Celebrating International Women’s Day tomorrow, (Saturday 8 March), Spring and Autum Fair have launched a white paper in collaboration with Digital Women – a network of 130,000 women dedicated to learning and sharing digital skills – that’s available to download on the Spring Fair website from today (Friday 7 March).
Committed to elevating women in retail, and providing a platform, such as the Women in Retail Day at Spring Fair, the white paper is championing the groundbreaking women shaping the industry, featuring their expert knowledge and insights on digital tools for independent retailers.
Entitled Navigating Digital Transformation in Retail: Strategies for Growth in 2025, the white paper provides multiple benefits across the retail industry.
CLICK HERE Empowering women in retail – Autumn Fair 2025
In Chapter 1, Aggie Meroni, founder of White Bee Digital, explores the five things any retailer can do to boost their profitability when advertising on Meta, sighting website conversion rate, order value, effectively using free delivery incentives, professional photography and mobile optimisation.
Lucia Dello, founder and director of Dello Insights, shares five ways to use customised dashboards to transform data and maximise e-commerce profits in Chapter 2, including optimising the blend of acquisition and retention activity, linking marketing performance directly to customer lifetime value, performance measurement of sales channels, aligning stock levels with customer demand and controlling product margins.
In Chapter 3, marketing strategist Niki Hutchison discusses how businesses can make best use of marketing tools and organic digital to dominate the market. She predicts: “Looking ahead to the future of digital marketing, it’s clear that long-term, repeatable success relies on organic strategies first. The most successful brands in 2024 and beyond will be those that achieve a seamless, engaging customer experience across all touchpoints, from the very first click to long-term brand advocacy.”
In Chapter 4, Susan Heaton-Wright, leading expert in two-way communication for engagement globally, tackles the challenge of ‘AI with the human connection’. Key takeaways include understanding customer issues and language, allowing for all customer responses and regularly reviewing and training AI customer chats.
In Chapter 5, Vernette John-Joiles, award-winning business owner, trainer and digital expert, guides readers through the digital sales landscape and explores why, from a retail perspective, prioritising digital upskilling is crucial to ensure growth and sustainability in the UK retail sector.
Closing the white paper in Chapter 6, Jess Williams Chadwick, networker, writer and connector, examines what thought leadership in retail really means, why it’s essential, and – most importantly – how to put it into action. Jess says: “True thought leadership isn’t just about talking a big game, it’s about demonstrating expertise and leading the conversation in a way that inspires your industry. In retail, a sector notoriously plagued by tight margins, fierce competition and constantly evolving customer expectations, the stakes for thought leadership are higher than ever. As we enter a new era of retail, thought leadership isn’t just ‘nice to have’, it’s a strategic advantage.”
Autumn Fair 2025 takes place from 7-10 September at the NEC. Visit www.autumnfair.com; Spring Fair 2026 takes place from 1-4 February at the NEC. Visit www.springfair.com
Top: A digital trends Masterclass, one of the best attended, was held at Spring Fair in February. On the panel were Lucia Dello (Dello Insights), Niki Hutchison (Enjoy Marketing) and Christine Gritmon (branding coach).
