iMedia is ready for an insightful exploration into the world of Commerce. Our event features engaging keynotes, interactive panels, and fireside chats led by industry experts. Discover valuable insights and actionable strategies to boost your business success.
*Please note that session details are subject to change and will be updated regularly.
Join us in the Pearls Bar for some refreshments before a big day of networking.
Delegates arrive at the hotel to register and check in ahead of the afternoon formalities.
The Economics of Omnichannel: What Actually Pays Back
Omnichannel became operational reality in 2024. In 2026, the question is which parts protect margin and which quietly destroy it.
This session confronts the trade-offs many retailers are now being forced to unwind: fulfilment models that cost more than they return, inventory strategies that fragment stock without lifting sell-through, channel conflict that erodes performance, and returns policies that turn convenience into structural loss.
Commerce and PayPal facilitate, but retailers lead the discussion. Expect candid reflections on what scaled well, what failed under pressure, and what is now being redesigned or removed as cost-to-serve scrutiny intensifies.
This is about making deliberate choices on which omnichannel investments earn their place, and, which no longer do.
Light lunch is provided for all networkers. Learn how to make the most of your time at iMedia. Plus, ensure all meetings are scheduled for Business Connect.
Business Connect Playbook: How to Win in 5 Meetings
Sponsors and solution providers get a straight-talking guide to maximising their 1:1 meetings. Expect insider advice on framing conversations, understanding retailer priorities, and standing out as a trusted partner.
Retail in Motion: Setting the Stage for AU 2026
A sharp, high-energy welcome outlining the commercial realities shaping the agenda and the decisions leaders will leave prepared to make.
Retail has spent years digitising workflows. The next phase is more confronting: systems that decide, act, and optimise without waiting for approval.
Discovery algorithms choose what customers see. Pricing engines adjust margins in real time. Inventory systems allocate stock before teams review. Content platforms publish without sign-off. The shift is not from slow to fast. It is from assisted to autonomous.
Shopify sees this transition across thousands of retailers. This session shares the patterns emerging from retailers who are managing it well: where they draw boundaries, what they keep human, how they structure accountability, and what governance looks like when approval cycles disappear.
The platform is no longer a tool. It is an operator. The question is not whether to manage that shift, but how.
Retail growth was built on the assumption that customers knew what they wanted and went looking for it. That assumption no longer holds.
Discovery is now visual, predictive, and algorithm-led. Demand forms long before search, clicks, or site visits occur. As AI increasingly shapes what customers see and consider, retailers face a visibility problem traditional attribution can no longer explain.
This session reframes the top of funnel for 2026. It explores how intent forms earlier, why search and last-click models are losing relevance, and what retailers must change if they want to influence choice rather than simply react to it.
This is about shaping consideration before customers know what to search for.
Dinner Keynote | Leading Brands People Trust in an AI World
AI is now embedded across retail. Leaders are urged to move faster, automate more, and adopt earlier. But speed is no longer the differentiator. Trust is.
Drawing on decades inside global brands, Nick Gray explores what it takes to build organisations that are machine-enabled but human-trusted. He examines how trust is formed psychologically, how emotion shapes memory and loyalty, and why human judgment becomes more — not less — important as systems take on more decisions.
Rather than focusing on tools, this keynote looks inward: leadership presence, decision confidence, and the emotional climate teams operate within. It explores what happens when organisations defer judgment to systems instead of strengthening it.
This is a conversation about depth over speed, clarity over automation, and why leadership mindset determines whether AI creates momentum or confusion.
Day 2 begins with breakfast and barista coffee!
Hailed as one of the most rewarding parts of the summit, business connect involves 5 x 10 minute meetings designed to float topline objectives and explore synergies. Delegates are required to request and confirm these meetings prior to the summit.
Retailers across the region are learning a hard lesson. When decisions about data and AI move faster than culture and trust, the consequences surface fast and hit where it matters most: execution, margin, and organisational confidence.
Those consequences have played out through public backlash, failed initiatives, stalled programs, and margin pressure as trust failures turned into operational problems before leaders connected the dots. In many cases, the trigger was not bad intent, but decisions made at speed, under pressure, without fully accounting for how customers, teams, and regulators would respond.
Michael Lim shares what he has seen firsthand as AI adoption accelerates and expectations around data use tighten across the region. He shows how trust is established or broken well before a crisis, and why it now determines whether strategy translates into execution rather than becoming another initiative that never lands.
Trust failures don’t start as PR issues. They surface first as execution breakdowns.
Take a break and refuel with coffee and morning tea.
Personalisation promised relevance. For many retailers, it delivered noise.
Layered rules, excessive segmentation, and over-automated decisions have created journeys that confuse rather than guide.
