Principal and Co-Founder
Shook Kelley
Kevin Kelley, AIA, is a principal of Shook Kelley, a strategic design firm he cofounded with Terry Shook, FAIA, in 1992 in Charlotte, NC. Since 2002, Kevin has headed the Los Angeles office of the firm, working with a team of Perception Managers and Experience Designers. Kevin holds two degrees in architecture from the University of NC at Charlotte and has spent much of his career developing a process that combines business, science, and design into one integrated approach he calls perception design. Kevin’s specialty is getting inside the minds of consumers to determine how the physical environment affects their behaviors, perceptions, and purchase decisions.
Kevin has worked closely with the executive leaders of many well-known companies, including Harley-Davidson, Whole Foods, Kroger, Kraft, Cadbury, The J.M. Smucker Company, The Cleveland Orchestra, MoMA, and USAA, in their efforts to develop new kinds of immersive brand experiences that have the power to convene people in meaningful places. He has also taught courses at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and is a sought-after speaker on the lecture circuit in the US and Asia.
Monday Jan 12
1:00pm - 1:30pm
Javits North, Level 4, Klaviyo Stage
Don’t miss this discussion about the interplay between retail, community dynamics, economic resilience, and the quest to build stores that serve as neighborhood cornerstones. Kevin Kelley will be joined by Shannon DeVito, senior director of book strategy and customer experience with Barnes & Noble, for a fireside chat exploring the impact of retail on community and creating store environments that tap into discovery, delight, escape and social bliss.
Monday Jan 12
11:00am - 11:20am
Overview Lounge, Javits North, Level 5
A dynamic, interactive format where attendees can engage directly with NRF speakers: leading retail executives, experts in their field and technology innovators. These 20-minute sessions are an open mic opportunity for attendees with an All-Access Pass to ask their most pressing questions — whether about strategy, technology adoption, consumer behavior, talent or future trends. The topics discussed are decided by the audience-driven questions. These sessions are closed to press and off the record.
The session is designed to:
• Foster candid dialogue with industry leaders
• Surface real challenges attendees are facing in their businesses
• Provide practical insights that go beyond the prepared remarks of a keynote
• Encourage peer-to-peer learning as questions from the audience often spark ideas relevant to all
It’s less presentation, more conversation — an opportunity for attendees to hear personalized perspectives from the experts shaping the industry today.
