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Transforming Retail: Innovation, meet experience.

The highlights from this year’s event.

Retailers are at a pivotal moment, navigating a fast-changing landscape shaped by shifting consumer behaviors, rapid technological advancements, and growing expectations for purpose-driven business practices. At the National Retail Federation Retail’s Big Show 2025 (NRF), three core themes emerged as critical to future success: unlocking channel growth, leading with purpose, and adapting to compete in an increasingly dynamic market. 

Unlock channel growth

Retailers are embracing a blended reality where the lines between physical and digital channels are increasingly blurred. By leveraging data and AI, companies can create dynamic, personalized experiences that transcend traditional touchpoints, meeting consumer needs wherever they are.  

Lead with purpose

Modern consumers expect retailers to engage authentically on social and environmental issues. Brands that integrate purpose into their operations and communicate their values effectively can strengthen customer loyalty and differentiate themselves in a crowded market. 

Adapt to compete

The retail landscape is marked by rapid technological advancements and shifting consumer behaviors. Retailers must be agile, adopting new technologies like AI and automation to enhance efficiency, personalize customer interactions, and stay ahead of the competition. 

As retailers look to the future, the ability to innovate, adapt, and connect with consumers on a deeper level will define success. By embracing technology, driving purpose-led initiatives, and staying agile in the face of change, the retail industry is poised to create more personalized, sustainable, and impactful experiences that meet the demands of a rapidly evolving market. 

Capgemini at NRF 2025

RMN, Gen AI in retail and supply chain

Innovative startups, immersive experiences, new possibilities

Startups are playing a pivotal role in shaping the future of retail by introducing groundbreaking solutions that address key industry challenges. These innovators are driving growth and meeting evolving consumer expectations by incorporating cutting-edge technologies like AI, AR, and automation. 

Highlighted startups include: 

  • Qubi: Gamifying retail shopping through augmented reality, turning routine shopping trips into interactive experiences. 
  • Aura Vision: Transforming existing CCTV systems into tools for actionable retail insights, offering valuable data on consumer behavior. 
  • Obsess: Providing brands and retailers with the capability to create 3D and 360-degree virtual stores, bringing the in-store experience to the digital realm. 
  • Hypervsn: Delivering impactful 3D holographic displays that captivate consumers without requiring wearable equipment. 
  • Shipium: Simplifying e-commerce logistics to ensure fast, reliable, and cost-effective order delivery. 
  • First Insight: Empowering retailers with predictive consumer insights by integrating AI with Voice of the Customer solutions. 
  • Firework: Enhancing digital shopping journeys with interactive, shoppable videos and live streaming for a dynamic customer experience. 

These startups demonstrate the diverse ways in which innovation is enhancing the retail ecosystem, from personalization and engagement to operational efficiency. 

Retailers are evolving their physical spaces into destinations that prioritize discovery and connection. Through immersive designs and innovative integrations, stores are blending digital tools with in-person experiences to create unique, memorable customer journeys. These transformations help brands strengthen customer loyalty and foster long-term engagement. 

Featured stores that exemplify this trend include: 

  • Wegmans (Astor Place): This flagship location seamlessly combines the functionality of a grocery store with the appeal of a food hall. Featuring specialty products like seafood sourced from Japan’s Toyosu Market and unique dining options, such as a champagne and oyster bar, Wegmans creates a world-class shopping experience. 
  • Whole Foods Market (Manhattan West): Integrating sustainability with culinary excellence, this store offers cooking demos, workshops, and a vast selection of organic products. With Amazon integrations for seamless checkout and a community-focused design, Whole Foods exemplifies modern grocery innovation. 
  • The Tin Building: A historic landmark in the Seaport district, this award-winning marketplace features diverse culinary experiences, blending restaurants, retail shops, and a central market. The space highlights adaptive reuse, sustainable practices, and exceptional design. 
  • Trader Joe’s & Trader Joe’s Pronto (Union Square): While Trader Joe’s is known for its vibrant, friendly atmosphere, the smaller Pronto concept caters to urban shoppers with a curated selection of grab-and-go options, focusing on speed and convenience. 
  • Chick-fil-A (Upper East Side): This fully digital, mobile-first store offers a streamlined experience with dedicated pick-up areas for online orders, demonstrating how technology can transform quick-service restaurants. 
  • Hamburger America: A refreshing take on classic American dining, this retro eatery focuses on simplicity and high-quality ingredients, providing inspiration for legacy brands seeking to revitalize their customer offerings. 
  • Starbucks Reserve Roastery: Located in the Meatpacking District, this immersive three-story destination offers interactive coffee experiences, AR-enabled exploration, and culinary innovation, setting a new standard for experiential retail. 
  • Pop Up Grocer: Designed for discovery, this flagship features a constantly rotating inventory of better-for-you products from emerging brands, alongside an on-site café and food-related events, creating a joyful and memorable shopping experience.

