VIENNA, 26th JUNE 2026 — Day 3 of the Global Summit took a closer look at the evolving nature of consumer preferences, and how they’ve altered modern leadership within the retail industry. From China, to Turkey, to the UK, notions of disruption, differentiation, and data were called to the forefront, as companies continue to calibrate business strategy alongside a transformational landscape.
To kick-off the morning, Salling Group’s CEO, Anders Hagh, provided a breakdown of the group’s internal expansion strategy. By introducing the “Local Heroes” playbook, he focused on the idea of balancing decentralized, local decision-making with physical formats, all while staying digitally relevant and competitive within the Baltic and Danish markets.
Another dilemma facing modern leadership is the notion of ongoing disruption. Rami Baitiéh, CEO of Morrisons, explored the nuances faced across the British retail market, including the adaptation to flashing shelf tech and rising competition. He underscored the value in remaining adaptable, outlining a ‘555’ task-execution playbook for retailers to navigate operational bottlenecks.
“If you stay in your office and think everyone will tell you everything you need to know, it’s an illusion. You must go to every shop floor yourself to increase your overall awareness of what is happening on-the-ground.” – Rami Baitiéh, CEO of Morrisons
Looking closer at the concept of digitalisation, Hao Xu, Vice President of Sustainable Social Value and Head of Carbon Neutrality Lab, Tencent, emphasised the importance of embedding commerce into daily social tasks via WeChat’s “atomic items.” His insights outlined a proactive approach to translating friction-free social gifting into consumer value, while scaling innovation across dynamic retail markets.
“We look at the consumer, the business, and society as a whole, integrating all three elements into everything we do under our ‘Tech for Good’ vision. Anything that ultimately drives value for society will make a strong business case sooner or later.” – Hao XU, Vice President of Sustainable Social Value and Head of Carbon Neutrality Lab, Tencent
Turkish retailer, Hepsiburada, took to the stage to further dissect their evolving retail market. Nilhan Onal Gökçetekin, CEO at Hepsiburada, highlighted that in volatile, high-inflation markets, success requires abandoning fixed targets for fluid execution, deploying AI-driven virtual warehouses to navigate dropping purchasing power.
To conclude the 3-day programme, CGF co-chairs, Max Koeune, President & Chief Executive Officer of McCain Foods, and Ken Murphy, Group CEO at Tesco Plc, took to the stage and reminded leaders, that while digital capabilities and artificial intelligence are accelerating rapidly, human insight, collaborative leadership, and human judgement remain the ultimate differentiators for securing long-term enterprise value.
With over 900 attendees, 125 speakers across 70 sessions, ranging from interactive workshops to I-Talks, and attendees traveling from more than 40 countries, the Global Summit proved its success. By diving into core industry themes like AI execution and evolving consumer habits, it left executives with the tangible tools to leverage their “Adaptive Edge”.
Looking forward, The Consumer Goods Forum is delighted to announce next year’s Global Summit, taking place in San Francisco from June 8-11, 2027. At the heart of Silicon Valley, leaders will dive even deeper into the topics of AI and tech, continuing to dissect strategies across the supply chain and prioritise the evolving needs of the global consumer.
