fees. 
 
However, only 10% of retailers engage the benefits of these significant investments, collectively costing retailers hundreds of billions in sales every year! 
 
As a result, Sean developed Engagement Agents, www.EngagementAgents.com, a world-class solution to help retailers promptly reclaim significant amounts of lost traffic & sales by making it easy to engage their numerous already-paid-for shopping centers’ digital + physical retail media networks, paid for daily via the “hidden” marketing dollars in their leases.  
 
A number of the world’s most recognizable retailers rely on Engagement Agents’ award-winning solution, including Adidas, Levi’s, Lacoste, Sephora and Nespresso. 
 
Prior to joining Stitch It Sean founded Trend Trunk, Canada’s largest fashion marketplace, which was a finalist for three Canada Post Ecommerce Innovation Awards and Preferred One, one of the largest retailer gift card marketing companies in North America driving hundreds of millions of dollars to retailers.  In addition, Sean was recognized with “Guy Who Gets It” Award by Illuminessence Magazine for valiant contributions to gender equality, social justice and community development.

Channeling an irrepressible energy, passion and love of people, Rick is best known as the co-founder and long-time CEO of Urban Barn, one of the best furniture retailers in Canada. While there, he became known for finding smart and motivated leaders and advisors and empowering them in the business.  

Since leaving Urban Barn, Rick has used his experiences – from start up to exit – to help the next generation of entrepreneurs scale or ready-to-scale their ventures. He a strong interest in sustainability, health, and wellness,    

He had been particularly active in supporting the evolution of early-stage business in Canada.  Rick has been engaging top level executives and founders to develop a collective point of view and has adopted a leadership role in advocacy in several various ventures.   

In the spring of 2019, Rick joined DIG360 Consulting Ltd. as a Senior Advisor and recently has established his own advisory. The team and its clients alike have benefitted from his counsel and innovative ideas.  Rick supports these with leadership philosophy and advice on areas that fueled his successes to date: focusing deeply on customer and employee experiences and designing a scalable culture. 

John is an innovative and strategic leader with over two decades of experience in transforming retail environments through the integration of digital and physical design elements. He specializes in elevating in-store customer experiences by leveraging technology, design thinking, and cross-functional leadership. Proven track record in directing high-performing teams to achieve award-winning retail design and digital integration projects. Passionate about creating seamless, engaging customer journeys that drive brand loyalty and sales.

Brooke Ferguson, is a highly-accomplished, dynamic executive leader and visionary Chief Human Resources Officer with Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC). Brooke has a unique background of skills and expertise with outstanding relationship-building and team leadership attributes. Having spent the past 30 years at HBC with time both in Canada and the U.S; and more than 25 years of that spent in varying roles in Human Resources with demonstrated achievements, adding value through talent development and implementation of innovative, cost-effective strategies, solutions and services that support the organization and maximizes the Human Resources function to increase productivity and stimulate business growth.

Conscious Leaders are incredibly aware of themselves, others, and the influence they have on situations, events, and people. I support people in being highly responsive verses reactive in the life that they lead to ensure they bring their full and authentic self to the world.

I am the Founder and CEO of Vicki Bradley & Company and WIL Empowered, a Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Energy Leadership Index Assessment Master Practitioner (ELI-MP), Certified in Conversational Intelligence (CIQ), and Emotional Intelligence (EQi 2.0).

What stands me apart from most coaches is that I am a seasoned Executive with 25+ years’ experience in leading high performing teams in the retail industry across North America. I’ve held progressive roles with iconic retailers which include: President of the Bombay Furniture Company in Canada while simultaneously leading the store organization as VP Sales and Operations for Bombay US, SVP of Sales and Operations with Marks and Spencer’s, VP of Sales and Operations with luxury retailer Holt Renfrew (Hr2) and held progressive roles within the Woolworth Organization across North America. I sat on the Board of Directors for the Retail Council of Canada, Party Packagers, and OSI tile.

My passion has always been with supporting and stretching individuals beyond what they believe themselves capable of, creating environments that are co-creative for learning, and supporting others to see their greatness. I became a coach so that I could have an impact on more individuals in this world but especially women.

Are you ready to step into your greatness?

