Shoppers continue to seek convenience along the full path to purchase, spanning stores of all sizes and online. However, in an inflationary economic environment, consumers and companies are both finding that the equilibrium between convenience and price is shifting. In this panel discussion, retail and brand leaders will share how they’re leveraging new technologies and offerings to adapt to ever-changing consumer expectations around price and convenience, finding new ways to provide value to shoppers while keeping their costs in check.

The pace of change in European grocery and FMCG retailing continues to accelerate, driven by changing market dynamics, economic pressures and changing customer behaviours. Retail media is profoundly changing retailer economics, inflation is shaping consumer behaviour, convenience is being redefined, and sustainability pressures are increasing. In this opening Track Keynote, two C-suite executives from leading European grocery retailers and FMCG brands will discuss the market evolution they’re planning for, and the actions they are taking for long-term growth.

Omnichannel customers shop nearly two times more often than single-channel shoppers, making it imperative for retailers to provide them with a seamless, unified experience. There are two critical components to delivering on this promise—creating an experience that's frictionless, as well as continuous. With many retail transactions across Europe still taking place in person, stores play a critical role. In a series of presentations, three retail leaders will share the technologies and strategies they’re using to create seamless store experiences that charm and captivate customers and connect their journeys across channels.

In a series of fast-paced, strictly timed three-minute presentations, 12 early-stage startups will share how their innovative technologies are addressing important challenges in retail. The judges and audience will rate each pitch, and the top six startups will progress to Round 2. Here, our panel of judges will ask each founder/CEO pointed questions about their solutions. The judges and audience will again rate each finalist, with a Judges’ Choice and Audience Choice Winner announced at the end of the session.

Rapid fluctuations in demand, mass adoption of new digital channels and a culture that emphasises newness and discovery all place significant pressure on retailers and brands seeking to keep up with their customers. This session will feature three outspoken leaders who will share their views on how companies can best adapt to new consumer behaviours. Shoptalk Europe's gamified rapid-fire format will ensure the session covers a lot of ground, offering a frank and unfiltered primer on what success looks like in a challenging time.

External pressure on grocery and FMCG companies continues to mount, as inflation, though easing, raises the costs of goods, labour pressures force retailers to make tough operational decisions, and consumers scrutinise every euro they spend. In this session, research and analyst leaders will share their forward-looking outlook on the European economy and grocery industry. The presentations will call out actions to be taken by industry players to thrive in grocery’s new environment.

Contemporary customer journeys can encompass potentially dozens of touchpoints across both the digital and physical world. As those touchpoints multiply, brands and retailers must find ways to provide consumers a consistent experience that seamlessly connects their journeys across channels. This Track Keynote will showcase two C-level leaders who will discuss the technologies and human skills they have deployed to deliver consistent customer experiences that exceed expectations, delight shoppers and inspire purchase and loyalty.

In a series of fast-paced, strictly timed three-minute presentations, 12 early-stage startups will share how their innovative technologies are addressing important challenges in retail. The judges and audience will rate each pitch, and the top six startups will progress to Round 2. Here, our panel of judges will ask each founder/CEO pointed questions about their solutions. The judges and audience will again rate each finalist, with a Judges’ Choice and Audience Choice Winner announced at the end of the session.

A key success metric for any strong brand is the amount of loyalty it instils in customers. Trust, affinity, familiarity and affection encourage people to stick with brands they know, that have worked well for them in the past. At the same time, building (or rebuilding) customer trust takes a strong commitment to consistency, listening to the consumer, and striking the right balance between evolving to keep pace with a new generation of customers while remaining authentic to the brand's core. This Track Keynote will feature senior executives discussing the intersection of brand power, loyalty and trust.

Shoppers continue to seek convenience along the full path to purchase, spanning stores of all sizes, online and home delivery. However, with inflation impacting the cost of goods, shoppers are also increasingly conscious of price and value. In this panel discussion, retail and brand leaders will share how they are navigating providing consumers with the convenience and speed they seek while keeping in mind their budget concerns.

