Saint Mary's

The David Sobey Retailing Centre (formerly David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing & Services) at the Sobey School of Business is delighted to welcome retail industry veterans Joe Jackman, Julia Knox, Dave S. Sobey and Wanda Walkden to its Advisory Council.

“The David Sobey Retailing Centre is extremely fortunate to have retail veterans and innovators of this calibre join our experienced Advisory Council,” says Vivek Sood, Executive Vice President, Related Business, Empire Company Limited and Chair, David Sobey Retailing Center Advisory Board. “The Advisory Council directly connects the centre with the retail sector, providing insights into industry issues and trends, and guiding the centre in its mission to shape the future of retail.”

Canada’s retail sector accounts for 15.6 per cent of Canada’s GDP and employs the most people of all sectors in our economy. “The David Sobey Retailing Centre is an integrated player in Canada’s retail community,” says Dr. Ramesh Venkat, Director, David Sobey Retailing Centre. “We are engaged in real-world retail innovation and training, world-class executive education and events, and research in areas vital to the future of retail including technology, AI, consumer psychology and behaviour, e-commerce and retail competition.”

New Advisory Council members:

Joe Jackman, Founder and Executive Chair, Jackman Reinvents

Joe Jackman is the Founder and Chairman of Jackman Reinvents, a management consulting firm specializing in transformative growth, and the CEO of Catapult Capital Partners, a venture capital and advisory firm focused on accelerating the growth of early-stage businesses.

For over 35 years, Jackman has helped leaders of retail, consumer packaged goods and B2B companies strengthen their strategic positions and accelerate value creation. An inductee into the Hall of Legends by the American Marketing Association, he is the author of the book The Reinventionist Mindset and is widely considered to be a leading expert on change and rapid business reinvention.

Julia Knox, Chief Technology and Analytics Officer and Chief Privacy Officer, Empire Company Limited

Responsible for technology, enterprise data and advanced analytics, Knox joined Empire in 2021 bringing with her extensive experience as a highly accomplished executive at Giant Tiger, where she was SVP, E-Commerce & Chief Merchandising Officer.

Knox’s leadership extends to community service; she serves as the Chair of the Board of the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation and is a founding activator of ShEO, a non-profit venture capital fund supporting women entrepreneurs. She is also a member of the Grocery Board for GS1 Canada.

Dave L. Sobey, Vice President, Operations, Atlantic, Sobeys Inc.

In his role, Sobey is accountable for Atlantic Operations of full-service and community banner stores. These include Sobeys, Foodland, and participating Co-ops within the four Atlantic provinces.

Sobey serves as the 2022-24 Chair of the Grocery Foundation Atlantic to benefit Atlantic Canada’s children’s hospital foundations and as Co-chair of the ‘Charting Our Course’ capital campaign for the Ship Hector Society to restore and relaunch the iconic ship in Pictou County.

Wanda Walkden, Chief Human Resources & Communications Officer, Staples Canada

The David Sobey Retailing Centre, founded in 2014, was made possible thanks to a generous and visionary gift by the late Dr. David F. Sobey, CM, DComm’91, Chair Emeritus of Sobeys Inc.

To view the full list of David Sobey Retailing Centre Advisory Council members and find out more about the centre, please visit