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  L to R: äóìDäó Nachnani of Coastal Edge in Virginia

I asked Deepak “D” Nachnani to tell me the top things he learned at the BRA Summit in Puerto Rico. He and his wife, Stephanie, own Coastal Edge, an eight-store chain in Virginia.

Here’s what D had to say in his email

• “I loved Dick Baker’s speech. He reaffirmed a lot of my own beliefs. I agree with him that it is very important in these economic times that we, as specialty retailers, remain calm and strategically focus on consistently working and growing the partnerships with our brands. They have the ability to market and convey the story of our industry. Through this cooperative effort between retailers and brands we will be able to tell the story of our industry better than competitors like Hollister.

• I agree with Dick that we as specialty retailers need to work on our business as well as in our business. We need to reinvent and evolve our shopping experience to a new level for our customers.

• I also loved what Vipe (Desai) stated about the importance of branding our image around our industry’s brands and telling the best story we can to our customers. I believe that those retailers and vendors that tell the best story to their customers will win in the future.