The National Retail Federation (NRF), the world's largest retail trade association, and ProfitLogic, the industry-leading provider of Merchandise Optimization solutions, today announced the NRF 2005 Big Show Sunday Workshop: “Changing the Game: New Strategies for Merchandising Innovation.”  The Workshop takes place on Sunday, January 16, 2005 from 8:00 am to 11:00 am ET in Room 1E14/15 at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City and will feature executives from Northern Group Retail, Billy Beane, Manager of the Oakland A’s and Jack Mitchell, CEO of Mitchells/ Richards Department Stores and author of Hug Your Customers.  Breakfast will be served.

In the opening presentation, “Taking a Pitch from Baseball: Using Analytics to Improve Performance,” Billy Beane, General Manager of the Oakland A's, will explain how his team has leveraged analytical insight to build and run one of the highest performing baseball teams in the major leagues. 

During the second session, Northern Group Retail executives, Michael Stanek, CFO and Louise Collict, President, will share their customer-driven merchandising strategy and provide highlights of their three year turnaround.  Attendees will learn how Northern has successfully applied customer demand insight and analytics to in-season management.  They will also hear Northern’s strategy to achieve significant results by using Assortment Execution to turbocharge the planning and allocation process.

The seminar concludes with “Customer Intimacy: The Key to Merchandising Success,” presented by Jack Mitchell, CEO of Mitchells/ Richards Department Stores and Author of Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results.  He will share how customer intimacy supported by analytical insight from customer data has become the central focus of his operations.  Following the workshop, Jack Mitchell will be available for book signing.

 “Our session is designed to shed light on how retailers are using merchandising innovations to dramatically improve performance,” said Scott Friend, President and Co-Founder of ProfitLogic, who will be hosting the Sunday Workshop.  “We are thrilled with this year’s line up and believe that by attending our Workshop, retail executives will gain terrific insight into how they can boost their own company’s performance.”

In addition to hosting the Sunday Workshop, ProfitLogic is also sponsoring the “Innovate or Die” Super Session on Wednesday January 19, 2005 from 9:45 am — 10:45 am ET in Room 1DMR (the Main Events Hall).  Ken Walker, President of WalkerGroup/Designs, will host the following panel of designers, thinkers, inventors and architects: Ronald Johnson, Senior Vice President, Retail, Apple Computer, Bruce Mau, Creative Director, Bruce Mau Design, Inc. and Patrick Whitney, Director, Institute of Design, Illinois Institute of Technology.  Using a highly interactive panel format with lots of audience participation, the session will challenge attendees to look for and harness innovation that can have a meaningful effect on their business.

During tradeshow hours on Monday, January 17th and Tuesday, January 18th from 10:30 am — 6:00 pm ET, ProfitLogic invites you to visit our newly redesigned booth #433, which looks like a retail storefront. Also, ProfitLogic has teamed up with strategic partner, IBM, and will be featured as the last stop on the Personal Shopper Tour in IBM’s Solution Center at booth #270. Come see how IBM’s fictitious retailer, ValueTrend Superstores, leverages shopping cart devices, kiosks, guided selling, Everywhere Display, wireless and Self Checkout to transform their customers’ shopping experiences. 

Lastly, ProfitLogic is participating in an IBM Multi-Client Briefing being held Tuesday, January 18th in Room #2D14 at 1:00 pm, where ProfitLogic Co-founder and President, Scott Friend will present, “The Science of Retail: How Merchandising Analytics Boost Profits,” addressing how analytics have helped retailers increase sales, grow margins, and improve inventory turns while increasing customer satisfaction.

If you are interested in attending or would like more information, please visit: www.profitlogic.com/nrf2005.

About ProfitLogic ProfitLogic provides an industry-leading suite of Merchandise Optimization solutions designed for retailers whose priority is getting the highest return on inventory investments.  ProfitLogic’s solutions provide merchants with day-to-day operational decision support and workflow for making better-informed assortment execution, allocation and fashion replenishment, promotion, pricing and markdown decisions. ProfitLogic has delivered fast, flexible solutions with significant financial benefit to industry leading retailers such as American Eagle Outfitters, AnnTaylor, Bloomingdale's, Charming Shoppes, Gap Inc., including: Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, Gap International and Gap Outlet; JCPenney, Lerner New York, Marshall Field's, Meijer Stores, Northern Group Retail, Sears, ShopKo Stores, Target Stores and Toys R Us.  For more information about Cambridge, Mass.-based ProfitLogic, call 617-218-1900 or visit www.profitlogic.com.