Bill Clinton delivers keynote at NRF show

New York City -- Former president Bill Clinton delivered a keynote address entitled “Embracing Our Common Humanity” to an overflow crowd Monday morning at the National Retail Federation’s 101st Annual Convention & Expo in New York.



In his speech, Clinton spoke about the inequality, instability and the unsustainable way of life which makes up the world today, and said there remains a strong connection between social opportunity and economic opportunity.



Clinton, who spoke in his capacity as founder of the Clinton Foundation, discussed a wide variety of topics. With regards to retail, he noted that it makes up nearly 20% of GDP and supports roughly 25% of jobs.



At the end of the presentation, Clinton was joined on the stage by NRF chairman and Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren. In response to Lundgren’s question about where Clinton shopped this past holiday season, the former president said he shopped mostly local merchants in his home of Chappaqua, N.Y. He also bought some books at Argosy, an iconic independent bookstore in New York City.