As consumers increasingly seek unified shopping experiences that connect their journeys across channels, organisations must break down silos and unify their businesses to deliver on that expectation. Collaboration across teams, including marketing, IT, digital and supply chain, along with shared KPIs, are both essential for developing and delivering a successful unified commerce strategy. In this panel discussion, three retail and brand leaders will share the processes, structures and technologies they’ve adopted to unify their teams and manage complexity to deliver a seamless customer experience.

In a series of fast-paced, strictly timed three-minute presentations, 12 early-stage startups will share how their innovative technologies are addressing important challenges in retail. The judges and audience will rate each pitch, and the top six startups will progress to Round 2. Here, our panel of judges will ask each founder/CEO pointed questions about their solutions. The judges and audience will again rate each finalist, with a Judges’ Choice and Audience Choice Winner announced at the end of the session.

Some believe generative AI has the potential to transform the world on a par with the microchip or the world wide web; estimates suggest it could raise global GDP by over €6 trillion in the next decade. If 2023 was the year of experimentation with generative AI, 2024 will be the year companies start to expect some returns from their deployments of the technology. This session will feature three executives whose companies are leveraging generative AI in different ways. They'll share case study presentations detailing their experience and early learnings, providing concrete examples of ways the technology is shifting their businesses and ways of working.

Unified commerce is the concept of linking a shopper's online and offline activities to deliver a continuous, consistent experience. While initiatives to provide a unified shopping experience are gaining traction in many retail verticals, it can be challenging to deliver a similar experience in a low-margin, often low-consideration, multi-item grocery environment. In this panel discussion, grocery retail and FMCG brand leaders will discuss how they are defining unified commerce in their organisations, and the initiatives and tech stacks they are using to unlock the opportunity.

Companies looking to improve their fulfilment and delivery performance face an array of challenging decisions: how much to outsource versus keep in-house; how much of the cost to pass along to the customer; and which of the growing array of third-party logistics vendors to work with for local, national or global deliveries. This panel discussion will feature executives from three retailers that are successfully navigating the trade-offs between speed, cost, and customer care, improving their fulfilment efficiency while at the same time ensuring high customer satisfaction.

Rising organised retail crime is costing the industry billions of euros a year. In response, retailers are re-envisioning their store experiences and exploring new technologies to keep staff, customers and merchandise safe and secure. A growing array of solutions can support this vital mission, including computer vision, RFID, predictive AI and more. This session will feature four technology companies that are helping retailers enhance store performance, security and safety. Each company's Founder/CEO will briefly introduce their solution, followed by a panel discussion on how stores can ensure safety while maintaining a pleasant shopping environment.

Shopper expectations around personalisation have increased steadily, with solid majorities of people now saying they expect companies to understand and anticipate their needs, and to personalise offers and experiences accordingly. With its ability to perceive subtle patterns in data and experiment with theoretically infinite combinations of messaging, pricing and presentation, AI-based models have the power to meet and exceed those expectations at scale. In a series of presentations followed by a panel discussion, three executives from brands and retailers will share how they're leveraging AI-based personalisation to drive sales, loyalty, customer satisfaction and more.

As consumers continue to find and purchase more of their groceries online, retailers must evaluate the right strategies and technology investments to meet shopper demands, including having the right assortment and delivering on speed, ease and price. However, there’s no "one size fits all" model, with different market structures, levels of customer adoption, shopper behaviours and economic pressures driving complexity. In the Track Keynote, a C-level leader from a grocery retailer with operations in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific will discuss how they’re approaching these challenges in each market, and what others can learn from their experience across geographies.

As consumers discover and purchase products across multiple touchpoints, grocers must invest in best-in-class shopping experiences that span physical stores and online. Often, this means taking initiatives from one channel and adapting them for the other–for example, stores must also strike a balance between replicating the ease and personalisation shoppers have grown accustomed to when shopping online, without losing their ability to inspire them in a way that ecommerce hasn’t yet cracked. In this panel discussion, three grocery retail leaders will discuss the technologies and capabilities they've implemented to create best-in-class retail experiences in stores and online.

