Day 2 at the RetailClub AI Festival: one theme emerged across the stages—retenti
By Agijarumpe · September 25, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Day 2 at the RetailClub AI Festival: one theme emerged across the stages—retention over acquisition.
Walmart shared that shoppers who use Sparky spend 40% more per order than those who do not.
What stood out to me is that Sparky’s role is not only to recommend more. It is to remember: what you have bought, what may fit your habits, and what could make the next shop easier.
Amazon put the same idea more simply: customers hate having to repeat themselves. They want a platform that remembers them.
That is a useful reminder for everyone building in retail AI:
Personalisation is not only about selling more. It is about reducing friction.
A signal for those who build SaaS products for retailers: retailers are testing whether they can build their own solution before buying a SaaS product.
Honestly, I think that can be good news for vendors.
During the build phase, teams discover what they actually need: where their data is incomplete, what has to connect to existing systems, which workflows matter, and where maintaining an internal tool becomes a distraction.
That is often when a focused product wins.
Photo: Tracy Poulliot and Jason Goldberg