Member Article

Bringing the ecommerce sector together

Manchester Digital has launched its 2022 ecommerce conference to bring together retailers and agencies to support each other and discuss challenges within the industry. The event takes place on Thursday, December 1 at the Tech Incubator at the Manchester Technology Centre on Oxford Road.

The North West has developed the largest concentration of ecommerce start-ups in the UK, which saw huge growth during the Covid pandemic as consumers were confined to their homes and shopped mostly online. However, they have also faced numerous challenges with post-Brexit supply chain issues, the spiralling cost of inflation - and now they are facing the cost-of-living crisis and the oncoming recession.

Katie Gallagher, managing director of Manchester Digital, said: “Our region has a number of phenomenal innovative ecommerce brands which have seen huge growth over the past few years, as well as the whole ecosystem of tech and software businesses, which supports the industry.

“The ecommerce sector has been incredibly resilient throughout numerous challenges, such as issues surrounding Brexit, the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, high inflation and now the UK is facing a period of economic recession.

“This is the perfect time to come together and discuss the future of the ecommerce industry, as well as discussing strategy and new technological advances.”

Simon Wharton, business strategy director at PushON, who is sponsoring the event, said: “Manchester is without a doubt the ecommerce hub of the UK. We’ve grown the sector by collaborating closely to build capacity and expertise and competing hard in the market. The Manchester Digital ecommerce conference is another step in ensuring that we lead the market going forward and for PushON, it was essential for us to be involved.”

The event is also sponsored by Adobe Commerce, Marsh Commercial, Mapp, Advanced Commerce and Gain Line.

The keynote speaker is Kristal Ireland, executive director at Rise at Seven who will be discussing how to create the perfect cross-channel brand moment to drive sales. There will also be a number of other speakers, as well as expert panels including a brand panel, an agency panel.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Carolyn Hughes .