2026 Trends – Chatbots, WhatsApp, social networks: don’t miss out on conversation
(Trends 2/6) After a cautious observation phase by retailers and some high-profile hallucination issues, 2025 was a turning point operationally for chatbots and conversational tools. Positioned...
13 January 2026
Ocado: why the automation giant is ending exclusivity contracts
On December 30, the British e-grocer and automated warehouse specialist Ocado (2024 turnover: €3.7 billion, up by 14.1% year-on-year) announced the end of national exclusivity clauses with...
12 January 2026
Shoptimus AI scales up in grocery smart shopping lists and prepares for a new funding round
After securing a strategic partnership with Spanish grocer Bon Preu, retail tech firm Shoptimus AI—first spotted by Carrefour—is accelerating a rollout. By leveraging AI agents to automate grocery...
11 January 2026
2026 Trends – How far should retailers open the door to AI Search engines ?
(Trends 1/6) With data visibility, recommendations, transactions on ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity, LLMs are establishing themselves as new entry points for e-commerce. As search, comparison and...
8 January 2026
Saks Global negotiating new loan to overcome post-Neiman Marcus fallout
On reprieve until the end of January 2026 after missing a US$100 million bond payment on December 30, the U.S. department store retailer Saks Global (2024 revenue: US$7.3 billion dollars, down by...
8 January 2026
About to overtake Meta in 2025, TikTok finalises a U.S. spin-off
As the countdown approaches for TikTok's US business to move to American ownership by January 22, 2026, the parent company is on track to replace Meta for 2025 in revenue and profitability. Here...
6 January 2026
Bercy revises figures and brings Shein’s non-compliance down to 25%
The non-compliance of products sold on Shein is now estimated at 25%, a far cry from the 80% put forward by the French Economy Minister in November. This is a key adjustment that allows the...
5 January 2026
Small parcels: the EU sets a €3 custom duty, France wants to add €5
As the French National Assembly prepares to vote on the 2026 Finance Bill which includes a €5 tax on small parcels, the European Union has already approved a €3 customs duty per item category as...
19 December 2025
With Grand Frais, Apollo makes a first move into European grocery retail
Through an agreement to acquire 70% of the operator of Grand Frais, the US investment fund Apollo aims to double stores and evolve a model that has so far been entirely focused on physical retail...
19 December 2025
OMS: agentic AI sets new standards for e-commerce orchestration
Long confined to ‘click & collect’ or ‘ship from store’, Order Management Systems (OMS) are now expanding integration due to the rise of agentic AI which provides fine orchestration of flows...
18 December 2025
Carmila join forces with Unlimitail and JCDecaux to equip 252 malls
On December 9, Carrefour and Carmila signed a partnership with Unlimitail and JCDecaux to create a retail media network combining indoor DOOH and outdoor OOH across their sites in France and...
12 December 2025
Coupang’s C.E.O. resigns after data leak of 33.7 million customers
On December 10, Park Dae-Jun, CEO of South Korean e-commerce retailer Coupang (2024 revenue: US$31.5 billion up by 29%) resigned. The cause was a security breach that exposed the personal...
12 December 2025
Kroger compensates Ocado with US$350 million and scales back robotic warehouses
After improving net margin in 2024, Kroger is closing several automated Ocado warehouses. The strategy is to strengthen in-store picking and delivery partnerships with DoorDash Instacart and Uber...
12 December 2025
Walmart and Instacart bet on AI agents to simplify basket creation
In the U.S.A., Walmart has partnered with Pinterest and Instacart with ChatGPT to simplify and speed up the creation of online grocery baskets. Details below.
12 December 2025
Laurent Hugou (Les Mousquetaires): “With Diebold’s camera system, shrinkage at self-check-out is reduced by a third”
Shift towards an omnichannel payment service provider, roll-out of mobile payment and Diebold’s computer vision solution for self-checkout, impact of one-click payment on online sales, adoption of...
11 December 2025
Italian Golden Goose set for Chinese ownership
A year after the French children’s clothing brand Bonpoint was acquired by Chinese group Youngor, Italian luxury brand Golden Goose is next. British fund Permira (already owner of Hugo...
9 December 2025
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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
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...
2
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...
8 October 2026
3
How Maison A.Constant built a unified customer database with n8n
Eager to bring together customer data and improve data accuracy, jewellery and watch retailer Maison A.Constant built its own Single Customer Repository (SCR) using n8n, an orchestration platform...
4
Cashback: Younited secures an exclusive contract with Bouygues Telecom
Following Orange and the launch of a marketplace, Bouygues Telecom is strengthening a customer loyalty strategy by focusing on purchasing power with a new cashback offer. For French fintech...
16 October 2026