Thank you Ken Bankson!

This year, at the ICBA 2012 Retail Conference, we honor our long time colleague and friend, Ken Bankson of RMSA for his continuous dedication and support in helping ICBA stores achieve financial success.

From the creation of the RMSA-ICBA forum to our RMSA-ICBA Peer Group conference calls - growing so popular they are now Peer Group webinars - Ken brings immeasurable value to our members during these dynamic times in our industry. Stemming from his passion for retailing and building strong client relationships, Ken selflessly regards the needs of our members as his first priority. For this, ICBA thanks Ken Bankson for all he has done and will continue to do for ICBA Stores.

With gratitude, Ken Bankson shares the following:

Dear ICBA,

Thank you for your recognition at the ICBA Retail Conference. To say I was stunned and thrilled at the same time would be understating my emotions. Having passion for this industry is easy due to the fine people I have met over the past 15 years. The passion has grown the last few years now that I am directly working with many of your members. The challenges they face due to the change in the industry are significant - creating great opportunity as well as potential risk, Helping them maximize their opportunities while minimizing their risk is very rewarding.

I am lucky that RMSA has been able to build such a strong, beneficial bond with ICBA. I look forward to seeing many of you at CAMEX in Salt Lake City and to many more years of working together with my friends at RMSA.

All the best,
Ken Bankson

About RMSA:
RMSA works with retailers on a personal and individual basis to improve the performance of their business by achieving specific and measurable goals. ICBA has partnered with Retail Merchandise Service Automation (RMSA) for more than ten years. RMSA is the nation’s oldest and largest company offering retail merchandise planning, forecasting and inventory management services. For more information please visit the ICBA Website, Retail Management (RMSA)

Written By Skye Carlson, ICBA Administrative Assistant

ICBA 2012 Hosted Over 4,460 Buyer & Vendor Meetings!

The ICBA 2012 Retail Conference, Business Encounter & PRIMEtime, featuring the D&H Pavilion, is now a recent memory. WOW! What a great week in warm, sunny south Florida!

The week started off with our PRIMEtime meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday. Over 4,460 one-to-one meetings were scheduled between ICBA buyers and the PRIMEtime vendors over the two days. Vendors attending PRIMEtime represented product categories such as Academic Course Materials, Apparel, Backpacks, Imprinted Gifts, School & Office Supplies, Computers, Computer Accessories and Consumer Electronics.

110 ICBA buyers and managers took advantage of our FREE offer for PRIMEtime—FREE registration (a $595 value) and FREE airfare (up to $500), plus $30 for ground transportation. ICBA reimbursed our member stores over $113,000 in travel expense to attend the 2012 Retail Conference. No other organization offers this valuable benefit. Plan to be at ICBA 2013 and take advantage of all the ICBA has to offer.

PRIMEtime offers an opportunity to discover new product lines and suppliers that you may have never seen to add to your merchandise mix to increase your bottom line, over 30 new vendors companies attended PRIMEtime just this year!

What are the buyers saying about ICBA 2012 PRIMEtime:

Academic Course Materials

“Finding out if there are new things we could collaborate on to offer more affordable course materials to students. Learning about new programs that we can implement that could save us money as an organization.”

Apparel, Backpacks & Imprinted Gifts

“Seeing new vendors I have never worked with before in a no-pressure environment.”

“The knowledge I picked up from meeting one-on-one.”

“Getting to know vendors you haven't met or wouldn't get a chance to meet before.”

“PRIMEtime prepares me for the buying season and gives me the chance to see new vendors and ask question. It is a tough schedule to see so many vendors in 2 days, but well worth the effort.

School & Office Supply

“Seeing so much product in such a compact amount of time. GREAT preview to the season.”

“Meeting all the stakeholders who are inspired by their products.”

Technology Products

“Seeing all the new products. Connecting with reps.”

Thank you to all attending buyers and vendors who joined us in Fort Myers, Florida. Specifically, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to connect with your peers, old and new vendor partners and to learn about new innovations and solutions that will help advance your store into the future. Plan to be with us for ICBA 2013 PRIMEtime, February 4-9, 2013 at a location to be announced soon.

For more details about the ICBA Retail Conference & PRIMEtime events, featuring the D&H Pavilion, please contact Marty Duncan, ICBA Program Manager at 866-841-ICBA (4222) or MartyDuncan@ICBAinc.com. See you in 2013!