Following the Belgrade edition held in 2019, the second regional conference comes at a challenging time marked by strong geopolitical challenges and an energy crisis in a region affected by inflation.
The summit is dedicated to companies in the fields of food production, distribution, and retail in the broader region of Southeast and Eastern Europe, as well as consumer goods, and will address numerous current issues. What new challenges does economic instability bring to the agricultural business sector, FMCG, retail, and distribution? How are producers adapting to changes in consumer demands and habits? How to create new supply chains resilient to crises? How crucial are digitalization, green sustainability, corporate policy, and automation for development and competitiveness? Answers to these challenging topics will be provided by decision-makers, leading companies in the mentioned fields from the Southeast European region, as well as broader markets in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey.
– The entire region and all industries are going through a very turbulent period. The consequences of the pandemic are still being felt, compounded by the financial and energy crisis, supply chains are disrupted, and we are witnessing a labor shortage. All these interacting factors pose numerous challenges to agriculture, FMCG, retail, and distribution across the region. Alongside these challenges, we have growing trends manifested in changes in consumer demands and habits, accelerated digitalization and automation, and a stronger push towards green sustainability. Thus, we have numerous external negative factors, and right next to them are positive trends that still require enormous efforts and adjustments. I would say that we have not had such a moment, a “perfect storm” of changes, for a couple of decades. All weaknesses in conventional business models have been exposed, and the entire industry is forced to change its perspective and seek new ways for survival and further development – commented Miljan Ždrale, regional director of the agriculture sector at EBRD for Central and Southeast Europe.
Consumption today drives 60 percent of global GDP, and economies are simultaneously faced with the challenge of responding to rapid changes in consumer demand, digital transformation, climate change, and global strategic interests. The pandemic, energy crisis, and inflation have highlighted the weaknesses of the supply chain, and consumers are becoming increasingly demanding. What is the future of the consumer goods, retail, distribution, and agriculture sectors? At the Consumer Rules Summit, more than 30 top speakers will reveal to visitors why agility and resilience are key terms of the post-covid period, what transformation companies must be ready for, whether e-commerce is becoming the dominant shopping experience, and whether it is possible to meet the increasingly vocal and conscious needs of today’s consumers while ensuring sustainable growth.
