From agentic AI to digital payments, this is the ultimate list of online retail trends shaping 2025. Plus, essential commerce insights that may not be trendy, but are just as crucial to know.
If there’s one thing in the world of commerce that doesn’t change, it’s the number of trends every retailer has to keep tabs on. Some trends are brand-new, and some, not so much, but there’s no doubt retailers are bombarded with a tremendous amount of themes they have to watch, try out and, with any luck, successfully implement them.
To help cut through the noise, check this comprehensive list of trends that really matter.
Trend #1: AI-driven innovation in retail: A new era of intelligent commerce
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping the retail landscape, evolving from an experimental add-on to a core strategic pillar across the entire commerce ecosystem. As digital and physical channels converge, AI is emerging as the essential engine that drives more intelligent, adaptive and responsive retail experiences.
Today’s consumers expect fast, frictionless and highly personalized interactions, delivered in real time and across any device or channel. Retailers, in turn, must respond with the agility and insight that only AI can offer. From hyper-personalized marketing and dynamic merchandising to conversational commerce and intelligent automation, AI enables retailers to deliver better experiences, make smarter decisions, and unlock new efficiencies.
But AI’s impact goes far beyond the customer experience. Behind the scenes, it's transforming operations, optimizing inventory levels, forecasting demand, streamlining fulfillment and even guiding pricing strategies. AI is also setting the stage for the next frontier in commerce: Agentic systems that can act autonomously on behalf of consumers or retailers, pushing the boundaries of convenience and intelligence.
This transformation is not just about adopting new tools; it’s about redefining how retail works. As we explore the specific AI-powered trends shaping the future of commerce, it’s clear that those who invest in AI now are building the foundations of tomorrow’s most innovative and resilient retail businesses. Let’s have a look at the main streams of AI innovation impacting retailers.
AI is becoming foundational to retail, playing a central role in both frontend and backend systems in the following ways:
AI shopping assistants and virtual try-ons: AI enables immersive experiences like virtual fitting rooms, style advisors and intelligent product discovery that adapts to user context and preferences.
Voice-enabled search and smart discovery: Consumers increasingly use voice assistants (e.g., Alexa, Google Assistant) to search and shop, and AI ensures these interactions are relevant and conversational.
AI-driven personalization at scale: AI analyzes real-time behavioral and contextual data to tailor product recommendations, dynamic landing pages and content, reducing search friction and increasing conversions.
Selling through conversational interfaces such as chatbots, messaging apps and voice assistants, AI makes these experiences intelligent, adaptive and human-like.
AI chatbots guide product discovery, resolve service issues, and even complete transactions, all within apps like WhatsApp, Messenger or your brand site.
Multimodal interfaces (text, voice, image) are emerging, supporting seamless commerce across devices and languages.
AI significantly improves efficiency in back-office functions:
Automated inventory management: Real-time tracking and AI-based restocking help avoid overstock or stockouts.
Demand forecasting: Machine learning models analyze historical and seasonal trends, social sentiment, and external signals to predict demand with high accuracy.
Dynamic pricing and merchandising: AI dynamically adjusts pricing and product placements based on user behavior, market demand, and competition.
AI enables real-time personalization for the entire customer journey:
Content, offers and search results adapt dynamically to individual users.
Predictive models identify next-best actions, like when to send a discount or suggest a product refill.
AI tracks micro-behaviors to deliver 1:1 marketing at scale.
Retail is entering a new phase with agentic AI in retail, with systems that act autonomously to serve customer needs:
Proactive commerce: AI reaches out with offers or reminders before the customer asks.
AI shopping agents: Soon, consumers will delegate shopping tasks to AI agents that understand preferences, budgets, and timing. These agents will be essentially personal shoppers powered by data.
How commercetools enables AI-powered commerce
Trend #2 – Digital payments and wallets: Addressing customer needs and increasing conversions
Cards and digital alternatives continue to steal share at checkout from cash and check, a retail payment trend that tends to increase globally as consumers familiarize themselves with cashless options. Global events, such as the 2024 Olympics in Paris, as well as local festivals like Munich’s Oktoberfest, are increasingly adopting digital ways for customers to pay.
Brands and retailers looking for ways to elevate customer experiences, take note. The ability to offer payment options aligned with customer needs can unlock successful conversions and sustainable revenue generation, even more so if you’re transacting across multiple countries.
