Another year has come and gone, but the retail industry chugs ever onward. From pricing dynamics to the shifting state of malls, here are the trends we’ve got our eye on in 2026. Factors like a weakening job market, rising health care costs and other affordability pressures continue to undermine discretionary budgets, pushing consumers to seek out value.

A 2025 retrospective would no doubt include both tariff upheaval and a surge in generative AI investing — two trends Retail Dive expects to continue in the year ahead. Retail also continues to face a challenging economic landscape, which impacts the outlook for core pieces of the industry, including consumer spending, deal-making and distressed retail.

eCommerce shipping has many moving parts, and teams need a defined approach to keep costs and delivery times under control. A shipping strategy provides that structure by clarifying how orders are fulfilled, how carriers are used, and how routing decisions are made. This guide explains the practical methods ecommerce operators rely on to manage shipping costs and improve delivery accuracy. It also shows how Locus supports planning, routing, and real-time adjustments for high-volume operations.

In 2026, the front end of retail and the back end of delivery are no longer separate worlds. AI assistants compare products and delivery promises in seconds. Retail media networks monetize tracking pages. Shoppers switch between home, store, lockers, and cross-border offers without thinking about channels at all. This article looks at one of the most important 2026 delivery trends in our research: the evolution of retail demand itself. It’s the context that all the 2026 hot topics we have identified sit inside.

Ten delivery trends that decide who wins customers and margin in 2026. Delivery is no longer back-end plumbing. It is where brands keep or break their promises, where logistics costs become real, and where shoppers quietly decide whether to buy again. This research report maps ten interconnected trends that are reshaping delivery across the EU and the UK, from AI and platforms to regulation, resilience, and retail demand.

A step-by-step guide to the basics of ecommerce shipping. We cover packaging, popular couriers to use, and how to ship products to customers profitably. You put a lot of effort into making sure your customers have a great experience: You approve the product pics, tweak your web store design, write the marketing emails—all with the goal of leaving your customers happy.

But you may still ask yourself: What are the best ways to ship your products to customers? Ecommerce shipping is a key part of your business—it’s the point where a customer finally experiences your product in person. Fulfillment and shipping logistics can also represent a major expense in your business, depending on your ecommerce shipping strategy.

As cross-border eCommerce continues to grow, so do customer expectations. For international retailers, understanding what drives – and deters – global shoppers is the key to converting one-time buyers into long-term, loyal customers.

fulfilmentcrowd‘s latest report, Cross-border shoppers: What they really want, reveals data and insights from 1,000 UK consumers, uncovering what builds trust, what breaks it, and what practical steps you can take to increase repeat business.

In today’s fast-paced world, last-mile distribution businesses face a critical challenge: balancing customer happiness with business profitability. Modern customers have higher expectations than ever, demanding tighter scheduling, real-time tracking, and the flexibility to change delivery locations or schedules at a moment’s notice. Meeting these demands while keeping operational costs in check is the key to a profitable fleet.

Radial, Inc., a bpost group company, the leader in eCommerce solutions, today announced findings from its annual Peak Season Consumer Survey, uncovering shifts in what drives holiday shopping decisions. While economic pressures persist, this year, consumers are clear about what they want: certainty in delivery, flexibility in service, and trust beyond the checkout button. Radial’s research provides a strategic blueprint for brands and retailers as they navigate a peak season shaped by trade disruption and heightened consumer expectations.