Acenda Summit 2026
Agenda · Thursday, September 3, 2026 · La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club
8:00 – 9:00 AM
Breakfast
Marine Room
9:00 – 9:30 AM
Acenda
Welcome Message
Gavin Mandelbaum — CEO, Acenda
La Sala Room
9:30 – 10:00 AM
Target Plus
Curating Growth: How Strategic Partnerships Build the Target Plus Marketplace
Nathan Nerland — Director, New Business & Strategic Partnerships
La Sala Room
10:30 – 10:45 AM
Break
10:45 – 11:15 AM
Staples
From Complexity to Conversion: The Supply Chain Strategy Fueling Modern Marketplaces
Panel — Patrick Allard (Staples), Melissa Kieling (Hyve Security), Tim Morse (Pipe17), Carolyn Carden (CPO Commerce)
La Sala Room
11:15 – 12:00 PM
Cover Genius
Driving Better Customer Engagement Through Embedded Insurance Benefits
Richard Hankin — VP, Partnerships, Digital Commerce
La Sala Room
12:00 – 1:00 PM
Lunch
Marine Room
1:00 – 1:30 PM
Gierd
Trust, But Verify: Why Verification Is the Real Bottleneck in Marketplace Automation
Jon Pederson — CPO & Co-founder
La Sala Room
1:30 – 2:00 PM
Zyla (World First)
Factoring Lending & International Payments
Max Liang — US Country Manager
La Sala Room
2:00 – 2:30 PM
JCPenney
The JCPenney Advantage
Bria Gissandaner — Digital Manager, Marketplace Acquisition
La Sala Room
2:30 – 4:30 PM
Networking with the Marketplaces 🍓
Strawberries and cream with Pimm’s — Wimbledon style.
Pickleball Court
5:00 – 7:00 PM
Sunset Cocktail Event 🍹
Drinks on the sand to close out the day.
Beachfront — La Jolla Shores Hotel
Event Wi-Fi
Network: LaJollaBeach&Tennis-Meetings
Password: Seahorse1935!

Agenda subject to change. Dress code: business casual or tennis whites 🎾

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