Engagement suffers not from lack of data, but from too much of it applied without judgment. This session examines why personalisation breaks down in practice and how retailers are simplifying decision-making in 2026.
The shift is from building complexity to removing hesitation; using context and behaviour to guide, not overwhelm. The goal is not more personalisation. It is fewer moments of doubt.
Checkout abandonment is rarely about price or functionality. It is about confidence.
At the final step, customers reassess trust. Unfamiliar payment flows, excessive options, or subtle friction trigger hesitation that kills conversion when intent is highest.
This session explores why checkout has become a decision point, not a formality — and what retailers are changing to remove uncertainty, reinforce reassurance, and protect conversion at the moment that matters most.
Checkout is no longer the finish line. It is the final test of belief.
Retailers are under pressure to execute faster across channels and markets. Yet content velocity is slowing as complexity rises.
Fragmented systems, duplicated work, and unclear ownership are now the bottleneck. As AI accelerates creation, the real risk shifts from speed to loss of clarity over what goes live and why.
This session focuses on how retailers are rebuilding content foundations to move quickly without sacrificing control. It covers practical approaches to governance, workflow, and accountability that allow speed to scale without amplifying inconsistency.
Speed without control creates risk. Control without speed creates irrelevance.
International expansion rarely fails at strategy. It fails at execution.
Inconsistency, misinterpretation, and small experience gaps erode trust long before performance data flags a problem. As AI accelerates localisation, the risk of getting details wrong increases.
This session examines what must be governed as retailers scale globally — beyond translation. It focuses on protecting clarity, intent, and trust across markets when automation accelerates output but not judgment.
Scale is won or lost in details long before results show up in reporting.
Many retailers overspend in search without realising it.
Paid media increasingly recaptures demand already created through brand, content, and organic visibility. As AI blurs the boundary between paid, organic, and discovery, retailers risk paying twice for the same intent.
This session examines how search strategies are being restructured to cut waste, protect margin, and defend visibility. It focuses on identifying cannibalisation, aligning teams, and reallocating spend where it genuinely creates incrementality.
Most retailers are funding demand they already own.
Trust is no longer abstract. It is visible, measurable, and influential.
Reviews, responses, and public interactions shape decisions before customers ever reach a site or store. Yet for many retailers, this data is collected but ignored operationally.
This session shows how customer voice is being used as an input into decision-making — guiding priorities, exposing risk, and influencing demand.
Trust compounds faster than advertising. Reviews build it. Responses prove it.
Growth strategies built on a small number of channels scale quickly until conditions change.
Rising acquisition costs, platform dependency, and fragile attribution models are exposing how vulnerable many performance engines have become. When algorithms shift, partners change terms, or costs spike, growth built on narrow foundations is the first to fail.
This session examines how growth models are being redesigned to reduce dependency and increase resilience. The focus is on building partner ecosystems that create incrementality rather than concentration, improving visibility into true contribution, and balancing short-term performance with long-term stability.
This is about deciding whether growth can withstand pressure, not just whether it looks strong in favourable conditions.
Search still shapes demand, but it no longer behaves in ways leadership teams plan or budget for. Visibility is decoupling from traffic, and influence is declining long before performance drops appear in reporting.
This session examines how search is evolving in 2026 and what senior leaders must rethink as traditional SEO and attribution models lose reliability. The focus is on how retailers protect relevance, authority, and demand creation when clicks are no longer guaranteed.
Search is no longer just an acquisition engine. It has become a visibility, trust, and influence channel.
Traditional analytics show what customers do. They rarely show where customers struggle.
As journeys become more complex, the most damaging experience issues often appear long before conversion drops or complaints rise. Friction, hesitation, and confusion quietly undermine confidence while dashboards continue to look healthy.
This session looks at how behavioural insight is being used to surface where customers lose momentum, abandon decisions, or make avoidable mistakes. The focus is on identifying the moments that matter most and using those signals to prioritise fixes that improve experience and performance at the same time.
This is about seeing the experience from the customer’s perspective and acting on it before problems show up in the numbers.
Acquisition once fuelled growth. In 2026, it is constraining it. Rising costs, promotional fatigue, and diminishing returns have turned many paid growth models into margin liabilities rather than engines.
This keynote examines why acquisition-led growth stopped scaling for so many retailers and what replaces it when efficiency runs out. The focus is on how retention economics, lifecycle design, and value exchange are being rethought to drive repeat revenue without training customers to wait for the next offer.
Rather than adding more campaigns, the session looks at how retailers are reallocating effort toward the moments, signals, and behaviours that actually influence whether customers come back, pay full price, and stay engaged over time.
This is a practical conversation about rebuilding growth around relationships customers choose to maintain, not transactions held together by discounts.
