Hello OmniTalk Fans!
Groceryshop is just a few weeks away, and if you are wondering what is going to be on the minds of grocery and CPG leaders when they descend on Las Vegas later this month, we have a pretty good preview for you.
This week, Chris Walton and Ben Miller sat down with Rocquan Lucas, VP of Content at Groceryshop, for another edition of 5 Insightful Minutes to get the inside scoop on what attendees can expect when the event returns to the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas from September 22–24.
And according to Rocquan, this year’s agenda is built around one pivotal question: How can retailers and brands use the insights and strategies they need to innovate and unlock growth?
No big deal, right?
From AI and personalization to retail media, evolving consumer behavior, loyalty, and the technology transforming the fundamentals of retail, here’s what stood out from the conversation:
Six Big Questions Will Shape the Conversation
Groceryshop’s agenda may cover more than 50 sessions, but Rocquan says they all come back to that one big question around innovation and growth.
Within that, the event is focusing on six major areas.
First up, AI and the growing opportunity to create more conversational and personalized shopping experiences. Leaders from retailers including Schnucks, Kroger, and Albertsons will share how they are thinking about building the next generation of shopping experiences.
But AI is only one piece of the puzzle.
Groceryshop will also dig into how technology can support the fundamentals of retail across merchandising, supply chain, marketing, and e-commerce. Because as exciting as the latest AI announcement may be, retailers still need to figure out how technology can actually help their businesses run better.
The other big conversations will center around evolving consumer behavior, unified commerce, retail media, and the changing grocery and CPG landscape.
In other words, pretty much everything keeping grocery executives up at night.
Consumers Are Changing, and Grocery Has to Change With Them
One of the biggest themes Rocquan highlighted is the continued evolution of the consumer.
Retailers and brands are dealing with shoppers who are prioritizing value, demanding easier and more convenient ways to shop, and making increasingly specific choices around everything from dietary preferences to where and how they purchase products.
At the same time, consumers are continuing to trade down, private label continues to grow, and shoppers are switching channels.
The result? Loyalty is getting harder to win and, perhaps more importantly, harder to keep.
That means retailers have to rethink everything from the products and assortments they offer to the experiences they create both online and in-store.
Groceryshop Wants to Get More Tactical This Year
One of the most interesting things Rocquan shared was Groceryshop’s focus on making the learning experience even more actionable.
New tactical learning sessions will give retailers and brands the opportunity to hear directly from companies that are either implementing new technologies or figuring out how to set their teams up for success.
And these are not meant to be sessions where you sit quietly in the audience, take a few notes, and then immediately forget everything you heard.
Attendees will be able to participate by asking questions and contributing to live polling that helps guide the conversation.
Even better, every session across the event’s tracks will conclude with two to three actionable next steps displayed directly on a slide.
As Rocquan put it, there will be no way to miss the takeaways.
Groceryshop Is Becoming More Than Just an Annual Event
There was also an interesting moment in the conversation when Chris asked Rocquan about Groceryshop’s original content and research.
Rocquan explained that the goal is for Groceryshop to continue evolving into more than just an event that happens once a year.
The team has been expanding its content throughout the year with interviews featuring members of the grocery and CPG community, along with new industry reports focused on the trends shaping the business.
One of those reports will make its debut on the Groceryshop main stage this year and will explore how grocers are using technology to support both associates and shoppers, as well as how shopping baskets are evolving because of broader consumer trends, including GLP-1s.
So, yes, there will be plenty to talk about beyond what is happening on stage.
The Real Value Might Be Who You Meet
Of course, no conference preview would be complete without asking someone what they are personally most excited about.
Ben tried to get Rocquan to pick a favorite speaker or session, which, understandably, is not the easiest thing to do when you are the VP of Content.
But after giving a nod to a speaker lineup that includes leaders from Instacart, Hy-Vee, and Kroger, Rocquan landed on something else: Meetup.
Meetup is specifically designed for leaders across grocery, convenience, and club retail to have one-on-one conversations with partners they are actually interested in meeting.
And that is a pretty big deal.
The idea is to help attendees accomplish in a few days the kinds of conversations and partnership opportunities that might otherwise take months to coordinate.
With Groceryshop expecting to bring in even more retailers and brands than last year, Rocquan sees that growth as a sign that people are continuing to find real value in those connections.
The Future of Grocery Is About More Than AI
Yes, AI will be everywhere at Groceryshop this year.
But one of the biggest takeaways from our conversation with Rocquan was that the future of grocery is much bigger than any single technology.
It is about understanding a consumer who continues to change. It is about connecting online and in-store experiences. It is about making retail media more measurable and transparent. It is about using technology to improve the fundamentals of retail. And it is about finding new ways to win customers and keep them loyal in an increasingly competitive landscape.
Those are some pretty big questions.
Fortunately, if you want to hear how some of the biggest names in grocery and CPG are thinking about answering them, you know where to be September 22–24.
Be careful out there,
The Omni Talk Team
You can listen to or watch the full conversation with Rocquan Lucas, VP of Content at Groceryshop, wherever you get your podcasts.
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Omni Talk® is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton founded Omni Talk® in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail.