An Inside Look at IAB Europe’s Retail Media Impact Summit 2026
Retail Media is still growing fast. In 2025, the European market increased by 16.7% to reach €13.3 billion*, passing 10% of total digital advertising spend. But growth alone is no longer the story.
As investment rises and the market becomes more complex, the pressure is on to prove value, improve consistency and build models that work across countries, channels and businesses. That is why IAB Europe is bringing the industry back to Amsterdam.
The Retail Media Impact Summit, taking place on 7th October at Felix Meritis, is not designed as a traditional conference. It is a working Summit built around participation, practical discussion and the people tackling these questions every day.
Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, the 2026 Summit will bring 200 senior decision-makers from across the Retail and Commerce Media ecosystem together to look beyond the boom and focus on what comes next.
It is not about sitting back and listening. It is about joining the conversation and driving the future.
Built for Participation
What makes the Retail Media Impact Summit different is its format.
Alongside keynotes and expert-led discussions, attendees will choose from interactive breakout sessions across two rooms, allowing you to focus on the topics most relevant to your role and business.
Expect audience polling, live debate, practical examples and open discussion. The sessions are not designed to deliver a finished answer from the stage. They are designed to bring different viewpoints into the room and work through the challenges together.
That matters because Retail Media’s biggest questions cannot be solved by one side of the ecosystem alone. Retailers may own the inventory and customer relationships, but brands need confidence in performance. Agencies need consistency. Technology partners need clarity around integration. The wider market needs trusted standards and approaches that can scale.
The Summit is where those perspectives meet.
A Real Agenda for Retail Media’s Next Chapter
This year’s theme, Beyond the Boom: The Next Chapter of Retail Media Growth, reflects a market moving into a more demanding phase.
The opportunity remains significant, but expectations are rising. Retail Media businesses need to demonstrate results, strengthen the advertiser experience and find sustainable routes to growth.
The agenda will focus on the areas where those pressures are already being felt.
IAB Europe’s Chief Economist, Dr. Daniel Knapp, will open the day with a view of Retail Media performance across Europe, including new insights into sponsored product inventory and where untapped opportunities remain.
A fireside chat with Booking.com will explore the rise of travel media and the need for greater consistency in measurement, while a pan-European discussion featuring leaders from AH Retail Media Services, REWE Group, dunnhumby and LiveRamp will examine Retail Media data maturity across Europe.
AI will also be firmly on the agenda. Particular Audience’s James Taylor will lead an interactive town hall on AI adoption in Retail Media, while Koddi’s Paul Dahill will tackle Five Big Questions About Agentic Commerce and where AI-driven commerce can create real value.
Other sessions will tackle the commercial challenges and growth opportunities ahead, from Zitcha’s Lisa Avery exploring how Retail Media can close the credibility gap with merchants, to the next frontier of non-endemic demand, brought to life through the example of Opel and MediaMarktSaturn.
The aim is not to add more hype. It is to ask better questions, challenge assumptions and make meaningful progress.
And that is just the start. Expect more speakers and sessions bringing together leading voices from across the Retail and Commerce Media ecosystem to be announced in the coming weeks.
Who Will Be in the Room?
With 200 senior leaders attending, the Summit offers a rare opportunity to connect with the people making decisions across the industry today.
Expect retailers, brands, agencies, technology companies, publishers, consultants and members of IAB Europe’s Retail & Commerce Media Committee.
To ensure strong brand-side representation, IAB Europe is also partnering with the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) to bring key media and marketing decision-makers into the room. That means the Summit will not be a sell-side conversation. It will be a cross-industry forum focused on shared challenges, practical collaboration and outcomes that matter to the whole ecosystem.
And the conversations will not be limited to the sessions. From opening coffee and breakout discussions to the closing cocktail reception, there will be plenty of opportunities to compare approaches, build relationships and learn from leaders across Europe.
See You in Amsterdam
Retail Media’s next chapter will not be defined by growth figures alone. It will be defined by the industry’s ability to prove value, overcome fragmentation and work together on what comes next.
Join IAB Europe and 200 senior decision-makers on 7th October at Felix Meritis in Amsterdam.
Registration is now open. Secure your place and be part of the conversations defining Retail Media’s next chapter.
