Future retail leaders will require a new set of leadership skills in order to adapt to the changing dynamics in the fact paced industry, according to speakers at the Retail Leadership Forum.

Dubbed the ‘Retail Davos’, the Forum attracted next generation chief executives from 33 retailers across 18 countries, selected by their bosses for their potential to be future retail leaders.

Keynote speakers included former M&S boss Sir Stuart Rose; John Allan, Dixons chairman; and Penny Hughes, non-executive director of Morrisons as well as RBS and Cable & Wireless.

The Forum, held on September 13-14, discussed the “fundamental changes occurring in the global retail sector”, covering the “rapid acceleration of multi-channel shopping and the shift in power from the retailer to the customer aided by the growth of social networking”.

Topics discussed also included how to lead a retailer in “a new era of retailing for the next decade”. Leaders will require a “new set of leadership skills to meet the changing dynamics of this fast-paced industry”, the Forum found.

The forum was hosted by global business advisory firms Goldman Sachs, Korn/Ferry International, and OC&C Strategy Consultants.

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