These grocery and food retailers exemplify how innovation, personalization, and sustainability can turn physical spaces into destinations for exploration and engagement. 

Additionally, innovative retail destinations showcased the transformative power of experiential design.

The examples below highlight how leading brands are redefining the role of physical stores as hubs of discovery and engagement. 

  • Petco (Union Square): This flagship elevates the pet care experience with features like self-service dog washes, training zones, and community events, fostering stronger connections between customers and the brand. 
  • Crate & Barrel: Known for its seamless blend of in-store and virtual shopping, the flagship location offers curated products, personalized design services, and a virtual store powered by advanced technology to engage customers across channels. 
  • LEGO (5th Avenue): From creating personalized mosaics to building custom minifigures, the LEGO store offers hands-on, educational experiences that make it a must-visit for fans of all ages. 
  • Uniqlo: Combining sustainability and technology, this flagship features RFID-powered checkouts and customization services, demonstrating how innovation enhances the shopping journey. 
  • Samsung 837: This experiential store goes beyond selling products by offering interactive displays, workshops, and gaming stations, providing inspiration for leveraging technology in retail. 
  • Harry Potter Flagship Store: With 15 themed areas, this store creates immersive storytelling experiences, encouraging customer engagement through interactive elements like wand selection and magical photo opportunities. 
  • Converse (SoHo): This store fosters creativity with personalized customization options and exclusive collaborations, delivering a sense of ownership and connection for customers. 
  • Arc’teryx: This flagship highlights sustainability through its Regear program for refurbished products and services like repairs and technical washing. It also features community-focused storytelling and brand engagement initiatives. 
  • Coach: Featuring its circular fashion-focused “Coachtopia” area, Coach offers refurbished products with unique sustainability stories and customization services, blending innovation with purpose. 
  • Tiffany & Co. (The Landmark): A blend of historical grandeur and modern innovation, this luxury store offers interactive displays, virtual try-ons, and immersive design, setting a new benchmark for personalized service in luxury retail. 
  • APL: This flagship emphasizes art and design, creating a captivating luxury shopping experience that goes beyond traditional retail. 

These examples highlight how leading brands are redefining the role of physical stores as hubs of discovery and engagement.

Retailers today are at the forefront of a transformative era, where understanding and meeting consumer expectations require bold innovation and agility. Key trends shaping this transformation are driven by a combination of technological advancements, heightened consumer awareness, and an ever-increasing demand for convenience and purpose. 

Connected commerce

Shoppers expect seamless transitions between digital and physical channels, valuing an integrated, omnichannel approach to retail. The rise of Retail Media Networks (RMNs) is a key part of this evolution, enabling retailers to connect brands with shoppers through highly targeted, personalized interactions. RMNs enhance the customer journey while creating new revenue streams, solidifying connected commerce as a critical driver of growth. 

Digital personalization

With 68% of consumers embracing AI-driven recommendations, hyper-personalized experiences have become a critical differentiator. Retailers are using generative AI and data-driven insights to deliver tailored experiences, ensuring they meet the preferences and needs of today’s digital-native shoppers. 

Sustainability as differentiation

Purpose-led retail is no longer optional. A majority of consumers, particularly younger generations, are prioritizing eco-conscious brands and demanding transparency around sustainability practices. Retailers that embrace these values not only drive loyalty but also position themselves as leaders in the quest for a more sustainable future. 

Supply chain resiliency

In an era of unpredictability, agility is a competitive advantage. Resilient supply chains that can quickly adapt to disruptions and ensure efficiency have become foundational to success. Retailers are prioritizing investments in technology and analytics to build robust supply networks capable of meeting consumer demand in real time. 

By capitalizing on these trends, the industry is not only responding to the needs of today’s consumers but also paving the way for a more connected, personalized, and sustainable retail ecosystem. This transformation represents a significant opportunity for retailers and startups alike to redefine shopping experiences and drive growth in an increasingly dynamic market. 

Key takeaways from NRF 2025

A quick visit to NRF’s most recent Big Show made one thing clear: 2025 will be the year where science fiction becomes a shopping reality.

