Sixth Annual Marketing Conference Draws Over 150

The Sixth Annual Marketing Conference (presented by the Chicago Booth Marketing Group) took place Wednesday, October 19, at the University Club, a lovely downtown Chicago venue. The event's title, "A New School of Thought," was inspired by a new school year, the beautiful historic venue, and the number of Booth alumni and faculty in attendance to support and encourage first and second year marketers.

The first keynote speaker of the evening, Bill McComb ('87), CEO of Liz Claiborne, shared the secrets behind how he successfully turned around some of the most noteworthy brands today; Lucky Jeans, Kate Spade, and Juicy Couture are among them. Hot off the heels of a major press announcement, only several days before, that Liz Claiborne, Inc. sold the Liz Claiborne brand (just one of dozens which they own) to JCPenney, McComb let eager listeners into the next exciting stage of his career.

 The second keynote speaker was Michael Osanloo ('96), President of Grocery at Kraft. Osanloo was integral in Kraft's acquisition of Cadbury, and he illuminated the audience to his decisions regarding that acquisition, as well as the recent announcement that Kraft was splitting into two separate entities.

Conference attendees were able to partake in one of two possible panels—either "Innovating in the New Economy: Tapping into Your Entrepreneurial Spirit," or "Turning Consumer Insights into Marketing Results." The former was moderated by Booth's Professor Waverly Deutsch, with panelists from The Campbell Soup Company, Groupon, American Express, and PepsiCo. The latter was moderated by Booth Professor Oleg Urminsky, and included a panel of professionals from Procter & Gamble, Progressive, Wrigley, and Nielsen.

The Marketing Group co-chairs would like to thank all of the attendees and volunteers that made the Sixth Annual Marketing Conference a success!