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Ron Johnson

Keynote Speaker - Founder of Apple Stores, Retail Innovator & Culture Builder

Speaking Fee: $58,500 i Fees vary by event type, travel, and appearance details.

Business Corporate Culture Entrepreneurs Innovation Leadership Retail

Founder of Apple Stores and retail innovator, Ron Johnson shows organizations how to build cultures that inspire teams, drive innovation, and deliver exceptional customer experiences.

Business Innovation Corporate Culture Leadership Entrepreneurs Retail

Topics

Meet Ron Johnson

Ron Johnson is a retail visionary best known for creating the Apple Stores and bringing design-driven retail to Target through its first collaboration with architect Michael Graves. Widely regarded as one of the boldest retail innovators of the last 30 years, he shares lessons on innovation, customer experience, and building meaningful workplace cultures.

A master storyteller with a warm and approachable style, Ron draws from his leadership experience and transformative work in retail to deliver insights that resonate with organizations seeking to inspire teams and achieve lasting impact. Ron Johnson is available to be booked for corporate and private events. Contact the Mollie Plotkin Group today to inquire about Ron Johnson’s fees.

Want to book Ron Johnson for an event?

Contact the Mollie Plotkin Group at (215) 995-0905 to book Ron Johnson for corporate or private events, keynote speeches, workshops, fireside chats, motivational speaking, or virtual appearances. Our agency will work directly with your organization and our keynote speakers to create an unforgettable event.

The Mollie Plotkin Group is the leading keynote speakers agency and entertainment bureau bringing excitement to audiences, clients, and employees. We represent subject-matter experts in every possible field. So whether we’re your partner in creating a memorable meeting or your meeting planner’s secret weapon in securing the perfect keynote speaker, we’re in this with you.

Biography

Retail Innovation and Industry Impact

Ron Johnson is best known for creating the Apple Stores, the first retail strategy in history to reach $1 billion in annual sales in only three years. He also brought design to Target by leading the first retail collaboration with architect Michael Graves, reshaping how consumers engage with everyday products.

He later took on the challenge of transforming JCPenney into “America’s Favorite Store,” offering valuable lessons on innovation, risk, and leadership through change.

Leadership, Storytelling, and Thought Leadership

A graduate of Harvard Business School, Ron is an engaging speaker who delivers keynotes focused on building cultures that inspire employees and fuel continuous innovation. His insights are grounded in real-world leadership experience and are delivered through compelling stories that connect with audiences.

Ron’s upcoming book, Shop Different, will be published in 2026 to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the first Apple Store. He has been featured in major publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Fortune, and USA Today, and is a frequent guest on CNBC and Fox Business Network.

How to Hire Ron Johnson

To hire Ron Johnson for an event, contact the Mollie Plotkin Group with the proposed event date, location, audience size, event format, and program goals. Ron Johnson is available for corporate events, conferences, leadership meetings, private events, workshops, fireside chats, and virtual programs.

After receiving your request, a Mollie Plotkin Group booking agent will review Ron Johnson’s availability, discuss the event details, and get back to you within 48 hours with next steps for securing Ron Johnson for your program.

Ron Johnson Booking Fee

The cost to book Ron Johnson depends on the event date, location, format, audience size, and scope of the appearance. Ron Johnson’s speaking fee starts at $58,500. Speaking fees may vary for keynote speeches, workshops, fireside chats, private events, corporate meetings, and virtual programs.

For the most accurate Ron Johnson booking fee, contact the Mollie Plotkin Group with your event details. Our team will help confirm availability, pricing, and the best format for your event.

Speaking Topics & Programs

Shop Different —The Untold Story and Timeless Lessons Behind Apple’s Most Unlikely Success

How imagination, intuition, and meaning drive industry redefining innovation.

When Apple announced it was opening stores, people gave them two years before they turned the lights out on a painful experiment. A decade later, Apple had reinvented retail and built a $20 billion dollar global retail business. In this masterclass on innovation, Ron Johnson shares his “playbook for big ideas.” He takes the audience behind the scenes of how the Apple Store was conceived in a warehouse with no blueprint, and how a relentless focus on loving customers through kindness changed the retail industry forever. Sharing untold stories of his relationship with Steve Jobs and his team, this keynote combines the entrepreneurial spirit of a startup with the strategic vision of a Fortune 500 leader. Ron unpacks the timeless principles of using your imagination, the power of intuition, and the courage required to reinvent a category. Whether you’re an entrepreneur building from the ground up or a leader looking to innovate within an established company, this talk provides a roadmap for how to use your imagination to create a legacy of innovation.

Key Takeaways:

How to create big ideas by trusting imagination and intuition
Ways to define meaning that motivates teams to do their best work
Principles for reinventing industries through customer focused innovation

Ideal for: Innovators, entrepreneurs, retail companies, leaders, managers, marketers, and business strategy groups

Leading with Love: How a Culture Built on Kindness Creates Unbeatable Performance

How trust, kindness, and purpose create cultures where people do their best work.

While technology continues to transform the workplace, Ron Johnson argues that the future of work will not be defined by AI, but by culture and how people work together. Drawing on his groundbreaking work as he did creating the Apple Stores and bringing design to Target, he reveals the secret ingredient behind his greatest successes: making the concept of love visible to employees and customers. This heartfelt and motivating talk shows how leading with trust, kindness, and a clear sense of purpose can build a culture where employees feel a sense of belonging and are empowered to do their best work. He shares actionable insights on how to create environments that not only drive record-breaking performance but also foster deep loyalty from both teams and customers. This is a must-hear for leaders who believe that a “people-first” culture is the ultimate competitive advantage.

Key Takeaways:

How to build a culture rooted in trust, kindness, and purpose
Ways to create belonging that drives performance and loyalty
Strategies for making people the central driver of business success

Ideal for: Leaders, executives, and anyone focused on organizational culture and people management

Featured Client Reviews for Ron Johnson

He was the highest rated speaker

at the event and we had some pretty amazing speakers this year!

— Amanda T., YPO Global Events

Ron was amazing!!!!!

— HCL America Inc.

Books

Shop Different

Apple Store creator Ron Johnson shares timeless lessons about innovation, leadership, design, creating winning cultures, and the future of retail through the power of relationships.

Purchase now >