The moment you (might have) been waiting for is here. To ring in the new year, Retail Brew will be covering the National Retail Federation’s annual conference that kicks off the year.

Big picture: The retail world is off to a fast (chaotic?) start this year. Bed Bath & Beyond has signaled it may file for bankruptcy, Amazon will lay off more workers than previously stated—many in the retail division—and chief executives at Stitch Fix and Victoria’s Secret are out the door. The backdrop to all of this includes the usual suspects: inflation, fears of a full-on recession, and a deluge of unwanted, excess inventory for some brands.

If you’ll be attending next week, feel free to say hi, but we wanted to highlight a few of the keynote addresses and sessions that caught our eye.

Jan. 15

Macy’s CEO and chairman Jeff Gennette will speak at one of the first keynote sessions on day two to discuss new investments the company has made, rebuilding the company’s financial health, and Macy’s new commitment to style and fashion.

Later in the day, our very own Jeena Sharma will moderate a discussion between executives from Chobani, Hollister, and Nordstrom on purpose-driven retail. As we’ve previously covered, 82% of consumers prefer to shop brands that reflect their values.

Jan. 16

Like almost every retailer, Lowe’s has had to accelerate its transition into a fully-fledged omnichannel operation. CEO and chairman Marvin Ellison has overseen much of this transformation and will go into more detail on the future of Lowe’s vision.

According to NRF’s 2022 National Retail Security Survey, retailers reported an average 26.5% increase in organized retail crime (ORC). A Monday featured session will bring together a representative from DHS, the Illinois attorney general’s office, and a loss prevention expert to discuss how to tackle ORC.

Read the whole story here.—KM

While many start to wind down their work at the end of the year, sending out a slew of “Let’s circle back in the New Year!” emails, some retail executives used the final weeks of 2022 to make major career moves. We rounded up the most notable comings and goings in December:

• Under Armour named Stephanie Linnartz, president of Marriott International and member of The Home Depot’s board of directors, as incoming CEO starting February 27. Interim CEO Colin Browne will resume his role as COO.
• Former LVMH executive Andrea Guerra will serve as Prada Group’s next CEO. He takes over for Miuccia Prada, who will remain creative director for both Prada and Miu Miu and a board member, and Patrizio Bertelli, who will become chairman. The Prada brand also tapped Gianfranco D’Attis as CEO.
• CPG vet Carla Vernón joined The Honest Company as its new CEO. She most recently served as VP of consumables at Amazon, following an over two-decade run at General Mills, that included leading its natural and organic division. Former CEO Nick Vlahos will move to a role on its board of directors following a six-year tenure with The Honest Company.
• Steven Rendle retired from his role as chairman, president, and CEO at North Face-owner VF Corp. Former Clorox CEO Benno Dorer will serve as CEO in the interim.
• Matteo Franceschini is the new CEO of the Viktor & Rolf brand, taking over for Andrea Collisei.
• Urban Outfitters Group president Francis Pierrel stepped down after joining the company in February to oversee its North America division.
• PVH appointed Eva Serrano as Calvin Klein global brand president, effective in March. Serrano is currently president of Zara-owner Inditex’s Greater China division.

Keep reading here.—EC

Today’s top retail reads.

Food for thought: Copenhagen fine-dining icon Noma is closing its doors, and making a transition to a “food laboratory,” creating dishes for its e-commerce operation. “Noma and many other elite restaurants are facing scrutiny of their treatment of the workers, many of them paid poorly or not at all, who produce and serve these exquisite dishes. The style of fine dining that Noma helped create and promote around the globe—wildly innovative, labor-intensive and vastly expensive—may be undergoing a sustainability crisis.” (the New York Times)

Yellow brick road: A look at Twitter’s golden checkmark system for brands, which has been confusing and chaotic…sort of like Twitter itself. (Glossy)

Spoon out: In England, a long-anticipated ban on single-use plastic plates and cutlery is coming down the pipeline for restaurants and cafes, following similar bans in Scotland and Wales. (NPR)

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What happened in the world of retail this week in…1977 and beyond? Retail Brew takes you way, way, way back.

• On January 8, 2002, Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas died at age 69. Thomas opened his first Wendy’s restaurant in Ohio in 1969, naming it after his daughter.
• On January 9, 2007, Steve Jobs introduced the first generation iPhone at the MacWorld Expo in San Francisco. Yes, he was wearing a black turtleneck on stage.
• On January 10, 1977, legendary inventor of the chocolate chip cookie, Ruth Wakefield, died. Wakefield, who named her recipe after the Toll House Inn she ran with her husband, sold the recipe to Nestlé for use on its packages.
• On January 11, 1878, milk was delivered in glass bottles for the first time, by New Yorker Alexander Campbell. (January 11 is now National Milk Day!)

Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• Heineken USA’s CMO on the beer giant’s NA biz
• Why doesn’t Amazon accept PayPal?
• Consumers gravitated to affordable, reliable brands in 2022