In addition to digital wallets, such as Apple Pay, a myriad of new and refurbished payment methods continue to emerge, from BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) services (e.g., Klarna, Afterpay) embedded at checkout to subscription commerce models for replenishment, curation or membership. Even crypto payments are now growing in luxury or tech spaces.
Overall, being able to plug and play multiple payments at scale to meet local or specific demographic requirements is crucial for retailers to remain competitive.
How commercetools enables digital payments integration
Trend #3 – Unified commerce: The technology behind real omnichannel experiences
Unified commerce in retail integrates all sales channels, inventory, customer data and payment systems into a single real-time platform. Unlike traditional omnichannel approaches, it breaks down internal silos to provide a holistic view of customer interactions, enabling consistent, personalized shopping experiences across both online and offline touchpoints.
By consolidating all information into a single operational layer, retailers can:
Enhance customer experience through seamless omnichannel interactions, allowing shoppers to move effortlessly between online and offline touchpoints with consistent service, pricing and product availability.
Deliver highly personalized experiences by leveraging unified customer data to tailor product recommendations, promotions and communications across channels.
Streamline decision-making with real-time analytics, empowering marketers, store associates and more to act on data for marketing campaigns, clienteling and customer engagement.
Reduce operational inefficiencies and duplication of effort by centralizing systems and workflows, leading to cost savings and improved agility in responding to market changes.
Leverage physical stores beyond transactional touchpoints, enabling them to work as fulfillment, order pickup, return hubs and immersive experiences. The seamless flow of data, such as store-level access to CRM data and instant inventory information, enables store associates to serve customers across various scenarios, unlocking more value out of the brick-and-mortar store. As a result, retailers can reduce shipping costs and capitalize on footfall in-store.
For brands, this means picking up the thread of where the customer currently is, and then providing guidance on where to go next without friction. This means enabling shoppers to:
Try products out in stores and save them to a shopping list or cart on their brand’s app, and complete the purchase online later.
Return products without a paper receipt, because store associates can see all customer purchase activity across channels without having to match up different order sources. Or even better: Shoppers can buy products in one store and return them in another.
Check online whether a product is available in a specific store before visiting.
Visit a showroom for consultation and get a personalized voucher that leads to the brand’s eCommerce store.
These real-world use cases show that unified commerce is the next step brands and retailers need to take to move the needle.
How commercetools enables unified commerce
Trend #4 – Social commerce: The rise of interactive retail
The retail landscape is undergoing a major transformation as social commerce takes center stage. By 2030, 70% of global consumers are expected to shop primarily through social media platforms, bypassing traditional websites altogether.
Platforms like Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest are evolving into full-fledged shopping ecosystems. With features like Instagram Checkout and TikTok Shop, consumers can now browse, buy and review products without ever leaving the app. The integration of influencer marketing, user-generated content and shoppable video posts is creating a frictionless, highly personalized shopping experience that’s proving powerful with Gen Z and Millennial audiences.
Live commerce, or livestream shopping, builds on this momentum by blending entertainment with eCommerce. Inspired by the success of platforms like Taobao Live in Asia, North American retailers are increasingly turning to live shopping events hosted on social platforms or brand-owned channels. These events allow brands to showcase products in real time, answer customer questions, offer limited-time promotions and build urgency, all within an engaging, interactive format. It’s impulse-friendly and blurs the line between content and commerce.
Immersive technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are adding further depth to this evolution, redefining how consumers interact with products online. Retailers are deploying AR to let shoppers virtually try on clothes, test cosmetics or see how furniture looks in their homes. Meanwhile, VR is enabling entirely new formats of digital storefronts, such as virtual showrooms where users can explore curated product collections in 3D environments.
Complementing these advances is the rise of voice commerce, powered by conversational AI and smart assistants. Consumers can now search for products, check order statuses and even complete purchases through voice-enabled devices like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
Finally, retailers are increasingly making every piece of omnichannel content shoppable. This approach transforms traditional, non-commercial content into seamless purchase opportunities, allowing consumers to shop organically. For example, NBCUniversal, a leading media conglomerate, runs its own marketplace for consumers to shop while watching their favorite NBCUniversal movies and shows.
Together, these trends signal a clear shift: Retail is becoming more social, more immersive and more interactive. Brands that can deliver cohesive, engaging experiences across these emerging channels will be best positioned to capture the next generation of digital-first consumers.
How commercetools enables interactive retail
The less trendy (but equally important) themes you should know about
There are certain themes that never go out of fashion, from privacy-oriented data strategies to cross-border eCommerce and omnichannel fulfillment. Here are some of the most relevant:
Mobile commerce continues its rapid ascent, with consumers increasingly using their smartphones not only for online shopping, but also as in-store companions to research products, compare prices and check inventory in real time.
