From predictions Valentine’s spending will be shaped by ’emotional ROI’, to OurCoop launching its new retail media offering and Superdrug’s continued investment in experience-led retail, what’s been making waves in retail this week?

Effort over expense to shape 2025 Valentine’s Day spending

Effort over extravagance will shape consumers’ seasonal spending during Valentine’s Day this year, according to data from VoucherCodes.

While 66% of UK consumers plan to spend the same or more on Valentine’s Day, almost half (47%) will prioritise gifts that require effort without significant spending. A further 42% say they will be guided by an “emotional return on investment” when purchasing Valentine’s gifts.

“Consumers haven’t fallen out of love with Valentine’s Day, but they are far more mindful of how they spend,” said Moji Oshisanya, CCO at VoucherCodes. “Spending is still happening, but it’s being directed towards purchases that feel thoughtful and emotionally relevant.”

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Dragon’s Den star Touker Suleyman joins RTS headliners

Dragon’s Den investor, Touker Suleyman, has been confirmed as a headline speaker at Retail Technology Show (RTS) 2026, the leading event that connects Europe’s most forward-thinking retailers and tech innovators.

Owner of British menswear label Hawes & Curtis, Suleyman brings more than 50 years’ experience across retail and will join Customer Whisperer, Kate Hardcastle MBE, on-stage at RTS.

Their a fireside chat will draw on Suleyman’s decades of experience building and scaling businesses, exploring the realities of retail growth and strategies for long-term value creation.

Suleyman joins an all-star cast of headline speakers at RTS 2026, including M&S Chairman, Archie Norman, and brand founder, serial entrepreneur and digital broadcaster, Grace Beverley.

To register for RTS, visit: https://www.retailtechnologyshow.com.

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OurCoop launches new RMN in partnership with GIG Retail

OurCoop has teamed up with GIG Retail to launch a new Retail Media Network (RMN), MediaCoop, giving third-party brands new multi-channel opportunities to reach and engage customers.

OurCoop, which combines Central Co-op, Midcounties Co-operative and Chelmsford Star Co-op under its group, represents £2billion in annual sales and comprises one million members.

Starting with its 500 food stores, MediaCoop will go “beyond traditional in-store tactics” – it will offer cross-channel engagement, from in-store to digital and across its app surfaces, as well as community-led activations and physical events.

“This is about working beyond the shelf,” said Debbie Robinson, CEO of OurCoop. “It’s not just about space or screens, but about showing up in the right places, at the right moments, in ways that connect product awareness with real customer needs.”

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Guest Post | Managing food retail’s short Valentine’s spike

With grocery retailers preparing for the short, sharp spike in Valentine’s Day demand, Invisible Systems’ Ben Ings explores how retailers can balance operational risk with commercial reward.

In our latest guest post, he explores:

🥂 Strategies for maintaining stock availability during peaks in demand
💕 Freeing staff from stock operations to serve shoppers
🍓 The role of IoT in reducing waste
🌹 Reducing risk with real-time visibility

Read the full article 👉 Guest Post | Invisible Systems’ Ben Ings on managing food retail’s short Valentine’s spike.

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Invent.ai showcases multi-agentic AI platform at EuroShop

Invent.ai, a global leader in AI-driven retail solutions, will showcase its multi-agentic AI platform at EuroShop 2026, which takes place between 22 – 26 February in Düsseldorf, Germany.

As retailers face a growing number of complex decisions that traditional tools and static forecasts cannot manage, invent.ai’s multi-agentic platform transforms granular retail data into intelligent, coordinated actions.

“At EuroShop, we’ll demonstrate how multi-agentic AI orchestrates decisions across inventory, pricing and stores, creating an adaptive operating model that outperforms traditional tools by orders of magnitude,” Gurhan Kok, Founder & CEO of invent.ai, commented.

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Urban Outfitters scales social growth with Nest Commerce

Urban Outfitters will work with Nest Commerce to accelerate performance across key social channels by scaling its digital and social creator content strategy.

Nest Commerce will create a dedicated content engine, working with digital creators across key social platforms, including Meta, TikTok, Snapchat and Pinterest.

Luke Jonas, Chief Growth Officer of Nest Commerce, said the move would “close the loop between performance and creative production” in response to a “new era of paid social personalisation, where creative volume and variety is the primary lever for success.”

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Superdrug invests in experiential retail with 30 new stores

Superdrug will open 30 new stores in 2026, extending its UK footprint to meet strong customer demand for “experience-led” physical retail.

Reflecting the health and beauty retailer’s nationwide growth plans and its continued investment into its bricks-and-mortar estate, the move is designed to elevate discovery and engagement, with a focus on larger format destination stores and retail park locations.

“Superdrug continues to see strong demand for physical, experience-led retail,” said Clare Jennings, Property Director at Superdrug. “We’re not just increasing our footprint, we’re creating destinations that bring together beauty, healthcare and affordable treatments.”

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