The Buyer
One Step Beyond Webinar on consumer & tech changes

One Step Beyond Webinar on consumer & tech changes

When we held the first One Step Beyond event in early March to analyse the growing trends and advances in technology that were changing the way we as consumers behaved, the world was a very different place. Even though Covid-19 was rampaging across Europe, in the UK it still felt very much at arm’s length. Seven months on and so many of those emerging, ‘about to happen’ trends discussed at the conference are now very much part of our daily lives shaping the way we live and dictating what businesses need to do to survive. To help assess what changes in consumer behaviour the drinks industry needs to be on top off now and in the months ahead, The Buyer is teaming up again with Sophie Jump to host a special free One Step Beyond webinar with the same experts and panelists from the inaugural conference. Here’s how you can take part.

Richard Siddle
16th October 2020by Richard Siddle
posted in Insight,

Your chance to join over 350 people from around the world who have already signed up to take part in a 90 minute free webinar – in partnership with the WSTA and supported by Emetry and 5Forests – on the technology and consumer changes that all businesses need to be putting top of their agendas. Click here to register.

The One Step Beyond conference in March set out to help anyone involved in the drinks industry – from producers, brand owners, importers, suppliers and retailers, to bar and restaurant operators – to stop, listen and look ahead to the future.

It was designed to take the drinks industry outside its comfort zone and expose it to the big changes taking place in consumer behaviour that are taking place in all our other areas of life and the huge advances in smart technology, particularly ecommerce, voice search and digital marketing, design and packaging, that are driving them.

It looked to give businesses the chance to assess where they are in understanding and tackling the changes that are most likely to affect their own businesses.

(Click here to read the full PDF report of the first One Step Beyond conference)

Little did we know then just how fast so many of the issues, trends and concepts discussed in March would accelerate and become part of our everyday personal and business lives just half a year later.

The switch to digital in the last few months has been as dramatic as it has been necessary. Kantar, the retail analysts, claims there was more innovation and change in e-commerce and online shopping during the first six weeks of lockdown than there had been in the last six years. That pace of disruption has not stopped.

A look back at the inaugural One Step Beyond conference that included industry panels assessing what consumer trends were most relevant to drinks companies. Photography: Thomas Skovsende

But what do those paid to assess, analyse and crystallise all that is happening around really think is happening? How much of our switch to online was more a case of ‘needs must’ than a fundamental change in the way we all want to shop and behave in the future?

Does every business now need to have some sort of e-commerce or direct to consumer business strategy? Even if it is just to rule it out.

Quite how far have consumers changed and how quickly will we go back to our fast paced, commuter lives once Covid-19 is no more?

October 20: Free One Step Beyond Webinar

That’s why we are bringing the experts and panelists who took part in the first event back together again to hear their fresh insights on what they think has happened over the last six months. This time online.

On October 20 you can sign up for a free webinar – One Step Beyond: How to Reach the New Consumer – between 4pm to 5.30pm BST for an interactive session that will allow you to ask questions as well as listen to the advice and insight of our guest speakers and trade panelists.

Expert speakers

Naji El-Arifi from Wunderman Thompson Commerce will be back to update the industry on changes in eccommerce and online during Covid-19. Photography: Thomas Skovsende

The line-up for the event will 10 minute presentations from our expert speakers:

  • Naji El-Arifi, head of innovation of Wunderman Thompson Commerce – e-commerce, omni channel and social media experts.
  • James Poulter, chief executive, Vixen Labs – specialists in voice search and digital.
  • Paul Mabray, chief executive, Emetry – digital insights experts for the wine industry.
  • James Harmer, planning and strategy leader, Cambridge Design Partnership – experts in commercial design and packaging.
  • Kevin Shaw, chief executive, Stranger & Stranger – drinks design and packaging agency.
  • Simon Mayhew, head of online retail insight, IGD – analysts for the grocery and FMCG sectors.
  • Polly Hammond, managing director, 5Forests – digital and brand consultants for the wine industry.

Drinks industry panelists

We will also hear directly from those within the drinks industry on the changes they have seen.

Liam Hirt from Circumstance Distillery, James Balcazar from Treasury Wine Estates and Illy Jaffar of Kinetic Creative Communications at the first One Step Beyond event. Photography: Thomas Skovsende

  • Lucy Auld, head of marketing – Freixenet Copestick.
  • Illy Jaffar, managing director, Kinetic Creative Communications – brand consultancy for the drinks and entertainment industry.
  • Liam Hirt, director, Circumstance Distillery – craft distillers.
  • Robert Joseph – drinks industry consultant.

The session will be hosted by the WSTA webinar team and chaired by co-organisers Richard Siddle of The Buyer and Sophie Jump.

If you would like to take part in this free event you simply have to click here and register.

  • We are hoping to run the second One Step Beyond conference in the spring of 2021 depending on Covid-19 restrictions. If you would like more information about how you can be involved in that then please contact Richard Siddle at richardsiddle@btopenworld.com and Sophie Jump at sophie@sophiejump.com.

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