Read more

Research and insights

Capgemini Research Institute

What matters to today's consumer 2025

capgemini-research-institute
Point of view

Retail Media Network strategies: Unlocking high-margin revenue with generative AI

Meet our experts

Tim Bridges

Global Head of Consumer Products & Retail
Tim Bridges leads Capgemini’s Global Sectors and the Consumer Products, Retail, Distribution (CPRD) global sector practice, a portfolio that includes major global retail, fashion, restaurant, consumer products, transportation, and distribution brands such as McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Meijer, Office Depot, Domino’s, and Unilever.

Lindsey Mazza

Global Retail Lead, Capgemini
Lindsey is Capgemini’s Global Retail Lead. She is a retail thought leader and subject matter expert who specializes in shopper-centric, unified-channel commerce and innovation. With nearly 20 years’ experience in retail transformation, Lindsey has served some of the world’s largest retailers in analytics-enabled integrated planning and execution, from consumer demand to receipt.

Mayank Sharma

Vice President
Mayank is a Supply Chain Leader with expertise in driving supply chain transformations through use of digital solutions across planning, procurement, logistics, fulfilment, and sustainability. He has worked across Consulting, Operations and Technology giving him a well-rounded approach to identifying business transformation requirements and re-inventing supply chain operating models through performance-led technology transformations. At Capgemini, he is responsible for leading & growing Capgemini’s Supply Chain Practice for Consumer Goods, Retail and Distribution. Mayank brings unique experience of leading transformations as a consultant at Big 4 and at Amazon.com of leveraging digital solutions within e-commerce supply chain to drive end-to-end supply chain improvement.

Owen McCabe

Vice President, Digital Commerce – Global Consumer Goods & Retail, Capgemini
Owen is Capgemini’s Global VP for eCommerce. He previously led the Digital Commerce Practice at Kantar and held senior marketing and sales roles at both Procter & Gamble and Nestle. He has domain expertise in eCommerce, digital marketing, brand marketing, route-to-market strategy, and category management. Owen’s passion for digital commerce came about after a private equity assignment in an online travel business.

Ted Levine

Executive Vice President
Ted is an Executive Vice President at Capgemini, serving as a Business Unit Managing Director. With over 26 years of experience at Capgemini, he has spent his career serving clients directly and delivering on some of the largest and most complex Digital and Technology Transformations. Serving across a multitude of industries from Consumer Products and Retail to Hospitality and across Capgemini’s services from management consulting to managed services. Ted believes strong partnerships can create powerful work environments and empowered communities. As a leader for leaders, he serves as the sponsor of Capgemini’s Account Executive Community, empowering customer-first partners across the organization.

Vince Crimaldi

Vice President
Vince Crimaldi is a leader in Capgemini’s Consumer Products, Retail, and Services (CPR&S) market unit leadership team, responsible for strategy development and industry-specific solutions for many of Capgemini’s largest Consumer Products, Retail, Distribution, Restaurant, Grocery, and Pharmacy clients. With more than 25 years of experience in designing and delivering transformational technology-based solutions, Vince has accomplished this in a global context, forming teams spanning the U.S, Europe, Asia, Australia, LATAM, and the Middle East, while working in various global markets within Europe and Asia.

Ollie East

Principal, Head of Customer First & Gen AI CX Lead Insights & Data – NA, Capgemini
With over 20 years of experience, Ollie has partnered with clients across diverse industries to unlock the hidden potential of technology through digital transformation. A tech-driven, results-oriented executive, Ollie combines deep business insights with technical expertise to drive maximum outcomes. Ollie champions the transformational power of digitalization to boost profitability and enhance business performance.

Jennifer Conklin

Vice President, Capgemini
Jennifer has 20 years of experience in retail, helping direct-to-consumer brands and retailers use technology to deliver better experiences and outcomes for their customers. She returned to Capgemini in October 2022 after a brief stint as the Chief Customer Officer at a Chicago-based technology start-up, UPshow.  In her previous role at Capgemini, Jennifer led the commerce portfolio in Consumer Products, Retail, and Distribution, having joined through the company’s acquisition of LYONSCG.

Sharmila Senthilraja

Industry Platform Leader for Consumer Products and Retail, Capgemini India
Sharmila Senthilraja spearheads innovation, global strategies, and market growth at Capgemini, leveraging 25+ years of experience across business and technology. She has held leadership roles at SAP, IBM, and Future Group, excelling in P&L management, digital practices, and analytics. With a rich background in grocery retail operations, Sharmila holds an MBA and an Executive Certification in Business Analytics from IIM Bangalore.

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