The conference, the largest event in the UK retail industry’s calendar, will be held at the Hilton Metropole, London, on 14th-15th March 2012. The two-day event attracted over 1,100 delegates from more than 500 companies in 2011 and visitor numbers are expected to be even higher in 2012.
As part of its sponsorship The Cloud will provide free WiFi at the event itself and will be mentioned in all marketing material produced in the run-up to and at the conference, including email newsletters, brochures and webinars.
The Cloud also plans to create a dedicated microsite as a resource for retailers, with information on how they can use WiFi to drive their revenues and increase customer loyalty.
Since January, The Cloud has rapidly scaled the size of its public WiFi estate to over 6,700 live hotspots with many more sites being added daily. It has put retailers at the heart of its proposition, offering a true venue experience to some of Britain’s biggest high street chains and malls, including Westfield Stratford City, Ted Baker and Phones4u, in addition to its existing customers such as the NEC, Bullring, Caffe Nero and Pizza Express. Further partnerships will be announced over the coming months.
In 2011 the Retail Week Conference received over 100 pieces of editorial coverage in more than 20 publications, and over a million tweets were sent with the Retail Week Conference hashtag.
Vince Russell, managing director of The Cloud, said: “The Retail Week Conference is the biggest event in the industry calendar and we’re delighted to be confirmed as headline sponsor.
“The huge growth in smartphones and tablet devices means that people see fast, reliable internet access on the go as an essential part of their daily lives. In turn this means that providing WiFi access is now a necessity for retailers. Through supporting the Retail Week event, we aim to educate the industry on how WiFi can generate additional revenue for their business, whether it be by increasing customer loyalty, gaining valuable insight into their customer base or facilitating digital marketing strategies.”
Colette Leong-son, Chief Executive of Emap Networks, organisers of the Retail Week conference, said: “The Cloud is one of the UK's leading providers of free public WiFi and prides itself on the strength of its network and the high levels of service that it delivers. We’re thrilled to be working with them as we grow this unique and nationally acclaimed event.”
Duncan Painter, Chief Executive of Emap, publishers of Retail Week, said: “Emap is home to many of the most well-known and respected international events, festivals, publications and insight brands. Partnering with us enables leading companies to reach and influence millions of people who seek out and trust our brands to deliver the information and access they need to improve their business.”
