On Tuesday, September 22, the third edition of the E-commerce Innovation Summit took place at Fort de Gagel in Utrecht. Together with Rabobank, Reskyt, tritonX and Fozzels AI, we brought e-commerce professionals, retailers and brands together for an afternoon filled with insights, real-world examples and inspiration.
The central theme of this edition was ‘Scaling smarter in a changing e-commerce landscape’. Because growth in e-commerce is no longer simply about attracting more visitors or adding more sales channels. Consumer behaviour is changing, AI is playing an increasingly important role, and organisations need to maintain control over their commerce architecture, customer data and customer relationships at the same time.
Five experts shared their perspectives on how retailers and brands can prepare for these developments.
The future of retail is hybrid
Peter van Heerde – Rabobank
Peter van Heerde, Sector Strategist for Trade, Hospitality & Leisure at Rabobank, kicked off the afternoon with a look at the developments shaping retail. Online commerce, platforms, social commerce and AI continue to transform the playing field, while physical stores still have an important role to play.
It is precisely the combination of physical and digital that is becoming increasingly important. Stores add value through experience, personal interaction, service and trust, while digital channels provide reach and convenience. According to Peter, the future of retail is therefore hybrid. Future-ready retailers continuously respond to changing consumer needs and successfully combine technology, the relevance of physical stores and sustainability.
From webshop-first to omnichannel-first
Menno Hoek – NextChapter
Omnichannel offers retailers and brands significant opportunities for growth, but it also increases complexity behind the scenes. Menno Hoek showed how that complexity can continue to grow when new channels and functionality are added through separate systems, integrations and custom development.
At the same time, consumers expect one consistent experience across stores, webshops and other sales channels. This requires a foundation in which stores, webshops, marketplaces, inventory, orders and fulfilment work together from the start. Through real-world examples, Menno demonstrated how retailers can use this approach to operate more efficiently while creating new opportunities for growth. Scaling smarter does not start with adding more systems, but with a future-ready omnichannel-first commerce architecture.
The shopping app as a retention channel
Raymond Vonk – Reskyt
Raymond Vonk explained why a dedicated shopping app is becoming increasingly valuable as a retention channel. Mobile now accounts for the majority of e-commerce traffic, yet mobile websites often convert significantly less effectively than desktop. For the most engaged customers, an app can provide a faster and more direct shopping channel.
Success is not about maximising daily active users, but about repeat purchases and customer value. Push notifications, exclusive access and app-only promotions give customers a clear reason to return. The BBQuality case demonstrated the potential: just three months after launch, the app already accounted for 22% of online revenue, with that share continuing to grow. The key takeaway: an app does not create value simply by existing; customers need a reason to keep coming back to it.
From customer data to customer value
Sander Adriaansen – tritonX
Retailers have access to more customer data than ever, but they do not always use it to communicate with customers in a personal and relevant way. Sander Adriaansen showed how retailers can move beyond simply collecting data and start actively managing customer value.
By recognising customers, understanding their behaviour and rewarding loyalty, retailers can build a more complete customer view. AI can then be used to predict how much different customer groups are likely to spend and how likely they are to churn. Instead of sending every customer the same message, communication can be tailored based on future customer value. The central question: what could it mean for your revenue if your existing customers consistently spent more?
From keywords to questions for AI
Aljoscha Gielkens – Fozzels AI
The way consumers discover products and information is also changing rapidly. Aljoscha Gielkens showed how traditional keyword-based searches are increasingly being replaced by complete questions asked directly to AI systems. This is changing not only search, but ultimately part of the buying journey as well.
For retailers and brands, this creates a new challenge: if you are not visible and understandable to AI, you risk becoming less visible to potential customers too. This requires a different approach to content. It is no longer just about optimising for search engines, but also about structuring and writing information in a way that helps AI systems understand who you are, what you offer and why your offering is relevant. Discoverability is therefore increasingly about being visible in both traditional search and AI.
Scaling smarter requires choices
The five presentations approached e-commerce from different perspectives, but together they highlighted one clear development: the playing field is becoming broader. Customers move between physical stores, webshops, apps, platforms and AI, while retailers and brands need to manage an increasing number of systems, processes and data behind the scenes.
Scaling smarter therefore does not simply mean adding more channels, tools or technology. It requires deliberate choices: a strong commerce architecture, relevant customer relationships, smart use of data and AI, and channels that genuinely add value.
Alongside all the insights and presentations, there was also plenty of time to connect. During the closing drinks, attendees continued the conversations over drinks and bites, exchanged experiences and made new connections. It is precisely this combination of sharing knowledge, gaining inspiration and meeting others in the industry that makes the E-commerce Innovation Summit so valuable.
A big thank you to Rabobank, Reskyt, tritonX and Fozzels AI, all our speakers and, of course, everyone who joined us at Fort de Gagel. We look forward to the next edition of the E-commerce Innovation Summit!