RAI MMR HR Conclave 2026 Drives Conversations on Retail Talent and Leadership
The 20th edition of the Manning Modern Retail (MMR) 2026 HR Conclave, hosted by the Retailers Association of India (RAI), was held on September 3, 2026, at The Westin Mumbai Garden City, Goregaon.
Bringing together CEOs, CPOs, CHROs, academic experts and industry leaders, the conclave explored the theme “The New Retail Talent: Agile, Digital, Human”, focusing on how the retail workforce must evolve alongside technology, changing consumer behaviour and emerging retail models.
The retail sector is undergoing significant transformation, driven by digitalisation, quick commerce, omnichannel experiences and AI-powered operations. Against this backdrop, the conclave examined how organisations can build future-ready teams that combine agility, digital capabilities, collaboration and empathy.
Building the New Retail Workforce
The theme highlighted the growing need for retail professionals who can respond quickly to changing consumer expectations while leveraging digital tools and data-led insights without losing the human connection at the centre of customer experiences.
Speaking about MMR HR Conclave 2026, Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO, Retailers Association of India (RAI), said, “India’s retail sector is the country’s largest employer after agriculture — 40 to 50 million people, across metros, tier-2 towns and everywhere in between. Few industries offer that kind of reach, or that kind of entry point: a shop floor is often where someone gets their first job, their first taste of financial independence, sometimes their first real career. Retail also has the potential to be India’s largest employer of women. Manning Modern Retail exists to put the employee at the centre of that story because they are the first customer any retail brand has, and how we treat them shows up in every interaction that follows.”
Kavindra Mishra, MD & CEO, Shoppers Stop, said, “Retail leaders have spent years chasing the perfectly personalised customer journey. But you cannot deliver that consistently with a frontline that doesn’t feel any of that same personalisation coming back to them. The next competitive edge in retail won’t come from another app or another algorithm — it will come from whichever organisation figures out how to make its own people feel as understood as it wants its customers to feel.”
Harsh Aparanji, CHRO, Landmark Group, expressed, “Omnichannel retail has redefined expectations — the same associate is now expected to understand digital tools, manage in-store experience, and bring the warmth that keeps a customer coming back. That’s a real skill shift. Organisations need to build new frontline capability as they invest in the technology.”
Amit Chincholikar, Group President – Human Resources, Hinduja Group, commented, “Across a diversified group, the hardest HR problem isn’t finding talent — it’s building one coherent people philosophy that still makes sense whether someone is on a factory floor, a retail counter, or a boardroom. AI and digital tools are changing how fast we can hire, train and deploy people, but they don’t change what people actually want: clarity on where they’re headed, and proof that the organisation is paying attention. Get that right at scale, and agility follows on its own.”
Industry Leaders Share Perspectives
The conclave featured several leading HR and retail professionals, including Jordan Doppange, CEO, Celio India; Lakshmi Krishnan, HR Head – Arvind Fashion; Sudakshina Ghosh, Head HR – BATA; and Nambita Banerjee, CHRO – Shoppers Stop.
Other speakers included Manjula Rao, CHRO – FirstCry; Mahesh Kudtarkar, Vice President & HR, Reliance Digital – Reliance Retail; Udhaya Shankar, CHRO – Comfort Grid Technologies Private Ltd. (The Sleep Company); and Parineeta Cecil Lakra, Vice President, HR – Albertsons Companies India, among other industry experts.
The discussions highlighted the importance of developing workforce capabilities alongside technological transformation, particularly as retail roles increasingly require employees to navigate digital tools while maintaining meaningful customer interactions.
Retail HR Awards Finalists Felicitated
The event also recognised the finalists of the Retail HR Awards across categories focused on business impact, workforce innovation, and sustainable and responsible workforce practices.
Large organisations:
- Naini Sharma, Max Fashion: Best HR Strategy Driving Business Impact
- Manoj Pant, Infiniti Retail Ltd – Tata Croma: Retail Workforce Innovation of the Year
- Dipannita Das, Reliance Retail: Best HR Strategy Driving Business Impact
- Rhea Sharma, Reliance Retail, Azorte | Reliance Retail, Fashion and Lifestyle: Best HR Strategy Driving Business Impact
- Shilpa Kochhar, Reliance Retail Ltd, Yousta | Reliance Retail Ltd., Fashion & Lifestyle: Excellence in Sustainable & Responsible Workforce Practices
Small organisations:
- Avi Agarwal, Novel Jewels Limited: Retail Workforce Innovation of the Year
- Apeksha Gaonkar, Tata Starbucks Private Ltd.: Excellence in Sustainable & Responsible Workforce Practices
- Nakul Sharma, Safari Industries (India) Ltd.: Best HR Strategy Driving Business Impact
- Nirav Jagad, SUGAR Brands Pvt Ltd: Best HR Strategy Driving Business Impact
- Nihar Patwardhan, Spykar Lifestyles Pvt Ltd: Retail Workforce Innovation of the Year
The Manning Modern Retail (MMR) HR Conclave continues to provide a platform for retail HR professionals and industry leaders to exchange perspectives and explore strategies around talent, leadership and workforce transformation.
The 2026 edition reinforced the growing importance of building retail teams that are agile enough to adapt to change, digitally equipped for an evolving operating environment and human-centric in their approach to employees and customers.
