Welcome to ARC. Championing a stronger, unified retail industry. Become a member
Nomination deadline extended to 14 April for ARC Retail Awards! Submit your nomination
New report now live: The Fragmentation Tax. Read more
Sign in

Popular Keywords

Categories

Total Results

No Record Found

View All Results

ARC

CEO Lunch 2026

Brought to you by American Express

Competing on a global stage

How retailers in Australia are playing to win

Please join us for ARC’s exclusive annual CEO lunch in Sydney where we will explore the rising forces of retail competition and how retailers operating in Australia can stay ahead.     

Under Chatham House rules, we will discuss:  

  • How are Australian retailers succeeding on the world stage?  
  • How are retailers changing up their global supply chain strategies to stay ahead?  
  • What are some innovative responses to the emergence of ultra low-cost global competitors?  
  • What more can we do to back the retailers that back Australia?   

Full agenda and speakers will be announced shortly.

This event is brought to you by the Australian Retail Council, supported by principal partner American Express.   

Featured speakers

Amanda Bardwell

Group CEO & Managing Director Australian Food

Woolworths Group

Erica Berchtold

Chief Commercial Officer

David Jones

View full speaker lineup

Event details

View event highlights
View location
View event partner

Buy tickets

Early Bird - Single Ticket

7 May 2026 @ 12:00 pm – 02:00 pm

Venue: The Lands, By Capella

Member: $199.00
Non Member: $249.00
Add to cart

Speaker lineup

Exciting additions to the speaker lineup coming soon

Kimberlee Wells

CEO

TBWA\Australia

Kimberlee Wells is one of Australia’s most influential communications leaders, known for turning creativity into commercial momentum and cultural impact. Across her career, she has advised leading brands and Government agencies, helping unlock growth, strengthen reputation and deliver long-term shareholder value. 
 
As CEO of TBWA\Australia, Kimberlee leads with ambition, clarity and conviction. She sees creativity as a force for business transformation and social progress. Under her leadership, TBWA\Australia has partnered with brands to champion LGBTIQ rights, confront women’s financial inequality and help shift attitudes toward greater acceptance of Australia’s minority groups. 
 
An invited speaker at the United Nations General Assembly’s Sustainable Development Action Zone, Kimberlee spoke on the role of creative communications in driving awareness and action across all 17 Sustainable Development Goals. 
 
A respected media commentator and globally recognised leader, Kimberlee is a non-executive director of Advertising Council Australia, sits on the Advisory Board of EsFam Biotech, was among a small group of global creative leaders advising Google Assembly on the future of creativity and technology, and regularly appears on lists profiling the most powerful women in media. 

Agenda

Full agenda will be announced shortly.  

11:30 AM

Registration, Refreshments and Networking

12.00 PM

Welcome to Country

12:05 PM

Welcome & Opening Remarks 

Nicole Sheffield, Board Chair, Australian Retail Council

12:10 PM

Fireside Chat: From Shop Floor to CEO: Amanda Bardwell on Leadership and The Retail Fundamentals

Chris Rodwell, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Retail Council (ARC)
Amanda Bardwell, Group CEO & Managing Director Australian Food, Woolworths Group

1:00 PM

Fireside Chat:

Nicole Sheffield, Board Chair, Australian Retail Council (ARC)
Erica Berchtold, Chief Commercial Officer, David Jones

2:00 PM

Event concludes

Event partner

About American Express

American Express (NYSE: AXP) is a global payments and premium lifestyle brand powered by technology. Our colleagues around the world back our customers with differentiated products, services and experiences that enrich lives and build business success.

Founded in 1850 and headquartered in New York, American Express’ brand is built on trust, security, and service, and a rich history of delivering innovation and Membership value for our customers. With over a hundred million merchant locations across our global network, we seek to provide the world’s best customer experience every day to a broad range of consumers, small and medium-sized businesses, and large corporations.

For more information about American Express, visit americanexpress.com, americanexpress.com/en-us/newsroom/, and ir.americanexpress.com.

Subscribe to our newsletter