For independent retailers
Mighty on
Main Street.
The best independent stores were never the biggest ones. They're the sharpest, the warmest, and the best run — and the people behind them are the ones who kept learning. This is where they go to do it.
The Retail Success Summit
The best of indie retail. All in one room.
From antique stores to zoo gift shops, single storefronts to multi-store businesses, the Summit is built for independent retailers everywhere. It's long been regarded as the industry's most trusted and comprehensive educational event — everything you need to run your store well, in one place.
Bold thinkers
Proven leaders and retail innovators who challenge assumptions and sharpen how you think about your store.
A real community
Owners diverse in size, industry, and experience — united by going all in on their growth and their purpose.
Momentum you keep
You leave inspired and equipped, with things you can put to work the week you get home.
“The Retail Success Summit was revolutionary for me and my business. It was personal development, professional development, and staff development, and I am just excited about what my customers will get to experience and the changes that they will see.”
Melanie Whaley | Essential Elements, Chicago, ILYour hosts
Bob & Susan Negen
Co-founders, WhizBang! Retail Training
Hosts of the Retail Success Summit
Bob and Susan have spent decades helping independent retailers turn ideas into action. Their mission for the Summit is simple: send store owners home inspired, equipped, and ready to go all in on building the business of their dreams.
Their perspective comes from more than 40 years of combined on-the-floor experience. Bob founded the Mackinaw Kite Co., an award-winning chain of kite and toy stores, and ran it for 19 years. Susan started out as an executive at Bloomingdale's and Macy's before joining Bob at the Kite Co. Together it's a one-two punch of big-business skills and street-smart small-business know-how.
Who's behind it
WhizBang! Retail Training
We're in the business of successful businesses. For more than twenty years we've helped independent retailers get the nuts-and-bolts skills they need to run a store that thrives — through courses, coaching, and the Summit itself.
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