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- Shoptalk Fall kicks off tomorrow — are you AI-ready?
Shoptalk Fall kicks off tomorrow — are you AI-ready?
Here’s your 24-hour guide to making it count in Chicago
Zihan Lyu
September 16, 2025
Hi there,
Shoptalk Fall opens its doors tomorrow and AI is set to take center stage.
🧐 Let’s Take A Guess First…
📊 Quick Poll: What % of Shoptalk Fall sessions mention AI?Take your best guess. No pressure. |
📌 We’ll reveal the real answer at the bottom of the newsletter!
🤖 Editor’s Note - AI in Retail & Marketing
AI has become a critical lever for growth, reshaping how retailers plan campaigns, manage inventory, and deliver customer experiences. More than nine in ten retail brands report using AI today, and many are increasing investment to drive deeper engagement (SAP Emarsys, 2025).
The biggest shift is speed and adaptability. Campaign production cycles that once took weeks can now be executed in days, allowing teams to respond to cultural trends and social buzz while they’re still relevant. Retailers applying AI to demand forecasting and automated decisioning are reporting double-digit lifts in conversion during peak trading periods (Deloitte, 2025).
But fast decisions are only as good as the data behind them. This is where Fospha helps teams cut through noise and see which channels are genuinely creating demand. By combining granular attribution with predictive models, Fospha gives retailers a unified view of how paid media is driving revenue across DTC, Amazon, and other key channels - and the confidence to reallocate budgets with precision.
AI is also expanding its influence beyond marketing, helping retailers predict which products are likely to be returned, allocate inventory across channels, and automate order routing to cut costs while improving customer satisfaction. Together with a clear measurement strategy, these capabilities give retailers the ability to move faster and build more resilient growth.
🎤 Don't Miss These AI-Focused Sessions:
Leveling Up on Search in the AI Era (Athleta, Target, Edible Brands)
🕐 Day2 | 9:35 – 10:15 AM | AIR
Retail Intelligence: What AI Can – and Can’t – Do Today (ThredUp, Lowe’s, Tanger)
🕐 Day2 | 4:15 – 4:55 PM | AIR
Multi-Faceted Personalization That Converts (Taco Bell, Spotify)
🕐 Day3 | 1:05 – 1:45 PM | AIR
ClickZ is collecting POVs from brands and leaders navigating AI adoption - share yours to be part of the conversation.
🤩 Who’s Ready for Tomorrow?
With Shoptalk Fall just hours away, speakers and attendees alike are already sharing what they’re looking forward to.
Ahead of Shoptalk Fall tomorrow, we caught up with Amelia Garone, Fospha’s Head of Marketing & GTM Strategy, to ask what the most practical takeaways will be this year, and how marketers should rethink their playbooks. She shares three things to act on right now: If you’re heading to Chicago, drop Amelia a DM and connect in person! |
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🧭 Final Prep Checklist
📍 Venue:
McCormick Place Convention Center - South Building
2301 S Martin Luther King Dr, Chicago, IL 60616
[Getting to McCormick Place]
Badge Pickup will be available at McCormick Place, South Halls, Level 3 at the following time:
- Wednesday, September 17th: 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM all attendees (exhibitors from 8:00 AM)
📲 Download the TLS App
Check the latest schedule, bookmark your sessions, and access venue maps. (Available via the Apple Store & Google Play Store)
📲 Like what you’re seeing?
See you tomorrow!
The Unofficially Shoptalk Team
📣 Poll results reveal: 19% of sessions are AI-focused, indicating that AI is a significant theme at Shoptalk Fall but not dominating the agenda
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