Italian retail is facing a major transformation. Digital investment now accounts for nearly 5% of revenue, while over 70% of retailers have already adopted omnichannel strategies and launched in-store innovation projects. Experience Retail was created in response to this transformation. It is Italy’s first trade show to bring together every aspect of contemporary retail, with solutions to design, innovate and manage stores. The event will take place at Veronafiere from 9 to 11 June 2027.
Organised by Senaf, Experience Retail already shows several distinctive strengt points: Verona’s strategic role as a dynamic hub for the retail industry, the sector expertise of Tecniche Nuove Group and a programme shaped by an Advisory Committee that will support and guide the project’s development.
The event goes beyond the traditional exhibition format with dedicated initiatives such as The Store of Tomorrow – Made in Italy, its flagship feature. This immersive showcase brings the retail store of the future to life, offering a concrete demonstration of how innovation can transform physical retail spaces.
Taking a closer look at the event, Experience Retail will extend far beyond large-scale retail. Through its six thematic areas, it will address the entire retail landscape, from consumer electronics, fashion, pharmacies and beauty to food, hospitality and every sector in which the physical store remains a strategic asset.
The event will offer a comprehensive view of the store, not simply as a place to purchase products, but as an ever-evolving space where technology, experience, customer engagement and service come together. Experience Retail will unite all the elements that now shape the transformation of physical retail, including store layouts, fixtures and fittings, technology solutions, logistics, security, refrigeration, communication and the store’s growing role as a media asset.
From space planning and day-to-day operations to customer experience, the three-day event will provide an integrated view of today’s retail landscape.
What will set the event apart is its distinctive format: more than a traditional exhibition, it will be a dynamic platform where ideas, solutions and expertise lead to valuable connections and tangible business opportunities through workshops, talks and live demonstration areas.
The Heart of the Event: Shaping the Future of Retail
How can the future retail store be experienced in practice? The answer is The Store of Tomorrow – Made in Italy, the event’s flagship feature: a live demonstration area that will recreate a fully functioning retail environment within the exhibition. Designed as a real, modular and immersive space, it will allow visitors to explore first-hand how the store of the future is taking shape.
More than an exhibition space, it will be a fully immersive retail environment created with the support of exhibitors and sponsors, who will contribute solutions, technologies, products and expertise. Its goal is to make the transformation of retail visible and tangible by showcasing innovation within a real-world setting.
The Tecniche Nuove Group Ecosystem
Another major asset lies in the synergy with Tecniche Nuove Group, which brings over 60 years of experience and a well-established professional ecosystem of specialised publications, trade shows and industry-focused conferences across a wide range of sectors. Its portfolio also includes events dedicated to retail, such as the Marketing Retail Summit. Its leading industry publications include Mark Up and GDOWeek for retail; Logistica; RCI for building systems; Zerosottozero for cold chain production and management; Area and Arketipo for architecture and construction; Ambiente Cucina for distribution; Sicurezza for security; Farmacia News; Fresh Point Magazine for the fresh produce sector; HA Household Appliances for consumer appliances; and Bargiornale and Ristoranti for the hospitality industry. Together, these titles provide comprehensive coverage of distribution, retail and a broad range of specialist markets.
This industry expertise gives Experience Retail a strong foundation of relationships, market knowledge and specialist insight, providing the event with credibility and a comprehensive perspective on the retail sector.
From the Advisory Committee to the Six Thematic Areas
The event’s overall content strategy will be guided by a dedicated Advisory Committee, bringing together representatives from large-scale retail, international retail, fashion retail, management education and specialist media.
The Committee will guide the project’s development in line with the main changes shaping the market, ensuring that the event’s content remains updated, relevant and aligned with the real needs of the industry.
Overall, Experience Retail will be organised around six thematic areas that present contemporary retail as an integrated system, from spatial design to coordinated communication. Store Vision will explore concepts, formats, layouts and new store configurations, with a focus on the customer journey and the evolution of physical retail spaces. Retail Tech Lab is the area dedicated to technology, data, artificial intelligence, analytics, automation, computer vision, software and digital infrastructure. Energy & Impact will focus on energy, sustainability, refrigeration, systems design and maintenance, and the reduction of carbon emissions in retail spaces. Space & Materials is dedicated to the physical design of the store, from fixtures, visual merchandising and lighting to surfaces and materials. Smart Operations will explore operational processes in detail, including payments, in-store logistics, self-checkout, security and workforce management. Media in Store completes the picture with a focus on retail media, digital signage, loyalty, CRM and in-store communication. Six thematic areas, one integrated vision: the store as a complex, connected experience.
“Experience Retail takes place at a time when the Italian retail sector is facing a deep transformation and critical challenges such as digitalisation, omnichannel strategies and artificial intelligence,” said Ivo Alfonso Nardella, President of Senaf and Tecniche Nuove Group. “In such a dynamic landscape, it is essential to provide a clear vision of how physical retail is evolving and offer the entire industry a forward-looking perspective.
Experience Retail meets this need by bringing together expertise, innovation and industry know-how to provide companies with practical support in the design and management of retail stores.
Veronafiere offers a strategic location at the heart of a region with strong ties to the retail industry, while our publishing group contributes extensive expertise across its many specialist sectors. Together, these strengths make the event a unique opportunity to connect key market players and share a current, authoritative vision of Italian retail.” “The launch of Experience Retail confirms Veronafiere’s ability to attract events with innovative content and support their growth,” said Federico Bricolo, President of Veronafiere. “It also marks another step in the diversification of our portfolio, as we complement our own event formats with initiatives such as this, which represents our first collaboration with Senaf, one of Italy’s leading organisers of professional events.”
For further information
www.experienceretail.it/en/ | experienceretail@senaf.it
MY PR - Press Office Senaf
Roberto Grattagliano – roberto.grattagliano@mypr.it – +39 338 9291793
Barbara Gori – barbara.gori@mypr.it – +39 340 1409543
