From Digital Shelf to Connected Commerce: What Brands Can Expect at This Year’s Summit

The e-commerce landscape is evolving at lightning speed, and with it, so is one of the industry’s flagship events. One our most recent episode of Point of Purchase, geekspeak’s Managing Partner Tricia Williams sat down with Sarah Kingham, Founder and Director of My Digital Shelf, to discuss the upcoming Connected Commerce Summit. Formerly known as the Digital Grocery Summit, the rebranded event reflects the industry’s shift towards a truly omnichannel approach to retail.

Sarah’s global expertise stems from over a decade of creating leading events in markets such as London, Chicago, Amsterdam, Hamburg, Dubai, and Toronto. Her vision has always been to bridge knowledge gaps in e-commerce, particularly for CPG brands navigating digital transformation.

“When I started My Digital Shelf over ten years ago,” Sarah shared, “people were comfortable buying fashion or electronics online, but no one wanted to buy milk and bread digitally. There was a lot of learning needed in the industry.”

Why the Rebrand?

The decision to evolve the Digital Grocery Summit into the Connected Commerce Summit stems from the reality that today’s shoppers are everywhere – mobile, in-store, social commerce, TikTok Shop, WhatsApp, and beyond.

“Primarily, we were focused on digital shelf capabilities, but as the shopper evolved, so did the learnings needed,” explained Sarah. “The Connected Commerce Summit brings together all these touchpoints to create a holistic vision of the shopper journey.”

This year’s event will feature two tracks:

1. Shopper marketing and omnichannel retail focus
2. E-commerce and digital shelf focus

This allows attendees to curate their experience based on current roles, challenges, and opportunities.

Key Trends and Themes in 2025

Across the ten countries where the summit operates, common threads are emerging:

• Data, AI, and Analytics: Brands are increasingly focused on gaining ownership of consumer data, cleansing it, and distributing insights back to sales and marketing teams for precise targeting. As Sarah highlighted, “Retailers have traditionally held much of this data. Now brands are figuring out what to do with it.”
• Retail Media Growth: This remains one of the fastest-growing roles within CPG organizations, reflecting the increasing need to connect media spend to shopper behavior.
• Internal Team Collaboration: Companies are restructuring to integrate teams across in-store and digital channels. “We’re seeing omni roles and connected commerce roles becoming more common,” noted Sarah. “Finally, folks are talking to each other within organizations.”
• Quick Commerce: Driven by consumer demand for immediacy, markets like the US and UK are expanding rapid fulfillment models that originated in Asia.
• Virtual Stores and Rooms: While still in their infancy, these will begin to replicate the impulse purchase behaviours of brick-and-mortar. “Online isn’t set up for distractions like in-store shopping is,” said Sarah. “I’m interested to see how virtual shopping evolves in grocery and drugstore spaces.”

Canadian Retailers Leading the Omni Evolution

When asked how Canadian brands are navigating omnichannel, Sarah observed that while the pandemic drove a surge in digital adoption, many consumers returned to in-store shopping for convenience and preference. As a result, brands are realigning strategies to ensure digital influences in-store behavior, such as online research leading to in-store purchases, or digital coupons redeemable offline.

Tricia added, “Consumers don’t exclusively shop online or in-store. They have different needs on any given day.”

What to Expect at This Year’s Connected Commerce Summit

Set to take place on October 29th at the Ritz Carlton in Toronto, this year’s Canadian event features expert speakers from major retailers such as Loblaw Digital, London Drugs, and Instacart, alongside brands like Nestlé, Mondelez, Barilla, and Beiersdorf. Topics will cover:

• Retail media integration
• Shopper marketing and activations
• Data ownership and analytics
• Team collaboration and restructuring for omnichannel success
• Expanding beyond grocery into health & beauty, personal care, household, pet care, and appliances

Sarah emphasized the Summit’s boutique feel, with only approximately 150 attendees, enabling deeper connections and meaningful discussions. “Rather than walking a trade show of thousands, you’ll meet direct peers, retail partners, and solution providers relevant to your role.”

The Future of Commerce: Partnerships and Collaboration

Sarah predicts increased brand collaborations to replicate in-store cross-category merchandising online. For example, a consumer searching for pizza could be prompted with bundled soft drinks or snack offers, creating a cohesive “movie night” basket. This kind of strategic partnership not only increases basket size but elevates shopper experience across touchpoints.

She also expects retailers to continue exploring AI, but warns it is not yet perfect: “AI is fantastic, but you still need humans to review content outputs.”

What Will Attendees Walk Away With?

For brands and retailers attending Connected Commerce Summit for the first time, Sarah promises:

• Strong connections: Meeting peers across categories and retailers in an intimate setting.
• Relevant, actionable content: Speakers and panels are curated around real-world challenges and insights that teams can implement immediately.
• Renewed inspiration: As many work remotely or in hybrid environments, an in-person day offers space to reset, learn, and envision 2026 strategies.

Save on Early Bird Registration

As a special thank you for podcast listeners, Sarah is offering 15% off registration with promo code GEEKSPEAK15 at checkout. Combined with the early bird rate, it’s an opportunity to save budget while investing in your team’s knowledge and networks.

Register now to secure your spot.