David is the Founder and CEO of The Poirier Group, a boutique management consulting firm focused on strategy execution, operational efficiency and sustainable business transformations for clients across the retail, private equity, manufacturing and healthcare sectors in North America. He provides oversight and perspective acquired from 25+ years of successful C-Suite experience across major National and International organizations. David works with leaders to create and translate strategic roadmaps into actionable goals, helping organizations achieve their full potential. He thrives at running multiple global divisions in complex and everchanging business environments and effecting positive cultural shifts that impact bottom line performance.

Sari Deckelbaum is a well rounded business & digital executive whose 20 year career has been characterized by the sustained and impactful digital business transformations of the North American retail businesses with whom she has collaborated over that period. A digital veteran since late Web 1.0, her experience through all phases of the digital revolution has equipped her with a deep and broad understanding of evolving business, digital, marketing, & e-commerce trends, while bringing a growth and agile mind-set and fresh new innovative strategic perspective to large retail organizations seeking to unlock business value, drive profitable growth and increase market share.

She currently serves as the Senior Vice-President of e-commerce at Sleep Country Canada where she inspires and leads teams to adopt sustainable, omni-business models, while using digital technology, strong digital experience and proven marketing performance strategies to drive innovation, growth, a robust online presence, and to digitally transform. Under her leadership she has led significant new business wins and has delivered strong business growth.

Her career spans multiple senior e-commerce and digital & marketing roles across the North American retail landscape. As a business transformation leader Sari uses her platform to drive thought leadership for the encouragement of digital transformation across business sectors, and also to inspire organizations to leverage data and insights to empower better marketing, & enterprise decision making leveraging a customer first approach.

Sari aspires to share her drive and wealth of knowledge with talented global teams and fellow business, digital, technology, & marketing leaders, while encouraging and championing innovation and change.

Lori Bailey is a passionate retail industry leader with broad sales, marketing and operations expertise.She is known for spearheading unique strategies, which have proven to expand retailers target audiences, by building brand centric experiences, focusing on all five senses.

Prior to launching her own company, Just4Women Group, Lori served as Chief Customer Experience Officer and Senior Vice President of Retail Operations for Sears Canada, overseeing 140 retail stores and more than 500 dealer and agent locations.  Lori has held a range of executive positions at well-known retail fashion chains throughout her career including Head of Gap Canada, Advisor to Nine West, Vice-President of Jones New York and Laura Canada, as well as consulting on several projects, including the conception and launch of Tweed Retail for Canopy Growth.  She has an unprecedented track record for growing revenue and profit at every company she has worked for.

Lori has received multiple sales achievement awards from leading Canadian and international retailers.  With 25 years of executive experience, she has intimate knowledge of the Canadian retail landscape and has developed a massive network of talent with core skills in customer engagement, networking, and clientele building. 

When the pandemic hit in 2020, many of the women in her network found themselves unemployed for the first time in their careers, just like 500,000 other women in Canada whose jobs were impacted by Covid 19.  That’s when she and the women in her group took control and launched their own brand, J4W HOME & Gifts, because there’s always a reason to give a gift.  Lori’s vision for Just4Women Group is to provide every woman with the options made simple and the means to style it her way.

Ted is Co-Founder and CEO of Stream Commerce. Stream Commerce is the fastest growing Shopify Plus e-commerce agency in North America. Stream Commerce serves high growth, high volume Shopify Plus merchants with expert e-commerce consulting, site design & development, site optimization and digital performance marketing.

Lawyer by training, Ted is an e-commerce executive and entrepreneur. Ted started selling online in 1996 – over 25 years of e-commerce experience. Ted built and scaled the QVC of Canada, The Shopping Channel, first taking the business from scratch to over $125m in annual online sales and later as President of The Shopping Channel, building out its multi-channel offering to over $350m in DTC sales.

As an executive operator and agency entrepreneur, Ted has a unique perspective, with a combination of client side, agency side, start-up, public company, private company and private equity backed e-commerce experience. A frequent speaker at retail industry events, Ted loves to share his experience as a digital retail and consumer product innovator.

Hassan Chaudhry is responsible for leading the strategic planning and implementation of store development, store design, construction and engineering for the national retail portfolio at Staples Canada. He provides leadership to the construction, fixturing, design and project management teams.

David Thorpe is a high energy, results driven, customer-obsessed marketing professional who loves working for retail challenger brands. Over the course of 20+ years, he’s held senior marketing leadership roles with Ashley Homestore Canada, London Drugs Limited, one of British Columbia’s most loved brands, and national discount leader, Giant Tiger Stores Limited, where he was responsible for all marketing communications activities to build brand, drive traffic and support growth to over 200 franchised stores across Canada. 