While shipping costs and logistical issues have improved greatly in the past year, other costs remain high, requiring supply chain professionals to find ways to maximise efficiency. At the same time, companies are seeking ways to make their supply chains strategic differentiators versus cost centres, implementing new technologies that enable agility or have a positive impact on the planet. Firms have abundant technology solutions to support supply chain challenges, including AI, analytics, IOT-based tracking, automation and more. This panel session will feature three executives discussing how they are leveraging cutting-edge solutions to give their supply chains the power to solve the biggest challenges of today, plus whatever the future may hold.

Ecommerce revenue in Europe is expected to reach nearly €600 billion in 2024. While many shop online because it's convenient, retailers and brands are looking to create more inspirational, immersive and seamless offerings to capture and retain consumers, and entice them to spend more. Offerings can range from augmented and virtual reality and shoppable video to generative AI solutions that help people identify exactly the right product for them. This session will feature technologies that make the online shopping experience more engaging. Each company's Founder/CEO will briefly present their solution, and then participate in a discussion about opportunities for retailers and brands to improve their digital offerings.

Building a successful AI strategy requires retailers and brands to first have a clear understanding of their strategic objectives and second, how artificial intelligence can help them achieve their goals. They must then build the right structure, tech stack and team to fully take advantage of AI’s business benefits, and understand the challenges that accompany new capabilities powered by generative AI, including intellectual property and privacy concerns. This Track Keynote will feature senior retail and brand leaders discussing how they’re building and implementing a successful AI strategy. Attendees will hear how having a pragmatic approach to this potentially game-changing technology can lead to fruitful outcomes.

Given rapidly changing states of supply, demand and today's complex customer journeys, merchandising and assortment optimisation pose a significant challenge. Retailers and brands must deploy customer-centric strategies that meet expectations for personalised, seamless omnichannel experiences and that ensure better collaboration across teams. Matched with the right assortment strategy, this can drive more sales, higher gross margins, leaner operations, and most importantly, more loyal customers. In this panel session, three forward-thinking senior executives will share the innovative tactics, technologies and strategies that are proving valuable at the leading edge of merchandising.

Marketing was one of the first corporate functions to be transformed by digital technology and stands to be similarly fast to embrace generative AI. In addition, using AI to identify patterns and correlations invisible to humans in large masses of unstructured data gives marketers immense power to enhance personalisation. However, to fully leverage this opportunity, retailers and brands must first identify the growth priorities and personalisation opportunities that best fit their business needs. This session will feature four companies that are helping retailers and brands transform their marketing, data and personalisation capabilities, both in-store and online. Each company’s Founder/CEO will briefly introduce their technology, followed by a panel discussion on how companies can maximise the value of their data and be at the cutting-edge of marketing today.

In a world where AI can do everything from pass exams to re-create John Lennon's voice for a new Beatles song, it's challenging to sort hype from reality. Assessing what business value AI will unlock once the current excitement for it passes can challenge any industry expert. This session will feature three outspoken retail leaders who will share their views and look beyond the hype and evaluate the next year of AI's evolution. Shoptalk's gamified rapid-fire format will ensure the session covers a lot of ground, offering a frank and unfiltered primer on long-term positives and negatives that this transformative technology will unlock.

To succeed in a fast-changing and increasingly digital grocery retail market companies must rethink their organisational design, structure and ways of working. In this series of fireside chats, three retail and brand leaders will share how they’re removing silos in their teams and organisations to deliver unified commerce experiences, how they’re structuring teams to capitalise on emerging growth opportunities like retail media, and how they’re redesigning their ways of working to move with agility.

Each new generation of consumers is defined by their distinct world views, preferences and expectations that influence their purchase decisions. It's important for brands to adapt and remain relevant to young consumers, yet they must also keep their history and values top of mind to avoid being labelled inauthentic or alienating existing customers. In this Track Keynote, a C-level leader from a renowned global brand will discuss how he's attracting a new generation of fans through innovative new product offerings and experiences that also inspire and resonate with existing consumers.

