Retail Technology Show: No let-up in retail tech investments
Retail Technology Show: No let-up in retail tech investments
https://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Retail-Technology-Show-No-let-up-in-retail-tech-investments
Publish Date: 2026-06-01 07:51:00
Source Domain: www.computerweekly.com
Against a backdrop of acknowledgement that artificial intelligence (AI) will impact retailers in many ways, the sector is experiencing a major level of investment aimed at creating the infrastructures that will enable businesses to fully utilise the power of the emerging new technologies.
This was an underlying theme from the Retail Technology Show at Excel London, where retail and hospitality executives along with technology specialists converged to share ideas and seek to map out the future of the sectors that continue to move at an increasingly fast pace.
Summing up the situation, Kate Jones, executive partner at IBM, says: “Everything is happening all at once, with tech evolving fast. In the last 12-24 months, I’ve never experienced technology moving at this pace. Retailers who win will be those who take advantage of that technology … it’s about tech solving problems for retailers.”
In the thick of it is Anthony Houghton, group CEO of Holland & Barrett, who revealed the business has committed investing £300m to boosting its technology capabilities. This involves a mix of in-house built offerings and third-party bought-in technology (from 100 partners) including new tech for its stores and a major overhaul of the supply chain underpinned by the implementation of AutoStore in the distribution centre.
“All parts of the business are now tech-enabled,” he says. “We’ve invested massively in the data stack and are evaluating it. Next is how we serve up the data. AI and machine learning will be utilised way beyond ChatGPT. It will be using one version of the truth, so no duplication of the data.”
This has been recognised as a major challenge for electricals chain Currys, according to Dean Kramer, chief services officer at the firm, who says the need to make data discoverable – for Currys employees and externally for chatbots – is vitally important, and he is making the company “foundationally ready for the world of shopping through…
