Skip to content
MarketScale
‹ Back to Industries

Retail

What Does the Retail Landscape of 2025 Look Like?

Designed for retail leaders and lovers alike, Retail Refined explores the in-store technology of the future, challenges the industry’s preconceived notions, and brings together retail’s biggest names to understand the brand strategies that will define the next decade in retail.   The past year has been a deeply transformative one for the retail industry, which saw already…

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Retail teams put it to work with Sales Enablement.

Share

Designed for retail leaders and lovers alike, Retail Refined explores the in-store technology of the future, challenges the industry’s preconceived notions, and brings together retail’s biggest names to understand the brand strategies that will define the next decade in retail.

The past year has been a deeply transformative one for the retail industry, which saw already emerging trends in online shopping, curbside pickup and more accelerated in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, even with vaccines continuing to roll out and a true reopening commencing, retail isn’t going backward. In fact, the evolution could be just beginning.

On this episode of MarketScale’s Retail Refined with Melissa Gonzalez, Gonzalez welcomed fashion and design icon Rebecca Minkoff to explore another of her areas of expertise – retail’s digital landscape. In fact, she’s a pioneer with a history of integrating innovative technology, such as “magic mirrors” and self-checkout, into her label’s physical stores.

“Now, the customer is so used to the online experience that, if she doesn’t get that in the store, she’ll be like, ‘Ugh, I’m just going to order online’” -Rebecca Minkoff

That experience makes her uniquely qualified to assess how the retail industry might respond to mounting pressures for more innovation, integration and interaction in the months and years after the pandemic draws to a close.

“Now, the customer is so used to the online experience that, if she doesn’t get that in the store, she’ll be like, ‘Ugh, I’m just going to order online,’” Minkoff said.

It’s those raised expectations that retailers are now competing against, though there are exciting new technologies, data tools and more emerging to help them do it.

Click here to pre-order or to read more Rebecca Minkoff’s new book, Fearless.

To hear more, listen to the entirety of this episode of Retail Refined.

Listen to Previous Episodes of Retail Refined Right Here!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale

Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

New to MarketScale?

MarketScale is the platform Retail companies use to turn their own experts into content like this. Want the short overview?

Free workspace

You just read one expert. Imagine publishing your whole team.

This article was produced through MarketScale. Create a free workspace and turn your own team's expertise into articles, video, and social posts. No credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What you get, free

Your own MarketScale Studio workspace
One video edit a month, on us
AI writing, editing, and publishing tools
In-platform coaching to learn the system

More Retail Insights

B2B ecommerce pulse: AI agents, marketplace expansion, and digital investment drive mid-2026 momentum

B2B ecommerce pulse: AI agents, marketplace expansion, and digital investment drive mid-2026 momentum

B2B ecommerce is accelerating into the second half of 2026, driven by concrete AI deployments, marketplace expansions, and measurable gains from digital investment. The global B2B ecommerce market reached $20.4 trillion in 2024 and is forecast to hit $36.1 trillion by 2031, providing the macro backdrop for a string of notable mid-year developments. Kawasaki Engines USA's reported 500% average-order-value increase and Global Industrial's 9.2% Q1 sales growth illustrate the real-world stakes of getting digital infrastructure right.

  • 01Kawasaki Engines USA reported a 500% increase in average order value through its B2B ecommerce channel, according to Digital Commerce 360's coverage of Salesforce Connections 2026.
  • 02The global B2B ecommerce market reached $20.4 trillion in 2024 and is projected to reach $36.1 trillion by 2031, per Grand View Research via Creatuity.
  • 0372% of organizations reported adopting AI in at least one business function in 2025, up from 55% in 2023, according to McKinsey's State of AI report.

Jun 18, 2026

Zero-click commerce arrives: AI agents set to intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028

Zero-click commerce arrives: AI agents set to intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028

Gartner predicts that AI agents will intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028. As a result, businesses will need to reconsider their approaches to data management, discovery, and digital infrastructure. This shift indicates a significant transformation in how B2B transactions are conducted using AI technology.

  • 01AI agents will manage $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028.
  • 02Businesses must revamp data, discovery, and digital infrastructure.
  • 03AI technology is changing the landscape of B2B transactions.

Jun 17, 2026

Zero-click commerce: AI agents set to intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028

Zero-click commerce: AI agents set to intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028

A Gartner projection cited by commercetools places $15 trillion in B2B purchases under AI agent mediation by 2028, pushing procurement entirely past the traditional vendor storefront. Adobe Digital Insights data shows AI-referred traffic already converts 42% more often than non-AI visits as of March 2026 — a full reversal from a year earlier. Together, the figures signal that agentic and AI-assisted commerce have moved from pilot phase to structural infrastructure priority for B2B organizations.

  • 01Gartner forecasts AI agents will intermediate $15 trillion in B2B purchases by 2028, according to commercetools — compressing the timeline for commerce infrastructure upgrades.
  • 02Adobe Digital Insights found that AI-referred traffic converted 42% more often than non-AI traffic in March 2026, reversing a trend from just one year prior.
  • 03Only 18% of B2B companies describe their AI commerce maturity as 'advanced,' according to Boston Consulting Group, leaving most organizations exposed to fast-moving competitors.

Jun 17, 2026

Explore More Retail Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Retail.

Browse Retail Hub