David has also worked as General Manager of a digital marketing agency and served on a number of industry advisory boards including the RAC in Toronto, CRMC(Chicago), GRMA (FL) and the CMO council of the National Retail Federation. ( Washington, DC). He also served on the board of Capture Photography Festival in Vancouver, BC. 

David is an avid cyclist, sailor and photographer. He presently lives and works in Ottawa, Ontario as a Retail Marketing Consultant and teaches Retail Management and Marketing as a professor in the School of Business at. Algonquin College.

David Ian Gray is a recognized expert on retail and shopper trends, consistently producing high-impact knowledge for over 25 years. With his team, David provides fresh counsel across Canada to Founders, CEOs and other executives on defining customer-relevance, rethinking customer experience and tailoring roadmaps for evolving their retail and DTC concepts. He is widely sought for insight by business media.

David presents regularly on emerging retail trends, the role of retail in a sustainable future, the need for strategic adaptation and management of innovation, and other topics. David is in Rethink Retail’s Top 100. He cofounded and co-hosted the pandemic podcast The Business of Retail and has taught senior executives with the prestigious London Business School and the next generation of talent at Canadian business schools.

James has been part of the Canadian retail landscape for over 25 years with three iconic Canadian companies; previously Shoppers Drug Mart and Petro-Canada, and currently with Parkland.   In his role with Parkland, James is leading the Canadian Category Management team for Chevron, Fas Gas, UltraMar and Pioneer stores and car washes. 

Ask Marissa Andersson why she works in learning, talent and leadership development and there is only one answer ‘Learning Changes Lives’. Marissa creates learning and talent development experiences that reignite the passion that we all innately have to explore, learn, and grow. Through these experiences, people become better at whatever they pursue, and lives can be changed for the better.

Marissa’s has lived this mission in her learning career through progressive roles across industries and learning focussed organizations. Marissa has practiced what she preaches throughout and continually invests in her own development, most recently completing her Masters in Adult Education and Leadership. Currently, Marissa supports Talent Management, Organizational Effectiveness and Leadership Development at the Home Depot Canada where she leads teams who develop others across The Home Depot store network and Store Support Centre (head office).

When asked to describe herself with three words Rosa Magrone would say, resourceful, enthusiastic and courageous. Rosa’s passion for learning comes from a lifelong obsession for reading. From a young age Rosa devoured books by the dozen. Rosa made fast friends with her elementary school librarian Mrs. Desouza and could be found in the school library every day after school and looking for the next great story to read. As an adult Rosa fueled this passion into her purpose and is why she chose to spend the better part of her career in Human Resources and Learning and Development.

As a  Human Resources leader, Rosa is known for strong leaderships, unwavering integrity, and the ability to influence ideas and relationships.  Rosa also has extensive leadership in resource planning, change management and developing leadership development programs while partnering with leadership teams to collaboratively move the organization forward. In her current role as the Manager, Leadership Development & Solution Rosa is responsible for designing and facilitating the Home Depot Leadership Curriculum for people leaders across Canada.

Gary’s established international reputation for rapid business performance transformation and executing supply chain designs, consistently builds market prominence, shareholder value and consumer trust.

Gary helps Boards and Business Leaders to navigate disruption and reinvigorate supply chain performance across the “make-move-sell” flow of Manufacturing, 3^rd Party Logistics, Wholesaling, Retailing & The Last Mile.  

When it comes to diagnosing and resolving mission critical issues, armed with multiple operational turnarounds and strategic transformations completed, Gary deploys the RAPID Transformation Roadmap to align processes, systems, architecture, culture and metrics to deliver enduring competitive advantage. 

Gary is a sought after thought leader, speaker, podcaster and trainer in “RAPID Transformation of Disrupted Supply Chain Performance” by many professional bodies. Recently awarded Supply Chain Canada’s “Top 40 Immigrants impacting on Supply Chains”, recognised for his creative thinking via CITT’s “2020 Innovator Award”, Gary has also been recognised as one of “Rethink Retail’s Top 100 Global Retail Influencers”.  

Gary has an MBA and an MSc (Supply Chain Management & Logistics) from Cranfield University, UK and is recently CCLP, CSCMP, PMP, LSSBB and Retail Management certified.