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IRMA 68th Annual Meeting & 2025 Retailer of the Year Luncheon Digital Program
Welcome
Welcome to IRMA’s 68th Annual Meeting & 2025 Retailer of the Year Luncheon!
The Illinois Retail Merchants Association is proud to welcome you to Chicago for our 68th Annual Meeting and 2025 Retailer of the Year Luncheon! We are thrilled to have you with us today and hope that you find today’s event worthwhile and enjoyable.
Retail is an economic anchor for the State of Illinois and the local governments within it. Illinois’ retail industry is the second largest source of revenue for the state and the largest for units of local government, making it the single most significant economic engine in Illinois. Retail is central to the services state and local governments are able to provide for the public. Additionally, retail employs one out of every four Illinoisans and accounts for 16 percent of the state’s labor income.
Beyond the economic numbers, retailers are an integral part of our communities, and they provide the essential goods and services needed to live and thrive. The breadth and depth of retail is vast; it includes but is not limited to hardware stores, pharmacies, grocery stores, restaurants, convenience stores, entertainment facilities and lodging. If you buy any type of good or service, chances are it came from a retailer, large or small.
Furthermore, retailers generously support local charities, teams, parks, food banks, schools, and countless other programs, and continually engage their local communities. Retailers are the first to fill needs during natural disasters and at other times of need, often starting to provide aid well before government assistance arrives. Retailers are the cornerstones of every community they serve.
If you have any questions throughout the day, please look for any of the IRMA staff members to assist you. Thank you and enjoy the day!
Agenda
- 11:00am
Check-in & reception - 12:00pm
Welcome remarks & program- Rob Karr, IRMA President & CEO
- Ashli Nelson, Chairwoman, IRMA Board of Directors
- 12:30pm
Lunch & remarks from Gov. JB Pritzker - 1:00pm
2025 Leadership Award presentation
Gordon Davis, Owner, Whimsy Tea – Springfield, Illinois - 1:10pm
2025 Retailer of the Year recognition
Personal Touch Boutique
A conversation with Derrick & Bernita Maxwell, husband & wife & co-owners of Personal Touch Boutique – East St. Louis, Illinois - 1:40pm
Closing - 2:00pm
68th Annual Meeting in Spire Parlor on 6th Floor
Today's Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors who made IRMA’s 68th Annual Meeting & 2025 Retailer of the Year Luncheon possible!
2025 Retailer of the Year - Personal Touch Boutique
Derrick & Bernita Maxwell do not try to sugarcoat the pain they have experienced in the city they love unconditionally – the city of their birth, and the city they call home. But they would rather talk about the prosperity they have found in East St. Louis, which as the owners of Personal Touch Boutique, has been rooted in a mindset of “can do” as opposed to “cannot.”
What started in 1988 as selling t-shirts out of a car has turned into a thriving apparel and lifestyle business and a cornerstone for a community. Through challenges, setbacks and sacrifices, this couple has remained rooted and steadfast to what they say is a higher calling. For this and so much more, IRMA is proud to recognize Derrick & Bernita Maxwell, owners of Personal Touch Boutique in East St. Louis, Illinois, as IRMA’s 2025 Retailer of the Year.
Read more about Derrick, Bernita & Personal Touch Boutique by visiting their We Are Retail story and watching their video.
Watch & read Derrick & Bernita's story
2025 Leadership Award - Gordon & Laura Davis, Whimsy Tea Company
In just the few years since Gordon joined IRMA, he has made a lasting impact as an advocate for retail, specifically small businesses, and the potential they hold for the communities they serve. He has been actively involved in meeting with legislative leaders at the state and federal level, sharing his own retail ownership journey and ensuring lawmakers know the top issues facing retailers today. For his willingness to share and his boldness to advocate, IRMA is proud to recognize Gordon today with the IRMA Leadership Award.
Gordon and Whimsy Tea Company where featured in IRMA’s We Are Retail campaign. Watch and read more about his story below.
Watch & read Gordon's story
Gordon also participated in IRMA’s “Tariffs Impact Everyone” series.
The shelves of Whimsy Tea are filled with hundreds of tea blends from more a hundred different countries around the globe. The tea business is predominantly reliant on international trade because the overwhelming majority of tea is exported to the United States. And so, these days, as Gordon pours his tea blends for his customers, he is facing challenges unlike any other for his business: the specter of rising tariffs.
Click below to watch his video on how tariffs are impacting him and Whimsy Tea Company.
Tariffs Impact Everyone - Whimsy Tea Company
We Are Retail Campaign
Every retailer has a story to tell. From family businesses stretching generations to budding entrepreneurs, neighborhood staples and new pop-up ventures, retailers are the faces we see repeatedly, the answers to our everyday needs and the trusted contributors to life’s moments – big and small. The We Are Retail campaign shares the stories of independent Illinois retailers through videos, photos and blogs, and is designed to raise awareness of the impact retailers have on our lives and in our communities. We invite you to learn more about what motivates retailers, as they share how the profession can be challenging but also incredibly rewarding. Nominate a retailer to become part of the We Are Retail campaign by tapping on the button below.
ILORCA
The Illinois Organized Retail Crime Association (ILORCA) administers and oversees a statewide intelligence-sharing platform for improved coordination between retailers, law enforcement agencies, loss prevention specialists, and other stakeholders to combat criminal enterprises. Membership in ILORCA is completely free.
Retail Perspective
Retail Perspective is a retail-focused guide to policy, providing updates on legislation moving through the Statehouse and current issues facing Illinois retailers.
