The rise of the adaptive retailer in focus in new report from Columbus

Digital consultancy Columbus launches its latest retail report, C|The Shift: Retail reimagined, exploring how AI, unified commerce, fulfilment, sustainability and customer experience are reshaping the retail industry, and why adaptability is becoming the defining competitive advantage.

Retail is entering a new phase. Customer expectations are accelerating, technology is moving from experimentation into everyday operations, and retailers are under increasing pressure to deliver growth while managing complexity, costs and sustainability.

In its latest report Columbus examines the forces shaping the next era of retail, from agentic AI and intelligent order management to unified commerce, conversion, loyalty and responsible growth.

The report argues that the retailers best positioned for the future will not necessarily be those with the biggest budgets, the most technology or the widest footprint. They will be the organisations that can adapt quickly, connect their operations intelligently and keep the customer at the centre of every decision.

The adaptive retailer

Across the report, one theme connects the major trends: adaptability.

The most adaptive retailers make decisions based on data rather than legacy, turn innovation into everyday operations, and build trust through purposeful action on sustainability, customer experience, loyalty and security.

“The next decade of retail will not be won by the biggest, the loudest or even the most technologically advanced brands. It will be won by the retailers who build organisations capable of shifting, quickly, intelligently and intentionally, whenever the world demands it,” says Dan Andersson, GTM & Solution Director and Retail Lead at Columbus.

Søren Krogh Knudsen, CEO & President of Columbus, adds: “Retailers are operating in an environment where change is no longer something to prepare for, it is the environment itself. The ability to adapt, connect technology with business value and empower people will increasingly determine who succeeds.”

From AI experimentation to everyday intelligence

AI is moving rapidly beyond pilots and proofs of concept. The report highlights how retailers are beginning to use AI across merchandising, forecasting, personalisation, product content, supply chain and customer service, while stressing that the value of AI depends on strong data, integrated platforms and effective governance.

At the same time, unified commerce is becoming a business imperative, bringing ERP, OMS, e-commerce, POS, CRM, product data and AI together to create a consistent view of customers, inventory and operations.

C|The shift: Retail reimagined provides a practical perspective on the technologies, customer expectations and operational shifts shaping retail today, and what retailers can do to build organisations ready for what comes next.

About Columbus:

Columbus is a consultancy that brings business and tech together, delivering digital value through human intelligence to enable customers to innovate and grow. With more than 1,400 employees, we guide our customers through their digital transformation and deliver lasting value within the manufacturing, retail, distribution, food, and life sciences industries. We advise, implement, and manage business-critical solutions within Cloud Services, ERP, Data & AI, Digital Commerce, Business Process Automation, Enterprise Information Management, Cybersecurity and more. With headquarters in Denmark and a global presence, we ensure local delivery of our services on a global scale.