IHA’s HECNA Global Forum kicked-off today in Panama City, Panama with a tour of a broad range of Panamanian retailers. Retail destinations on the roster for Global Forum attendees included: Riba Smith, Piex, Arrocha, Collins, Do it Center, Dorian’s, Novy and Stevens along with a stop atAlbrook Mall, with its aisles full of Sunday shoppers. Familiar U.S. And Canadian brands were discovered in the various department store, supermarket, home center and variety store formats. Attendees busily scouted pricing, placement and brand positioning while looking for new local distribution opportunities.
Ahead over the next two days for this year’s Global Forum attendees are sessions on U.S. and EU compliance controls, various market reports on South Africa, Brazil, France and Australia and retail presentations from Home Sentry (Colombia), Do It Center (Panama) and Ace International. Stay tuned for in-depth reports on several presentations over the next two days!
