We are excited to bring back the highly anticipated Grassroots Annual Awards! Join us over lunch on day one to recognize the outstanding achievements of retailers, brands, and individuals within our vibrant Grassroots community. We will shine the spotlight on those who have showcased unparalleled excellence in service, collaboration, support, and product innovation for independent specialty businesses. Don't miss out on this opportunity to applaud and celebrate the good work of your peers!

Location: Reno-Sparks Convention Center Ballroom C

Exclusively for Grassroots Vendor Partners, this session offers a unique chance to explore our organizational direction and strategic plans. Dive into a comprehensive overview of specialty business insights, key Grassroots initiatives, and forecasts for the upcoming year. We kindly request that each Vendor Partner sends at least ONE leadership representative to ensure a thorough understanding of your Grassroots membership value and our collective direction.

Breakfast to be provided.

Location: Reno-Sparks Convention Center Ballroom C

95% of AI projects fail to move EBITDA. The reason is rarely the technology. It's that the work was never documented, the friction was never mapped, and the people doing the work were never asked. This session is for brand leaders trying to make defensible AI investment decisions across teams of 50 to 500+. We'll walk through what a Technical Discovery actually produces — a sanctioned-versus-shadow tool inventory, a department-by-department sentiment map, a cross-functional friction graph, and an ROI roadmap ranked by impact and effort. The output is a single, defensible operational picture leadership can act on, before a dollar of AI investment is committed. You'll leave with a clear methodology for assessing AI readiness in your own organization, a working definition of what "documented" actually means at brand scale, and the questions to ask before your next AI investment.

Location: Reno-Sparks Convention Center Meeting Room A1

This meeting will have a separate lunch line outside of A Meeting Rooms.

Location: Reno-Sparks Convention Center Ballroom C

Location: Reno-Sparks Convention Center Ballroom C

Thanks for a wonderful and productive Spring 2026 Connect! On your way out, grab a boxed lunch to fuel your way home.

Location: Registration Lobby of Reno-Sparks Convention Center