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NRF 2014: The show floor, in tweets and vines

Attendees made good use of social media at this year's BIG Show.

January 22, 2014

The National Retail Federation's 103rd Annual Convention and EXPO, better known as "Retail's BIG Show," wrapped up last week in New York City.

NRF reports that there were more than 30,000 attendees over the course of the event, and many of them were using social media to broadcast the things they were seeing: more than 29,000 tweets were sent with the #NRF14 hashtag, with a total reach of 18.83 million readers. More than 1,300 users sent photographic evidence of their time at the show via Instagram. (You can find all of our coverage of the show in this link.)

Here is a sampling of some of the show highlights, as seen through tweets and vines:

It sure is! RT @andrewbusby: Expo floor buzzing on 1st day morning #nrf14 pic.twitter.com/2P30W9txzE
— Retail's BIG Show (@RetailsBIGShow) January 13, 2014

Using facial, and even emotion, recognition was big at the show:

Intel using video to sense emotion at #NRF14 https://t.co/iq9sYrTh18
— retailgeek (@retailgeek) January 13, 2014

And NEC has another use for similar tech at #NRF14 , checkout scanners that don't need barcodes... pic.twitter.com/nR9Ih2YFLl
— DigitalSignageToday (@DigSignageToday) January 13, 2014

As were virtual dressing rooms, or variations thereof:

@Samsungtweets shows off some virtual dressing room tech at #NRF14 pic.twitter.com/RDIebp23HA
— DigitalSignageToday (@DigSignageToday) January 13, 2014

Magic! RT @SheilaSidhu Checking #IBM booth at #NRF14, found @tyrona trying on a dress in the virtual fitting room! pic.twitter.com/SR0mEE00yj
— IBM Interactive (@ibminteractive) January 15, 2014

Indoor mapping technology, made crystal-clear in just six seconds:

Indoor mapping at GIS booth at #NRF14 https://t.co/MC2jrFdrNn
— retailgeek (@retailgeek) January 13, 2014

Companies also showcased the integration of digital signage with sales associate control via mobile and tablets:

The team @DigSignageToday interviewing our CTO @daronyondem and CEO of @Magnetic3D Tom Zerega. #NRF14 pic.twitter.com/8baJaMYST5
— XOMNI (@xomni_cloud) January 13, 2014

Or letting shoppers create their own products via interactive signage:

This is awesome! @razorfishee Testing tech & designing surfboards. Create your own at @msretail booth 2703 #nrf14 pic.twitter.com/baxOX13MoI
— Fred's Bow Tie (@FredsBowTie) January 12, 2014

@tomnixnyc- leverage mobile technologies for personal, relevant & dynamic experiences on every screen in-store #NRF14 pic.twitter.com/ElZ4EFuZD7
— Scala (@ScalaInc) January 14, 2014

And while it didn't have anything to do with retail, one of the BIG Show's biggest speakers — who apparently ran a little late for his session — may have had the one-liner of the week:

President Bush “I apologize about being late to #nrf14, it’s not like the old days, now I have to deal with traffic lights and stuff”
— retailgeek (@retailgeek) January 13, 2014