Retailers are sitting on under-leveraged moments of intent after conversion, including post-checkout, confirmation, and engagement touchpoints. This quickfire shows how incremental margin can be unlocked in post-purchase moments without degrading experience or damaging customer relationships. It focuses on how value is created after the sale, not before it.
Margin does not end at checkout.
Are you a fan of the culinary world? Whether you're a kitchen maestro or more of a sous-chef in training, BBQ Like a Pro serves up a deliciously fun challenge! You and your team will face off in a sizzling team vs. team cookoff. Start things off with a dash of fun in "Guess That Herb," then unleash your inner chef as you prep and cook a signature dish for the judges.
What’s on the menu? A whole lot of laughs, a pinch of friendly competition, and a hearty serving of good times.
Prepare for the Gold Coast’s most exhilarating water adventure! Step aboard the ONLY jet boating experience that dives straight into high-speed thrills—no slow build-up, just instant action! Brace yourself for heart-pounding spins, tight turns, and the kind of excitement that might just have you shouting (in pure joy, naturally) as you race across the waves. Once you’ve caught your breath and dried off a bit, it’s time to unwind with drinks and canapés at a stunning waterfront location. It's the perfect blend of adrenaline and relaxation, all served with a side of scenic views!
Dress code alert: keep in casual and comfortable. Perhaps bring a set of dry clothes – just remember you are going to get wet and wild!
Get ready to shake things up in the most fun way possible with a Mixology Masterclass that’ll have you stirring, shaking, and sipping your way to cocktail greatness! Your very own cocktail Guru will guide you through the art of crafting top-notch drinks, teaching you the secrets behind popular cocktails and the magic of mixology.
Working in teams, you’ll embark on a creative mission to invent your own signature cocktail. With all the mixology secrets you’ve learned (and a few well-timed samples along the way), your inner cocktail artist will come to life.
But wait, there’s more! All your concoctions will be judged at the end, and the winning drink will earn the title of Best Cocktail. No pressure!
Ready to unleash your inner Picasso? Join us for a 3-hour paint and sip session at the Sheraton Grand Mirage, where you'll get to sip wine, snack on nibbles, and (attempt to) create a masterpiece. Our team of expert artists will walk you through everything from beginner brushstrokes to advanced techniques, but don’t worry—we’ll leave plenty of room for you to go rogue.
By the end of the day, even if your “abstract” art looks like a toddler’s masterpiece, you’ll still leave with something you can proudly hang on your fridge.
Step aboard your very own private catamaran and get ready for an afternoon of sailing through the stunning Gold Coast Broadwater—your new personal playground. Surrounded by sparkling turquoise waters and breathtaking views, you’ll feel like you’ve just stepped into a postcard.
Sail the Gold Coast's magnificent waterways from Southport to Sovereign Islands, cruise past sensational superyachts, visit isolated islands and pristine beaches, experience the thrill of sailing in complete comfort, and if the wind strikes, we will 'raft up' for a party on the water.
It’s the perfect mix of relaxation, adventure, and laughs, all set against the best backdrop imaginable. So, hop aboard for an unforgettable day on the water!
Dress code alert: Swimmers and towel (if you plan to swim), jacket (for cooler days), sunglasses and sunscreen, and shoes that you can easily slip off.
Get ready to swing into action at the stunning RACV Royal Pines Resort for a nine-hole competition that promises laughs, some very serious friendly rivalry, and maybe a few golf swings that leave us all wondering what just happened.
You’ll be teamed up in squads of four, where golf lovers (and those just here for the fun) can unite for the most social game around—Ambrose! After your team's valiant efforts to conquer the course (or, you know, just pretending to know what you’re doing), join us for well-deserved drinks and the all-important awards ceremony. Who’s taking home the trophies for First Place, Longest Drive, and Nearest to the Pin? Spoiler alert: It’s anyone’s game!
Brace yourself to swing, sip, and socialise like a golfing pro... or at least look the part while you’re at it!
Dress Code Alert: Collared shirts only, no singlets or t-shirts, and please, no thongs (we’re not on a beach). Closed shoes only—leave your metal spikes at home, it’s a soft spike course.
Buckle up and get ready for the ride of your life with the only 3 Level Indoor Go Karting Centre on the Gold Coast! The fun doesn’t stop there with the track's outdoor section great for getting the knees in the breeze (weather permitting of course). Whether you’re a rookie or a seasoned speedster, this track will challenge even the most skilled drivers.
The track itself is 475m long and can be run rain hail or shine which makes it perfect for a Gold Coast wet weather activity! The go-karts can zoom up to a heart-racing 70 km/h, so hold on tight, things are about to get fast and furious.
Dress code alert: Closed flat shoes only—leave your flowing capes, dresses, and scarves at home.
