Institute News

Get ready for the Institute's 2026-2028 Board Elections! Nominate yourself or a fellow member for Chapter or International roles.

by Jessie Sanders, RDI, NCIDQ heartland@retaildesigninstitute.org The RDI Heartland Group stands outside the entrance to Atlas9 with guest presenter Randall Statler, Executive Creative Director at Dimensional Innovations. Photo Credit: Maximus Coric Walking into Atlas 9 last week felt a little like stepping back into my own childhood—if my childhood had included a few more interdimensional anomalies. One of my very first jobs was working concessions at the local dollar movie

Event Recap: An Evening at Nespresso’s New York City Flagship

We welcomed the season with a wonderful evening at Projex for our Spring Forward Happy Hour. With longer days and spring sunshine finally making an appearance, the event brought together industry professionals and students to celebrate our vibrant design community. As the Pacific Northwest settled into spring, the evening provided a welcome opportunity to slow down, catch up with friends and colleagues, and make new connections. Good conversation, refreshments, and the fresh

Event Recap: Designing the Dispensary - A Night at Gotham

We were proud to once again bring together students, recent graduates, rising professionals, and industry leaders for another inspiring Emerging Designers event. The evening created a welcoming space for emerging designers to connect with mentors, receive valuable portfolio and resume feedback, and gain insight into navigating the design industry with confidence. A special highlight of the evening was hearing from keynote speaker Matt Thompson, Assoc. IIDA, Certified Design F

The PNW Retail Design Institute was excited to launch its first Student Design Charrette, bringing together students and industry professionals for a multi-day experience centered on creativity, collaboration, and real-world design impact. The series kicked off on March 26 at The Shop by Porter, where attendees were introduced to ARCADE, a nonprofit journal dedicated to architecture, design, and the built environment, and learned about the vision behind the challenge. Studen

Uma noite para celebrar o design de varejo no Brasil No dia 24 de março , realizamos a cerimônia do 12º Prêmio Design de Varejo – Retail Design Institute Brasil . Mais do que anunciar vencedores, foi uma noite que reforçou aquilo que acreditamos: o design de varejo se constrói em comunidade. Nos encontros, nas conversas, na troca aberta entre profissionais que compartilham repertório, dúvidas e visões sobre o futuro. Ano após ano, os projetos apresentados mostram não apenas c

Last Thursday, our chapter hosted our inaugural Retail Talk —and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. Going into the final week of planning the conversation, I still wasn’t entirely sure what it was going to be. I'd just gotten back home from a fun but chaotic trip to Seattle, was more depleted than I wanted to admit, and found myself in a familiar place a few hours before we went live: staring blankly at my screen, questioning if I actually had anything worthwhile to say.

Em um ambiente propício à troca e à reflexão, conversamos sobre os principais aprendizados e percepções da EuroShop 2026, conectando tendências globais às realidades e oportunidades do mercado brasileiro.

The Retail Design Institute is now accepting submissions for the 55th International Retail Design Competition. Projects completed in 2025 across all retail formats are eligible, with winners to be honored in New York City this October.

Event Recap: Design Without Borders: A Global RDI Members Evening at Bernhardt

In October, we visited Track15 in Providence to see Marsella Development’s transformation of historic Union Station into a vibrant culinary and community hub.

Our New England Chapter explored Boston’s Seaport with a design-forward cocktail crawl.

We had the chance to experience the brand new CanalSide Food + Drink at CambridgeSide Galleria Mall.

The Heartland Chapter board makes its way through the crowd at Westport Social to secure our group a stellar spot to spread out and connect during our Member Appreciation Happy Hour on February 19th, 2026. On a lively Thursday evening at Westport Social in St. Louis, the Heartland Chapter gathered for our first in-person event of the year: our February General Membership Happy Hour, sponsored by our good friends at VizEx . Westport Social itself was buzzing... lively music pu

A big, bold thank you to everyone who joined us for our January General Membership Meeting (including our new friend from the Southern California Chapter!) We shared an initial look at our 2026 programming framework, discussed our chapter's goals for the year, and opened the floor for candid conversation about what feels most urgent — and most worthwhile — right now. If you weren’t able to attend, you can: Watch the meeting recording: Share ideas or feedback via our brief su

Explore how immersive and augmented spatial design, experiential retail, and emerging display technologies are shaping the future of retail environments.

The RDI PNW community gathered for a truly special evening at DeLille En Ville, marking a beautiful start to a new season of connection and creativity. Set within an inspiring, thoughtfully designed space, the night brought together our design community for an intimate and memorable experience at Seattle’s newest wine room. Guests enjoyed a guided happy hour led by DeLille’s wine experts, great conversations, and a welcoming atmosphere that made the evening feel both relaxed

Event Recap: Design Without Borders: A Global RDI Members Evening at Bernhardt