Too Fast to Forecast
Few of the 170-plus executives who took the stage at Groceryshop 2025 in Las Vegas from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 were willing to predict what the commerce industry will look like in 10 or even five years. The furthest most speakers were prepared to look ahead was two to three years, and even that shorter time frame made some hesitate.
It’s not that industry leaders are suddenly afraid to make predictions. It’s that technology advances have so profoundly accelerated the pace of change across the commerce ecosystem that it’s a risky proposition to assume any current trend will still be relevant in more than a few years. Was anyone predicting the rise of generative AI search five or 10 years ago — did anyone back then even know what generative AI was?
Everyone knows now, of course, which is why artificial intelligence (generative or otherwise) dominated the discussion at this year’s Groceryshop, whose other key themes reflected the ongoing evolution of retail media, the physical store, marketing measurement — and a little pill with a surprisingly big story to tell.
DOWNLOAD THE Groceryshop Recap Report HERE to get a deeper dive into those four themes, along with many other key takeaways, from 12 leading thought leaders across the Publicis Commerce ecosystem.
For more coverage of the event, watch our exclusive webinar, in which Publicis Groupe's Jason "Retailgeek" Goldberg, Mars United's Michele Roney, and Digitas' Elena MacGurn discuss “Tidbits, Trends & Final Thoughts” from the show — where all three executives hosted sessions. The illustrious panel examines best practices in retail media, search marketing in the generative AI era, and the integration of shopper engagement and commerce.