Each new generation of consumers is defined by their distinct world views, preferences and expectations that influence their purchase decisions. It's important for brands to adapt and remain relevant to young consumers, yet they must also keep their history and values top of mind to avoid being labelled inauthentic or alienating existing customers. In this panel, two brand leaders will discuss how they're attracting a new generation of fans through innovative new product offerings and experiences that also inspire and resonate with existing consumers.

Rapid Fire sessions feature industry experts sharing their unique and unfiltered perspectives in a fast-paced format. This session will focus on a list of nine trending retail technologies, which experts will examine, discuss and debate. Using a longer-term lens, they'll identify the technologies that will help you prepare for retail's next decade, versus which are unlikely to pay off. The audience will come away with both the pros and the cons of some of tomorrow's most promising technologies.

Nearly 5 billion people – more than half of the world’s population – use social media, with the average user logging into as many as 7 platforms per month. With the creator economy valued at €230 billion and expected to rise to €440 billion by 2027, the opportunity for retailers and brands to engage customers through creator-led content is massive. In this panel session, three retailer and brand leaders will share how they’ve amassed digital audiences and won over new business through social commerce, both directly and via creator partnerships.

Nearly every relationship in the grocery industry is being reshaped amid changing market dynamics. Long-standing partnerships between grocery retailers and their suppliers are being disrupted amid factors including a rise in omnichannel shopping, the rapid growth of retail media, supply challenges and new brand entrants. The increasing importance of marketplaces and delivery platforms are also creating new challenges for FMCG brands and retailers, from which partners to work with, to how best to organise to maximise the potential of these relationships. Meanwhile, brand-brand and retailer-retailer relationships are evolving as traditional consumer businesses offer their tech or data capabilities to others. In this panel discussion, three retail and brand leaders will discuss how their relationships with existing and new partners are changing, the challenges and opportunities they face, and the role they see each partnership playing in their future growth.

As they increase their in-house data and tech expertise, some retailers and brands are discovering that they have developed solutions that could be useful to others in the space. Companies that do so can be challenged by the need to split focus to offer a software- or logistics-based tech solution without losing sight of the core, retail business. This session will feature leaders from three companies that are successfully unlocking new revenue opportunities by providing technology or data capabilities to fellow retailers or brands.

Motivations to track and improve sustainability metrics can be inspired by regulators, investors, senior management, customers, or a combination of all. However, despite good intentions, environmental stewardship is often thwarted by data problems, as companies must first determine where they can have the most significant impact, set appropriate goals, ensure ownership over these, and then find the right technology to invest in to support their efforts. This session will feature an industry expert presenting best practices on identifying high-impact opportunities to leverage technology to successfully set, measure and achieve sustainability goals. Following that, a fireside chat with a brand or retail executive will dive into how they are using technology, including AI, to support their sustainability initiatives within their organisation, providing attendees with valuable frameworks, tactical advice, and takeaways they can use to support their own efforts.

Although virtually all brands would agree that cultivating loyalty is vital, many remain stuck with traditional offerings rooted in cards or point-based systems. This session will feature detailed case studies from executives at three companies that will share how they're leveraging customer data, personalisation and new digital offerings to redefine loyalty, and finding innovative ways to encourage, reward and retain customers.

Retail media continues to rapidly expand and evolve, with some calling it the third wave of digital advertising. Some estimate that more than 600 Retail Media Networks now exist, giving retailers a unique opportunity to provide closed-loop attribution for their FMCG partners. However, retail media offerings are fundamentally shifting the relationship between brands and retailers, turning suppliers into buyers, and creating new challenges for the industry to solve. Among them, marketers are seeking more standardised ad measurement and attribution models, better data and analytics, and new opportunities to connect in-store and online retail media. In this session, brand leaders will discuss how they are evaluating retail media networks and the collaboration needed for a successful partnership between retailers and brands, as well as their outlook for the future.

