Annabelle Serres
Show Director, NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show Europe NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show Europe contributor Mark Faithfull
Beyond the hype, AI has become a core element of retail strategy, quickly moving from chatbots to direct transactional relationships within AI ecosystems.
Global retail stands at a defining moment. After decades in which competitive advantage was determined primarily by location, range and price, today’s market-leading approaches have emerged from how intelligently a retailer operates. And AI is becoming the backbone of the best-run retail businesses.
Retail turns on new AI axis
According to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) Centre for Digital Risk & Innovation, which surveyed AI leaders at major retailers in 2025, 39% of retail organisations now expect AI to account for more than 10% of their total technology spend within the next three years, up from a position where 77% currently allocate 5% or less.1
From experimentation to execution
This change reflects an industry that has moved from experimentation to commitment. The NRF further found that retailers reporting the strongest returns from AI are doing so in customer personalisation (48% positive ROI) and IT application development (50%), with marketing and supply chain operations identified as the next major frontiers.1
“In Europe, the transition is particularly complex,” says NRF Europe Director of Events Annabelle Serres. “The regulatory environment leads the world in data protection, with the General Data Protection Regulation setting the global benchmark, while the EU AI Act has established a governance framework for AI deployment. It means that European retailers must pursue transformation with greater care and rigour than their counterparts elsewhere.”
retailers that treat AI as a technology project will underperform
Yet, she points out this complexity also offers advantages. Businesses that build responsible, compliant AI foundations now will be better positioned to scale as the technology matures.
A philosophy, not a project
However, retailers that treat AI as a technology project will underperform, an issue that will be outlined at this year’s NRF Big Show Europe in Paris this September, Serres stresses. Those who treat it as a business transformation will succeed. Building governance structures, cross-functional capabilities and cultural readiness are the areas where most organisations fall short, but where the biggest opportunities exist.
[1] NRF. (2025). Retail AI Trends 2025. https://tinyurl.com/4v7ypw3y.
