Retail Reimagined: Key Insights and Emerging Priorities from Shoptalk Europe 2025

This IDC Perspective provides strategic insights into the evolving priorities of the retail sector, as observed during Shoptalk Europe 2025. Held in Barcelona, the event reflected a shift in industry momentum from inspiration to execution. Key themes included the rapid operationalization of generative AI across the retail value chain, the mainstreaming of unified commerce architectures, and the transformation of physical stores into immersive brand destinations. Shoptalk 2025 also marked the coming of age for retail media networks, which are now seen as central to data monetization and supplier collaboration.Through examples from brands and retailers, this report explores how retailers are investing in composable platforms, real-time data orchestration, and AI-powered personalization to drive measurable impact. technology vendors illustrated how solution ecosystems are maturing to support these shifts.By analyzing the convergence of innovation and operational needs, this document offers a forward-looking view of how retailers can build resilience, agility, and relevance in a competitive and fast-changing market. It can serve as a guide for retail executives, technology providers, and ecosystem partners seeking to align with the next wave of intelligent, experience-led commerce."Shoptalk Europe 2025 showed that the future of retail is neither purely digital nor physical, it is intelligently connected. Retailers that orchestrate experiences, data, and commerce across touchpoints with agility and purpose will be best positioned to lead in the age of intelligent retail," said Cristiano Quattrini, senior associate advisor, IDC Retail Insights