Sophie Baqué
Chief Editor of mind Retail
Most read articles by Sophie Baqué
Eric Meulien, Al Futtaim: “The next step in our roadmap is to replace the in-store POS system”
Operating in 18 countries and managing brands such as Ikea, Zara and Marks & Spencer, Emirati group Al-Futtaim (2025 revenue: US$9.7 billion, up by 6%) has a unique vantage point from which to...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- Analysis
12 October 2026
Marketplaces: How Orange and Virgin Australia reinvent their value creation models
Looking to turn their audience into a commercial platform without having to carry the risk of holding stock, new verticals are entering the marketplace space, with new models designed to enhance...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- News
8 October 2026
AI agents: the KPIs that led L’Oréal to scale up across its warehouses
After testing 7 AI agents in its warehouses, L’Oréal is scaling up. Deployed to coordinate picking waves, manage replenishment and handle stocktaking, Manhattan’s agents have helped cut several...
- Retail
- Retail tech
- News
20 October 2026
How Mobilier de France reduced the share of cheque payments from 80% to 50%
With an average basket of €3,500 and a payment journey that includes a financial deposit at the time of ordering, Mobilier de France shares with mind Retail its assessment of the rollout of...
- Retail
- mind Exclusive
- Retail tech
15 October 2026
Latest articles by Sophie Baqué
Inditex’s air freight from India jumped by 37% in 2024
Faced with tensions in the Red Sea, Inditex is stepping up air freight to ensure the safe delivery of shipments from Indian factories. The majority of shipments now go by air.
- Retail
- News
6 December 2024
Customer service: Orange and VIPP Interstis rely on AI to boost performance
On November 26, 2024, Orange (sales 2023: €39.7 billion, selling in 26 countries) signed a multi-year agreement with OpenAI to access AI training models. From H1 2025, this will train LLMs...
- Retail
- News brief
5 December 2024
Fighting discrimination: in the wake of Trump’s victory, Walmart backtracks
Fighting racism, homophobia and transphobia... In the U.S.A., the world's leading retailer is backtracking on the fight against workplace discrimination.
- Retail
- News
5 December 2024
With 16 new contracts signed in Q3, Shopify continues to focus on key accounts
Off-White, Victoria's Secret, Reebok... long associated with VSEs, Shopify intends to compete with Salesforce, Oracle, Adobe and SAP by setting its sights on major accounts.
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- News
4 December 2024
Carrefour to deploy GS1’s augmented QR code in all European banners by 2025
At the first CoNext event organised by GS1 on the theme of data for circularity, of which mind Retail was a media partner, Carrefour announced the deployment of the augmented QR code on private...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- News
3 December 2024
Vorwerk deploys Younited Pay to ease Thermomix purchases
Acceptance rates, customer relations, impact on sales teams... At Tech for Retail in Paris, Mind Retail delved into the details of the test carried out in four French branches of Vorwerk, the...
- Retail
- Retail tech
- News
3 December 2024
Temu gained 5.4 million visitors in France in Q3 2024, versus 344,000 for Amazon
In Q3 in France, of the 6 online retailers that gained over a million monthly Unique Visitors (UVs), 5 were marketplaces. Whilst Temu leads the way, with a gain of 5.4 million visitors, Carrefour...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- Analysis
29 November 2024
JD Sports buys Courir for €520 million, 10 times EBIT
After buying rival U.S. retailer Hibbett for US$1.1 billion in April, JD Sports Fashion (sales 2023 of €11.93 billion, up by 2.9%) made a 2nd acquisition. On November 27, 2024, it took over...
- Retail
- News brief
29 November 2024
Alexis Marcombe, Unlimitail: “Our tech and data division will double in Q1 2025”
Ongoing developments in Germany, tech recruitment, search, omnichannel approach, connected TV... As the 2024 financial year draws to a close, Alexis Marcombe, C.E.O. of Unlimitail, shared his...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- Analysis
26 November 2024
Temu leads growth in Q3, far ahead of Alibaba and JD.com
On November 21, PDD Holdings (Temu’s parent company) published Q3 figures. Sales reached US$14.2 billion, an increase of 44%, a marked slowdown on the 86%-uplift of Q2. Operating margin...
- Retail
- Retailer and e-commerce
- Analysis
21 November 2024
For the first time since 2020, the global luxury market is expected to drop in 2024
In 2024, 50 million people have stopped buying luxury brands, according to a report by Bain & Co and Altagamma. In a historic decline, the report recommends re-evaluating the brands' value...
- Retail
- Economy and regulators
- Analysis
21 November 2024
British retailers are up in arms against Rachel Reeves’ budget for 2025
British retailers are up in arms over the 2025 budget, presented at the end of October. Between increases in a minimum wage, the introduction of union rights and additional health insurance...
- Retail
- News
20 November 2024
What you absolutely must read this week
The essential content of the week selected by the editorial team.
How retailers are reinventing the checkout
As pressure on household budgets continues, new payment methods including account-to-account (A2A) instant payments, Wero, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), loyalty points and cashback, are gaining...
- Retail
- Special Reports
2 November 2026
Julien Cailleau, Oney: “With 3 retailers, we are testing the use of Valiuz data to streamline financing approvals”
Against a backdrop of growing pressure on household budgets, the European CCD2 Directive coming into force and a new legal framework for assisted purchasing journeys, Oney is stepping up an...
- Retail
- mind Exclusive
- Retail tech
29 October 2026
Advantail signs with Formality to streamline commercial lease management
Amid an ownership shake-up following its acquisition by Evoriel, shopping centre operator Advantail has signed with Formality to digitise the management of commercial leases and contracts across...
23 October 2026
US retailers divided over the rise of autonomous shopping agents
In the US, Gap, Walmart, Best Buy, Amazon and eBay are taking very different approaches to agentic commerce. While TV shopping giants QVC and HSN see these new intermediaries as an opportunity to...
- Retail
- Economy and regulators
- Analysis
21 October 2026
Most viewed articles of the month on mind Retail
What readers clicked on the most last month.
What readers clicked on the most last month.
1
Advantail signs with Formality to streamline commercial lease management
Amid an ownership shake-up following its acquisition by Evoriel, shopping centre operator Advantail has signed with Formality to digitise the management of commercial leases and contracts across...
23 October 2026