Our Experience at
Retail Realm -2014

What happened in Vegas in late April during the 2014 Retail Realm Microsoft Dynamics Retail Technology Conference will definitely not stay in Vegas. There was just too much news and networking to mention in this blog, but we’ll give it a try.
First off, the conference was at the always decadentCaesarsPalace, right in the heart of the famed Strip. The first night, prior to the show’s official kick-off, was a blast of a reception at a Caesars bar sponsored by Mercury Payment Services. Open bar and light hors d’ouevres made for fun times and light-hearted conversation.
The next morning saw the event get underway with an opening presentation featuring the latest update from Microsoft Dynamics product managers, Seth Patton and Ashvin Mathew. Mathew shared the latest roadmap for Dynamics AX for Retail and RMS. He also outlined some additional features that will be available in the upcoming releases and that the current version of RMS will not receive mainstream support past 2016, i.e. the product is being phased out by Microsoft in favor of AX for Retail. Further, said Mathews, a package called “Retail Essentials” will be included in the most current release of AX for Retail, but will also be available for stand-alone purchase by smaller businesses that don’t need the full feature-set (and additional cost) of AX for Retail.
Throughout the entire event, the main exhibition hall was open for business with about 30 exhibitors or so on-hand to answer questions and give demonstrations on their products and services. Besides a few e-commerce ISVs, there were payment services companies, loyalty platforms, retail hardware vendors and other software integrators.
At i95Dev’s booth, we were geared up with our E-Commerce Growth Engine on display and ready for demonstration on our 46” flat screen TV. Dozens of partners and customers from several continents filed by and stopped for questions and demos on our innovative e-commerce solution. After a great lunch, we also had the privilege of leading our own break-out session on the EGE in one of Caesar’s Conference Center rooms with about 15 attendees – not bad!
Our team was a little foot-sore from standing all day long and looked forward to the evening reception, which was held right there in the exhibition hall. Another open bar and heavy hors d’ouevres was just what the crowd needed to get re-energized and ready to network.
The next day was a short one, with more break-outs, another Microsoft presentation on Retail Essentials, and loads of exhibition time. By day’s end, the i95Dev team wrapped up Retail Realm’s conference a bit weary but with a fistful of valuable contacts and inquiries.
We’d also like to give a shout-out/thank-you to the awesome Retail Realm +marketing team of Jonathan, Kristina and all. You guys were such a big help! We couldn’t have done it without you.
We’ll see you all in 2015