University hosts 54th Academy of Marketing Conference

The excellent feedback received from the delegates was quoted as “Best Academy of Marketing conference I have been to!”, “Friendly conference” and “Brilliant organisation” 

DELEGATES were treated to the latest cutting-edge research in the field of Marketing capturing its role in the design, manufacture, distribution, and consumption of products, services, and experiences when Huddersfield Business School hosted the 54^th Academy of Marketing Conference. 

The Academy of Marketing is a Learned Society catering for the needs of marketing researchers, educators, and professionals. The organisation’s primary purpose is the advancement of Marketing knowledge as a rounded discipline and profession. 

For many, this was the first in-person conference since COVID restrictions began. Almost 300 delegates from around the world attended the conference which was supported by marketing undergraduate and postgraduate students. 

“The volunteers were an enthusiastic and friendly front line for the conference delegates,” said the University’s Senior Lecturer in Marketing Lisa Du-Lieu. 

“They were crucial in creating a positive Academy of Marketing experience and delivered smiles as they helped in spades day after day.  The feedback received was overwhelmingly wonderful, with volunteers being noted in social media posts and farewell conversations.

“They truly were the University's very own 'conference superheroes’," she added. 

The conference titled ‘Marketing: The Fabric of Life’ embodied the history of Huddersfield’s textile industry and began with the Doctoral Colloquium on Monday 5 July 2022 which featured research presented by 30 PhD students from around the world.  Chairing the Colloquium was the University’s, Dr Fiona Cheetham. 

Winning the prize for ‘Best Paper’ was Shuo Feng with ‘Exploring Luxury in Post-Consumerism: A Reflexive Review on Ethnographic Research’.  ‘Best Conceptual Paper’ was awarded to Tanya El-Khatib for ‘Sustainable Fashion Consumption Behaviour amongst the Youth: Exploring Adolescents Attitudes towards Materialism and the Role of Knowledge about Issues of Sustainability in the Fashion Industry’.  Both the Colloquium and the awards were sponsored by the Marketing Trust. 

The main conference took place from Tuesday 5-7 July 2022 and was chaired by the University’s Professor Stuart Roper and Dr Claire McCamley and featured an exhibition and a book launch with Paul Baines and his new book titled: “Marketing” published by Oxford University Press. 

The conference’s keynote speaker was Professor Maria Piacentini who delivered the talk ‘Weaving solutions to societal grand challenges: why marketing matters’. 

‘Best Paper’ at the 54^th Academy of Marketing Conference was sponsored by the Journal of Marketing Management and was awarded to Dr James Wagstaff and Professor (Dr) Zubin Sethna for 'Identifying the very fabric of Sales Engineers: Their role in B2B Marketing and Sales Organisations'. 

The accolade for ‘Most Innovative Paper’ was awarded to Dr Jamie Thompson for 'Parasocial Relationships in CGI Influencer Marketing' and was sponsored by the Marketing Trust. 

Closing Plenary reflected on the 2021 Research Excellence Framework and was delivered by Professor Sally Dibb and Professor Anne Marie Doherty. 

Delegates enjoyed the conference’s many workshops and sessions and said the conference bags which featured artwork of Huddersfield Business School sketched by Emily's Notebook - Learn How to Sketch and Draw were the best they had received. 

The excellent feedback received from the delegates was quoted as “Best Academy of Marketing conference I have been to!”, “Friendly conference” and “Brilliant organisation”. 

Delegates were invited to a reception on the opening night of the conference which was held in honour of Michael Baker who established the Academy of Marketing in 1996.  This was followed the next day by a gala dinner at The Venue at Bowers Mill, a traditional Yorkshire Mill, which aligned perfectly with the conference theme.