NRF 2026: 8 insights from the world’s largest retail event to apply to your business

Alfredo Soares - co-founder of executive education platform G4 Educação - attended Retail’s Big Show in NY and shares key takeaways on metrics, leadership, and the physical retail experience

Less speculation about the future of retail and more discussion about innovations already being applied today. For many years, editions of NRF – Retail’s Big Show anticipated trends for the next decade of the industry. With the advancement of artificial intelligence, the conversation has shifted toward innovations that are already being implemented in day-to-day business operations.

NRF 2026, which brought together more than 40,000 participants from January 11 to 13 in New York, adopted the theme “The next now is here.” Alfredo Soares, co-founder of G4 Educação, followed the three days of discussions closely and shared with [EXP] his perspective on the main insights from this year’s edition.

1) AI for operations, not for experience

Around 80% of AI applications in retail today are focused on operational efficiency, with an emphasis on cost reduction and margin improvement. The cases presented show that the industry is investing more effort in optimizing operations than in reinventing the customer experience.

While AI is already being used to qualify and scale customer service, the real competitive advantage lies in a still underexplored stage of the journey: the consumer experience. This is where companies can become truly more desirable to customers.

2) A synthetic customer you can call your own

What would your company do if it could consult its customers endlessly—anticipating behaviors, capturing desires, and extracting insights to guide strategic decisions? With the synthetic customer, this is already possible. Using their own customer data and artificial intelligence, brands can replicate behavioral and interaction patterns of real consumers.

These models allow companies to test hypotheses, explore scenarios, and identify trends at scale, turning the customer relationship into a living asset for building strategy, products, and offerings.

3) Who would have thought? Gen Z wants more real-life experiences

Consumers are increasingly informed and value good deals—but this goes beyond choosing the lowest price. They may opt for a retailer with faster delivery or a more differentiated offering. In addition, the industry was surprised by a shift in Gen Z behavior. Tired of purely digital experiences, this generation is increasingly valuing physical stores and real-world interactions.

According to data shared at the event, for every US$1 spent online, another US$3 is invested in physical stores. This behavior is reshaping brand strategies. Instead of creating new experiences from scratch, many brands are leveraging the value of already established ones. An example is the collaboration between Glacé NY and Loewe Perfumes, which launched three limited-edition Glacé hot chocolate variations inspired by a Loewe Christmas collection, sold from a food truck in front of its Christmas pop-up store at Rockefeller Plaza. The product went viral during the New York winter.

4) Community as a strategic asset

Although it still occupies a relatively small space on the NRF agenda, brands that build communities or own their customer communication platforms spend three to four times less on acquiring new customers and generating repeat sales. Building community and producing relevant content are opportunities brands should pay close attention to.

5) Good ideas don’t always scale

In retail, a good idea can deliver excellent results when applied in ten stores. But when rolled out to 50 or even 1,000 locations, it may reveal weaknesses that weren’t visible at a smaller scale. Continuous monitoring is essential to ensure innovation succeeds when scaled.

6) Metrics are becoming increasingly complex

As retail becomes more complex—driven by data, artificial intelligence, and multiple channels—measuring results has become a challenge. The discussion around success metrics gains new layers. Who is the most loyal customer: the one who buys more frequently, the one with the highest ticket size, or the one who refers the most new customers? Legacy metrics need to be revisited so companies don’t lose sight of what truly matters.

7) AI stops being innovation and becomes a prerequisite

When artificial intelligence stops being seen as innovation and becomes part of the basics, it turns into an expected capability. Working with AI is starting to occupy the same space that skills like Excel or English once did. Hiring priorities shift toward professionals who can create, operate, and evolve AI-driven solutions, embedding the technology into everyday workflows. A professional’s value is no longer defined only by what they deliver directly, but also by the results generated by the AI agents they manage.

8) Leadership becomes about eliminating processes

With the exponential capabilities AI puts in the hands of employees, the role of leadership is no longer the same. Effective leadership now requires time on the agenda and close proximity to teams. It’s no longer about transforming processes with AI, but about eliminating processes to free up time.

Leaders need to create space for different questions (“what if?”) and for listening. The more a leader talks, the less they listen.