Dock & Dash: iMedia YOT Club Cocktail Evening with DoorDash
Join the full delegation for a premium sunset cocktail evening aboard YOT Club, where relaxed, high-value networking meets a vibrant waterfront atmosphere.
This hosted evening features curated food and drinks, music, and an elevated social setting designed to spark genuine connections and continue conversations from the day. As the sun sets over the water, guests will enjoy a memorable experience that blends celebration, energy, and meaningful interaction.
Day 3 begins with breakfast and barista coffee!
Sustainability is no longer a future ambition for retail. It is a daily operational reality, often sitting in direct tension with margin pressure, supply chain complexity, and customer expectations.
In this fireside, senior leaders from Winning Group and Electrolux discuss what sustainability actually costs, where trade-offs become unavoidable, and how retailers are navigating the gap between customer expectations and commercial viability.
This is not a case study in perfection. It is an honest conversation about the decisions leaders must make when doing the right thing conflicts with protecting the business.
As assortments grow and categories expand, complexity becomes a hidden performance risk.
In high-choice, high-consideration environments, conversion loss is rarely caused by lack of demand. It happens when customers cannot make progress through too much information, too many options, or poorly structured paths.
This session examines how retailers manage choice at scale by reducing friction, prioritising relevance, and structuring experiences that help customers move forward without adding complexity.
Clarity is no longer a UX detail. It is a conversion strategy.
Customers rarely say why they leave. They just disappear.
As shoppers move across SMS, chat, reviews, and social messages, slow or absent responses are no longer tolerated. They are interpreted as disinterest.
This quickfire examines why response speed now directly impacts conversion and repeat business. Replying in minutes, not hours, has become a visible signal customers actively judge.
Speed is no longer an internal metric. It is a competitive advantage.
Retail transformation does not fall apart in strategy. It comes undone when decisions get difficult.
In this quickfire, Mindera challenges a common misconception: most retailers do not have a technology problem; they have an execution problem, driven by unclear ownership, slow decision-making, and delivery teams pulled between competing priorities.
As digital programs move from planning to reality, momentum is lost not because the tools are wrong, but because responsibility is blurred and progress stalls when trade-offs appear.
This session is a candid look at where transformation actually succeeds or stalls. Not in the roadmap, but in who is empowered to decide, how work is structured, and how organisations move forward when conditions change.
Customers are not looking for more options. They are looking for confidence.
Choice overload is one of the most underestimated problems in retail. Customers rarely leave because the range is weak, but because they are unsure what is right for them.
Preezie unpacks how guided selling shifts shoppers from hesitation to certainty by cutting noise instead of adding extra steps or features. A handful of smart questions and clearer pathways can lift conversion, reduce returns, and leave customers feeling confident rather than overwhelmed.
The focus is simple: the retailers who pull ahead are not those with the largest assortment, but those who make choosing feel fast, simple, and safe.
Take a break and refuel with morning tea.
A facilitated working session where retailers pressure-test real decisions with peers. Topics are curated to surface genuine tension between defensible opposing positions. The goal is clarity, not consensus. Retailers leave with better judgment, not answers.
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Australian retail does not have a technology problem. It has a capability problem. And it is getting worse.
As platforms simplify workflows and AI automates decisions, teams are losing the ability to think critically, challenge assumptions, and design distinctive experiences. The tools are getting better. The strategic thinking is declining.
This panel brings together senior retail leaders for an honest conversation about the capability crisis facing the industry:
This is a practitioner-led conversation about the hardest organisational challenge facing retail in 2026, and what leaders must do differently to build teams that can think, not just execute.
Retail strategies are often built on what customers say they want. Their behaviour tells a different story.
In this quickfire, Behamics explores the behavioural patterns that sit beneath profitable and unprofitable purchases. Drawing on behavioural science, the session examines how bias, habit, and uncertainty influence buying behaviour in ways traditional research often misses.
This is a challenge to how retailers interpret customer insight. Better commercial outcomes come from understanding how people actually behave, not from optimising around what they claim they will do.
Agentic AI will fundamentally change retail. But will it liberate retailers to focus on what matters, or will it commoditise brands and erode the customer relationship entirely?
This live debate presents two opposing visions of retail's AI-powered future:
Position 1 - The Optimist:
AI agents will create retail's golden age. Retailers will finally escape the noise of acquisition and conversion optimization, focusing instead on product quality, brand distinctiveness, and value delivery. AI will reward the best, not just the loudest.
Position 2 - The Skeptic:
AI agents will commoditise retail. As machines choose products based on data and optimization, brand loyalty will erode, differentiation will collapse, and retailers will compete in a race to the bottom on price and features. The customer relationship dies.
Through structured argument and audience Q&A, this debate will surface the real tensions, trade-offs, and uncertainties retailers must navigate as AI becomes the interface between brand and customer.
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