Innovation Program at Wakefern

The CART Innovation Program presented by Retail Tomorrow is being hosted at Wakefern headquarters this Summer; an event specifically curated on-site for their executive team & staff. The two day event will allow you to learn first hand about Wakefern stores, present in an expo format to all of Wakefern’s staff, and will then give you the opportunity to present for 15 minutes LIVE to their executive team to network & engage 1 on 1 and build relationships with key decision makers.

Summer 2020: Welcome & Wakefern Tour
Summer 2020: Innovation Program Day

15 exhibitors, the Wakefern Executive team; the Innovation Program at Wakefern is where you'll be able to bring the future of retail technology into focus all in one room.

 By Application Only

Innovation Programs are by application only. We review your application and if it meets certain criteria, we further vet it with the host leadership team. If they’re interested, great! You’re invited. If the host isn’t specifically interested in your solution, we’ll let you know to move on to the next one. Wakefern hosts Innovation Programs semi-annually. Their next program will be held in Summer 2020.

Ahead of Time

You will be notified of your acceptance within about two weeks of submitting your application. Once we have the green light, we share all the logistics information, more detailed program information, and a list of the attendees to the program.

We’ll set you up with everything you need for success.

Presentation Performance: Positioning & Delivery Conversation

We appreciate that you put a great deal of time and effort into crafting your company’s message. We get it. We know that. But crafting, memorizing, and delivering at an Innovation Program is drastically different from giving any other company pitch you’ve ever given, so get ready & let’s have some fun!

As you start working on your presentation, we’ll give you the feedback from the host about your application and why you were accepted. We also will develop you as a speaker to make sure you’re able to deliver the mosts powerful presentation possible.

How do we do it?

As part of your acceptance into the program we develop you in Presentation Mastery. A program we designed specifically to deliver an effective presentation on-site and get the desired results. Not only do we give you the ins & outs of what the presentation looks like, we’ll give you insight from Wakefern into exactly what they’re looking for and exactly what they want to hear from you. This is about a win-win-win partnership!

Presentation Format

An Innovation Program is a showcase for you to present your company in about 15 minutes. There are 10 minutes to present and 5 minutes for Q&A. It sounds short, but don’t worry. Every solution that has joined us does it with plenty of time. This is like the trailer to a movie — if we can’t support the executives understanding what you do and how you do it in 10 minutes, a deeper dive won’t help. Of course, program materials support the executives to have your contact information and application details during the presentation as well.

Why under 15 minutes?

This short talk model works, since it only demands the audience's attention for a short period of time, decreasing the chance of minds wandering or daydreaming about lunch. In fact, some of our greatest Innovation Program talks have been as short as 5 minutes long!

After the Program

There’s Q&A after every presentation so you have a chance to hear live some of the feedback. There are also feedback forms that executives will fill out for every presentation there including: was your presentation clear, what other questions they have, if they’re interested in follow up or even moving right to a pilot. And we get you a summary of all that information within days of the event. You also will receive all the contact information of the attendees to follow up as appropriate.

Hear What’s Being Said

THE HISTORY

About Wakefern

 

A leader in food and beverage retailing, Wakefern’s unique cooperative structure allows independent grocers to compete, and succeed, against multinational chains. While many might think it’s impossible for family-owned businesses to deliver a customized, community-specific experience AND the competitive pricing and product variety customers have come to expect from large chains, Wakefern has proved that it’s not only possible, but it has allowed us to be a strong force in the grocery industry. In fact, with 50 member families who independently own and operate 344 retail supermarkets under the ShopRite, Price Rite, The Fresh Grocer, Dearborn Market banners, Wakefern Food Corp. is the largest retailer-owned cooperative in the United States

By Application Only

Apply to to attend their semi-annual on-site Innovation Program. The forum helps key decision makers and decision influencers to move pilots, implementations and decisions forward faster. After being accepted you'll go through an extensive coaching process — we'll work with you on everything from your presentation deck to specific requests to make sure you're set up for the greatest success at the event.

Next event: Summer 2020. Apply to learn more about the Innovation Program and see if you’re a fit.