NRF is the world’s largest retail conference with over 38,000 attendees. It’s also a show where some of the largest players in the B2B space come together and show the world what is on the horizon for retail tech. This year, Jay Menashe, Director of Business Development, looked for the exhibit elements and experiences that stood out most to him. Check out what he thought!

1. NRF 2019 in review
–
Jay Menashe
Director, Business Development
Jack Morton Worldwide
January 2019

2. Table of contents
1. Introduction
2. High Signage
3. AV, Lighting and Unique Signage
4. Product Demos
5. Entrances and Welcome Desks
6. Experiential
7. Final Thoughts

3. Introduction
NRF is the world’s largest retail conference
with over 38,000 attendees. It’s also a show
where some of the largest players in the B2B
space come together and show the world what
is on the horizon for retail tech.
This year, I looked for the exhibit elements and
experiences that stood out most to me.

4. Kronos:
Great use of tiered signage. The logo popped
and the dynamic messaging below kept
people looking.
Hughes:
A great job capturing various
site lines with a pop using
multiple lightboxes.
High signage

5. IBM:
Great use of light, reflection and color. I would
have liked to see the logo in more places.
Fortinet:
Love the use of light to make the logo pop
on the hanging sign and main wall.
High signage

6. Salesforce:
One of my favorite elements of the show.
The beautiful LED was simply captivating.
Amazon Web Services:
Great use of architectural
lighting to draw your eye to
the space.
Heartland:
The etched glass was a really
nice touch throughout their
space.
AV, lighting and unique signage

7. Cisco:
I loved the scenic touch of
this booth. Making it feel
like anytown USA.
Infor:
It’s hard to miss a booth
when they have a 20’ H LED
screen at reception.
Elo:
Maybe it’s my love of lists or the simple
things in life, but I love how easy they made
it to understand what they do in 3 seconds.
AV, lighting and unique signage

8. Salesforce:
Tapping client’s to tell your
story will always win over
telling it yourself.
Fortinet:
I loved the use of light to make the
demo stations pop. The
cleanliness is also easy on the
Lexmark:
Simple and clear messaging, easy
to navigate demo. Attributes of a
great exhibit.
Product demos

9. Intel:
A great job of creating demand with the velvet rope. There was a constant
crowd in front of their space filled with people wondering what they would see.
Entrances and welcome desks

10. NCR:
A great job of using branding
tiers to make their brand pop.
Honeywell:
Creating a clear entry point made it easy for attendees
to navigate into the space while also giving Honeywell
the ability to control the crowds.
Entrances and welcome desks

11. SAP:
A great draw into their space demonstrating the
comfort of their products for business owners or
couch surfing shoppers.
Salesforce:
Eye catching at every level. It was hard to miss
even without having the best location on the
floor.
Entrances and welcome desks

12. Experiential activations
Toshiba Art of Retail Experience:
A digital activation taking client products and turning them into art.
One of my favorite booth draws at the show!

13. Experiential activations
Verizon Museum Vibes:
A museum style graphic that brought attendees two different
vantage points.

14. Stratacache:
This is not your standard product demo (thankfully)!
Real bartenders making real drinks and showing off the
product suite at the same time.
Adyen:
It’s one thing to have a draw to your space,
but when you can tie in your products to the
experience, it’s a double whammy!
Experiential activations

15. Final thoughts
Retail is on the precipice of a major transformation due to
the impact that technology will have on the industry. NRF
proved to me that retail is far from dead—it’s simply
evolving. Let’s be honest, the biggest brands in the world
don’t support dying industries.
Creating captivating points of engagement from the ceiling
to the floor like IBM, SAP and Salesforce are what help
companies stand out on the show floor. If brands big or
small can approach real life retail in the same way standout
brands did on the NRF show floor, dying would never be an
option.

16. Questions?
–
Let’s chat!
Jay Menashe
jay_menashe@jackmorton.com
office: +1 609.223.4880
mobile: +1.201.885.0228