As mobile commerce becomes the norm, brands must prioritize mobile-first strategies, ensuring their apps and mobile sites offer the functionality and user experience consumers expect. Failure to do so risks falling behind in an increasingly competitive digital marketplace.
How commercetools helps:
Trust is the foundation of modern commerce. Nearly all consumers now expect transparency and control over how their data is used. Privacy-first strategies, centering on first-party and zero-party data, are becoming essential. According to a study, 95% of companies found their privacy investments returned $160 for every $100 spent, with 80% recognizing privacy as key to building customer trust and loyalty.
Indeed, brands must strike a delicate balance: While personalization enhances customer engagement, excessive or intrusive use of personal data can lead to discomfort and erode trust. While brands are increasingly leveraging AI to find equilibrium, consumers are concerned about how advanced technologies will breach their privacy. That said, companies must prioritize transparency, consent and value exchange. Clearly communicate how data is used, offer meaningful incentives in return and give customers control over their preferences.
Leveraging AI responsibly — with human oversight and bias mitigation — can enhance personalization without crossing privacy lines.
How commercetools helps:
Retailers are monetizing their own digital real estate by launching their own ad platforms, providing a type of advertising platform that allows retailers to sell ad space on their digital channels to third-party brands.
In other words, retail media networks (RMNs) are advertising opportunities, aka product placements, that online retailers offer to other companies on their digital commerce channels, be it their website, mobile app or even in-store digital display. These virtual billboards give advertisers a direct line to the retailer’s customers, which can expand their audience exponentially.
How commercetools helps:
Cross-border commerce continues its upward trajectory. Retail TouchPoints reports that global eCommerce is projected to hit $9.3 trillion by 2027, underscoring vast international opportunity. As consumers increasingly shop outside their country, merchants benefit from configuring shipping, pricing and localization to enable seamless global reach.
While international trade has long been a cornerstone of global business, cross-border digital commerce remains a vital growth engine, even amid geopolitical tensions and recent tariff increases introduced by the US government.
How commercetools helps:
Marketplaces remain relevant, so much so that they’re projected to comprise 59% of eCommerce. B2B marketplaces are now the fastest-growing digital sales channel and are expected to reach $351 billion USD in combined sales.
Today, there are vertical marketplaces dedicated to specific industries, such as luxury fashion, C2C marketplaces that enable users to buy and sell products consumer-to-consumer, and of course, the classic horizontal marketplaces that sell products across various categories, such as Amazon and Alibaba.
How commercetools helps:
Omnichannel fulfillment strategies — including buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS), click and collect, same-day delivery, curbside pickup (pick up outside the store, typically from the customer’s car) and BORIS (buy online, return in-store) — are becoming essential capabilities that fuel customer satisfaction, operational efficiency and retail growth.
In other words, physical stores are no longer just showrooms or pickup points — they’re now strategic nodes in the commerce ecosystem. Every visit, whether for a pickup, a return or an exchange, is an opportunity to drive further sales and deepen engagement.
In this new retail reality, the journey doesn’t stop at checkout. It continues across fulfillment, post-purchase experiences and ongoing engagement, all powered by data, automation and connected systems.
How commercetools helps:
From trends to action with commercetools
From the rise of agentic AI to the rapid evolution of unified commerce, digital payments and immersive shopping experiences, the trends reshaping retail are as varied as they are vital. At the same time, foundational capabilities like mobile optimization, privacy-first data practices and omnichannel fulfillment remain non-negotiable for success.
In other words, retailers must embrace innovation and balance it with operational excellence and customer trust to thrive in this increasingly complex environment.
What’s clear is that commerce today demands agility, composability and a forward-looking strategy. Whether it’s tapping into social commerce or scaling globally with localized precision, businesses that invest in flexible, API-first architectures like commercetools are best positioned to lead. Staying competitive in 2025 isn’t about chasing every shiny trend — it’s about mastering the right ones and executing on the fundamentals with speed, intelligence and intent.
To explore all the emerging trends, technologies and opportunities shaping the future, download our white paper, Reimagining Retail in 2025: How retailers are adapting, evolving and thriving in a changing world.
Manuela Marques Tchoe is a Content Writer at commercetools. She was a Content and Product Marketing Director at conversational commerce provider tyntec. She has written content in partnership with Facebook, Rakuten Viber and other social media platforms.