The retail industry continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, driven by innovation, shifting consumer expectations, and global economic dynamics. This year, at NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show, we explored the transformative trends redefining the retail landscape. From the rise of AI-powered personalization and frictionless shopping experiences to cyber security initiatives and next-generation supply chain strategies, retailers are embracing change to stay competitive and meet the needs of today’s consumers.
Held in New York City over three days, NRF 2026 brought together thousands of industry leaders, innovators, and solution providers from around the world. With insights from over 400 speakers and hundreds of exhibitors, attendees had the opportunity to immerse themselves in groundbreaking ideas, emerging technologies, and actionable strategies shaping the future of retail.
Explore the trends: KPMG’s key takeaways from NRF 2026
Agentic AI: for the consumer
Agentic AI is moving retail beyond reactive recommendations toward proactive, concierge‑like experiences that can anticipate needs, reason, and act across channels. Google spotlighted Unified Commerce Protocol (UCP) to standardize agent‑driven commerce enabling native checkout and retailer‑controlled relationships.
Leaders reinforced human-centered AI with humility, transparency, explainability, and design that augments rather than replace people, to preserve trust as autonomy increases. Luxury retailers emphasized “quiet tech” that elevates creativity and client relationships without overwhelming the brand experience.
Agentic AI: for the organization
Retailers are shifting from pilots to scaled execution, using coordinated agents to enhance e‑commerce, store operations, and supply chain. Physical AI, digital twins, and edge‑to‑cloud architectures are improving productivity, cost, and resilience in DCs and stores. Building proprietary agents to “negotiate” with third‑party shopping agents is emerging as a differentiator.
Knowing your customer: meet them where they are (with tech)
Discovery has evolved from stores and SEO to social, short‑form video, and conversational AI. Consumers increasingly rely on AI‑generated recommendations, and machine customers (agents) are beginning to discover and transact on behalf of people. Brands are updating content, architecture (APIs/microservices), and measurement to be discoverable across all types of platform customers explore on.
Tech‑enabled loss prevention
Shrink is now omni‑fraud, spanning ORC, returns abuse, payments fraud, and logistics, amplified by online resale velocity and increasingly coordinated groups. Computer vision at self‑checkout, LPR integration, exception‑based reporting, and cross‑retailer data sharing are accelerating detection and response, while employee safety and de‑escalation training remain paramount.
Building resilient supply chains
Supply chains are shifting from cost‑only to resilience + margin. Digital twins and near‑real‑time analytics help avoid split shipments, optimize inventory placement, and balance speed vs. cost. Physical/agentic AI, computer vision, and edge processing are improving DC flow, labor efficiency, and SLA adherence.
The tech lifecycle: where to invest and when you’ve “made it”
NRF sentiment was clear: the pace of change requires selectivity. Most offerings are point solutions; the missing piece is the orchestration layer that unifies data, governance, and workflows. Leaders are moving from “pilot collect” to repeatable value, setting tollgates (proof of tech/concept/economics), scaling what sticks, and sunsetting what doesn’t. The biggest signal that you’ve made it in your tech transformation journey is when your daily operations look different.
Economic outlook
Teams noted a cautious shift toward asset‑based commerce dynamics, with consumers reallocating spend patterns; lower oil prices have eased freight in places, partially offsetting tariff impacts. The through‑line for retailers: preserve financial flexibility, sharpen category bets, and focus on profitable growth while AI transformation accelerates.
Practical takeaways (you can act on now)
- Designing trust‑first, proactive experiences: Use agentic AI to anticipate customer needs while preserving transparency, control, and trust. Human‑centered design and discoverability for AI‑led journeys are now essential.
- Turning AI into an enterprise capability: Scale AI through shared platforms, strong governance, and orchestration moving beyond pilots to repeatable enterprise impact. Edge‑to‑cloud infrastructure will be critical for resilience and scale.
- Meeting customers where engagement happens: Create a unified view of the customer to support personalized engagement across physical, digital, and AI‑mediated channels. API‑driven ecosystems and brand governance ensure relevance without sacrificing authenticity.
- Protecting value in an omni‑risk environment: Expand loss prevention beyond stores to address omni‑channel fraud and shrink. Advanced analytics and automation must be paired with employee safety and collaboration.
- Investing with discipline in a fast‑moving tech landscape: Prioritize platform investments over point solutions and apply clear stage gates to scale, or stop, initiatives. Adoption and business impact should define success.
- Building agility into the supply chain core: Use AI and real‑time data to balance cost, speed, and service while designing for disruption. Visibility and decision intelligence are now foundational capabilities.
- Planning for growth amid economic uncertainty: Anchor technology investments to clear payback horizons and stress‑tested scenarios. Focused, profitable growth will matter more than broad expansion.
Our take
Agentic AI is quickly becoming the operating system of modern retail, but only organizations with unified platforms, strong data foundations, and human‑centered governance will scale it safely and profitably. Now is the time to pick your lanes, industrialize what works, and retire what doesn’t.
KPMG’s consumer and retail practice brings deep expertise across audit, tax, and advisory. Our multidisciplinary teams help Canadian and global retailers pivot toward AI-enabled, customer-centric, and resilient business models. From omnichannel transformation to AI deployment and sustainability reporting, we leverage industry insights and technical capabilities to support bottom-line impact.
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