Wayfair director Ankit Mangal to headline third day of Brand & Licensing Innovation Summit next month

Events

Ankit Mangal talks brand discoverability and ecommerce success at B&LIS (9-11 June 2021 online)

Ankit Mangal, director of Wayfair, one of the world’s biggest homeware ecommerce platforms with 31 million active customers, will talk to brand owners, business leaders, manufacturers and retailers about the importance of discoverability and how to achieve ecommerce success in his keynote address at next month’s Brand & Licensing Innovation Summit (B&LIS).

In the third and final keynote of the three-day online event, Mangal will present The Wayfair Boost: Leveraging Ecomm Ads for Product Programmes. B&LIS delegates will learn how brands can launch their products effectively online, get the right exposure from day one and continue to optimise advertising strategies to gain market share by category.

He will highlight which levers brands can pull on – from reviews, imagery, shipping options and sponsored programmes – as well as how and when to use them to boost sales while optimising return-on-ad spend. 

Mangal explained: “The session will be a mix of broad ways to market on ecomm platforms and quickly dive into strategic and tactical levers you can pull to boost your sales including an overview of insights and data points you should be asking your account manager for to make better decisions and stretch your marketing budgets.”

Mangal’s keynote takes place on the third day of B&LIS, which focuses on Content and Digital Transformation. The event’s opening keynote on 9 June is a fireside chat and live audience Q&A with IKEA Group chairman Lars-Johan Jarnheimer. Opening B&LIS’s Trends and Retail day, Jarnheimer will discuss the art of innovating amid disruption during his session, including his experience with IKEA, how to lead a brand in an ever-changing market and effectively engaging with consumers. Day Two will delve into CSR and Sustainability and is headlined by the Smurfs’ Philippe Glorieux and Caroline Petit of the United Nations Regional Information Center.

Taking place in just three weeks, B&LIS has been designed specifically to help middle-management, business leaders and owners to navigate the changing retail, content and consumer landscape. Three-day passes, which include access to 30+ live sessions, networking with over 200 delegates and on-demand contact until 30 June, cost just £249 (£224 for Licensing International members). Qualified retailers are invited to attend free of charge. 

Delegates from the following companies have already signed up to attend: Aldi, Aykroyd & Sons, Amazon, Asda, Blue’s Clothing, Character World, Chupa Chups, DC Thomson Media, Dreamtex, EMP Merchandising, General Mills, Hachette, HTI Toys, Jaz Toys, Popgear, Primark, Simba Dickie, Tesco, Walt Disney Company, Beanstalk, The Entertainer, Unilever, ViacomCBS and Schwager & Steinlein Verlag.

Confirmed speakers include:

• Ankit Mangal, Director, Wayfair
• Lars-Johan Jarnheimer, Chairman, Ingka Holding, IKEA Group
• Philippe Glorieux Head of Marketing, Communications & Family Entertainment, IMPS – the Smurfs
• Caroline Petit, Deputy Director, UNRIC
• Rikesh Desai, Licensing Director – Merchandise, Partnerships and Interactive, UK & EMEA Consumer Products, BBC Studios
• John Friend, Head of Halo and Xbox Consumer Products, Microsoft
• Stephanie Freeman, Global Licensing Manager – Outbound Licensing, The LEGO Group
• Gabrielle Sims, Head of Licensing, FatFace
• Dan Avener, Chief Executive Officer, MDR Brand Management
• Lisa Hey, Head of Product Development,Character World
• Karen Hewitt, Co-Founder, com
• Susan Bolsover, Licensing and Consumer Products Director, Penguin Random House
• June Kirkwood, Sustainable Licensing Consultant, Nutmeg Licensing & Sustaineers Consultants
• Simon Gresswell, Managing Director, SGLP
• Gary Pope, Co-Founder, Kids Industries
• Graham Saltmarsh, Managing Director, Licensing International – UK
• Ben Roberts, Content Editor, License Global
• Claire McClelland, Client Executive – Entertainment, Kantar
• Dorian Bloch, Senior Client Director, Market Intelligence, GfK
• Helena Mansell-Stopher, Founder, Products of Change
• Ian Shepherd, Founder and CEO, The Social Store
• Emily Aldridge, Head of Global Licensing, Abysse Corp
• Charlotte Delobelle, European Brand Ambassador, Fashion Snoops
• Kate French, Senior Category Manager – Softlines (Footwear, Accessories, Home & Gifting), Hasbro
• Steven Plackett, MD, Vista Stationery & Print (Carousel Calendars)
• Dan Grant, Licensing Director, Danilo
• Adriana Batty, Co-Founder, Lyfcycle
• Leonora Aixas, Co-Founder, DNA Brands
• Steve Cox, UK Sales Director, Keel Toys
• Susan Stanley, Licensing Director, Brans In Limited
• Mark Bezodis, Licensing Managing Director, Perry Ellis International
• Scott Macrae, New Business and Partnerships Manager, George at Asda
• Dan Amos, Head of Gaming and Esports, Difuzed
• Marie-Laure Marchand, SVP Global Consumer Products and Business Development, Chefclub
• Valérie Rolandez-Barrios, Vice President of IP Licensing & Partnerships, Studiocanal
• Jade Snart, Senior Sustainability Manager, George at Asda
• Alex Balzaretti, Senior Manager, Commonwealth Games Federation Partnership (CGFP)
• Kate Gibson, Managing Director, Gibson Games
• Gary Jacobson, Brand Licensing Manager, Tottenham Hotspur
• Claire Bradbury, Global Account Director, PowerStation Studios
• Maxine Lister, Head of Licensing, Natural History Museum
• Rachel Wakley, General Manager UK, WarnerMedia
• Paul Hepworth, Vice President, Licensing, Liverpool Football Club
• Sabine Hulsman, CEO, The Cookie Company Group
• Pamela Stathaki, Global Head of Sustainability, The Marketing Store, Europe
• Jeremy Goldsmith, Managing Director, Event Merchandising Ltd.