NOTHING LIKE A LITTLE RETAIL THERAPY

posted by Michael Chihak

Consumers are now in charge.

Retailers who don't recognize that -- and step up to meet it with quality, speed and versatility -- will be left behind.

That was clearly a key message at the 16th annual Global Retailing Conference in Tucson this week.

At the same time, there was a clear message of optimism and hope that hard work, attention to consumer demands and details and the use of new technologies will push brave retailers to and through the next frontier.

Arizona Week explores the issues on Friday's program, including these interviews:

-- Martha Van Gelder, director of the University of Arizona's Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing, host of the conference.

-- Terry J. Lundgren, a UA alumnus and president, chairman and CEO of Macy's Inc.

-- Poppy King, self-proclaimed "Lipstick Queen" whose company by the same name has grown rapidly over 20 years in the specialty market of cosmetics, with lipsticks and lip glosses.

-- Kerstin Block, founder and president of Buffalo Exchange, a Tucson-based retailer specializing in vintage and second-hand apparel. She has grown the business from one location in the Old Pueblo to 44 across the West since its founding in the 1970s.

Watch their interviews on Arizona Week Friday evening at 8:30 MST on PBS-HD6, or on our website, www.azweek.com.