Sales growth on marketplaces continues to outpace traditional ecommerce, with some estimates calling for them to account for nearly 60% of global ecommerce by 2027. While the opportunity for brands and retailers to capitalise on this momentum is substantial, it brings challenges as well. Brands must be thoughtful in selecting partners and deciding whether to sell through each partner via wholesale, marketplace, or both, all while keeping an eye on profitability and brand safety. Even as some of the biggest marketplaces offer partnerships across countries, brands looking to this channel in Europe must also navigate a fragmented landscape that varies by country. This panel will feature three brand executives who will discuss how marketplaces are evolving and how they see business opportunities changing as a result.

As AI and machine learning-based technologies move from cutting-edge to business-critical, companies are taking a variety of organisational approaches to adopting them, from centralising AI expertise to letting individual business units assess and adopt relevant solutions. This session will feature an industry expert who will offer a framework for evaluating organisational needs and opportunities and building the right structure and team to fully take advantage of AI’s business benefits. A retail executive will then share how their company’s specific approach to organising for AI has evolved and lessons learned along the way.

Digital shopping has long excelled at speed and convenience. However, there remains a huge opportunity to inspire shoppers, helping them discover an item they weren't even looking for, but fall in love with. Social platforms like Instagram and TikTok are proving powerful grounds for new product discovery, while AI-based recommendations, visual search and video experiences that seamlessly connect discovery to purchase also create seemingly serendipitous moments. In a series of presentations followed by a panel discussion, we'll hear from three retail and brand leaders who are reimagining product discovery, and the impact these initiatives have had on sales and customer satisfaction.

In 2024, new brands that invest in wholesale partnerships with retailers have a greater chance at longevity than those that pursue a pure direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategy. Once viewed as obsolete, wholesale relationships are effective in protecting against ever-rising digital advertising and customer acquisition costs, and can be a much more effective way to get a new brand directly in front of potential customers. However, each brand needs to identify a DTC-wholesale balance that best suits their business needs, enabling them to balance growth with building a direct relationship with the end consumer. In this session, three brand leaders will share how they’re harmonising DTC and wholesale efforts and where they see the pendulum swinging in the future.

Companies today have vast and growing data repositories, and many have also invested in analytics tools to convert that data into useful insights. However, it's critical that businesses also create a culture that prioritises data-driven decision making, as well as structures and processes that enable companies to use it to its utmost potential—for example, by ensuring employees have access to, and training to use, the data resources that will help them work effectively and productively. In this session, an expert will share best practices on how companies are enabling their employees to unlock the full value of their data. It will be followed by a conversation with a retail leader to share real-world examples of their work.

Cross-border ecommerce represents over a quarter of European online sales, with marketplaces accounting for the lion's share of these revenues. Yet challenges related to language, localisation, culture, supply chain, and in some cases, currency, remain when selling across borders inside or outside the Eurozone. In this session, three industry leaders will share how they are successfully leveraging marketplaces, localised direct-to-consumer offerings and more to successfully sell across borders amid economic and geopolitical turbulence.

Many grocery retailers are introducing new capabilities in their stores that support associates, boost productivity and reduce theft and shrink. FMCG organisations also stand to gain from technologies such as computer vision and smart packaging, which can provide them with real-time information about their products on the retail shelf and lead to more informed decisions around demand forecasting, managing recalls and SKU rationalisation. This session will feature a series of case study presentations on the capabilities that retailers and brands are investing in to improve store operations, provide greater shelf visibility and gather other important store-level insights.

In today's fast-changing retail climate, it's critical that organisations provide their employees with the skills and structures that enable them to adapt quickly to market conditions, customer needs and technological advancements. However, in large organisations, historic company culture, legacy IT systems, and outdated internal processes often impede change, even when it would benefit the business. In a series of presentations followed by a panel discussion, three retail and brand leaders will share the strategies and tactics they are deploying to upskill their teams and build agile organisations that enable their teams to quickly respond to changing conditions.

Shoptalk Europe 2024 was packed with insights and inspiration. With 175+ speakers and 40+ sessions covering today's most seismic retail shifts, it's impossible for any one attendee to see everything. In this session, recorded as a live podcast, Shoptalk Content team members will highlight the critical takeaways from this year's conference, underscoring key findings and trends that attendees can bring back to their organisations.