From rising European tech investment forecast to reach $1.3 trillion, to demand for deals hotting up as Amazon confirms dates for Prime Day 2026, and Very Group expanding its locker network to enhance delivery convenience, what’s been making waves in retail this week?

Amazon sets dates for Prime Day 2026

Amazon has set the dates for its annual Prime Day event, which will return between 23 and 26 Jun 2026, bringing “millions” of deals to Prime Members across 35 categories over four days.

Since launching in 2015, Prime Day has grown into a multi-day discounting event, creating one of Amazon’s biggest revenue driving periods of the year, with deals available on its Prime webpage, across its app and via Alexa.

“Prime Day is the biggest shopping event of the year exclusively for Members,” said Jamil Ghani, VP of Amazon Prime. “The incomparable value of Prime keeps growing, and this year is no exception.”

However, as Prime Day has grown, more shoppers search for deals and make purchases outside of the four digital walls of Amazon’s platform. Data from Akeneo predicts 55% of customers will shop across multiple retailers, rather than relying exclusively on Amazon, for Prime Day purchases.

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London Tech Week: AI growth drives EU tech investment to $1.3tn

Europe’s technology market is entering a decisive era of growth, with IT spend forecast to reach $1.3 trillion in 2026, up +8.2% and representing its fastest pace since 2021, according to new data released ahead of London Tech Week 2026. 

Rapid growth is being driven by accelerating investment in AI infrastructure, cloud, software and services as organisations across Europe move from AI experimentation to real-world deployment.

Infrastructure spending alone is forecast to rise +31% to $154 billion, with servers growing +53%, as businesses look to meet growing demand for AI data centre expansion. 

“Europe has no shortage of AI ambition. The question now is how quickly we can turn that ambition into action,” said London Tech Week lead Carolyn Dawson OBE.

Heading to London Tech Week? Check out RRW’s preview of what not to miss at the city-wide celebration of tech, taking place next week (08 – 12 Jun): What not to miss at London Tech Week.

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ROI & economic concerns top retailers’ innovation challenges

Return on investment (ROI) and economic uncertainty remain retailers’ top digital transformation barriers, according to new figures from PMC.

Original research of over 100 senior retailers in its ‘Race To Unified Commerce’ report, produced with Retail Economics, showed that ROI and overall economic uncertainty were the most common transformation challenges for over a third (35%).

“Despite a challenging economic reality, retailers can’t afford to take their foot off the innovation accelerator,” commented Richard Lowe, CEO of PMC.

Infrastructure challenges are still creating roadblocks in retailers’ innovation strategies, with a third (33%) reporting ongoing issues with legacy systems and a further 24% citing internal silos among the problems preventing progress.

Speaking at PMC’s Commerce Leaders Forum, Retail Economics’ CEO, Richard Lim, said: “Retailers face a trade-off between the need to invest in innovation versus other, often competing, business needs around cost saving and margin protection.”

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Guest Post | How brands can prep for the World Cup opportunity

The World Cup will create a rush of interest and demand when it kicks off next month, with VoucherCodes predicting a £2.9bn boost to UK retail sales.

But Epsilon’s Victoria Peopall argues that not every retail brand should expect the same outcome from showing up. In our latest guest post, she explores:

🏃‍♂️‍➡️ Getting match ready: how brands can plan for demand spikes
🥅 Conversions drivers & consideration strategies ahead of the tournament
⚽ Connecting the moments that matter across time, device and channel
🏆 How to drive and measure campaign influence and impact

Read the full article 👉 Guest Post | Epsilon’s Vic Peopall on driving brand traction during the 2026 World Cup.

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Currys takes microdonations digital with Pennies

Currys has partnered with charity, Pennies, to launch microdonations on its website, aiming to bridge the UK’s digital divide and help tackle digital poverty.

The move will allow Currys’ customers to make microdonations when they shop online, donating small amounts quickly and easily at the checkout.

Building on the success of its in-store fundraising giving programme, which has raised over 800k since it first launched in-store, the retailer expects to double donations by opening up giving opportunities across its online channel.

The launch will further support Currys in growing its partnership with the Digital Poverty Alliance, supporting its efforts to address digital inequality.

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Very Group unlocks new PUDO capabilities with InPost

The Very Group expands its partnership with InPost UK to give customers shopping on Very and Littlewoods greater choice, convenience and control over how they receive their parcels.

Introducing parcel lockers, customers can collect orders from InPost’s nationwide network of 14,000+ locations across standard and next day deliveries.

“We know that families are tight on time, so to be able to give them the option to collect their delivery from a convenient location, really does offer a new level of ease,” said Sean Hallows, Chief Operations & Technology Officer at The Very Group.

The integration follows Very’s roll-out of InPost Lockers for returns earlier this year, which has seen significant adoption, with over 30% of its returns processed via InPost’s PUDO network.

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WWEX & Auctane complete merger, creating ShipStation Global

WWEX Group and Auctane have completed their merger, creating ShipStation Global, which will combine WWEX’ freight brokerage platform and network with Auctane’s AI-powered shipping software.

The combined company aims to give growing brands the operational power, technology, relationships and scale that have historically been accessible only to the largest players.

“SMBs have been forced to stitch together multiple tools and relationships just to keep up,” said Tom Madine, CEO of ShipStation Global. “ShipStation Global changes that, combining AI-powered shipping software with powerful freight networks.”

ShipStation Global’s portfolio will now include ShipStation, Stamps.com, Metapack, Packlink, Worldwide Express, GlobalTranz, Unishippers, JEAR Logistics and BLX Logistics.

The Retail Recap is brought to you in partnership with Flagship PR, a specialist comms agency that delivers pioneering PR for retail tech.