Show marks 'turning point.' - International Mass Retailing Association annual convention

Discount Store News, April 23, 1990

Show Marks `Turning Point'

SAN DIEGO -- The International Mass Retail Association's first convention of the 1990s will address a key theme on the minds of most discounters: "Turning Point . . . A New Decade."

Seminars and talks on the convention program are designed to "examine many aspects of the discount retailing industry which will be greatly affected by the changes confronting us in the 1990s," said Larry J. Hochberg, president and chief executive officer of Sportmart, the Niles, Ill.-based sporting goods megastore chain. "Our industry must be prepared to meet these changes in order to prosper and grow."

The seminars and presentations, and an extensive exhibit area of merchandise and services for discount retailers, will be held in the San Diego Convention Center adjacent to the Marriott Hotel where several banquets and social events take place.

President Ronald Reagan, currently working on his memoirs in Los Angeles, will make a presentation on government affairs and world events.

Other special guest speakers on the program include: * Dr. Marvin Cetron, founder and president of Forecasting International. Cetron is one of the top futurists in the world. An author on several books about the future, Cetron will provide insights on lifestyle, demographic and corporate changes in the 1990s. * Hodding Carter III, former Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs during the Carter Administration. Carter is now an op-ed columnist for The Wall Street Journal and participates in PBS' "Capital Journal," a twice weekly, half-hour television show on the United States Congress. Besides his involvement with the Democratic Party, Carter is a longtime journalist, a former anchorman and chief correspondent with PBS' "Inside Story," a series which won three Emmy awards. * John McLaughlin, producer/moderator of "The McLaughlin Group," a weekly television panel of five of America's most popular columnists who candidly debate the major issues of the day. The group includes Morton Kondracke, executive editor of The New Republic; Fred Barnes, senior editor, The New Republic; Jack Germond, co-author of the syndicated column "Politics Today;" and Patrick Buchanan, syndicated columnist and talk show host.

The IMRA convention will also be filled with a full slate of entertaining social and sports events.

The opening night banquet will feature Willard Scott, the rotund weatherman from NBC's Today Show (presumably Bryant Gumbel will be busy with other things). Scott, a disc jockey, chef and author, has raised funds for the U.S.O. and hospitals. He is noted for reporting on senior citizens' 75th wedding anniversaries and 100th birthdays. In 1979, he was named Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian magazine; in 1975, he was named Humanitarian in Residence by the National Society of Fundraisers; and in 1981, Scott was made Honorary Duke of Paducah, Ky., for his efforts in support of a local telethon.

Hall of Fame football star Terry Bradshaw will speak at the Sunday night Sports Banquet, where winners of the day's sports events (including the annual Runathon) will be presented with awards. Highlights of Bradshaw's 14-year career in pro football include leading the Pittsburg Steelers to eight consecutive league playoff series, six American Football Conference championship games and four Super Bowl victories. He just completed his fifth year as a color analyst on National Football League games for CBS.

Grammy award winner Kenny Loggins will provide the entertainment at IMRA's annual banquet. Loggins first achieved popularity as part of a six-year musical collaboration with Jim Messina, which resulted in several Loggins and Messina hit records. Recently, Loggins has achieved acclaim for his music in "Caddyshack", "Rocky IV", "Footloose", and "Top Gun".

Also on the program is a spouses' trip to one of the world's top zoological parks, the San Diego Zoo. The trip includes lunch in the courtyard of the San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park.

A day-by-day listing of convention highlights follows:

Saturday, May 12

Registration is from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. The IMRA hospitality suite will be open from noon to 5 p.m. to greet guests. The doors to the merchandise show in the exhibit area will remain open from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., including a reception in the exhibit area at 6 p.m.

The welcome banquet, featuring Scott, begins at 8 p.m. The effervescent television personality will talk on "The Joy of Living."

Sunday, May 13

The Sports Program will take place from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Also available are deep sea fishing, from 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and a harbor cruise, from 8:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.

IMRA chairman William L. Atkinson, president and ceo of Towers Department Stores, will give the State of the Association address at 3:45 p.m. He will be followed by the unrehearsed McLaughlin Group presentation.

The Annual Meeting of Retailers will be held from 6:15 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. The cocktail reception for the Sports Banquet runs from 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Packy Nespeca, senior vice president of trade development at American Greetings Corp., will moderate the awards program and introduce Bradshaw.