Retail to See will be on the ground at Shoptalk Europe 2026 in Barcelona next week, June 2 through 4. We will be covering the sessions, the hallway conversations, and the exhibitor floor in real time.
What we are watching
This year's agenda is heavy on AI in retail operations, the reconfiguration of European retail media, and the state of cross-border commerce after the de minimis changes. Those are themes we have been covering all year, and Shoptalk is where the people actually building and buying this infrastructure tend to say what they really think, off the record and on stage.
We are particularly interested in:
- AI deployment reality. The gap between the vendor pitch and what retailers have actually put into production. We have been tracking this closely and Shoptalk tends to surface honest assessments.
- Retail media's next act. European retail media networks are maturing fast. The margin story is getting more nuanced than the early hype suggested.
- Store format innovation. Several European retailers are testing new physical formats. Barcelona is a good place to see them firsthand.
- Payments and checkout. Tap-to-pay, BNPL regulation fallout, and the plumbing that connects it all.
Coverage plan
Martin and Célia will both be on the ground. We will be publishing daily dispatches from the event, plus deeper analysis pieces in the days after. If you are attending and want to connect, reach out at martin@retailtosee.com or celia@retailtosee.com.
Stay tuned.